Notetaking tips or tools?

[marcusk]

I'm struggling to keep my notes synced

with my photos. I've just started shooting

35mm film and I log each roll in Evernote

on my phone. As I shoot, I open Evernote,

find the roll number I'm shooting and make

my notes.

 

Those of you who have used EN recently

know that it has become very buggy and

cumbersome. Is there a dedicated app for

photography? Should I simply use paper

and pencil? What do you experienced folks

do?

 

I shoot about 3-5 rolls per week--mostly

black and white, with a lot of nighttime

street and indoor stuff. I don't have time for

a lot of notes, so speed is pretty important

to me.

 

Oh, one other thing. Is there some method to keeping track of where each roll is at any given time? Exposed but not at the lab. At the lab and due out xx. Developed but not scanned. Scanned. Reviewed. Etc. seems like there should be a great app out there. Or, again, is paper, pencil, and brainpower best?

[MichaelChang]

<p>Marcus, if you prefer to use your phone, Microsoft's OneNote is similar to Evernote and it's free for iPhone or Androd. Might give that a try. </p>

<p>If speed is important, another option is to take voice notes which will be date/time stamped, and once you get home the recorded files can be linked in OneNote which you can also use to track your film. </p>

<p>Microsoft is giving OneNote away for free and available on most platforms, so you can also install it on your PC or Mac and import the data from your phone.<br>

<a href="http://www.onenote.com/">http://www.onenote.com/ </a></p>

[monika_epsefass]

<p>There's another App called "day one", which permits you using it like a diary. You can also add shots from your handheld with a Geotag as a reminder where you were.</p>

[jean_yves_mead]

You'd be hard pressed to find anything faster than a pad and pen.

[richsimmons]

<p>SimpleNote or SoundNote might help. <a href="http://simplenote.com/">SimpleNote</a> (ios, mac, android & Kindle) is good for keeping notes quickly and accessible through the cloud. <a href="http://soundnote.com/">SoundNote</a> is better because you can annotate your notes by recording audio with them and when you play it back, the notes that you took while speaking will be highlighted. You can even tap a word and the audio will jump to that part. You can also draw freehand on the page. But it's only for mac and ipad.</p>

[huperetes]

<p>I just use a small engineering field book and pencil.<br>

Works when power is out, recharges anywhere while I sleep, without plugging in, and is compatible with all cameras, and operating systems. :D</p>

[Wouter Willemse]

<p>I am using OneNote to keep track of camera settings for the film I shoot; it syncs automatically between smartphone and the desktop version and generally works really excellent. On my smartphone, it will also take voice notes and pictures as well (note sure if the Android and iOS versions also have this functionality).<br>

And as much as I like it, more often than not I end up thinking paper and a pen is actually faster and about as easy.</p>

[William Kahn]

<p>Being somewhat old-school (maybe not so much as Jean-Yves and John ;-)), I just use a pocket digital voice recorder for pertinent data. I don't use it nearly as much now as I did when I shot film, but it's still handy occasionally for place names and other stuff that doesn't go into metadata.</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>It is cheaper and easier with digital, but even back in the days of film-only, I would often shoot signage and such to provide a solid place to "key in"/register other notes on paper. This has the advantage of being in the roll of film itself.</p><div></div>

[James G. Dainis]

What JDM said. Having something on the film, a historic marker, town name on a sign or even just a license plate with the country or state, is a permanent record on the film. Decades from now you or people can look at the film and say, "Oh, this was taken in Ottawa."

[AlanKlein]

<p>I've switched from writing to recording what I'm shooting on my cell phone,. When I get home, I transcribe the data to written form.</p>

[MichaelChang]

<p>It's actually a perfect application for Google Glass. It's even available for prescription glasses. </p>

[jim_j2]

<p>Film days, . . . Pencil & Paper was best for me.<br>

I did once set up my own code system and use a Data Back on the Canon A Series bodies. That was sort of handy but still a pain.</p>

<p>Digital, . . . Thank goodness for EXIF Data!</p>

[ali_baba2]

<p>Im with the paper and pen crowd, although i never been disciplined enough to keep it up everytime, now less than before. For rolls you can use the bin (or drawer/folders system)</p>

[craig_shearman1]

<p>What are you taking notes of? Exposure and lighting setups? Or caption information and IDs of people in the pictures?<br /><br />In my newspaper days I simpy carried a reporter's notebook (like a steno pad but narrower so it would fit in the back pocket of jeans or the inside pocket of a suit) and a pen.<br /><br />Anything electronic -- especially something that tries to sync with anything -- strikes me as a solution in search of a problem. You'd probably spend more time fiddling with the software than getting anything done. Recording audio? All that means is that you have to find time to transcribe what you recorded. I've done that for interviews and can tell you it takes several times as long as just writing something down in the first place. (You have to record it, you have to listen while you transcribe, you have to back up and listen to a section over again because you can't write as fast as you speak, you have to listen to the whole thing once you're done to make sure you got it right.)<br /><br />If you want to record exposure/technical info, I would create myself a form in Word or Excel with room for Roll Number, Frame Number, Film Type, ISO, Shutter, Aperture, Filter, etc. Print out a big stack and fill them out by hand.<br /><br />Where film is in being processued, scanned, etc.? Unless you're shooting commercially I see no need. </p>

[bebu_lamar]

<p>Most of the pictures I took are not important to take notes. Those that are I remember the details.</p>

[marcusk]

All, thanks for the wonderful variety of responses. <P>

 

Michael Chang. I tried to get going on OneNote but I was unable to "verify" my email address and unable to find any help at MS to figure out what the problem is. This strikes me as a very, very bad, first impression.<P>

 

Monika Epsefass & Rich Simmons. I do like these simpler apps and have been using the Notes app that comes with IOS. I am leaning toward a non-digital solution at the moment for the reasons cited by Jean-Yves Mead, John Huperetes, Wouter Willemse, James (Jim) Johnson, Ali Baba, and Craig Shearman. <P>

 

Thanks all. I haven't bottomed out on what I will do, but I'll add a little more about what I want to capture.<P>

 

I'm a newbie so exposure details are the most helpful. At the moment, I shoot locations I mostly know quite well, so I can tell where something was shot. I mostly shoot street or ad hoc portraits and I tend to engage most of the people in my photos. However, I only seek to capture names if I intend to show them the photo I took or if they are a regular along my route. <P>

 

BeBu Lamar. I wish that my memory were that good, and I need the info to learn from my mistakes. Once I shoot more than about 3 rolls in a week, it gets pretty tricky to remember what I was thinking when I shot something. <P>

 

Once again, thanks for your advice. Happy shooting!<BR>

Marcus

[kim_johnson1]

Try SpringPad its rated up with EN

[marcusk]

<p>Hi, I just wanted to report out on my latest experience.<br>

I did finally get OneNote to work, and I found it to be too slow--on par with Evernote.<br>

I had also been trying to use various very simple electronic notepad apps and finally decided, that for me, the easiest, fastest, most reliable way to keep track of my exposures and other significant notes was with a small, pocket notebook and pen (I think I should switch to a mechanical pencil or waterproof ink, in case it rains).<br>

Thanks for all the input. Very much appreciated!<br>

- Marcus</p>

[michael_hall10]

I use a Dictaphone for all my

notes much faster than a pen

[kim_johnson1]

Springpad is surpassing EN.