RISK
The history documented in the pictures, papers, and recordings you have accumulated over the years represents your personal history. You may not realize it, but that history is fading away a little bit each day. Your photos, home movies, documents, and slides are losing their color, beginning to become brittle, and losing the battle in the war against time.
Paper was never intended to be a long-term media. It was designed to be read and discarded. Photos yellow and fade. Both are subject to becoming brittle and fragile with time and are prone to rips, tears, and discoloration. Early black and white photographs were developed and mounted with a paper backing, which over time has proven to peel, curl, and become brittle, leading to damage of the image. Prior to the late ’80s, the chemistry used in creating color photographs was fairly unstable, leading to discoloration and fading.
Camera film, photographic negatives, slides, and home movies captured to film can suffer from a “disease” known as Vinegar Syndrome, a chemical of degradation that occurs with cellulose acetate film and is characterized by an obvious vinegar smell. Unfortunately, any film made with acetate backing was made prior to 1980, meaning your parent's or grandparents' Super8 camera film could be lost by the ravages of time.
Every time you touch them, you can leave residual oil and other contaminants behind. These oils from the skin are acidic and can damage both paper and film. The oils also collect dust and other contaminants that are abrasive leading to scratches and tears. The best solution for trying to lengthen the life of your film, photos, books, and documents is to handle them as little as possible, and store them in a temperature and humidity stable environment that is subject to very little UV light.
The less you touch them, the longer they will last. It will buy you time, but how much? Even if you take every reasonable step to ensure your keepsakes are stored properly, there is still a lack of protection from fire, natural disaster, mildew, or even animals and insects. As unlikely as any of that sounds, is it worth taking the risk? These are irreplaceable artifacts of your personal history.
By creating a digital copy of the recorded accounts of your history, you capture the past in a format that is not susceptible to the same risk factors as your analog collection. If you don’t digitize the documents and recordings, you risk losing everything to the passage of time. The most practical way to access this content is by creating a searchable database that allows you to explore your past from anywhere. A "My History Archive" will not only help you preserve the original materials while making them available online, it will also allow you to share your collection, and connect others to your history as well. After all your History Is Everything!
Subscriptions
MY HISTORY ARCHIVES