Most people's photo collections grow until finding anything becomes a chore. A few small habits, built into how you take and keep pictures, make the difference between a library and a pile.
Habits while you take photos
The easiest tidying is the tidying you do at the moment:
- Take one good photo rather than ten the same. Delete the near-duplicates the same evening, while you still remember which is best.
- Photograph things you want to remember, such as a receipt, a parking spot, a whiteboard or a serial number, and delete them when they have done their job.
- Turn off location if you do not want it recorded, or clean photos before you share them.
Habits when you store them
Keep one main place for your full-size originals, and a clear folder structure: a folder per year, and inside it a folder per event named with the date, for example 2026-08 Lake trip. Names that begin with the date sort themselves in the right order.
Do not keep the same photo in six places. Choose one home, and make copies only when you need to share.
Habits for sharing
Share smaller copies, not originals. Resize the photo to suit where it is going, and compress it if needed. Convert iPhone photos to JPG for anyone who might not be able to open them. Keep your originals untouched.
Habits for backing up
A rule many people follow is three copies, on two kinds of storage, with one kept in a different place: the photos on your computer, a copy on an external drive, and a copy in a cloud service or at a relative's house. Check that the backup opens once a year. A backup you have never tried to restore is a hope, not a backup.
Use the right format for the job
Keep originals in whatever your camera makes, and convert copies only when needed. Use PNG for screenshots and graphics, and JPG for photos. See our guide to image formats for the full picture.
Do a yearly clear-out
Once a year, set an hour aside. Delete blurry shots and screenshots you no longer need, name the best events, and check the backup. It is far less work than a decade of neglect, and you will rediscover pictures you had forgotten.