Dilemma...

gravity0 · Apr 21, 2009

Ok I'm new to photography and am learning bits and pieces here and there from shooting to just studying and reading. My problem is in the post stages of shooting, figuring out which shots are good and which shots are crap. The problem here is that I'm scared I'm going throw out a good image while keeping a crappy one. How do you guys go through your images and what questions do you ask youself?

d40bby · Apr 21, 2009

I'm just starting out as well, but what I've been doing so far is keeping EVERY picture. Even if I don't think it's "good" right away, there are a couple I have come back to a few days later and cropped or edited in some way. Some of my favorite pictures so far manifested themselves like this.

You may want to take the time to go back through your shots and see if you spot anything new that you like.

MACollum · Apr 21, 2009

Get rid of the obviously crappy ones...out of focus, blurry, anything that can't really be fixed at all. I have lots that I've gotten out later (sometimes MUCH later) and tried out a new technique on or somthing like that. If it's bad, get rid of it, if it could be improved, you can keep it. You might decide to throw it out later. I've done that as well.

DScience · Apr 21, 2009

MACollum said:
Get rid of the obviously crappy ones...out of focus, blurry, anything that can't really be fixed at all. I have lots that I've gotten out later (sometimes MUCH later) and tried out a new technique on or somthing like that. If it's bad, get rid of it, if it could be improved, you can keep it. You might decide to throw it out later. I've done that as well.

what MAC said!

I would automatically just import all photos from your memory card, and then on your computer delete the blurry,out-of-focus, horribly exposed, pictures and then save the rest.

What I do, is PP the ones that I personally like the most and then put those ones in my 'favorites' folder.

bdavison · Apr 21, 2009

I agree with what everyone else said.
If its absolute garbage and theres no way to fix it..delete it and preferably reshoot it if possible.
If its not total garbage, I keep them. I cant count how many times Ive went back to images that really werent all that great when I first looked at them, and found a crop that I really liked. Or color shots that later I found out looked fantastic when converted over to B&W or even sepia.

Here is a shot that is obviously WAY overexposed...but I like it.

manaheim · Apr 21, 2009

I even keep a few really bad ones if the expressions on the kids faces are just "so"... but generally, yeah. Whack 'em.

However, the tragedy of it is there is no such thing as "good", really. There are certainly a variety of things that can make an image good, but I've seen some really awful images that people just go gaga for. Heck one image that I almost trashed wound up being one of my most popular shots. Go figure.

DScience · Apr 21, 2009

manaheim said:
I even keep a few really bad ones if the expressions on the kids faces are just "so"... but generally, yeah. Whack 'em.

However, the tragedy of it is there is no such thing as "good", really. There are certainly a variety of things that can make an image good, but I've seen some really awful images that people just go gaga for. Heck one image that I almost trashed wound up being one of my most popular shots. Go figure.

I think you bring up an even broader point here that should be addressed. I believe this is because it's not always how perfect a shot is composed, or how well it's exposure is...sometimes things just 'look' cool and interesting! It goes back to the all famous phrase, "Beauty is within the eyes of the beholder."