1. Contrary to popular belief, digital images do degrade over time.

Every time a photo is copied, shared, and re-shared, it loses quality. Pixels are lost. Hard drives can burn out, computers become outdated, and web links break. Images stored on a DVD may no longer play on an updated Blu-Ray player; each generation of technology places the previous generation of tech at risk of becoming outdated.

But a printed and cared-for photograph can last decades, even centuries. There is a timelessness to printed photos that cannot be replaced.

2. No devices or electricity needed.

It’s hard to share a photo taken with your phone if your phone battery is dead! Photographs are– obviously– not tied to a device. You can view them anywhere, and they are less vulnerable to being lost by a damaged phone or computer.

How many family photos do you have sitting on a hard drive in a closet or box? It’s much easier to put a photo on display than a hard drive!

3. Building a physical connection to the past.

We’ve all run across photos of ourselves as children at some point in our lives. That’s a special feeling.
Pictures are also a wonderful way for kids to see their own growth over time, and for them to have a physical, tangible connection to their past.