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BEFORE YOU PACK YOUR ORDER

How to Organize and Pack Your Memories for Digitizing

You do not need to make your collection perfect before sending it to Memory Fortress.

Some customers send us boxes exactly as they have been stored for years. Others carefully organize everything by person, year, trip or event. Both are completely fine.

If you do choose to organize, a little work at home can help us return a digital collection that is easier for you and your family to understand later.

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Prefer to talk through your collection? Call 678-579-2249 . A real person will answer.
THE SIMPLEST WAY TO THINK ABOUT IT
Group It. Label It. Keep It Together.
1
Group It Put together the photos, slides, tapes or other memories that belong together.
2
Label It Give the group a simple name that will still make sense to you years from now.
3
Keep It Together Use bags, boxes, trays, cases or other containers so the group stays together during shipping and production.
And remember: organization is helpful, but it is never a requirement. If the project feels overwhelming, send what you have and let us help.
FIND WHAT YOU HAVE

What Is Sitting on Your Kitchen Table?

Choose the type of memory you are preparing. We will take you directly to the instructions for that part of your collection.

Loose Photos Prints in boxes, envelopes, drawers or loose stacks ↓ Photo Albums Albums with photos still attached or inserted ↓ Scrapbooks Creative Memories, 12x12 books and older scrapbooks ↓ Slides Carousels, trays, boxes and loose slides ↓ Negatives 35mm strips and other negative formats ↓ Videotapes VHS, VHS-C, camcorder and professional tapes ↓ Movie Film 8mm, Super 8 and 16mm film reels ↓ Audio Recordings Cassettes, microcassettes, records and audio reels ↓ CDs & DVDs Discs containing photos, videos, audio or files ↓ Mixed Collection A little of everything in the same project ↓ Not Sure What You Have? Strange tape, reel, negative or mystery item? We can help identify it. → Pack My Box I am organized enough — show me how to pack it ↓
You do not have to organize everything before getting started. These instructions are here to help as much — or as little — as you need.
A SIMPLE SYSTEM THAT WORKS

Organize as Much - or as Little - as You Want

You do not have to organize your collection before sending it to us. Many customers send boxes exactly as they have been stored for years, and that is completely fine. Others organize everything down to individual family members, years, events or trips. In general, the more organization you give us, the more organized your finished digital collection can be.

1
Group It
Put together the photos, slides, tapes or other items that you want treated as one group.
2
Label It
Give each group a clear name such as “Smith Family 1970s,” “Disney Trip,” “Mom’s Photos” or whatever makes sense to you.
3
Keep It Together
Keep each labeled group physically separated from the others so our team can preserve that organization during production.
Your labels can become your digital folder names.
If you create multiple custom groups, we can preserve those groups as separate digital folders.
Custom digital folders are $4 per folder.
LOOSE PHOTOS

How to Organize Loose Photos

Some customers send us a single shoebox with no sorting at all. Others organize thousands of photos by decade, child, vacation or family branch. Both are completely acceptable. If you want the strongest end result, though, a little organization at home usually helps.
Unsorted family photos beside labeled freezer bags organized by family, vacations, holidays and events

The Best Simple Method

For most loose-photo collections, the easiest system is to make a few meaningful groups and place each group into its own labeled freezer bag.

  • Use freezer bags for major groups such as “Mom’s Childhood,” “Beach Vacations,” “Christmas Photos” or “Grandma’s Family.”
  • Label each bag clearly with a Sharpie, or place a paper note inside the bag with the same name.
  • Keep similar photos together instead of mixing everything into one large stack.
  • Loose rubber bands can help with smaller groups, especially when several small groups need to remain separate inside one larger bag. Do not wrap them tightly around fragile photographs.
  • You do not need exact counts. Estimates are perfectly fine.

And if your goal is simply “scan everything,” that is fine too. We can absolutely work from unsorted loose photos. Organization helps, but it is never mandatory.

What Helps the Most

The more clearly your loose photos are grouped, the easier it is for us to preserve the organization you want in the finished digital collection.

  • Group photos by family member, time period, event, vacation or whatever categories make sense to you.
  • If photographs already came from a particular envelope, drawer, album or family box, consider keeping that group together.
  • If a group matters, say so in writing. A note such as “Keep these together in one folder” removes any guesswork.
  • If a smaller subgroup belongs inside a larger group, place it in a smaller bag or bundle and label it separately.
  • If you have photographs that do not fit anywhere, a perfectly good category is simply “Unsorted” or “Miscellaneous.”

Think of it this way: if you want your digital files to reflect the story that already makes sense in your head, leave us enough clues to follow that story.

Loose family photos organized into labeled freezer bags with rubber bands and a Sharpie marker

Example: Organizing 1,200 Family Photos

Imagine you have about 1,200 loose prints spread across three old boxes, several envelopes and a kitchen drawer. You do not want to identify every photograph or put the entire collection into chronological order. You simply want the finished digital files to make sense.

A perfectly reasonable setup might look like this:

Bag 1 — Mom’s Childhood About 140 photos
Bag 2 — Dad’s Family About 110 photos
Bag 3 — Wedding & Early Marriage About 95 photos
Bag 4 — Kids Growing Up About 380 photos
Bag 5 — Vacations About 210 photos
Bag 6 — Grandparents & Extended Family About 165 photos
Bag 7 — Unsorted / Miscellaneous Everything you do not want to spend more time sorting

Inside each freezer bag, place a simple slip of paper with the group name. Write the same name on the outside of the bag with a Sharpie.

Suppose the “Vacations” bag contains one stack from Disney World in 1994 that you especially want kept together. Put that smaller stack in its own smaller bag, or loosely bundle it with a rubber band and add a note reading “Disney 1994.”

That is enough. You have not created a museum archive or identified 1,200 individual photographs. You have simply given us a structure we can follow.

And if this sounds like more organization than you want to do, that is completely okay. Many customers do much less. The point of this example is to show a useful middle ground—not a requirement.

What To Do

  • Use freezer bags for major groups
  • Write clear labels with a Sharpie
  • Keep meaningful groups together
  • Add short notes when something is important
  • Use smaller bags or loose bundles for subgroups
  • Create an “Unsorted” group when you are finished sorting

What Not To Worry About

  • You do not have to sort every photograph
  • You do not need exact photo counts
  • You do not need every year identified
  • You do not need perfect chronological order
  • You do not need to remove every duplicate
  • You do not need to organize at all if it becomes overwhelming
If you would like us to preserve separate digital folders for your groups, we can do that. Custom digital folders are $4 per folder. If you are unsure how much organization is worthwhile, call us at 678-579-2249 and we will help you find a practical level of organization.
Photo Albums

How to Handle Photo Albums

If your pictures are still inside photo albums, you are not alone. Many families have shelves, boxes and closets full of albums they have not opened in years. In general, removing the photos before you send them is usually the simpler and lower-cost option — but if that feels overwhelming, we can absolutely handle the hard part for you.

Family photos removed from old albums and organized into labeled groups for scanning
Best If You Can Do It

Remove the Photos at Home

If the photos come out reasonably easily, removing them before shipping usually makes the project faster, simpler and more affordable.

  • Keep groups together as you remove them.
  • Place each group into a labeled freezer bag or envelope.
  • Write a short label such as “Smith Family Album,” “Beach Trips,” or “Grandma’s Wedding Photos.”
  • If album order matters, note that clearly and keep the group in sequence.

You do not need museum-level organization. We just want enough structure to understand what belongs together.

Old family photo albums kept intact and ready to be sent for scanning
Also Completely Fine

Send the Albums As They Are

Some albums are packed tightly, fragile, sticky, magnetic or simply too time-consuming to take apart. If you would rather leave the photos in place, send them in just like that.

  • We can remove the photos for you if needed.
  • You do not need to do the labor yourself just to get started.
  • This option is especially helpful for very large album collections or customers who would rather have us handle the extra work.
  • If an album is delicate or unusually important, leave a note so we handle it with extra care.

We do this type of work all the time, so please do not let a shelf full of albums stop you from moving forward.

What Happens If We Remove the Photos for You?

When we remove photos from albums here in-house, we generally do not place them back into the albums afterward. Instead, once the pictures have been scanned, we return the original photos in clearly grouped bags or bundles, along with the empty albums.

This usually gives you a practical end result: your digital copies are complete, your original photos are returned safely, and we return the empty albums separately rather than charging you for the additional labor of rebuilding them.

Helpful If You Remove Them Yourself

  • Keep one album or one major group together at a time.
  • If captions or notes matter, keep those pages or make a quick note.
  • If several photos are stuck or delicate, stop and leave those for us.
  • Do not worry about making everything perfect.

Helpful If You Send Albums Intact

  • Leave the photos in place and pack the albums securely.
  • Add a short note if certain albums are especially important.
  • If you want certain albums kept separate, label them clearly.
  • Expect that removing the photos for you is more labor-intensive than sending loose photos.

The main thing to know: removing the photos yourself is often the easier and less expensive route, but if that feels like too much work, Memory Fortress can handle it for you. Do not let a large album collection keep you from getting started.

SCRAPBOOKS & MEMORY BOOKS

Sometimes the Whole Page Is the Memory

Scrapbooks are often more than just collections of photos. They may include handwritten notes, page layouts, decorations, captions, ticket stubs and other details that matter to your family. That is why scrapbook customers tend to be very process-oriented — and why clear instructions help so much.
Older family scrapbook featuring printed photographs, handwritten notes and memory captions arranged across scrapbook pages.
OLDER SCRAPBOOKS

Send Older Scrapbooks as They Are

Many older scrapbooks contain photographs, handwritten notes and page designs that should stay together. If the pages are fragile, meaningful or too difficult to take apart, it is completely fine to send the scrapbook intact.

In many cases, keeping the scrapbook together is the best way to preserve the story as your family created it.

  • Leave the photos, notes and page layout in place.
  • Keep one scrapbook separate from the next.
  • Place each scrapbook in its own clean kitchen trash bag or similar large protective bag.
  • Label the bag clearly if the scrapbook has a meaningful title or time period.
Colorful 12x12 family scrapbook with photos, decorative paper, captions and keepsake-style page layouts.
CREATIVE MEMORIES & 12x12 ALBUMS

Please Remove the Plastic Page Protectors

Creative Memories albums and similar 12x12 scrapbooks are extremely common. If you have these albums, one of the most helpful things you can do is remove the clear plastic page protectors before sending them.

That simple step makes the pages easier to handle and scan, while still allowing the scrapbook pages themselves to stay organized as a complete group.

  • Remove the clear plastic page protectors from the scrapbook pages if you are able.
  • Keep the scrapbook pages in order.
  • Place the scrapbook or page set into its own kitchen trash bag for separation and protection.
  • If the album has a title such as “Baby Book,” “Disney 2004” or “Family Christmas,” label the outside of the bag.

Example: A Real-World Scrapbook Setup

Let’s say a customer has six scrapbooks at home:

  • Scrapbook 1: “Our Wedding” — older album with photos and handwritten notes
  • Scrapbook 2: “Baby Book” — Creative Memories 12x12 album
  • Scrapbook 3: “Disney Trip 2004” — Creative Memories 12x12 album
  • Scrapbook 4: “Kids School Years” — colorful scrapbook with captions and decorations
  • Scrapbook 5: “Family Vacations” — older mixed scrapbook
  • Scrapbook 6: “Christmas Memories” — album with photos, cards and notes

Here is a practical way to prepare them:

  • Place each scrapbook in its own kitchen trash bag so every album stays separate and protected.
  • Write a clear label on the outside of each bag with a Sharpie, such as “Wedding,” “Baby Book,” “Disney 2004,” “School Years,” “Vacations,” or “Christmas.”
  • If the scrapbook is a Creative Memories album, remove the clear plastic page protectors first, then keep the album pages in order.
  • If there are any loose notes, captions, ticket stubs or small keepsakes, keep them with that scrapbook in the same bag.
  • If one scrapbook is especially important, place a simple note inside the bag saying something like “Please keep pages in this exact order.”

The goal is not perfection. The goal is to make it obvious where one scrapbook ends and the next one begins.

This kind of setup gives our team clear structure and usually leads to a smoother, more understandable digital result.

What Helps the Most

  • One scrapbook per bag
  • Clear outside labels
  • Creative Memories plastic page protectors removed
  • Pages kept in order
  • Loose keepsakes kept with the correct scrapbook
  • A short written note if something matters a lot

What Not to Worry About

  • You do not need museum-level organization
  • You do not need to rewrite every caption
  • You do not need to disassemble fragile older scrapbooks
  • You do not need to make everything identical
  • You do not need to handle every difficult album yourself before getting started
The simple rule: keep each scrapbook separate, use a labeled kitchen trash bag for protection, and remove the plastic page protectors from Creative Memories pages if you can. If that still feels overwhelming, send the scrapbooks in and we will help with the hard part.
If you are unsure how to pack a scrapbook collection, just give us enough structure to understand what belongs together. Clear labels and separate bags usually go a long way.
SLIDES

Keep the Groups You Already Have

Slides come to us in almost every imaginable form: carousels, trays, original boxes, plastic cases, envelopes and completely loose piles. You do not need to move everything into a new container. In most cases, the best approach is to preserve the organization that already exists and clearly separate any loose groups.

Vintage 35mm slide carousels and carousel storage boxes on a table showing a common way families organize slides for digitizing
IF YOUR SLIDES ARE IN CAROUSELS

Leave Them in the Carousels

If your family slides are already loaded into circular slide carousels, there is usually no reason to remove hundreds of slides before sending them.

  • Leave the slides in the carousel.
  • Keep each carousel with its original carousel box whenever possible.
  • If the box already says something useful like “Europe 1978” or “Grandkids,” leave that label in place.
  • If you have several carousels and order matters, number the boxes clearly: 1, 2, 3, 4...
  • If a carousel does not have a box, protect it carefully so the slides stay seated and do not spill during shipping.

Whether the carousel holds roughly 80 slides or one of the larger circular collections, the important thing is to keep the slides contained and preserve any existing sequence.

Boxes, Trays and Loose Slides

If your slides are not in carousels, you may already have them in slide trays, original processing boxes, small storage cases or loose groups. All of those are workable.

Trays
Leave slides in their existing trays if the tray keeps them safely contained and preserves a meaningful group.
Boxes
Keep original slide boxes intact, especially if they contain dates, names or handwritten notes.
Loose
Place loose slides into labeled freezer bags so they cannot scatter throughout the shipping box.
Small Groups
Rubber bands can be used loosely around manageable stacks before placing them into a larger labeled bag. Do not bind slides so tightly that the mounts bend.
Labels
Simple names are enough: “Mom’s Slides,” “Europe,” “Christmas,” “1970s,” or even “Unknown Slides.”
Organized 35mm slides in trays, boxes and loose groups showing common ways customers prepare slides for scanning and digitizing
1,460 Example family slide collection

Example: Grandma’s Slides Are Stored Five Different Ways

Imagine you inherit roughly 1,460 slides. Nobody ever created one perfect filing system. Instead, you find:

  • 6 slide carousels labeled “Family 1960s,” “Family 1970s,” “California,” “Europe,” “Christmas” and “Kids.”
  • 3 old slide boxes with handwritten dates.
  • 2 flat slide trays containing vacation pictures.
  • About 150 loose slides sitting in an old shoebox.

You do not need to convert all of that into one new organizing system.

Leave the six carousels exactly as they are. Keep the old slide boxes intact. Leave the trays together. Then take the 150 loose slides and divide them only as much as you want — perhaps three freezer bags labeled “Grandparents,” “Vacations” and “Unknown.”

If you discover a small group of 25 slides from “Disney 1986,” loosely rubber-band that stack, place it inside the Vacations bag, and add a short note. That is more than enough organization for us to understand what you intended.

The goal is containment, not perfection. Slides are small and easy to scatter. Keep carousels, trays and boxes together when they already work, and use labeled bags for loose slides. You do not have to identify every image or put an entire lifetime of slides into chronological order before sending them.
Negatives & Film Strips

How to Organize Negatives

Negatives often arrive in envelopes, sleeves, boxes or mixed stacks. The most common type is 35mm, but many families also have older or less familiar formats. You do not need to identify every last strip perfectly — but a little grouping at home usually helps.

The Best Way to Prepare Negatives

If you can, begin by separating your negatives into broad format groups. Put the obvious 35mm negatives together, and keep any larger, smaller or unfamiliar negatives in their own separate groups.

1

Keep sleeves, envelopes and original notes

Old paper sleeves, lab envelopes and handwritten notes often tell us what a group is, when it was developed, or how it belongs with the rest of your collection.

2

Group by format first, then by family or event

Separate 35mm from other formats when you can. Inside each format, it is helpful to group by family member, decade, trip or major event.

3

Use bags or envelopes to keep groups together

If negatives are loose, place each group into a labeled freezer bag or envelope. If strips are already in sleeves, keep them there and bag the entire group together.

4

Leave unknown negatives separate

If you are unsure what a group is, that is completely fine. Just label it something simple like “Unknown Negatives” or “Need Help Identifying”.

Important: please do not tape negatives to paper, trim them into tiny individual pieces, or mix multiple unrelated groups into one bag if you can avoid it.
Several strips of 35mm film negatives arranged neatly on a wooden table, showing a common format families send in for scanning.
Most common: 35mm negatives. These are the strips many customers already recognize from old photo envelopes and family snapshots.
A labeled flat-lay guide showing several different negative and film formats side by side, helping customers identify what type of film they have at home.
Other formats exist too. If your negatives do not look like 35mm, that does not mean they are a problem.
Another view of several uncommon negative and film formats displayed for identification.
Keep unusual types separate. A quick label is usually enough for us to review them correctly.

Example: A Simple Real-World Setup

Let’s say a customer has several old film envelopes, one small box of loose negatives, and a few larger-format strips from an older camera.

  • Envelope 1: “Smith Family 1984–1987” — 35mm negatives
  • Envelope 2: “Beach Vacation” — 35mm negatives
  • Bag 1: loose 35mm strips found in a drawer
  • Bag 2: larger negatives from an older camera
  • Bag 3: “Unknown Negatives” for anything unclear

That level of organization is more than enough. We do not need perfection — just enough structure to preserve what belongs together.

What Not to Worry About

  • You do not need every year identified.
  • You do not need exact frame counts.
  • You do not need every strip in perfect order.
  • You do not need to know every negative format by name.
  • You do not need to force a complicated sorting system if that feels overwhelming.

The goal is simply to prevent different groups from getting mixed together and to give us clues about what matters most.

Not sure what kind of negatives you have? That is completely normal. Leave unusual formats in their own labeled group and we can help identify them. If you want, you can also call 678-579-2249 or visit our contact page before shipping.
VIDEOTAPES

Organizing Videotapes Is Easier Than It Looks

VHS may be the format everyone recognizes, but family video collections often contain several different kinds of tapes. You do not need to identify every format before sending your project. What helps us most is knowing which tapes belong together and whether a particular order matters to you.

Do not spend days watching old tapes just to prepare your order.
If you know what is on a tape, label it. If you do not know, send it anyway.
VHS, VHS-C, camcorder tapes and professional videotape formats including 8mm, Hi8, Digital8, MiniDV, Betamax, Betacam, DVCPro, U-matic, PAL and SECAM

Four Things We Need From You

Nothing complicated. These four things make almost any videotape collection manageable.

Keep useful labels Do not remove old handwritten labels just because they look messy.
Group related tapes Family, person, event, decade — whatever makes sense to you.
Number sequences If Tape 1 must come before Tape 2, make that obvious.
Unknown is okay “Mystery Tapes” is a perfectly legitimate group.
START HERE

Leave Existing Labels Alone

“Christmas 1996,” “Jennifer Soccer,” “Grandma,” “Tape 7” and even barely readable handwriting can provide useful clues. Keep the tape with its original case when the case contains additional information.

THEN

Make Broad Groups

If 12 tapes came from Dad's camcorder, keep those together. If another box contains the kids' VHS tapes, that can be another group. A freezer bag, small box or other clearly labeled container works well.

IF ORDER MATTERS

Number the Tapes

Write 1 of 6, 2 of 6, 3 of 6 and so forth, or add a clearly visible numbered note. If order does not matter, there is no need to invent one.

IF YOU HAVE NO IDEA

Create a Mystery Group

Put the unidentified tapes together and label the group “Unknown,” “Mystery Tapes,” or something equally simple. You do not need to preview every tape to earn the right to digitize it.

Labels Do Not Have to Be Fancy

These are all perfectly useful ways customers organize videotapes. Your system only needs to make sense to you — and give our production team enough clues to follow it.

Smith Family VHS 17 tapes, no particular sequence
Kids Growing Up Tapes 1 through 9, keep in order
Dad's Camcorder Mixed 8mm, Hi8 and Digital8 tapes
Mystery Tapes We have no idea what is on these
Weddings Several family weddings from different years
Grandparents Keep together in one digital folder
1990s Vacations VHS-C and camcorder tapes together
Unknown Format This tape looks different — please identify it
43 tapes in one
family project

Example: A Closet Full of Tapes From Three Different Camcorders

A customer opens an old cabinet and finds 43 videotapes collected over almost 25 years:

  • 14 VHS tapes labeled with holidays and family events
  • 8 VHS-C tapes from an older camcorder
  • 12 8mm / Hi8 / Digital8 tapes that all came from Dad's camcorder bag
  • 5 MiniDV tapes from the early 2000s
  • 4 completely unlabeled tapes

There is no need to watch 43 tapes before getting started.

Put the VHS holiday tapes together. Keep the VHS-C tapes together. Label Dad's camcorder group as one group even if you are unsure which flavor of 8mm each cassette happens to be. Keep the MiniDV tapes together. Then put the four unlabeled tapes into a bag marked “Mystery Tapes.”

That is enough. You have turned a closet full of confusing videotapes into five understandable groups without spending an entire weekend watching old footage.

One last thing about unusual tapes: PAL and SECAM describe video standards rather than a unique cassette shape, so a PAL or SECAM recording may look just like another VHS or camcorder tape. If a tape came from overseas, write that on the tape, case or group label if you know it. And if you simply have a tape that looks unfamiliar, do not worry about identifying it yourself.
Ask Us What You Have
8MM • SUPER 8 • 16MM MOVIE FILM

Keep the Reels Together — We Will Figure Out the Rest

Family movie film may arrive on tiny 3-inch reels, larger 5-inch or 7-inch reels, or substantial 16mm reels. Some film has sound. Some does not. Some boxes are carefully labeled, while others have not been opened in fifty years. You do not have to identify everything before sending it.

8mm and Super 8 home movie film on 3-inch, 5-inch and 7-inch reels, including film with and without sound
8mm & Super 8

Small Reels Are Extremely Common

The classic home-movie collection often consists of 8mm or Super 8 film stored on several different reel sizes. You may have dozens of small reels, several larger reels, or a mixture of both.

  • Leave film on its existing reel.
  • Keep original reel boxes whenever they contain useful labels.
  • If several reels belong together, keep them in one labeled group.
  • If sequence matters, number the reels clearly.
  • Do not unwind the film just to inspect it.
16mm movie film on several reel sizes, showing both silent film and film with a soundtrack
16mm Film

16mm Is Welcome Too

Larger 16mm reels are also part of many family collections, especially older home movies, school films, church films, military footage and professionally filmed family events.

  • Keep each reel in its original can or box when possible.
  • Preserve handwritten labels, dates and location information.
  • Keep related reels together if they form one longer event or story.
  • Do not worry about determining whether the reel contains sound.
♪ Sound or Silent

You Do Not Need to Figure Out Whether Your Film Has Audio

Both 8mm-family film and 16mm film can exist with or without sound. You do not need to inspect the film edge, identify a soundtrack, or know which type you have before sending it. If sound is present on your film, we will identify it during production and make sure it is converted properly with the picture.

Five Simple Rules for Preparing Movie Film

Movie film preparation is mostly about preserving what is already there rather than reorganizing everything.

Rule 1

Leave It on the Reel

There is normally no reason to remove or unwind film before sending it.

Rule 2

Keep the Box

Old reel boxes and cans often contain valuable names, dates and locations.

Rule 3

Group Related Reels

Vacations, holidays, family branches or other obvious groups can stay together.

Rule 4

Number the Order

If one reel should follow another, number the boxes or reels clearly.

Rule 5

Unknown Is Fine

A box labeled “Unknown Film” is much better than delaying the project for months.

27
reels from one
family collection

Example: Grandpa's Home Movies Have Been in a Closet Since 1974

A family opens an old storage box and finds:

  • 12 small 3-inch reels with almost no labels
  • 7 five-inch reels marked with vacations and holidays
  • 4 seven-inch reels labeled “Family Movies”
  • 3 larger 16mm reels in metal cans
  • 1 reel that says “Wedding — Sound”

There is no need to identify every reel, determine whether each one is 8mm or Super 8, or inspect the film for sound.

Keep the labeled reels with their original boxes or cans. Number any reels that clearly belong in sequence. Put the twelve unlabeled small reels together in a container marked “Unknown Small Reels.”

That is enough. When the collection reaches Memory Fortress, we can determine the film format, identify whether sound is present, and handle the conversion correctly.

The important thing is not to become a film expert before sending your order. Preserve the reels, labels, boxes and sequence you already have. We can determine whether the film is 8mm, Super 8 or 16mm, and whether it contains sound. Your job is simply to keep the collection protected and give us whatever clues your family already has.
AUDIO RECORDINGS

Organize the Story — Not the Technology

Old recordings may contain a grandparent's voice, family interviews, children's first words, music, speeches or recordings no one has heard in decades. You do not need to know the technical details of every recording. What matters most is preserving whatever labels and family context you already have.

Collection of audio cassettes, microcassettes and vinyl records arranged on a table, showing common analog audio formats that can be digitized by Memory Fortress

Start With Whatever the Recording Already Tells You

Audio collections often come with more useful information than customers realize. A cassette case, handwritten label, reel box or record sleeve may already contain everything needed to understand the recording.

1

Keep Cases and Sleeves

Keep cassettes with their original cases and records with their sleeves whenever those contain names, dates or other useful information.

2

Preserve Handwritten Labels

“Interview with Grandma,” “Christmas 1982,” “Dad Singing,” or even “Tape 4” may be extremely helpful later.

3

Keep Related Recordings Together

Several tapes from one interview, family member, event or time period can be grouped together.

4

Unknown Is Perfectly Fine

If you have no idea what is on a cassette or microcassette, you do not need to listen to the entire recording before sending it.

REEL-TO-REEL AUDIO

Brown Magnetic Tape on Reels? Send It Just Like That.

Open-reel audio recordings commonly arrive on several reel sizes, and the brown magnetic tape itself may be decades old. You do not need to unwind the reel, determine the recording speed, or figure out the technical setup.

  • Leave the brown audio tape on its existing reel.
  • Keep each reel with its original box whenever possible.
  • Preserve handwritten labels and recording notes.
  • If several reels belong in sequence, number them clearly.
  • Do not play fragile old tape repeatedly just to identify it.
Several reel-to-reel audio tapes with visible brown magnetic tape in different reel sizes, showing common open-reel audio formats that can be digitized by Memory Fortress

Useful Labels Can Be Surprisingly Simple

Do not feel obligated to create an elaborate catalog. These are examples of labels that give us plenty of useful information.

Grandma Interview Three cassettes — keep together
Dad's Reel Tapes Five reels found in the same box
Family Christmas Recording date unknown
Microcassettes Probably family interviews
Unknown Audio No idea what is recorded here

Example: A Box of Recordings From Mom and Dad's House

What the Family Finds

  • 11 standard cassettes with mixed handwriting
  • 6 microcassettes from an old handheld recorder
  • 4 reel-to-reel tapes in boxes marked with family names
  • 7 vinyl records they want preserved digitally
  • 3 unlabeled cassettes nobody remembers recording

What They Actually Need to Do

Keep the eleven cassettes with their cases. Put the six microcassettes together in one labeled bag. Leave the brown reel-to-reel tape on the reels and keep those reels with their original boxes.

Keep the records with their sleeves. Then place the three mystery cassettes together and write “Unknown Audio.”

That is enough organization. There is no reason to listen to hours of old recordings before getting the project started.

Do not let an unidentified recording stop the project. You do not need to know exactly what is on every cassette, microcassette or reel. Keep the original labels, boxes and groups whenever possible, and let us handle the technical details of the transfer.
Family CDs and DVDs organized in cases, sleeves and labeled groups for digital transfer and preservation
CDs & DVDs

One Disc Can Hold Almost Anything

CDs and DVDs can contain much more than music or movies. Depending on how the disc was created, it may contain family photos, home videos, audio recordings, documents, scanned images or a mixture of several different file types.

That means you do not need to decide in advance whether a disc is a “photo disc” or a “video disc.” If the content is readable and eligible for transfer, we can move the files to modern storage for you.

And if the disc is unlabeled or you simply do not remember what is on it, that is completely normal.

What Might Be on Your Discs?

A single CD or DVD may contain one type of media — or several. The format of the disc does not always tell you what is stored on it.

Photos Family pictures, scanned prints, digital camera images
Videos Home movies, camcorder footage, family events
Audio Family recordings, music or spoken memories
Files & Data Documents, folders, backups and other readable files

Keep the Clues You Already Have

There is no need to sit at a computer and open every disc before sending the collection. Existing labels, cases and broad groups are usually enough.

  • Keep discs with their original cases or sleeves when those contain useful information.
  • Leave handwritten labels in place, even when they are vague.
  • Group related discs together by family member, event, year or project if that is already obvious.
  • If sequence matters, number the discs clearly.
  • Put completely unlabeled discs together and call them “Mystery Discs” or “Unknown.”
  • Do not worry about identifying whether each disc contains photos, video, audio or files before sending it.
Old CDs and DVDs beside a laptop and USB drive, showing family photos, videos and files converted to modern digital storage

Where Should the Files Go?

Once the accessible contents are transferred, you can choose the modern destination that makes the most sense for you.

1

USB Flash Drive

A simple physical drive that can hold transferred photos, videos, audio and other files together.

2

Cloud Download

Receive your files through a digital download link so they can be saved to your computer and shared with family.

3

Another Preferred Destination

If you have another practical storage preference for the transferred files, let us know when the project is set up.

31 old discs found
in one family desk

Example: Nobody Knows What Is on Half the Discs

A family finds 31 CDs and DVDs in an old desk drawer:

  • 6 discs labeled “Family Photos”
  • 5 discs labeled with vacations and years
  • 4 DVDs marked “Home Movies”
  • 3 discs labeled “Grandma's Scans”
  • 13 discs with little or no useful labeling

They do not need to open all 31 discs before sending them.

Keep the obvious groups together. Put the thirteen unknown discs into one labeled group called “Mystery Discs.” If those discs contain readable family photos, video, audio or other files, we can transfer the accessible content into modern storage.

The family can then choose to receive the transferred material on a USB flash drive, through a cloud download link, or through another agreed-upon destination.

You do not need to know what is on every CD or DVD before sending it. Keep useful labels and cases, separate obvious groups, protect loose discs during shipping, and let us handle the technical part of moving readable content into a modern format.
MIXED COLLECTIONS & UNUSUAL ITEMS

One Box Can Contain a Little Bit of Everything

Many customers do not have one neat collection of one media type. A single project may include photographs, albums, videotapes, slides, film reels, audio recordings, CDs, DVDs and items you may not even recognize.

If You Have Several Media Types
  • It is fine to send different types of media together in the same order.
  • Keep obvious categories together so photos, tapes, slides, film and other items do not become unnecessarily mixed.
  • If several different media types belong to the same family member, event or project, label that relationship clearly.
  • You do not need to create a complicated inventory before sending the collection.
If You Are Not Sure What Something Is
  • Do not worry if you cannot identify every tape, reel, disc or photographic format.
  • Keep unusual items protected and include them with the rest of the project.
  • If you have a question about an item before shipping, send us a photo or call us.
  • Do not discard something simply because you are unsure whether it can be digitized.
You do not need to become a media expert before sending your order. If something is unfamiliar, keep it with the collection and let us help determine what it is and whether we can work with it.
PACKING YOUR ORDER

How to Pack Your Memories for Shipping

Once your collection is organized to the level you want, the goal is simply to keep those groups protected and intact while the box is in transit.

Protect the Collection
  • Use a sturdy corrugated shipping box that comfortably fits the collection.
  • Keep labeled groups in their own bags, envelopes, boxes or other containers so they do not become mixed together.
  • Use packing material to fill empty space and prevent the contents from shifting inside the box.
  • Protect fragile items from direct pressure, bending or movement during shipping.
  • Make sure the box closes securely without forcing or crushing the contents.
Make the Package Identifiable
  • Include your name and contact information inside the package.
  • Include any special notes or organization instructions that are important to your project.
  • If you have an order form or other paperwork for the project, include it inside the box.
  • Use a shipping service that provides tracking and keep the tracking number until your package has arrived.
  • Before sealing the box, take one last look to make sure all intended items are included.
One simple rule: pack the box so that if it is turned on its side during shipping, your organized groups will still remain protected and separate.
BEFORE YOU SEAL THE BOX

Put Your Contact Information Inside

Shipping labels can be damaged or separated from a package. A simple sheet of paper inside the box gives us another way to identify your order immediately.

Include:
  • Your full name
  • Your phone number
  • Your email address
  • Your order paperwork, if you have already completed an order form
  • Any important notes about organization, folder names, sequencing or special handling
You do not need to write a long explanation. Clear labels on the collection plus a few simple notes are usually better than pages of instructions.
READY TO SEND YOUR MEMORIES?

Ship Your Order to Memory Fortress

Once your collection is organized and packed, you can ship it directly to our Atlanta location. Most Memory Fortress customers send their materials to us from outside the Atlanta area.

Memory Fortress
2250 North Druid Hills Road NE
Suite 128
Atlanta, GA 30329
Atlanta-area customers are also welcome to bring their order to us in person.
For complete packing, carrier, shipping, return-shipping and walk-in information, please review our full Shipping & Logistics Guide before sending your package.
Read the Shipping & Logistics Guide Ask a Question Call 678-579-2249