Managing files

After shooting loads of digital photos, downloading them, and then editing them, I have files on my hard disk, and I always keep a backup file. But I have noticed that working with JPEG files, and cropping etc., the file size changes dramatically. My original 2 meg file may end up as 900 kb. Do most people keep their original larger files? If so, what is the best way to organize that? Do you save them regularly to a CD-RW? Any other suggestions?

Yes, absolutely never edit the original and make sure you save them to disc. Thumbs plus is a good software to help organize photos and keeps track of what you have on disc by keeping a file of thumbnails on your pc for reference.

John,

You should also know that each time you edit and save a JPG, further compression will be applied, gradually degrading the quality of the image.

The first time you load an image to your picture editor, save a copy in a lossless format (the native format of the editor is probably good for this) and work on this version until you are happy. When you have finished editing, save another JPG version at your preferred quality setting - the higher the setting, the less compression (and degradation), but the larger the file.

Regards,

There is a article on Sept 2003 issue of DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY on this subject "Burn Baby Burn".
I was surprised how my photos were being degraded on each edit session, without my knowing it.
The author suggest puting files on a CD right a away so you dont keep degraded files as archives, while orignal heavy files are lost.

Quite simply, the file you download from your camera is your negative. It is your master.

This is never to be modified. Never edit this file. Create a new copy first (in lossless format) before any changes.

Save all your unmodified masters to CD or DVD.

Continue to use lossless format for all steps of the edit process (including final edit)

Use jpeg only after all the editing is done and you need jpeg to compress the file.

If you keep the originals as "Negative" how do you catalog them? I mean, do you have one big "negative" file on your hard drive, do you keep adding them to a CDRW? I know it makes sense, but I'm finding it hard keeping originals, edits, and backups in terms of where since you are always adding new photos. Any suggestions would be helpful at this point. thanks.

I keep my 'untouched originals' in separate folders. I have developed a naming scheme such as:
DOWNLOAD 07-30-03 MC TRIP
The problem I now have is there are multiple years of folders intertwined so I am going to do a massive renaming project so they will be in chronological order, ie: DOWNLOAD 03-07-30 MC TRIP
Further when I edit in PSP I save the images in a subfolder (usually called WORK).
I can usually quickly find the images I am looking for as the folders are dated with the dates of the download to the computer and some short useful description.

I started creating folders based on dates and events, each folder starting with the word pix. Under each folder, I have a sub-folder entitled "originals" where the original files live.

pix_beachjuly03
pix_beachjune02
pix_ashleysgraduation

This worked fairly well, except there are places I go a lot [eg, beach], so if I want to find that certain lighthouse photo with the great sunset, I have to remember which trip that photo was taken on and invariably I ended up pawing through tons of folders.

I need to do a massive renaming convention, but, I usually find something better to do. *grin*

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm just not sure how much I want to back up. For example, I can save new shots to a CDRW called originals, and make a CD each time that fills--I'll have a collection of CDs with originals, like negatives. But then after editing, etc., the "finished" photos on my hard drive probably also should be backed up. And so this back up problem becomes confusing. I guess I need two CDRWs--one for originals, one for edited. Is that the kind of backing up you usually do?