A picture is worth a thousand words...

We’ve all heard the adage ‘A picture is worth a thousand words’. Initially, it was used to illustrate how complex ideas could be written down, but they were better conveyed with a simple still image. However, over time that simple phrase has often been used to explain the importance of images generally. And nowhere is that more relevant or apt, than when explaining the importance of printed photographs.

Photographs play an important role in our lives. They enable us to create a visual timeline of our lives. We can capture those important moments in our lives and preserve them in a single image. Engagement and wedding days, family members and friends, celebrations and memorials - we capture all of our moments in time and store them for future prosperity.

But a picture can be used to serve as an aide-memoire, reminding us of forgotten memories and the fun we had together. At any time of struggle, whether we’re facing something huge like a pandemic lockdown or relatively minor like a crisis of confidence, pictures can remind us of how we want to feel or what direction we want our lives to take.

Images can evoke the different emotions we struggle to convey with words. And often, when words no longer carry the same emotional power they once did, a picture can instantly transport us back to when we first felt that emotional connection.

And when we get older a little bit forgetful, pictures can be used to remind us of all the important events, moments, memories and people in our lives - things that would otherwise be lost in the fog of time.