How to digitise old family photos: a simple UK guide

Most families have a box of photos in a cupboard or loft: prints, albums, a few envelopes of negatives, maybe some slides. Everyone agrees they should be "put on the computer" one day. This guide explains the three realistic ways to do it, what each one involves, and how to decide.

Why it is worth doing now

Printed photos do not last forever. Colour prints from the 1960s, 70s and 80s fade and shift colour, often turning pink or orange as the cyan dye breaks down. Albums with sticky "magnetic" pages slowly yellow the photos they hold. Damp lofts and garages cause mould and curling. And most families have only one copy of each photo, kept in one house.

Once photos are digital they stop fading, they can be backed up, and every member of the family can have their own copy.

Option 1: scan them yourself

A flatbed scanner costs from around £80. It gives good quality, but it is slow: each photo has to be placed, scanned, named and saved. At a steady pace that is one or two photos a minute, so a shoebox of 1,000 photos is a long project. Dedicated high-speed photo scanners are much quicker, but cost several hundred pounds.

Good for: a small number of photos, and people who enjoy the process.

Option 2: use a phone app

Free phone apps photograph your prints and remove glare. They are free and quick for a handful of favourites, but the results are photographs of photographs: lower detail, uneven light and no good way to handle negatives or slides.

Good for: sharing a few photos quickly on WhatsApp. Not for keeping the family archive.

Option 3: use a scanning service

You send or drop off your photos and receive high-quality files back, usually by download link or USB stick, with your originals returned. It costs money, but it saves many hours and handles negatives, slides, albums and tapes properly.

Good for: anything more than a few dozen photos, film, and anyone who would rather spend the time enjoying the results.

What to check before choosing a service

Scanning services can look similar at first glance, but the details make a big difference to what you pay and what you end up with. These are the questions worth asking before you send anything.

Is the price clear, and what is the real total?

A low price per photo can hide extra costs. Check for a minimum order charge, which can make a small envelope of photos surprisingly expensive, and for separate fees for return postage, digital downloads or USB sticks. A good service lets you work out the full cost before you send anything, and tells you whether the price per photo drops for larger orders.

When do you pay?

Some services ask for payment or a deposit before they have seen your photos. It is fairer to pay once the work is done, based on how many items were actually scanned. That way you don't need to count everything precisely yourself.

Where is the work done, and by whom?

Some companies send photos overseas to be scanned, which means more time in transit and less control over how they are handled. A UK-based service that does the work itself can tell you exactly who looks after your photos, keep you updated as your order progresses, and answer questions directly.

What do you get back?

Ask what the finished files look like. Will your photos be kept in the order you sent them? Will they be turned the right way up? Will the colours be corrected, and can you have the untouched scans if you want them? And how long can you download them for? These details decide whether your scans are a pleasure to look through or a jumble to sort out.

What happens if something isn't right?

Even careful scanning occasionally misses a photo or crops one badly. Look for a clear promise to fix mistakes free of charge, and a way to talk to a real person if you have a question, whether by phone, email or WhatsApp.