Organising your photos

[Harryx2]

Hi guys,

I’m new here and new to photography. I’m about to buy a Nikon D3100 (any advice on this camera would be really appreciated). But my questions is about storing and organizing your photos.

I’m on a MacBook Pro and currently use iPhoto but wondered if I’m taking lots of photos should I be using something else?

Thanks in advanced for any help or advice you can give me!

 

[nmoody]

Lightroom 4 is very popular for organization. I use it and love it. You can download a trial here if you want to test it out: https://www.adobe.com/cfusion/tdrc/index.cfm?product=photoshop_lightroom

 

[Big Mike]

There are many, many different ways to store, organize, catalog etc. you photos. If iPhoto works for you, that might be all you need.

Firstly, I'd suggest that you have use a solid & simple file structure. Most people organize by date. So when you upload the photos to the compute, you put them in a folder/sub-folder by date. For example, I use a folder for the year, then sub folders for each time I upload. (I also keep my professional photos separate from my personal & landscape photos). So that is my basic file structure.

The main program I use for processing my photos is Adobe Lightroom. I 'import' photos into LR (they are not moved, just added to the catalog database). I add keyword labels and ratings to the photos, which makes it very easy to search for photos later. Within Lightroom, I can also create 'collections', which are just groups of photos. Again, the actual digital files aren't moved out of their folder structure, the collections are just a way of looking at certain photos. There are also filters, so you can easily organize or list your photos based on very specific information. For example, you could find all the photos taken with a specific lens, or focal length, or aperture etc.

I also make sure to backup my LR catalog and my image files. A good backup strategy is very important, because hard drives are prone to fail eventually.

A good book on the subject is 'The DAM Book' (digital asset management).

 

[Superfitz]

If you don't want to pay for a program such as Lightroom, then check out Picasa

Edit...for organizing purposes not editing. A food free editor is GIMP.

 

[Harryx2]

nmoody - Brilliant, thank you for that! Is it straight forward to edit photos etc?

 

[nmoody]

nmoody - Brilliant, thank you for that! Is it straight forward to edit photos etc?

If you understand Adobe products it will feel like home. Everyone has their own workflow so there is no one way to use this program. Because of that it can be confusing due to all its features. I ended up purchasing this book to get the most out of the program: Amazon.com: The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4 Book for Digital Photographers (Voices That Matter) (9780321819581): Scott Kelby: Books

The author of the book is very well versed in Adobe products and well integrated into the Photoshop community.

 

[Big Mike]

I do highly recommend Lightroom, espeically if you decide to shoot/record RAW photos with your new camera.
There is a bit of a learning curve when you start using it though. I also read a book or two when I switched. It really is work the time to learn what you can do with it, so consider a book or two, but also check out the many tutorials and videos etc. that can be found online.

 

[table1349]

Before you go out and spend a bunch of money here is what I recommend. First, R.T.F.M. All of them. Second, install all of the software that comes with your camera. Try it out, you may be perfectly happy with it for your organizational needs. If not check out Lightroom4, download the free trial version and give it a go. Also try Aperture, it also has a free trial version. Check out other free trial versions of other similar software and then pick the one you like and will use.

 

[KmH]

Your camera came with an effective photo organizer called Nikon View NX. View NX and the complete D3100 user's manual are on the software disc.

View NX is also a basic Raw converter and image editor.

GIMP does not include an image organizer nor a Raw converter.

 

[Superfitz]

Your camera came with an effective photo organizer called Nikon View NX. View NX and the complete D3100 user's manual are on the software disc.

View NX is also a basic Raw converter and image editor.

GIMP does not include an image organizer nor a Raw converter.

People actually look at the disc that comes in the camera box? View NX would probably be a good starting point if it edits and organizes. I've never used it though.

 

[KmH]

People actually look at the disc that comes in the camera box?

Sad commentary, but true. A lot of people aren't smart enough to comprehensively explore what is included with what they just paid hundreds of dollars for.