Pictures of Joshua: Birth to 4 Years Old

As mentioned in a previous post, I have begun the formidable task of scanning all of my negatives into our computer. Had I known from the outset just what kind of project this was, I might have been discouraged from even starting. Just in case there are others who having been meaning to digitize their photos, I though it might be helpful to outline what we have done. Certainly, if there is a better way, please feel free to share.

First of all, at least for me, nothing is ever easy if it has to do with technology. I am using a Mac mini purchased about 2 1/2 years ago, which in Mac years is a long time. So much so, we had to first load a more recent operating system to be able to handle the upgraded iPhoto software which I wanted to use. So with the help of Gillian and her friend, this was accomplished. The only other thing, so I thought, was to find a good scanner that would do the job. This did not turn out to be that hard to do via some research on the Internet and the cost was actually pretty reasonable.

It seemed like everything was falling into place, until it was discovered that the Mac had only 60 GB of total storage space so by the time we were finished with the steps above, there was only 3 GB left, which was not going to be enough space for all of the photos that would be scanned. So after many conversations with our oldest son, off I went to Best Buy to purchase an external hard drive that would house all the new photos. The choice was a bit overwhelming but in the end, I picked one that had 500 GB of storage space and is about the size of my hand - amazing.

Finally, after many hours one weekend, I was all set up. And amazingly enough, it was pretty easy to use, albeit time consuming as each negative takes about a minute to scan and the film holder, for lack of better word, can hold 12 negatives at a time. It's times like these that being a multi-tasker comes in handy as I am finding ways to get other things done while scanning.

At this point, it feels like an accomplishment to say that I have scanned in five years so far, beginning with the year that Josh was born. I am finding this exercise helpful to me as I am reminded of the time when he came into our lives - a surprise baby - and the way he completed our family.

Oh, how I wish he were still here with us.



Josh, we love and miss you so much.