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What to Do With All of Those Study Abroad Photos

Posted on October 05, 2016

I began my study abroad program with 149 photos in my iPhone, I returned home with over 1,500… so now what? Like most students that go abroad, a lot of your experience includes taking photos to savor the memories of all the things you’ve seen and the people you’ve met. Since your amazing photos are taking up so much storage in your smartphone or on your camera’s SD card, aside from posting on social media, get creative. Here are some ideas for what to do with all your study abroad photos:

Postcards

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Chances are, you have photos of historic sights and landmarks, or people you’ve met. Why not print them and make authentic postcards to send to family or friends from home, or to the friends from abroad once you return home? To make a great postcard, either use permanent markers on the back of your printed photos, or before going abroad go to your local craft store and purchase postcard stickers, which can be placed on the back of photos and resemble actual postcard backs.

Magnets/Keychains

Many tourist stores have magnets and keychains that you can purchase, but how cool would it be if you made your own with photos that you captured yourself? Many stores that have digital printing have ‘gift’ options, which often include making magnets or key chains. Making your own gifts is creative, thoughtful and in some cases cheaper. Other printing options include: mugs, blankets, pre-made photo books, canvas prints, cards, etc.

Posters

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There’s nothing like a wall full of beautiful scenery and people. Instead of printing smaller photos, why not blow that photo up and print a poster or two… or six? If you want to stick with printing a lot of 5x7 photos, you can buy a poster frame and create a collage capture a plethora of memories.

Scrapbook

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My personal favorite, scrapbooking! Scrapbooks allow you to get as creative as you want with photos, cutouts and stickers. Scrapbooks are fun to make and share. Many craft stores have location-based stickers and travel paper so once you leave the craft store and have your favorite photos printed, grab your scissors and glue and you are ready to begin.

Photo Contest

Good quality photos are a hot commodity; especially photos of sights from around the world. Consider entering your photographs into photo contests. If you search “study abroad photo contests” you will come across over two million results, so put on your competitive lens and enter those photos. Who knows, you may receive a prize or gain fans from around the globe.

Share Your Alumni Story

When you share your experience from abroad with us at Diversity Abroad, you'll be asked to submit photos with your story. Sharing your firsthand experience with others is not only a creative way of getting your photos to a broader audience. It also shines a much needed light on the increasing diversity of students going abroad.

These are just a few ideas of what you could do with your photos from abroad. Did we leave anything creative off our list? Tell us in the comments!


Authored by: Mylaica Conner

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