critic my workflow

[sandy_w1]

<p>hi all, here's my workflow after a shoot... appreciate your comments<br />here's an example of my folder structure:<br />portfolio\weddings\amy and brian\LR CR2s<br />portfolio\weddings\amy and brian\Selected PSDs <br />portfolio\weddings\amy and brian\Final JPGs<br />portfolio\weddings\amy and brian\To E-Mail<br />1. in LR, import images from memory cards to "LR CR2s" folder<br />2. in LR, rename all filenames to format {date}_weddings_amy and brian_{####}.CR2<br />file sequence from 0001.<br />3. in LR, go through images and set rating (1-3) or reject flag<br />4. in LR, apply adjustments (wb, tone, sat, etc) of 2 or 3 stars<br />5. in LR, export all images (except rejected) and their XMPs onto DVD (this becomes my archive)<br />6. in LR, export 2 or 3-star images to folder "Selected PSDs"<br />7. in photoshop, do magic on those really awesome images and save them as PSDs<br />8. in LR, synchronize PSDs folder<br />9. in LR, export my selected PSDs to "To E-Mail" in JPG low res. (i use this to upload to my proofing site)<br />10. in LR, export my selected PSDs to "Final JPGs" high res and 8x11. (i make DVD from this folder for my clients)<br />11. Lastly, i format the memory card only when i need to use it for my next shoot.<br /><br />that's it, for now. please let me know your thoughts. thanks!</p>

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[mgk1966]

<p>First thought is to switch #2 and #3 around. Renaming after you reject files will keep the numbering free of gaps. This way, the B&G don't ask "can I see the pictures from xxx242.jpg to xxx247.jpg?".<br>

I would also put "back everything up" right in the front.</p>

[sandy_w1]

<p>awesome catch matthew... thanks!</p>

[ben_mcmillen]

<p>back up your raw images first before anything for sure. Good call on not formating or deleting cards after you pull the images. I rotate 2 sets of cards for weddings and I keep my wedding cards seperate from my day to day portrait cards.<br /><br />The rest looks good.</p>

[aimee_pieters]

<p>Check out <a href="http://www.backupandburn.com">www.backupandburn.com</a> It's a very inexpensive software that does and automated backup when you return from a job while you're asleep. It will even sort the images by time and rename them IF you like. It saves tons of time....-Aimee</p>

[edrodgers]

<p>It's all personal preference, really. For me when I started, I made an elaborate plan with step by step procedures, but within a few years it had morphed into what was practical for me to do and not do.<br>

Just FYI, my folders look like this:</p>

<p>/weddings/090321_Tom_and_Melinda_wedding/raw<br>

/weddings/090321_Tom_and_Melinda_wedding/jpg<br>

/weddings/090201_Tom_and_Melinda_engagement/raw<br>

/weddings/090201_Tom_and_Melinda_engagement/jpg<br>

And so on. I do not rename my raw files.</p>

<p>Each event gets it's own Lightroom catalog, which I store in the raw folder with the raw files. I also have Lightroom write out metadata sidecar files as kind of a backup. If the database gets messed up, I can create a new database with the same settings on each image. (I can also create a master database and import all projects with the image settings in tact.)</p>

<p>I start out by going through the raw images in lightroom with the caps lock key on, hitting 'p' to pick it and 'x' to reject it. The caps lock key will cause Lightroom to automatically go to the next image after I choose. On this pass I want to reject bad exposures, motion blur, blinks, test shots, etc. When I get to the end, I do it again, this time filtering out the rejected ones. Basically I am getting rid of duplicates or unnecessary shots.</p>

<p>Then when I have my set, I tweak them all in lightroom, generally just the tone group, including white balance, exposure, shadow, contrast, clarity, maybe a touch of saturation or vibrance. I may do some conservative cropping and straigtening. If after tweaking it I decide I have a real winner, I'll just tap the 5 key to rate it as such.</p>

<p>My next step is to make virtual copies of all of them and do a black and white conversion on the virtual copies. I then go through each copy and adjust if needed, this time both the tone groups and the color sliders. I usually put a color label on the virtual copies so that I can select them easily later. (I like purple for some reason for the black and whites.)</p>

<p>Then I export them to jpeg. Jpegs are renamed to mmddyy_xxxx[_bw].jpg, like 090321_0398.jpg for color and 090321_0398_bw.jpg for black and white, when exported from Lightroom into the jpg folder.</p>

<p>Now I have finished the job of the in-camera jpg processor. All subsequent work (if any) is done on the exported jpegs. I upload the jpg set to Smugmug and I'm done.</p>

<p>This bears no resemblance to my original procedure.</p>

[greg jansen]

<p>On a larger note, I find it helpful to keep the image folders in a whole seperate hard drive; away from system folders. Makes backing up easier. C: drive is for programs, temp files,misc. stuff, D: drive is only wedding images, E: drive is other images (non wedding jobs) and documents.</p>

[greg jansen]

<p>On a larger note, I find it helpful to keep the image folders in a whole seperate hard drive; away from system folders. Makes backing up easier. C: drive is for programs, temp files,misc. stuff, D: drive is only wedding images, E: drive is other images (non wedding jobs) and documents.</p>

[pete_s.]

<p>I would switch from using PSD to TIFF as it is an open standard and a better format for archives. TIFF also has the same capabilities as PSD and then some, for instance different formats for compression.</p>

[pete_s.]

<p>You could also put a number in front of you subdirectory names so they will show up in alphabetic order. I'd drop the reference to the software or camera format as well. For instance:<br /> 1 - original raw<br /> 2 - selected tiff<br /> 3 - final hi rez jpg<br /> 4 - final lo rez jpg</p>

<p>I'd also put the date in the wedding name as Ed Rogers showed in his post above. That makes it easier to track the wedding.</p>

[mark_t5]

<p>i dont bother making that many folders, i manage the final destination of the images with the keywords.much easier and faster for me to manage that way.</p>

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[ben_mcmillen]

<p>as far as work folders I drop all raw files from 2 or 3 cameras into one folder. I time correct so that they atre all in sync. Only other folders I make is when I export. One for final jpegs and one for web use and those two folders sit directly inside the main folder.<br /><br />Of course I back up the raw files before anything. I do not backup the jpegs although I regulary backup the lightroom database files and can re-sync them to my backup raw files and make new jpegs should I need them.<br /><br />As for DVD backup I burn a DVD or DVD's of the the final jpegs for local lab printing then I keep that DVD as another backup.</p>

[sandy_w1]

<p>AIMEE: Thank you but www.backupandburn.com is out of business... :(<br /> Does anyone here use an automated backup utility software or third party service provider?</p>

<p>P.S. Thank you all. This has been so helpful.. I love Photo.net and everyone here! :D</p>