Answers

If your answer isn’t here, contact us now.

Why choose us?

We edit our photos carefully and our detailed perfectionism shines through.  We scan and edit all of our photos manually by hand to ensure the highest quality.  There’s no automation here, just careful one-by-one undivided attention for each of your treasured photographic memories.

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How do I pay?

Because most of the services we provide do not require immediate payment, we will email you an invoice when it is due for your convenience.  It’s as simple as reading your email, clicking on the “Pay” button, and sending payment to us securely through Google, one of the world’s most trusted sources for online payments.  If you do need to send a payment to us, you can also go to our “Send Payment” link.

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I don’t want to mail my photos. What should I do?

We do prefer you send your photos to us online rather than sending printed photos and risk damaging them while in transit to us. You can scan in photos yourself and upload them through our Send Photos page. This way your photos never leave your possession. The easiest way is to place them in a zipped (compressed) folder and send the file to us.  You can also mail us a CD/DVD with your photos on them. 

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What if I don’t have a scanner?

If you don’t have access to a scanner, take your photos to a local store like Office Max, Staples or Kinko’s.  They will scan your photos for you, and they will put it onto a CD which you can mail to us or send via our file upload. 

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What resolution should I use to scan my photos?

Scan your photos at the highest resolution (DPI, or dots per inch) possible to make your images the best they can be, 300 DPI at the very minimum. Make sure to scan all photos as color even if they are black and white, and make sure to save them as .jpg files. Please save them without any compression.

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How do I send you my photos?

We prefer that you upload your photos so we can get started right away.  If you don’t have them in digital format, you can mail your photos to us via a carrier of your choice.

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Why is resolution so important?

The higher the resolution of your photo, the better it will look, especially when enlarged to display in your home or office. It also allows us to do our detailed work so that your photos can look their best.

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Should I reduce the size of the digital photos I send you?

No. Keep them in their original form. As you may know, digital cameras take photos around a size of 3,000 pixels by 2,000 pixels. There’s no need to reduce their size. This allows us to crop, reframe, and retouch your photos in fine detail. 

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What format should my digital photos be?

They should be saved as .jpg (jpeg) files without any compression.

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How do I ship my photos?

Print out the shipping inventory page so we can make sure we have everything in which you intended. Pack your photos very carefully to protect them. We encourage you to first wrap them in a sealed, plastic bag or container and then pack them in a box so they can not shift or bend. Since we are not responsible for photos that are in transit, please send them using the carrier in which you feel the most confident. If you’re sending just one or a few, a good idea is to place them between cardboard so they cannot be bent.

Send them to:

My Photographic Memory
7712 W. Regina St.
Sioux Falls, SD 57106

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Will I get my pictures back?

Certainly. They will be shipped back to you in their original form. If they cannot be shipped in the same container of a purchased product, they will be packed safely and shipped independently in another package at your cost.

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How much do you charge and how long does it take?

All of our products and services have different prices and turnaround times. They are all based on the amount of time it takes our artists to complete. Make sure to browse our site to read more about digital archiving, photo correction, photo enhancement, artistic alterations, slideshows, photobooks, gallery wraps, and montages.

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Do I get to see a proof before I pay?

Definitely. We will provide you with an online design proof. Upon your approval, we will then set up payment with you. If for some reason you want something changed, we will work with you until you are satisfied. We take enormous pride in our quality and customer service.

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Do you restore photos?

We define photo restoration as the repair of any picture that is torn or severely damaged and discolored. Our specialty is correction and creative enhancements, and not major restorations. If your photo has severe water damage, tearing, or discoloring, we can point you in the right direction. There are specialists out there who do amazing work.

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Are there any photos you can’t fix or create?

Because we are perfectionists, there is always a chance that something cannot be done by our artists. We would rather turn down a project than to complete one short of our high standards.

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I want my photo to look better, but am not sure what needs to be done. Can I leave it up to you?

Absolutely, and this is our favorite kind of project. We seem to do our best work when given free creative reign!  Just specify if you want correction, enhancement, or artistic alterations to your photo.

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What do you need to make my slideshow?

Depending on how long you want your slideshow to be, you’ll want to incorporate around 10-15 photos per minute of presentation. If you have a certain arrangement or order of appearance, just note that on the order form and make sure they are clearly marked when they are sent to us. Also, if you have special music you want in your slideshow, make sure to let us know the artist and title of the songs on the order form as well. Finally, we’ll need any personalized text you want added throughout the slideshow. Once we have our required pre-payment of 50%, we will begin our work. View our slideshow page for more details. 

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What do you need to make my photo book?

On average, our books have about 5 pictures per page, so keep that in mind when sending us your photos. The less photos per page, the bigger they will be. If there are specific photos you want by themselves on their own page, be sure to let us know. Similarly, if you have any other detailed requests, you can note them on the order form as well. Once we have your required pre-payment of 50%, we will begin our work. Our goal is to use our creative expertise and experience, and consider all of your requests to make sure the photo book has the flare you’re looking for. View our photo book page for more details. 

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What do you need to make my gallery wrap?

All we need is the photo you want us to transform into a gallery wrap. If you have any specific photo corrections, enhancements, or artistic alterations, just let us know. If you’d like us to use our creative freedom, we’d love to do that as well! Once you have approved your proof and send payment, we will then print your gallery wrap and send it to you. View our gallery wrap page for more details.

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Does my digital camera have enough megapixels (MP) to enlarge my photos?

One million pixels is equal to 1 megapixel, so the more megapixels your camera has, the higher the resolution of its photos.

Use the following guidelines:

4 MP: 11” x 14”
5-6 MP: 16” x 20”
8 MP : 20” x 30”
10 MP: 24” x 36”

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What do you need to make my montage?

All we need is at least 200 photos or more. Once we have those and your payment, we will begin work on your project and send you a proof. Upon your approval, we will send the printed montage to you immediately. View our montage page for more details.

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Who prints your photo books?

We team with two leading providers, Picaboo and Blurb, Inc.  These are two companies that have impressed us most with their quality and prices.

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