There are times in our lives when we want or need to document our belongings. For those moments bring your digital camera into the fray. Your digital camera is a ready and cheap way to provide authentification. Here are some scenarios:

1 – When traveling by air, I lay all my garments out neatly on a flat surface, usually the spare bedroom, and photograph them. Tops are in one photo, slacks another, etc. All electronic components ( phone charger, battery charger, spare batteries, etc. ) are also photographed. When the bag is packed, take another photo of the suitcase. Everyone has a black bag lately, it appears. This will help you identify your bag.

I keep those photos on the card in my digital camera, that is traveling with me in the cabin. If my bag is lost I can show what it looked like and detail it’s contents, on the spot.
Without this process, I would be hard put to say what was in my baggage, let alone what my bag looked like for certain.

If you get home with no lost luggage count yourself lucky and then erase those images from your card.

2 – Family heirlooms like quilts, glassware, porcelain, artwork and jewelry should be photographed and labeled. That crystal vase from Aunt Ethel should be labeled as such in the file. You can either give the file a descriptive name or you can add information to the images’ metadata.

3 – Photograph the rooms of your house, establishing your furniture and overall contents. That could be useful in the event of a fire, flooding or robbery. Perhaps put a copy of the files in your safe deposit box. My home has been robbed twice and I wish I had been smart enough to do this many years ago when it was needed. I’ve learned the hard way.

4 – Document the exterior of your home. Again, this could be useful later. Your insurance adjustor will think you are genius, if that information is ever needed.

5 – Document your garden flowers and shrubs. Sometimes I forget what color lily or tulip is planted in a particular locale. My children say I have “Sometimers”, when I can’t remember. The digital camera makes this so easy. Print those images off and keep it with your gardening books and memos. Buying the right color of bulbs, from that catalog in the winter, will be so much easier.

I hope these suggestions for a non-artistic use of your camera will come in handy for you.

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