Declutter Digital Photos {15 Minute Mission}

Today's mission is to declutter digital photos, so in this situation declutter means delete.


This mission is designed to be done while we're working on the Organize Photos Challenge, which is part of the 52 Week Organized Home Challenge.

Obviously I'm not asking you to do a mass purge and erase lots of precious memories. Instead, I'm wanting you to think about the fact that digital files can, in fact, be clutter.

There was a time when we saw digitizing everything as "the answer" to almost every problem with paper clutter. Well, it certainly does help in certain instances, no doubt. BUT (sorry to shout, but I think this is important) now that we've got lots of digital files to manage we can see it brings its own set of problems and issues.

Types Of Digital Photos To Consider Deleting

Today get rid of some of your digital clutter and delete digital photos that are not very good. Here are suggestions for the types of photos to delete:

• Blurry


• Random accidental clicks, such as pictures of your thumb, the ceiling, etc.


• Those that are extremely unflattering


• Duplicates or several that are quite similar, just keeping the best one


• Delete down huge numbers from an event to the best of the best

The benefits of this are significant. First, it can clear up memory space on your computer or in your backup. Second, and more important, it will now be so much easier for you to find and enjoy the really good pictures once you've gotten rid of the duds.

Make Deleting Digital Photos A Habit

Depending on how many digital photos you've got this mission can take more than fifteen minutes. That's OK.

In all situations like this just work on it for 15 minutes at a time, and feel proud of what you accomplish. Working in small amounts, over time, really does get you results. You can even do this while listening to fun or relaxing music, or while watching television.

It is important to do this task regularly from now on, as consistently as you take photos.

It is cheap and easy to take lots of photos these days, so we do. But you need to get in the habit of culling down your photos as quickly as you take them so you keep the best and delete the rest!

In fact, when you're deleting some of the ones not worth keeping at all, it's also the perfect time to be organizing the ones you are going to keep.

If you haven't already, make sure to check out this article about how to set up a routine to organize photos, which has tips for organizing (and deleting) digital photos!



Below I'm going to remind you of a couple more places to make sure you declutter, beside your computer, when doing this mission.

Don't Forget To Declutter Photos On Your Camera & Phone As Well

When I discussed this mission above I specifically was discussing your digital photos on your computer, but the mission also applies to other devices where you've got digital photos.

So make sure to transfer all of your photos to your computer from such devices, including your smart phone and/or digital camera, and then delete from these devices as well.

It may be even easier to delete from these devices because once you've transferred the photos to the computer (and assuming your computer is regularly backed up!) you don't need to keep duplicate photos on these other devices.

So it may be as simple as doing a mass delete. Or you can do the same process you did on your computer and keep just a few special photos if you wish on these devices, although I would encourage you to keep far fewer on them than in your master computer photo files. I just know some people (including me) like to have a few extra special photos to show off to friends from your phone, for example.

The benefits of this are HUGE, especially when it comes to your smart phone. If you often run into trouble with your phone saying it cannot perform a function because it doesn't have enough memory, cull photos! That almost always helps!

Don't forget to delete photos from several albums, including your camera roll, Instagram folder, videos, and more.

Tell me in the comments how this mission is going for you. I'd love to hear!

Are You Ready To Declutter Your Home?

I hope this mission has gotten you excited to get rid of some of your digital clutter.

When you begin to declutter the feeling you get is contagious, so if you're loving the results you're getting I would encourage you to keep going.

I've got a whole series of 15 minute decluttering missions (eventually 365 of them!) that you can do.

Just pick and choose the ones you want to do, that will make a big impact in your home. But if you want someone else to tell you the order you can also grab the 15 minute daily decluttering mission calendars and follow along as we all get our homes clutter free together!

Here's some related articles that can help you continue with your decluttering journey:

Here is how to organize computer files on your home computer.



In addition, here's more ideas for digital clutter you can get rid of from your smart phone, tablet and computer.



Finally, check out my round up of over 40 photo storage and organization products, that are all archival quality, that can help you with this task, on Amazon. To find the list go to my Amazon store (at the link), and then scroll down for that list. (referral link)


Photo courtesy of scottjacksonx

Related Pages You May Enjoy

Getting Clutter Free 15 Minutes At A Time Hall Of Fame

Go From Declutter Digital Photos Mission To Home Page