Let me start with a basic truth that applies to BOTH laundry and photo organization:
How many of you started 2011 with the resolution that this was the year you were finally going to get your photos organized? You did? Well the sad truth is that unless you plan to quit taking photos, you will never fully keep that resolution.
Truth be told, I was going to wait until I got caught up on organizing all my photos before I taught this class. However, the more time I spent organizing, the more the reality sunk in that I'm always going to be organizing photos because I don't plan to stop taking them anytime soon. However, my photo PROCESS or workflow is already in place so there is really no better time to teach than now!
When we think about our photos, I believe we need to change our mindset, focusing on refining the process of our individual workflows rather than just saying we are going to "get organized." A workflow or process is repeatable and sustainable whereas organizing is just something we do. If you put the time in to create a good workflow and refine it, you will reap serious creative dividends.
When you think of your current photo workflow as a river, do beavers live there? Think of your photo process – what bothers you most about it? Some common concerns
- I can't find anything I need – my photos are a jumbled mess.
- I have a pretty good handle on my photos but I'm not having fun anymore.
- Technology scares me – I know my photos are in my computer but I have no idea how to keep them safe – my husband accidentally deleted half of them last month!
My challenge to you is outline your workflow and identify the beaver dams or stopping points so that as you go through this Lightroom training, you will be aware and know exactly what will be most helpful to you to refine it.
Remember, it's all about the process – make it sustainable and repeatable so it is easy for you to process your images so you can spend the bulk of your time creating!
Sarah
Love your river/beaver dam analogy. I’m definitely looking forward to being organized, but am most excited about creating a sustainable process that will ensure that the “disorganized chaos” doesn’t happen again in the future.
The one area I struggle most with is deleting/paring down my images. I know it needs to be done. And I know the collection of photos that I’m left with mean so much more once given a thorough culling. But I still struggle with hitting the delete key. Truly bad shots I can let go of, but then there are those that are “almost identical.” Those are the hardest to let go of, for me.
Michelle
Sarah – I have the same struggle, I finally figured out a way to work this into my workflow.
I have been working through paring down my 23,000+ pictures, many very similar and I don’t need that many of the same or similar shot. In Lightroom I am tagging my potential delete photos with a color instead of a star rating (I use red). I can then let it simmer a bit. As part of my workflow I go back periodically and revisit the pictures I have rated as a red. At that point I can make a final decision to delete or keep.
I am finding I mostly delete, but occasionally will keep some in my catalog. Enough that I am keeping it in my process. Because sometimes I am just plain “delete happy” and later realize it is really something I want to keep.
Sarah
Michelle – This sounds like a wonderful solution! I’m going to give it a try.