I may not have had the fanciest car or the spiffiest wardrobe, my lovely wife and children weren’t there to put on display, but at my recent 25th High School reunion there was one thing I had that screamed success and wrung envy from my former classmates; the geekiest, slickest, most creative way ever conceived to display digital photographs of my loved ones.

Except I didn’t.

A dearth of babysitting and a wealth of sports games kept the rest of the family pinned down in Austin, so I was constantly going to the iPhone and scrolling through endless galleries to try and find the perfect pics. The good ones. The ones that capture the true spirit of my wife and kids. The ones that will let my fellow ‘85s know that, despite questionable career moves, I’m doing alright for myself.

Standing with a guy I haven’t talked to in a couple of decades, the usual opener sends me fumbling for the phone. Scroll, scroll, scroll. Find photo. Hand over phone. Guy says something nice about the photo, swipes to the next one. It’s of Owen being Gandhi. Not cool. Classmate is from India.

I know for a fact there are multiple solutions here, both simple and complex. Why not buy/bring an iPad? That would garner early adopter points and be a great way to show off the kids. At the very least, create a pre-selected gallery of a dozen or so pre-selected photos that show the family. How about a slide show? Hit play and hand over the iPhone.

Or even better, go low tech. Use you iPhoto to create a pocket-sized (3 1/2” X 2 5/8”) photo album. How cool would you be ripping your mini-album out of your pocket showing a couple dozen snaps your beautiful kiddos? Why did I not think of this before the event?

Do you have any ideas about how best to show off your family photos at reunions and similar events?

Maybe I can be more prepared for my 30th.