To find out more about exactly what happens in our minds when we look at our old photographs, we reached out to Helen Marlo, a licensed clinical psychologist and Jungian psychoanalyst who provides psychotherapy, psychoanalysis, and consultation. Marlo is also a Professor of Clinical Psychology and the Department Chair at Notre Dame de Namur University, and as our luck would have it, she is as passionate about this topic as we are.

Marlo explained that there is a concept known by psychologists as “deferred action.” “It speaks to the process of how memories are continually revised as we attain later stages of development and as we attain new experiences.”

“In adulthood, the way we view a memory or a photo of ourselves as a child shifts, for example, depending on whether or not we have had a child in adulthood. We have associations to that photo depending on our evolving life experiences and through our current stage of development including expanded or diminished insight and empathy,” the clinical psychologist explained.

Moreover, Marlo argues that “as much as we may view memories as static and defined, the concept of ‘deferred action’ affirms how memory is dynamic and it is influenced by our past and our future.”

We previously also spoke with photographer Dominic Sberna who shared some insights into why people love then-and-now photographs so much. According to him, there's such a large amount of then-and-now photos of celebrities that he thinks the desire to see a comparison as to how people have changed trickles down to the everyday person.

"I believe that social media and the humor of recreating a photo from childhood is also a major driving force. It's funny to see a grown adult recreating a situation from their childhood because it's so out of place and makes for a really funny photo," Sberna explained.

When it comes to making a perfect recreation of an old family photograph, there are a couple of elements that need to be considered. First, it’s all about combining the posing and angles just right. "This can be difficult for recreating any image, let alone with people involved," he said.

Moreover, you have to take some steps to prepare for a recreation. You want to print out your photos and keep physical copies of them. This may be challenging today when more and more people opt for digital formats that they keep online.“It's important to have printed copies of your memories, so that you can have them to pass down to future generations. Plus, by doing so, maybe your future children will one day recreate a photo of you," Sberna said.

In the end, remaking childhood photos may be an excellent way to gather all the family members together. While dwelling on our past nostalgia, we connect in these shared memories and experiences, and relive the past in a new light. This is something that gains a value like no other in times when life is so fast, and we struggle to find time for each other.