One of the greatest legacy building tools is to capture cherished moments with your grandchildren. Family portraits, videos, digital picture collections, and daily snapshots create a unique and wonderful family treasure. Digital camera and video technology today is easier to use than ever, and with online photo options, there's no longer need to fear losing your treasures, or learning how to create spectacular picture collections of your grandchildren. In fact, decades into the future, your grandchildren will open the treasure chest and embrace the grandparent connections you are creating today.
Life is fast.
And, one of life’s challenges is that as we age, our sense of the passage of time accelerates.
As a child, the summertime felt endless. Homerun derbys with the neighborhood boys at the field. Jumping into the local watering hole. Family vacations to the beach, camping, or hiking in the woods.
For me, these memories are timeless. I remember feelings, the emotional highs of the experience…which rarely line up neatly into a group photograph with everyone smiling…but those rich moments stamped in the mind.
Odd, random and priceless moments that will serve as treasures throughout my life.
In the 1970’s, my father captured many moments in slide pictures and even some 35mm movies without audio. A great family event was movie or slide-night!
Often grandma and pop-pop would be over and after dinner when the sun was down, my dad would surprise us by setting up the show.
I remember the smell of the bulb in the slide projector, the giddiness of our excitement as we watched to see when our pictures would show up. My brother & sister also loved those nights…a great gift from our father.
Today, as a father myself…I take great joy in watching my children experience the timeless sense of wonder & excitement in their days.
I cherish each and every moment albeit with the adult conflict of accelerated time. I go to sleep after a perfect family day in the beach sun with a smile but also with a sense of loss….whereas my son will only have the smile.
For him, the day translates into an experience opening moment of wonder…new doors and thoughts pulsing through his mind as he slips off to sleep.
As adults, we are cursed by the awareness of time gone by...a lost day. Unlike our kids or grandkids, adults lose some of the authority to call a “do-over.”
Many times I’ve felt the desperate though impossible desire to bottle-up the moment. Beg my soul to never forget and never take the blessing for granted.
So, what can we do?
We do not remember days; we remember moments. ~Cesare Pavese, The Burning Brand
Memories are wonderful, magical treasures that live with us until our dying day.
All of us can be fantastically wealthy by compiling our memories and taking efforts to remember the best moments of our time here on earth.
They will provide great comfort in our times of trauma, and in our years of reflection.
Memories are dynamically alive in the mind, and define the character of our souls. Memories are what they are, a culmination of both the good times and the bad. Bookmarks of life's fleeting gift of time.
But, this does not mean that you are powerless, that you are left with no actions to capture your legacy of memories. You can take efforts to reinforce the good, and mitigate the bad in your mind. And that’s not all. ..
Today, more than ever, technology offers us incredible opportunities & tools to secure our legacy.
Make the decision right now to do something special. Don’t get caught up in the planning mindtrap that it’s just too much.
Pick a project.
Get it done.
Then pick another.
Each time you repeat the process…you place a treasure, an heirloom, a wonderful gift in the vault that will bless your grandchildren for years.
Digital Cameras
Digital cameras today are incredible. Even twenty years ago, it would have been unimaginable to take hundreds of pictures in a day. And the Point & Shoot cameras could not be more simple to use.
Today, we can snap away without worrying about how much film is left, whether we will run out of flashbulbs, or the cost of processing. Simply delete the bad shots. Genius!
Looking for more choices? Follow this link for a broad selection of point & shoot Digital Cameras.
Another popular camera type are Digital SLRs.
SLR stands for single lens reflex, which refers to the way these camera's work. When you press the shutter button, a mirror flips out of the way to reveal the sensor. Some people also refer to them as DSLR, with the D being short for digital.
One of the main differences between a point and shoot camera and a SLR digital camera is that an SLR has a detachable lens. In other words, you're not limited only to the lens that comes with the camera.
SLR camera's also give you more control over manual settings such as exposure.
In many cases they offer a higher resolution. 10mb resolutions are quite affordable nowadays for those purchasing their first SLR camera.
Another advantage to SLR digital camera's is that they take photographs almost instantly with no lag time. This is useful when taking photographs of moving objects such as children...
Looking for more choices? Follow this link for a broad selection of Digital SLRs.
An old standby but true favorite for me are photo albums….being able to open a book from the table and with my son on my lap, walk through the memories together.
Converting digital photos to “real”, in my hand pictures is also easier than ever with many local stores offering digital photo processing. If you prefer the luxury & control of your own photo studio...shop for the Photo Printers for the perfect model to fit your goals.
Online Photo Options
Or, another option today if you or a loved one has been stuck making the transition from “Fotomat to the Internet” in ordering or producing your own printed pictures…are online photo service companies.
For incredibly modest fees compared to the value of the product, there are some wonderful options. Not only can you store your photos in a secure format, you can leverage the website tools to create mind-boggling “slideshows” in a current format, that will wow even your grandkids in today’s techno-world. Give SmugMug a try by clicking the link below...
(Maybe you can still smell that old projector bulb too! But, take a step forward, and reap the rewards of your actions.)
Digital Frames
Another great format! Consider pulling together a family slideshow that your grandkids can watch when they visit you.
Update the photos from recent family events & moments in your grandchildren’s lives.
And, soon you’ll find the grandkids racing to the photo-frame each time they visit. The pictures you’ll pass to them some day later. But, they’ll also remember the warm feeling of expression in your photo-frame effort….that grand-mom or grand-dad loved them enough to create a moment.
Looking for more choices? Follow this link for a broad selection of Digital Frames.
Crafty? Perhaps you should try scrapbooking, or assembling special babybooks for your grandchildren.
Or even, a family legacy book…one that captures the rich past history of your family tree.
High Definition Camcorders
Videocameras today are also getting very technically advanced while becoming easier to use. Shoot film in high-definition into a digital format that can be edited & converted to any format of your choice (DVD, website content, Photoframe content).
In the year 2000, only the major television networks had access to this technology. Today, it’s powerfully in your hands for 1/100 of the cost a few years back.
Kids love to take pictures! So don't leave them out. Get your grandchildren into the action with a digital camera of their own. Photography opens up a whole world of legacy building options by enabling lessons in perspective, relativity, editing, packaging, story-telling, and so on. Especially, if you have a personal interest in photography and believe a connection with your grandchild has potential here...don't miss this wonderful chance...
Looking for more choices? Follow this link for a broad selection of Kids Cameras.
Most will let the golden opportunities of today’s technology slip right on by...
Will you?
Perhaps capturing family memories are part of securing your legacy. If so...
Take the first step to decide.
Then plan a project.
Keep it simple.
Ask for help.
Share the wonder.
Bless your grandchildren.
Worlds of opportunity will quickly open up once you take the first step.
.