The Aesthetic and Emotional Value of Prints

I find it difficult to imagine that any of the ubiquitous digital photos nowadays that exist on social media will ever come close to having the same emotional value as what a printed photo can have as time goes by.  Everything digital just seems so disposable and transient, with very little shelf life by comparison.  How many people will actually be able to find their original files a year from now, five years from now or 25 years from now? In the chance that the files are still available and compatible with future technology, will your grandchildren care to load them up on their computer? In my opinion, this is a by-product of today’s internet-dominant society where everything moves at the speed of light and the moment is never savored because there is always something newer to replace it.  There is always this pressure to find the next big thing on your smartphone or to be the most popular for something on a social networking site.

Print photos by contrast are both personal and tangible.  This is the value of printed photos.  I am certain that most people have old family photos that have been passed down through time and shared through the years.  In many families, printed photos are considered among their most treasured possessions, as there is usually strong sentimental value attached to the people involved in the photos.  Not only that, a printed image provides us with a physical manifestation of and emotional connection to many memories which no longer physically exist in our lives.

Most people are familiar with the English phrase, “a picture is worth a thousand words.”  Printed images have the ability to convey an emotional experience which cannot be matched by a digital representation of a picture.  They can help people relive a special moment in life.  The feeling of holding a precious memory in your hands is priceless.  There is also an aesthetic value to printed images when they are displayed on the walls of you home as a fine-art print or canvas gallery wrap, or perhaps as an exquisite wedding book that is a centrepiece of your coffee table in your living room.  This type of viewing experience is unmatched, and it is the very reason that people still go to museums around the world to see priceless works of art rather than simply viewing them online.

So please consider taking the time, effort and cost of having your priceless memories committed to a form of physical print for both the sake of longevity and aesthetic value!