So -- I am looking at my workflow and looking to trim the fat. I would appreciate some thoughts on what I could potentially do differently to save time. I am not worried about saving disc space as its so cheap that it really becomes non-relevant.
1: Take the picture. 99.9% of the time in RAW; but on the rare occasion I (or my wife) will grab the camera and use it as a P&S so there are the occasional JPEG's that come in.
2: Pull card from camera, dump into flash reader where Adobe Bridge picks it up. I have it add a few pieces of meta data for me. I have it set to ALWAYS put the files into sub-folders which I name during upload, but they all live in the same root folder. The structure is similar to this:
- Todays_Uploads
- --------Volleyball vs Team x 10-25-2012 (then files in this folder)
- --------Volleyball vs Team y 10-24-2012 (then files in this folder)
- --------Wilsons Portraits 10-20-2012 (then files in this folder)
Once all of the files are uploaded to the new sub-folder I select to delete all of the files, then remove the card and put it back in camera. I have never had a corruption, but am considering adding in a step to do an in camera format; but I tempted to leave well enough alone.
So - my files stay in this folder until I am done editing them. If I took some random shots for something else, I have a sub-folder called BACKBURNER that I will put them in so that when I have some spare time to try whatever it was, I can do it. This helps me keep a priority on what needs to be done first, vs other projects.
3: Open lightroom. Select the Todays_Upload folder and choose to synchronize. I allow it to bring in copies just in case I got crazy and copied something manually and forgot about it.
4: I then look at the entire group I just synchronized and flag for deletion all the blown shots. OOF, no flash, test shots, etc. I remove them from disc, then immediate start running through the set to pick out my keepers. I simply flag them and use that flag to sort from once I'm done. I've started deleting the ones that are exposed fine but not of the quality I want in some circumstances. Volleyball for example. In others I may keep the "bad" shots for later editing such as composites, etc. I don't mind keeping the "leftovers" on disc as media is so cheap, but I'm thinking the less I have the better especially for file management and back ups.
5: Edit the CR2 files using previous and synch to do any group adjustments like basic noise reduction, slight sharpening, exposure, highlights, shadows etc. things which can be applied to a set or the entire group. I will generally play with a couple photos to get exactly the feel I wanted and then apply that to the set. Ideally that leaves me with only having minor touch ups like Red Eye, spot removal, teeth whitening, cropping to deal with on a one by one basis. Depending on what I'm shooting I may have to make minor adjustments to exposure from pic to pic. That's a pain, but using ETTL and a variable aperture lens...not much else I can do. (that I know of)
6: Export. I first start to export my print versions. I have LR put them in the original folder under a new sub-folder called LREDIT. I have LR add a general name like "Volleyball" to the front of the file and save it as a TIFF at 300 PPI. Once that starts, I export the same set again this time to a sub-folder called WEBVERSION where I append the file with "WEB-VOLLEYBALL" for example and save these as JPEGs with an 18 inch longest side and PPI of 72. I am currently not adding watermarks, but may do so.
7: Other editing. If there are shots which I am going to be stitching, doing HDR, or PS to heavily edit I do so to with a copy of the TIFF files. When done I save and manually move them as needed. This isn't part of my normal flow, but added the step just to detail what happens in those unique cases.
Here's a very inefficient part...
8: once all editing and exporting has occurred, I then move the folders OUT of "Todays_Downloads" and put them into their final location. I use a multi-level folder approach so its similar to this:
- 2010 - then sub-folders under here
- 2011 - then sub-folders under here
- 2012 (below are a few sub-folders as example of the hierarchy)
- ------- Sports
- ---------------Volleyball vs Team x 10-25-2012 (then files in this folder)
- ---------------Volleyball vs Team y 10-24-2012 (then files in this folder)
- ------- Events
- ---------------Folders for Homecoming, parties, etc.
- ------- Family.
- ---------------Folders for family shots, etc.
- ------- Projects
- ---------------Folders for different projects I may try, etc.
I know its inefficient, and that drives me nuts; but the structure makes it so easy to go back and find what I need in both Print and Web versions. It also helps keep my structure clean at the base level. I do have a few other folders where I store some projects temporary but they are one offs and not really part of any "flow". For example, I have a folder called shared where I put copies files I'm going to post on FB or Flickr etc. This keeps me current with what I have shared, and makes it easy to find what I am about to post.
9: Once a week or two, I will open lightroom - click on the most root level that my images are in (folder called pictures) and let lightroom re-synchronize again, again allowing for copies since they are more likely to exist now then ever. This will reorganize all of my LR images to match the current folder and image locations.
10: whine about it taking so long to run through my flow, lol.
So, I know there are some simple changes which I can make. Please feel free to offer any thoughts or ideas on how I should modify my flow based on your experience or just your ideas even if you've never used a similar flow. I'm certainly open to hearing any good ideas. I may even use them, lol.
Maybe my flow is just horrible and I could cut my time in half by doing things differently... feel free to shred my flow and suggest something worth using. Thanks guys and gals!
