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01/06/2011 11:58:44 AM · #1
So I just got my new cam and am finding the whole RAW thing a bit fiddly.
I was wondering what your routine is when you come home with a memory card full of RAWs - what do you open them in and what do you save them as afterwards? Also what is your folder structure in your documents, where do you save your photos?

Thanks guys, I appreciate the help. :-)
01/06/2011 12:22:18 PM · #2
Many people will use an application such as lightroom to organize and sort. I use the folder structure on my PC. When I get home, I copy the memory card to a temporary folder where I can sort through them. I review them in Canon Digital Photo Professional and give star ratings to the keepers. I then sort by rating and select all the ones I have now identified as keepers. Since Canon's software works with the Windows file system, I can just drag them from the DPP window to a permanent folder and they will copy or move. I set the flashcards aside and when all my flashcards are full, I will backup the permanent folder to an external hard drive before reusing the cards. This way there are always at least 2 copies of the keepers.

On my folder structure, I create a folder for each year. Within that, I have the subfolders labeled by date and a few words folder name that describes the session. The RAW files are within this. Under this folder, I have a folder alled "converted" where the JPEG or TIF output goes. Under that I have an "edited" folder, which contains photos in-work and the final results. I keep both a full size image and web/challenge sized version of each final image. The smaller sizes have the pixel size of the long edge appended to the filename so that I can identify the large and small versions when looking at thumbnails.


That probably sounds more complicated than it really is. One advantage of this is that it moves easily between computers because it is not reliant on special software. If I were a pro, I would probably invest in a more sophisticated solution.

Message edited by author 2011-01-06 12:23:20.
01/06/2011 12:32:07 PM · #3
Thank you so much Steve :-)
I think I'm going to re organise my folders like that from now on - or something very similar.
Do you know if I can use that similar rating system in Photoshop bridge? It sounds like quite an efficient system.

Thanks again :-)
01/06/2011 12:36:12 PM · #4
Yes, in Bridge you can create folders, and rate each image. It also displays the Windows Explorer filing system. I know you can sort them, but I have yet to figure that out.
01/06/2011 12:37:36 PM · #5
I need to get a better system. When I was mostly taking family snapshots it was easy to keep track just by day and year I have sub-folders with the date and a short description and then they go in a large folder for everything taken that year.

This is what my routine should be(but I am sometimes too lazy or don't have enough time to do it):

Once a week I go through all my RAW photos. I delete all the mistakes or ones that didn't really work out. The average ones that I still want to keep I convert strait to JPEG. The really good ones I keep in RAW or TIFF in case I want to get back to edit them later.

Then I rewrite the name on the folder keeping the date but adding a short description. I don't really need to label each individual photo because I always keep the properties meta-data window open in my photoshop organizer and I can see what file type it is and the size when I click on it.

Then every thing goes into a monthly file that will eventually go into a yearly file.

I like spiffy's idea of rating everything when I look through them the first time with stars, it would make it easier to sort and delete when I go through them at the end of the week. Also I don't have batch editing software, that would really make things easier.
01/06/2011 12:54:40 PM · #6
Originally posted by sjhuls:

Also I don't have batch editing software, that would really make things easier.

I know that Canon DPP can batch process. I do that when I've shot a lot of photos of an event in similar conditions. I copy the setting of the first image to all the rest, probably make tweaks to a few images that need it and then let DPP do a batch conversion to JPEG.
01/06/2011 12:57:25 PM · #7
Originally posted by Yo_Spiff:

Originally posted by sjhuls:

Also I don't have batch editing software, that would really make things easier.

I know that Canon DPP can batch process. I do that when I've shot a lot of photos of an event in similar conditions. I copy the setting of the first image to all the rest, probably make tweaks to a few images that need it and then let DPP do a batch conversion to JPEG.


By batch editing do you mean that one process is done to all the photos?
01/06/2011 01:11:10 PM · #8
mine is very similar to Steve's.

1) tether camera to Computer...directly/manually download (NEVER DOWNLOAD FROM CAMERA VIA EDITING SOFTWARE) to my C Drive (I only keep quarterly pictures on my C Drive), Passport (Virgin files - totally untouched), and MyBook (Where I have another virgin file backup and the edited files stored) the last two are external hard drives.

2) I have Photo - 2011 file and under that I have each date with the pictures I took on that date...all my edits go back to that file (C Drive) and my final edits go to my DPC file with Challenges/Outtakes/Side Challenges..etc.

I have LR3 and I use the star method as well...still new to this program but I LOVE it

it's alot of duplication BUT I would hate to loose my pictures....My only hope is that they won't all go down at the same time....
01/06/2011 01:39:07 PM · #9
I move the photos to my computer under a file named after the event/place/subject (ie, Paris). I then go through my shots in a preview mode to compare framing/composition with similar shots to narrow down which ones to edit or discard (I don't put too much stock in exposure at this point, since I can tweek that, but if the composition is way off/sucks, then it's not an image I'll use). I then "promote" the images I want to edit in a "Paris-To Edit" folder and the ones I don't want either delete or move to "Paris-Not Used" (these are for ones I like but aren't as good as the ones I want to edit but for the sake of not having 10 shots of the same thing I save them incase later I change my mind and like that image better ... I don't want my temporary taste to result in permanent loss).

The ones that are To Edit I then open up with photoshop and it brings me to the RAW editor first, which I do my initial processing in. After the RAW edit and then any additional work in PS, I save the file as a TIFF with a title and the digits in the RAW file name (ie IMG_300 is now Louvre 300.tiff). The original RAW file gets moved to a Paris-Originals folder. Final processing step is creating the JPEG for use in whatever it is that I'm doing with the photo. When all the files are done, I rename "Paris-To Edit" to "Paris-Edited".

Basically, one parent folder and three subfolders:
Paris
Paris-Originals Paris-Edited Paris-Not Used

I like the benefit of organizing by subject because I know exactly where to go to look for what type of photos I took. Additionally, a search on my comp will bring up all relevant files for that subject. Similarly, by keeping the digits of the RAW file name in the TIFF name I can easily go back to the original and don't have to rename every RAW file (messes with your work flow if you have 5-10 images up and you're editing then have to go back and rename the original to match the TIFF).
01/06/2011 01:43:08 PM · #10
Originally posted by adamelliott111:

By batch editing do you mean that one process is done to all the photos?

That's what I think batch editing refers to. In DPP I can adjust one image and then copy the setting to the rest. By batch processing, however, I am referring to selecting a group of images and letting DPP convert them all as a batch.
01/06/2011 01:46:35 PM · #11
I used to be much more militant about keeping only the best shots in the RAW format, but with 1TB portable hard drives going for $130 its faster just to worry about organisation and metatagging than to save "meh" shots as JPGs to save space.

I converted over to Lightroom about 2 years ago, and while it is a pain to get shots into Lightroom (compared to sorting them in Windows or browsers like Breeze or ACDC) the ease of meta-word tagging, quick editing and posting to the web make up for it.

So I import directly to Lightroom. File structure is orgainsed by year and date. Rotated and marked by star and reject as they load up. Dump rejects to trashcan, and metaword tag the keepers. Any image 2 stars or higher goes in a special file to keep on the resident hard drive to mess with and show off recent work.

Once a month or so I back up all image files onto an external hard drive, which is then mirrored on a portable HD which I keep in my computer bag and clear off everything but the 2star+ images off the resident HD.

Slowly I am going back into my old photos and adding them to the Lightroom catalog with ratings and metawords so the whole thing will be searchable.

Message edited by author 2011-01-06 13:51:44.
01/06/2011 01:55:07 PM · #12
Insert CF card with RAW images into Delkin firewire card reader. Apple's Aperture automatically opens.
Import all master images into a new project in Aperture 3. Name project. The new project resides in Library 2011 in a category folder (Birds, Landscape, Family, Macro, Misc., People, Still Life, Weddings, Wildlife, etc.) Add Copyright metadata to all automatically at import.
Review masters and rate 1 stars to 4 stars, or just leave unrated. Also, mark any total rejects with "x" so I don't have to look at them again.
Change view to display 3 stars and above. Shift star rating up or down on second pass through.
Change view to display 5 stars only. Color code a subset worthy of processing.
Make adjustments to a strong candidate. Aperture never touches the master. "Lift and Stamp" adjustments of one to similar images (bulk process).
Shift star rating down on weaker images. Scrutinize the few remaining 5 star images.
If needed, fine tune in plugin apps, like ColorEfexPro3, SilverEfexPro, HDR Efex Pro, Viveza2, Denoise5 or Sharpener Pro.
Select final candidate(s). Export as 16bit, full size TIFF images to a folder on the hard drive.
Open in Photoshop Elements. Resize, USM, shift color space to sRGB, save for web.... I add a title and retain the image number for easy search and find.

All image files in Aperture 3 are backed up to a vault on a different hard drive.
All tiffs and Jpgs are backed up to a hard drive and backed up to Carbonite and/or Dropbox. I also use Time Machine.

After vaults have been updated, I will eject CF card. Then, I'll return CF card to camera, erase and format with camera, so it's ready for next project. Also, always recharge batteries before zipping up the camera bag.

Message edited by author 2011-01-06 14:03:53.
01/06/2011 02:35:39 PM · #13
Thanks for all the great replies guys, it's really helped me devise a much needed plan.

Do you all leave your images as RAW then? It's not really a memory issue for me but it's just I can't really show friends and family from my laptop without opening up bridge etc which is a bit annoying.
01/06/2011 03:43:45 PM · #14
Anything worth showing off ought to be edited, and that requires it to be taken out of RAW, and saved either maximized for print or web/screen. I save my show offs in a file that sits on my laptop and have been edited to look good on that display as JPGs. But the RAW is still the RAW, and it sits in the master file, with the edited JPG shot sitting just below it.

Message edited by author 2011-01-06 15:45:10.
01/06/2011 03:57:55 PM · #15
Directly download from camera to computer. I don't convert any unless I am editing as my next step. Usually I view in Adobe Bridge then convert. I never alter my original RAW file though, only a copy.
01/06/2011 03:59:33 PM · #16
Originally posted by adamelliott111:

...Do you all leave your images as RAW then? ...

To show a set of images to friends or clients, I will completely finish editing in Aperture, then export 800x600 sRGB jpgs to a folder on the hard drive. Then, I'll import into iPhoto and create a slide show. I often use my mobileme.com account to host the slideshow.
01/06/2011 04:14:26 PM · #17
I've just came up with a folder structure thanks to all your help,
Main folder = France etc
Sub folders =
Not-used (RAW)
Originals (RAW)
Edits (RAW)
Final (show off) edits (JPG)

I think that should be Ok and all I need now really is a external hard drive to back them all up.

Thanks everyone :)

Message edited by author 2011-01-06 16:15:15.
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