Photo workflow III

I have been working on a photo workflow system which works for me and it's now time to give the series a conclusion. You can read the first two posts here and here. This final post in the series looks into how I plan to implement the system to my (rather enormous!) backlog!

As with most mammoth projects, the key is to create several bite size tasks until you complete said mammoth tasks. I’ve done that for archiving and got somewhere. Now let’s deal with the backlog.

Step 1: Back up all my photos, twice.

I am relatively good with photo backup. I have two external drives and have saved all my photos to both of them.

My 2013 new system folder is already there, looking good and making me proud (and making me feel somewhat reassured nothing will happen to  my photos in a way only backups can!).

What to do with the backlog? Keep the backups. Really! It makes me feel safer to know that if I have a change of heart regarding my current ruthless approach to photos, I can still go back – safety net, I believe it’s called. Having this backup also makes me more able to be ruthless when I get to the *delete* part, as ultimately I can retrieve any images I want. Score!

I also created a backup folder just for the new system. Bit obsessed with backups, I know. And now onto the thing itself…!

Step 2: Implement the new system.

Or go for a nice walk in the park. Or a holiday. Or watch clothes dry. Anything is better than opening your backlog of files and feeling overwhelmed. And nostalgic.

Come back to earth and accept you have to do it. Go, Joey, go!

There really is no point in stressing myself with the size of the backlog or deadlines. I choose to ignore the former and not impose on myself any of the latter. So how will I do it? Chronologically, of course.

Every so often, when I have a bit of time or while I watch a film or a series on TV, I open a folder and go through it. I started with December 2012 and I’m working my way up from there. The process is something like this:

:: open folder in Picasa
:: delete ALL rubbish images i.e. too dark, (not artistic) out of focus, what-was-I-thinking-here, etc.
:: congratulate myself on no-mercy-for-boo-photos approach (ignoring the fact I did it because I have a backup)
:: go through all the selected images and edit + rename + label as appropriate
:: add folder to new system backup

The four steps above may or may not happen all in one sitting, depending on the size of the folder and the editing I think the photos need. I don’t have a problem with that though, this is not a race, it’s a gentle jog.

My goal is to only keep photos I *love* or *really really like* in each folder. The more I go through the archives, the more I want to keep going. Not only because it’s rewarding to see everything coming together nicely, but also because I become better at knowing what to keep and what to bin so the whole process is much quicker now.

Once I’m done with a particular year, I may even consider doing a photobook or two!

Hope you find this short series on my photo workflow system useful. I’ve certainly enjoyed reading about your ways of sorting and storing your images! The world is definitely a better place when photos are neatly organised!

::inspiring Mondays::

It rained here today. And there was thunder too. And a bit more rain, just in case we had forgotten all about it. Nothing like a good rainy Monday to get some blogging done and some curling up on the sofa with a cup of tea watching Big Bang Theory. If you can add a cat or two into the mix, even better!

I had an eventful weekend. I finished THE tunic and... it fits me. It really does. There are improvements to be made and lessons to be learned, but until I write that post I'll just enjoy this feeling that comes from having sewn a garment. It's a great AWESOME feeling, even if I can't quite explain why. It just is!

Nicky did a half-marathon, just a small (or not!) milestone in his path to a full marathon in October. There was a small fan club who got up at 5:30am on a Sunday to cheer him on (and sleep in the car or on the grass) and photograph the occasion. Currently, Nicky is the responsible person for all my recent achievements (which do not include a half-marathon yet) and it was good to see that pushing me along has not fully compromised his more serious training.

My baby cousin (almost nephew) turned one this Saturday. A full year of missing yet another person, however mini. And what an opportunity to realise how love is such an elastic thing and how distance matters very little in these things of the heart. It was also a fantastic chance for me to learn I'm becoming a softy; his father, my cousin, nearly brought me to tears over the phone just by saying my absence was sorely felt. I used to be tougher than this!

Almost forgot... inspiring today? All of the above. With a bit of sunshine. And the rain, the grass really needed it. I mean, this country is green for a reason!

Hope you're having a brilliant July and that this Monday is just one more of those fabulous days :)

Note to self... and others

I have written several posts over the past couple of weeks… all in my head. I think about, and sometimes elaborate on, content for posts and images I could share here quite frequently, during my cycling commute, while cooking dinner or laying on the grass soaking up as much as the sun as possible (safely, of course!). However, none of these (beautifully, or not!) written posts ever see the light of day, or even the light of a computer screen. Nope. All these posts stay in my head. And you know what? That is fine. It really is fine!

::inspiring Mondays::

For the past three weeks, I have slept with the window open. This alone easily sums up my recent mood and overall state of bliss. Sunshine and warm weather makes everything look better. There’s something about the warm tones of summer that tickles us into happiness.

That said, I did make the most of the clouds that appeared this weekend by finally working on that tunic I so want to sew this month. I’ve patiently copied the pattern to pattern paper (so I wouldn’t cut the original) and then traced it again onto the fabric. I took the first of many deep breaths I see coming before cutting my precious flamingo fabric and I’m now staring at these pieces which already resemble a tunic (even if just in my head!).

:: good news from home ♥
:: summer salads. Lots of them.
:: my tunic to be. Cute already!
:: grass beneath my bare feet.
:: my cycling commute.
:: summer. Of course, summer!
:: the smell of wet grass in light rain...

How was your Monday? Wishing you a lovely start to the week!

::inspiring Mondays::

I consulted with my friend Nicky to see what style I'd follow for today's inspiring Mondays. Would I go with an image that sums up my mood? Or should I write the usual list of things which keep me going on a Monday? He told me to do something different.

This is a good day. It's a summer and summery July Monday, I've had an amazing weekend (pool included!) and I'm looking forward to enjoying the rest of the week in a relaxed manner. At face value, this is the perfect Monday, so perfect you don't need inspiring Mondays. And how can I do something different?

People. People around me, special people, who listen to my rants and vents and pick me up when I think it's all a bit too much, people who make me run 200m more so I can reach my monthly goal, people who stop me in my tracks to invade my little space and who make it so much better for it, people who add so much to my life that my throat swells up a little when I think of how they touch my days and change my world for the better.

Perhaps you'd like to take a moment today to think about these people in your life... what an inspiring Monday you'll have! Have a lovely week :)

::inspiring Mondays::

It’s beautiful outside and summer seems to have arrived to this wonderful island I now call home. I’ve been in the UK long enough to know that if you see a ray of sunshine you’re out of the door enjoying it that very second… or you may miss it. This means that a lot of the things I had planned to have done by now are calmly (and oh so happily!) waiting for summer to pass while the Joey absorbs sunshine and grows freckles!

I’m loving the sunshine and the hot weather and the smell of BBQ and summer salads. I absolutely love the smell of summer salads!

:: summer!
:: sunshine!
:: sunbathing in the garden. LOVE!
:: cycling to work. It’s been amazing.
:: jugs of Pimms. Oh yeah!
:: my friends. I love them.
:: the summer light through my window. Favourite bedroom, I will miss you.

How’s your Monday? I hope you’re having a sunny and happy start to the week!

cute fabric for a cute project

I sew. I would like to say I sew a lot, but sadly that wouldn’t be true. I sew a fair amount though, and a variety of items from bags to aprons to dolls to puffs, my current favourite! I’ll sew pretty much anything I fancy or I’m asked to, but… I have never ever sewn clothes.

In 2010 (or was it 2011), I had a new year resolution to make myself a skirt. Turns out new year resolutions were boo and that never happened. This year I’m setting monthly goals which is really working for me; as a result, July seems to be the month which will see me sew my first piece of (hopefully) wearable clothing.

A Friday evening at the bookshop and I came home with two books. I knew which item I’d sew first before I left the shop - a tunic. That Saturday I found the adorable fabric above and it was magic! Even though my original plan was to use a light coloured fabric, the minute I saw those white flamingos on navy… Yep, you know what happened!

Let the fabric cutting begin!

Photo workflow II

I wrote about the two problems I had with my photo workflow system (or lack of) in this post. Finding a solution which was both feasible and made me happy took a little while, but I think I’m there.

Let’s start with archiving. Archiving can (and should!) be divided in two things: Folders and Photos.

Folders.

In creating a photo workflow system which worked for me, I had a good look at how I *think* and how I like to organise things. I think in dates. Since I can remember, I have always dated my work, from texts and poems, to drawings and school art work. This obsession with dating things comes from my Dad, no doubt. He would encourage us to put a date on every little paper we ever gave him. I like this. Thank you, Dad!

So it is no surprise the new system needed to have dates.

To begin with, I like dividing things up yearly. The Year folder stays.

                 2013

As for sub-folders, talking to a friend I realised I think about a year in events (with a date, of course!) and stuff. Events are easy, people’s birthdays, a holiday, done. For stuff, I looked at my Flickr.

A while ago I went through my sets on Flickr and divided it up in a meaningful-to-me way. The backbone of how I see my photography is there; brilliant! Things are looking better now. This year so far looks like this:

2013     201301 Dad’s birthday in PT
            201302 Mum’s birthday in PT
            201304 Aunties in Oxford
            2013 Morning walks
            2013 East Oxford wanders
            2013 Door to the world
            2013 Feet on the ground
            2013 Window to my soul
            2013 Belly time
            2013 Fairytale Oxfordshire
            2013 Home is
            2013 Little snippets of life
            2013 Knits
            2013 Sewing
            2013 England
            2013 London town

Ah, this feels great – an archiving system I like which reflects how I see photo archiving. Cool!

Photos.

Once I had the folders in place, I needed to look into photo naming and cataloguing.

I like to keep the original file name. Once I edit an image, I like to add a snappy title (it also means I’ve gone through that particular image). If said photo appears on the blog or Flickr, that goes on the name too, so I know immediately which photos have and haven’t been used.

DSC8367 – Joey being silly BLOG.jpg

I use Picasa for photo organising and find it quite good. Picasa has a *labels* function which lets you tag your photos for an easy search. Honestly, I think the system above lets me find any photo I want pretty quickly, but… For the sake of 5 minutes to label images, I will not test myself and be proved wrong.

Labels I use: Year (haha!), Month (it’s cool), Event (eg Dad’s birthday) or stuff (eg Sewing), and location (Oxford); if I’m feeling inspired that day, I add quirks (eg morning, red, coffee).

And voila’, my archiving problem is no longer. I need a break before writing the final post – how to implement the system to photos I’m taking now AND how to deal with the backlog. Gulp…!

Does this workflow make sense to you?

July goals

July means second half of the year. How quick was that? July is also the month before my birthday. I long for the beach and the smell of sweet salted skin after a swim in the sea! Oh July, you'll always be holiday time for me!

In January I embraced change. In February I created change. In March I somewhat learned to deal with change. In April I accepted change. In May I (let myself) enjoy change. In June, I settled in the change. In July, I want to ignore change.

:: be cheerful

:: sew my first ever piece of clothing

:: run 13k

:: embrace a photography project

....................................................................................................... 

You can read all my monthly goals posts here and my change :: one little word posts here.

::inspiring Mondays::

I saw The Boss, live. I'm happy!

He sang Born to run. I'm very very happy!