My workflow and Everything I do after taking images and before sending to my clients.
I import my RAW or JPG images with a fire-wire card-reader to the computer by dragging the folder from the camera to the folder “Photo-import” on my hard-drive. I rename the folder with it’s date and subject. This looks like: “2009-03-29 subject name”. After this I start up Lightroom and import the entire folder into Adobe Lightroom. The import settings in Lightroom are: Convert the RAW images to DNG and copy the images to my external drive called Photo’s. Place the folder in it’s original name into the folder of the recording year. This looks like this: “Ext.HD” – “Images” – “2009″ – “2009-03-29 subject name”. Now I already have a backup of the original images on the computer hard-drive and this allows me to safely erase the memory-card if speed is necessary.
I batch rename all images by replacing DSC (Placed there by the camera) with the subjects name, while leaving the continuos number intact (Something like “Landscape 1254.DNG”. I ad the captions and image titles.
Now I boot up my backup drive and backup the external drive called Photo’s. I disconnect the backup drive and continue working in Lightroom.
I continue with making selections by giving the images red labels. I switch on the filter for the colour label red and only see the selected images. Now I start a second and final selection by removing the red lables from the rejects. The images in the final selection are awarded with three stars (To make sure that I can select them easily with a filtersetting with 3 stars after removing the colour label).
The selected images are being edited in Lightroom and/ or exported to Photoshop and edited. The settings for exporting to Photoshop are: 8 bits TIFF with LZW compression to save space on my drives. After editing the image I remove the red label. When finished editing all the selected images I turn off the Red filter setting and choose all images with 3 stars (Click on 3 stars in the filter settings). These are the finished images and ready to export and sending to my costumers.
I make another backup to the backup drive and after a month or whenever I’m sure that everything has gone well (Satisfied costumer) I remove the folder with the original NEF files from the computers hard-drive.
The reason I use one external drive to store all images and another one as a backup is that after the drive is almost full I buy a new and bigger one (well two actually because the backup is of the same size) and replace the older one. There are two advantages on this system:
The drive that contains the images is being used and therefore I’m always aware of the fact that it’s functioning as it should. A drive that is being stored has a chance of being broken without you even noticing it and then it’s probably too late.
Should my computer brake down I can take my drives to another computer and start working again.
Notes:
In the past I used iView Media Pro in the workflow. But since they where taken over by Microsoft I couldn’t bring myself to upgrade. I don’t trust anything that Microsoft makes and therefore I had no choice other than to choose for a different Database system.
I didn’t choose Aperture for the simple fact that I don’t believe that Apple will continue this software in the future (Making software is not their core business). Adobe is specialised in photo software and therefore can be trusted to continue and support this software for a very long period of time. I don’t want to even think about exporting all images from one database to another (You lose all RAW settings).
I import the images as DNG instead of the original Nikon NEF files to avoid incompatibility in the future.
Helen Levitt passed away yesterday at her home in Greenwich Village in New York. Levitt was born on 31 August, 1913, started to work for a commercial portrait photographer in 1931, and purchased her first Leica in 1936, not long after an encounter with Henri Cartier-Bresson. She went on to become famous for her street photographs of New York City, including poorer neighbourhoods such as Spanish Harlem. Although she liked black and white, Levitt was one of the first truly gifted street photographers to use colour film from 1959 onward.
Vanavond op TV bij het digitale kanaal BBC four: Japan in Colour: The Wonderful World of Albert Kahn.
In 1908 lanceerde de franse bankier en filantroop Albert Kahn een van de meest ambitieuze plannen in de geschiedenis van de fotografie. Hij creëerde wat hij noemde zijn archief van de wereld. Sommige van zijn meest belangrijke werken werden gemaakt tijdens drie bezoeken aan Japan.
In the Netherlands Adobe is going to be sued by the NVJ for forcing RAW users to upgrade Adobe Photoshop to the latest version whenever they buy a new camera. Adobe doesn’t support older version of Photoshop with the new RAW upgrades. And therefore forces users to upgrade. This is an interesting case and I’m very curious about the outcome. However, there are some arguments against this case.
There is other RAW software available like Adobe Lightroom, Aperture, Nikon Capture NX and there is even a free Adobe RAW to DNG converter.
The same accusation could be made to camera manufacturers for not using DNG as RAW format. But instead they are using their own RAW files that are specific for every camera that is produced. And thereby producing incompatible cameras and forcing all RAW software developers to update their software every month or so.
You can also choose not to use RAW but go for JPG instead.
Point 3 seems silly but in this case the Photographer claims that he only uses Photoshop in his workflow for speed. If speed is what you need then it seems to me that working in RAW is not the best option. Although I have to admit that with some subjects (e.g. Concert light) you may need to shoot RAW.
Considering these three arguments alone, I believe it’s going to be a difficult case. I’m not betting my money on the NVJ, that’s for sure.
Aan de fotogalerij van fotoshoots diverse bands heb ik recente foto’s van de AC/DC tributeband Action in DC en diverse finalisten voor het Popsport project 2009 toegevoegd. Het betreft de bands: Capital Sentimental, Mindtrick, Hunting The Robot, Stuffed Animal, Izonix, Checkered, Scarabee en Kids Never Lie. Popsport is een educatief project gericht op muzikale en sociale ontwikkeling bij leerlingen van middelbare scholen in de provincies Zeeland, Brabant en Limburg, alsmede het ontwikkelen van zakelijke aspecten waarmee ze in de dagelijkse praktijk bij het muziek maken te maken krijgen.
A.s. zondag 22 maart zendt AVRO Close Up de documentaire Kors’ Keuze: een portret van Kors van Bennekom uit. Paula Rennings en Pieter Vlamings maakten samen met cameraman Robert Berger een indrukwekkend portret van de man achter de lens. Zijn oeuvre geeft een prachtig beeld van de Nederlandse samenleving in de jaren zestig, zeventig en tachtig. AVRO Close Up, NL2, zondag 22 maar, 18.15u- 19.20u.
Documentaire, Kunst/Cultuur AVRO Close up: Gilbert and George – Art for all Kunst is voor iedereen, is het motto van het Britse kunstenaarsduo Gilbert & George. Sinds de jaren zestig trekken ze internationaal de aandacht met hun live performances, videokunst en grote glas-in-loodachtige fotomontages. Hun eigen dagelijks bestaan zien zij niet los van hun kunst, integendeel: ze vormen al jaren een ‘levend kunstwerk’, gekleed in onberispelijke maatkostuums. Zondag 15 maart, Nederland 2, 18:25u – 20:15u, AVRO Close up: Gilbert and George – Art for all (AVRO).
Aanstaande zondag op TV bij het programma Kunstof TV: Danielle Kwaaitaal, beeldend kunstenaar en één van de pioniers van de digitaal gemanipuleerde fotografie. In haar nieuwe werk Whispering Waters, een serie onderwaterfoto’s, zoekt ze naar het schoonheidsideaal in menselijke én artistieke zin. Vanaf 14 maart te zien in het Groninger Museum. Zondag 15 maart NL2, 17:40u – 18:25 Kunststof TV (NPS)
Vanavond op TV bij Pauw & Witteman: Fotograaf Nico Koster. Hij fotografeerde in in maart 1969 het kersverse bruidspaar Yoko Ono en John Lennon, tijdens de Bed-in. Deze foto’s zijn nu gebundeld in het boek Room 902. Saillant detail is dat hij deze foto’s al die jaren kwijt is geweest. Recentelijk vond zijn dochter het materiaal terug in een doos met oude babyfoto’s. Pauw & Witteman, donderdag 12 maart, 23:00u – 23:55u op Nederland 1.
Mijn Bands fotoshoots galerij heb ik uitgebreid met de reggae band Beef, Nederlands bekendste punkrockers de Heideroosjes en de veel geprezen Marike Jager.
My workflow and Everything I do after taking images and before sending to my clients.
I batch rename all images by replacing DSC (Placed there by the camera) with the subjects name, while leaving the continuos number intact (Something like “Landscape 1254.DNG”. I ad the captions and image titles.