Managing digital files

nipster · 11-22-2009, 04:17 PM

It used to be easy, you kept your "keeper" prints, negatives and slides in one place and everything else either in the garbage or in a separate location. With digital, you find yourself (me anyway) taking a LOT more snaps, which leads to me an issue with managing the files. Not from a bulk storage sense, but from an organizational perspective, especially consideirng I shoot raw, and Windows does not tumbnail them.

I am curious to what others do in this regard.

**Brian** · 11-22-2009, 05:40 PM

What do you shoot? Canon or Nikon? I know Canons provided utilities are pretty flexible and are pretty good at keeping stuff organized.

**SorsSalutis** · 11-22-2009, 05:44 PM

This my flow...

1. DVD backups for each shoot.
2. Open images in a good program that can view RAW files easily. I use Lightroom 2.
3. When viewing through Lightroom, write down the names of the keepers on a pad of paper.
4. Delete the unusable files from the hard drive (You have a DVD copy just in case)
5. Process images and put the finished product in a new folder within the same directory (mine are called "FIN").

DVD's are a safe cheap way to backup images. Hard drives fail. Remove the unnecessary files from your hard drive. You don't need them and if you ever do, you have a DVD backup.

nipster · 11-22-2009, 10:51 PM

I have Canon stuff and DPP and Zoombrowser EX are OK but they dont address the file sprawl that I have run into.

As it is now, I do most of the processing on my laptop and just dump them from my laptop onto a 1TB USB external drive.

**Brian** · 11-23-2009, 08:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nipster

I have Canon stuff and DPP and Zoombrowser EX are OK but they dont address the file sprawl that I have run into.

As it is now, I do most of the processing on my laptop and just dump them from my laptop onto a 1TB USB external drive.

I shoot RAW only. DPP to dump the files to the HDD into a dated folder. In my "Main" Photography folder I have sub folders for the genre of shooting I did. DPP thumbnails them inside the program for easy viewing. I toss the ones I don't want and move the ones I do into on of the said folders above.

jdk · 11-23-2009, 10:00 AM

I shoot RAW and just import with lightroom.. It catalogues everything by date. I let time machine backup my entire macbook pro to an external USB drive every couple of weeks. I don't understand how some people can go through such elaborate routines and still have any time to enjoy photography.

**satanshatch** · 11-23-2009, 01:27 PM

usually lable my folders by how I use them. For instance if I save pics that I generally like of others art work for insperation or something I want to use or try I lable it just that. "Others art work"

Any of my PS down loads brushes are all in one folder then sub foldered. Ie Brushes, fonts etc.

Pretty standard. Just makes it easy for me to find. Then again I still lose shit. LOL

**Nikon** · 12-02-2009, 01:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jdk

I shoot RAW and just import with lightroom.. It catalogues everything by date. I let time machine backup my entire macbook pro to an external USB drive every couple of weeks. I don't understand how some people can go through such elaborate routines and still have any time to enjoy photography.

Same thing, but I still use JPEG and I'm on a Windows platform. Easy as hell. Plus if you have multiple shoots in a single day, you can give the photo groups different tags for easier retrieval later on.

Cobb_Web · 12-06-2009, 12:57 PM

I probably don't take nearly as many shots as you do, and I'm sure my approach is rather elementary, but here's what I do . . .

I have one big folder where all of my photos go. In that folder I have the shots from all my shoots that I bring back with me, usually titled by date and maybe someones name or the event, something like that. I pick out from those photos which ones I want to edit, and then put those in an "Edits" folder.

Like I said, probably not very effective if you've got a ton of photos. But it works for me.

11-22-2009, 04:17 PM	#1 (permalink)
nipster Deez Nuts	Managing digital files It used to be easy, you kept your "keeper" prints, negatives and slides in one place and everything else either in the garbage or in a separate location. With digital, you find yourself (me anyway) taking a LOT more snaps, which leads to me an issue with managing the files. Not from a bulk storage sense, but from an organizational perspective, especially consideirng I shoot raw, and Windows does not tumbnail them. I am curious to what others do in this regard.

11-22-2009, 05:40 PM	#2 (permalink)
Brian Beyond Retarded.	What do you shoot? Canon or Nikon? I know Canons provided utilities are pretty flexible and are pretty good at keeping stuff organized.

11-22-2009, 05:44 PM	#3 (permalink)
SorsSalutis I B O A B	This my flow... 1. DVD backups for each shoot. 2. Open images in a good program that can view RAW files easily. I use Lightroom 2. 3. When viewing through Lightroom, write down the names of the keepers on a pad of paper. 4. Delete the unusable files from the hard drive (You have a DVD copy just in case) 5. Process images and put the finished product in a new folder within the same directory (mine are called "FIN"). DVD's are a safe cheap way to backup images. Hard drives fail. Remove the unnecessary files from your hard drive. You don't need them and if you ever do, you have a DVD backup.

11-22-2009, 10:51 PM	#4 (permalink)
nipster Deez Nuts	I have Canon stuff and DPP and Zoombrowser EX are OK but they dont address the file sprawl that I have run into. As it is now, I do most of the processing on my laptop and just dump them from my laptop onto a 1TB USB external drive.

11-23-2009, 10:00 AM	#6 (permalink)
jdk Non ducor, duco	I shoot RAW and just import with lightroom.. It catalogues everything by date. I let time machine backup my entire macbook pro to an external USB drive every couple of weeks. I don't understand how some people can go through such elaborate routines and still have any time to enjoy photography.

11-23-2009, 01:27 PM	#7 (permalink)
satanshatch Shoe Whore	usually lable my folders by how I use them. For instance if I save pics that I generally like of others art work for insperation or something I want to use or try I lable it just that. "Others art work" Any of my PS down loads brushes are all in one folder then sub foldered. Ie Brushes, fonts etc. Pretty standard. Just makes it easy for me to find. Then again I still lose shit. LOL

12-06-2009, 12:57 PM	#9 (permalink)
Cobb_Web Registered User	I probably don't take nearly as many shots as you do, and I'm sure my approach is rather elementary, but here's what I do . . . I have one big folder where all of my photos go. In that folder I have the shots from all my shoots that I bring back with me, usually titled by date and maybe someones name or the event, something like that. I pick out from those photos which ones I want to edit, and then put those in an "Edits" folder. Like I said, probably not very effective if you've got a ton of photos. But it works for me.