How to Convert Traditional Scrapbooks to Digital Books

It's pretty amazing that we now have the capability to digitize an old scrapbook!  Isn't it?  Something that used to be a one-of-a-kind object can be duplicated.  

This can come in handy for several reasons.  Maybe you want to have multiple copies to share.  Maybe you want downsize and take some of the bulk out of old scrapbooks.  Maybe your scrapbooks are so old they're on magnetized pages from the 60s or 70s (which are acidic and eating away at your photos as we speak) and need to be rescued.  

Whatever the reason, if you have an old photo album or traditional scrapbook that you would like to digitize, you definitely want to do it with care.  

NOTE:  When I say "digital book," I really mean a book with a digital version that you print.  I know some people stick with digital-only versions, but photo experts maintain that a printed, hard-copy version is still one of the best ways to preserve photos and memories.  A digital, shareable backup is smart, too.

In my experience, Forever is the best place to do it.  That's because their digitizing services are rated highest in both quality and customer satisfaction, and because the quality of their print products is the best in the industry (including nearly indestructible spine bindings).  

NOTE:  I am a Forever affiliate (a decision I made because I love it so much), so you will find affiliate links in this post, from which I earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no extra cost to you.

So, if you've been looking for a high-quality way to convert your traditional scrapbooks or old photo albums to digital books, you've come to the right place! 

There are two parts to converting a traditional scrapbook to digital books, so let's get right to it.

FIRST, DIGITIZE

Digitizing your scrapbook pages means having them scanned. You can certainly do this on your own if you like. Be sure you use a high-quality flatbed scanner, saving your images at a minimum of 300dpi resolution as JPG (or JPEG) files. Be sure the glass on the scanner is free from lint, smudges, etc., for the best scan, and make sure your pages aren't dusty. Be sure to set aside some scanning time on your calendar, too.

If you'd like to save time AND let the pros dust your pages (and remove them from the book, if needed) and use their top-quality equipment and skills, I definitely recommend Forever Digitization because I've used and loved them multiple times. They actually have the highest rating on Trustpilot (an independent platform for business reviews), too. Plus, security is an enormous deal:

You can see how the Forever Box works at this quick video showing you the basics, or just scan this QR code to watch.

For more details beyond that quick, 3-minute introduction, I made this video for you.

By the way, if your book is already a digital PDF, you don't need this digitizing step to print your old book, but you do need to convert the PDF file to individual JPG files (one per page).  This is an easy, free resource for converting PDFs to JPGs.  When you convert, select the best quality (300dpi or above).

SECOND, UPLOAD AND PRINT

Now you're ready to upload the scans (or the JPGs you converted from the PDF) and put each page into a book page.  You can do this easily with Forever using AutoPrint, an auto-fill method of creating the book.  The pages get placed automatically for you, and then you can adjust as you like before submitting it for professional printing.  

There's an easy step-by-step guide here, too!!

Note:  All of the designs you'll see in Forever's Create & Print platform are free to use.  The ones labeled "AutoBook" or "Make it fast" are the AutoPrint templates that make it easy to convert your traditional scrapbooks to digital books.  The other templates you'll see just don't auto-fill, but if you'd rather place pages one at a time yourself, you'll just need to find a template with "full bleed" pages, meaning there's no border around it, so that your whole scrapbook page can fill the whole book page.  I can help you find those non-AutoPrint full-bleed page templates if you like--just reach out.

I was so happy when the home office at Forever made this 13-minute tutorial video, "Traditional Albums to Digital Books," walking us right through these steps! 

The software programs you're seeing here are free and available to you right from your Forever account (which is free, too). Get started here.

And, yes, you can make brand new digital books at Forever, too!

THAT'S IT!

Follow the DIGITIZE and UPLOAD & PRINT steps, and you've got an old, traditional scrapbook saved digitally.  With Forever, you can share it digitally, too, with a simple link, and you can print it (and re-print it) to share with as many people as you'd like, too.

I'd love to see your end result--share photos with Photo & Story Treasures Fans, our Facebook group.  Join at that link and then show us photos or even a video of your new digital book so we can celebrate together.

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