I wouldn’t put the families on seperate pages. I think what most people like to see is the entire family tree on one page. Maybe you could break it down into separate pages also, but I would be sure to include an all inclusive tree of all the known family. This could just be names without photos. I like the idea of a tree ilustration with all the names on it in beautiful calligraphy. You could leave the photos for the smaller family groups.

I’m not sure how much you have to work with. A lot depends on how much good material you have. My father did the research for us and provided the photos. But he didn’t have the artistic talent or wherewithal to put it into any great format. Now that you mention it, with my Photoshop skills, I should do this.

I have this book and it has a great look to it with sepia photos and collages. But the info on your ancestors may not go back so far as to have sepia photos. Mine do! Even so, it’s a great little book with nice images for presenting geniological info and archival mementos.

I like it on one big page. So I can follow them all down through. (It also helps if it branches)

I would not be using pictures of family members, only names and dates of birth and marriage. I already have pretty much all the info I need on my family in order to get started. I was leaning more towards one big sheet also, it would probably be a little easier.

Spread lots of seed.

Do both.

Make one big cover page that shows the relationships to the various family members. Create a page or several pages for each branch of the tree, number these and place the reference number for each branch beside their name on the cover page.

This way you can see at a glance how you are related, and go into detail for each person in their family section without cluttering up the big picture.

Family Tree Maker used to have a wonderfully easy program for assembling a family tree, but the new version is needlessly difficult.
The best advice I can give you is to get as much information as you can before you begin to assemble it. Once some of the sources of information are gone, so will be the information.

First, dig a hole big enough to hold the root system.

@filmfann Exactly my thoughts. I need to do this now before it’s too late. My parents are getting up there in age and my mom and dad’s parents have already passed so it might be difficult to get accurate information from.

@Sunny2 :)

@WestRiverrat Thanks for the advice. It can’t hurt to do both but I guess most people would prefer to see it all on one sheet.

@AshlynM it is easier to follow the connections if they are all on one big sheet, but if they want more detail the chapters on the various branches come in handy. I like to dig into the histories of my family, so I prefer the chapters, but having the one big map helps me visualize how they connect to me.

Trim the more eccentric branches.

And, as @filmfann suggests, get a program.

Also, FamilySearch.org is a good starting point. It uses the LDS records which are fairly extensive in my experience.

You might also try Genforum and FreeBDM but the latter is only good for the UK

One other thing, keep your search focused. It is real easy to lose yourself into one of the many sidebranches that will appear.

Our family tree is so large that it prints to 40 or more pages; it would not be legible otherwise. So how you present it will change as you collect information. It’s good fun at the family reunions. We put it up on the walls and collect data to add or to correct the presented information.

I suggest you just start it. Not the easiest task because of the amount of information you need to gather; much of which may be unavailable. Doesn’t help to make the process more tedious than it may already be by agonizing over how to format it.

For what it’s worth, though, there are apps available that makes organizing family trees a painless process. The Ancestry app does a really good job at helping the user organizing his tree. It also offers access to public records that can validate existing information as well as possibly connect you to missing family members. The only thing it won’t do is provide the commitment necessary to get the job done.

I have the disadvantage of not being close to any of my family members…and I’m lazy to boot, so I’ve limited how extensive my family tree will be. I’d respectfully suggest you document whatever family information you have. You can always trim or modify it later.