It’s no secret that I’ve been a long time fan girl of Casey Von Stein (better known as Miss Freddy.)

As a professional photographer turned Certified Professional Photo Organizer, Casey spends her days sharing helpful tips on Instagram and offers done-for-you photo organization services and DIY courses for those interested in managing their photo overwhelm on their own.

In this episode of the Frame of Life Podcast we explore common myths and misconceptions about Photo Organization.

MYTH #1: iCloud is a Backup

FALSE

iCloud is a sync, not a backup. It can help you ensure that your photos are stored on multiple apple devices at one time (through the iCloud) using a specific Apple ID. However, if you accidentally delete photo off of your phone, it will delete off iCloud (and vice-a-versa). If you lose your apple ID or if you run out of space on iCloud and don’t upgrade your storage plan, you may not be actively syncing all of your photos.

MYTH # 2: You only need to back up once and then you’re done

FALSE

While it is great that you have 1 backup, industry standard promotes having 3 backups (2 off site and 1 local). An example would be having your phone, Google Photos and an external hard drive with copies of all of your photos/videos. This helps ensure that you have copies in the case of emergency (like flood or fire in your home) or if you drop your phone into the lake or it is stolen.

Listen to Episode 3: Time to Backup: to dive deeper into how and when to Backup!

MYTH #3: You should delete the screenshots & blurry photos first

FALSE

Casey and I both agree that it is best to spend time focusing on what is most important to you and your memory keeping needs before focusing on cleaning up everything first. In the digital age, we take tens of thousands of photos annually and keeping on track with cleaning them up can be daunting, if not impossible with limited time.

Focusing on identifying, sorting & backing up your MVP (most important photos & videos) first will help you make sure you’ve got the photos you want when you want them.

I love recommending using this Photo & Family Heirloom Collection Tracker that I’ve created on Google Sheets to help start a running list of locations for your MVP photos and videos.

MYTH #4: Apple Photos Sucks

MAYBE FALSE (lol)

This one made me giggle a little when I read it on my notes. It is a belief I’ve had for years. Mostly because iCloud and iPhotos have confused me for years. Casey encouraged our listeners who are tied into the Apple Universe with iPhones and Mac computers to lean into using the services that iCloud offers as a benefit.

She recommends using “Optimize Photos” as a way of storing digital previews on your phone with the full version on iCloud, as a way to save space on your phone and help reduce the need to buy a larger memory storage based phone. She considers investing in iCloud as an investment in Apple advancing technology to continue to make viewing and sharing photos easier.

We also discussed cool ways you can set up family plans and utilize individual Apple IDs and email addresses for each kid in your family to manage screen time and parental controls.

This episode is chock full of great advice and I’d love to hear what resonates most with you!

Before you head out you might want to download our List of Popular Photo Sources

Affilaite Links we chatted about:

Ollie (Photo Organization App)

Aura Frame

Projector App

Miss Freddy’s backup Bootcamp – use code FOL at checkout for $10 off the Backup Bootcamp Course

To Binge Listen to the Podcast — You’ll also love…

Getting Intentional With The Memories You Make

Curate Your Legacy

Photo Collection and Heirloom Tracker

Wanna watch the Podcast interview on YouTube instead? Gotcha covered: