My digital filing system

I often get questions related to how I store my digital images on my hard drive, and why I do it the way that I do it. Keep in mind that this is my system, and not necessarily something that will work for other people. In the absensce of database driven applications such as Aperture or Lightroom, using a physical file structure has been a necessity for me.

First off, my folder structure:

_Photos\year\yymmdd 'job'\filename.xxx

All of my digital photos are stored underneath a folder called '_Photos'. I put an underline before the word Photos because it will sort to the top if there are other folders near it. After that I have all of my photos separated into different folders by year (4 digits, such as 2004, 2005 or 2006). Then I have a folder for each day or each job in a given day (if I happen to have more than 1 job or separate shoot in that day, they will be separated). For example: '06.22.02 Serengeti'. If this folder somehow gets separated from my '2006' folder, I know where it should go. I guess I could put in MMDDYY format, but this is how I started off organizing my images way back in 1999 with my first digital camera.

Then my file naming logic:

yymmdd_hhmmss_job_imagenumber.xxx

So, the year at the front of the filename, then the hours, minutes and seconds, then the job name, and then a 3-digit image number for that day, starting with 001. Why do I put the hours, minutes and seconds into the file? Simple. I often shoot with more than 1 camera, and this allows me to have all of my images in chronological order, even if I am sorting by filename in either OSX or Windows XP.I do have separate folders called 'Portfolio - Africa' and 'Portfolio - Africa Misc' that I place all of my converted raw files into. These are mostly layered Photoshop files in 16 bit, converted by whatever raw conversion application I was using at the time. This approach is going away, as I adopt a more database-driven approach, where it is not necessary to always export an image to be worked on in Photoshop.Well, there you have it. A simple, well defined structure on my hard drive for all of my images.

"Which Way?", Cape of Good Hope, Africa, April 2006
Canon EOS 5D + 24-105mm f/4 L IS

Upgrading the Macbook Hard Drive

So when I purchased my MacBook in a hurry, I neglected to ask for the hard drive upgrade to a larger drive. Not that big of a deal, since I am more technically inclined than not.

For anybody considering a hard drive upgrade on a MacBook or MacBook Pro, here are some quick pointers. First of all, the process is very simple. I am used to using Ghost or Partition Magic on the PC to make such a process work, but on the Mac it is atrociously simple. Here is what you will need:

• Super Duper software for copying your data.


• Torx T9 size screwdriver


• external USB SATA150 laptop hard drive enclosure


• New hard drive. I chose a Seagate 120GB 5400rpm drive (5 year warranty)

First off, you need to put your new hard drive into the external enclosure. I had a difficult time locating an external enclosure that works with SATA 150 hard drives, as opposed to the older PATA, or IDE drives. Once inside the enclosure, all you need to do is launch the OSX Disk Utility to Erase (format in the pc world) the new drive. **Warning** do not erase your internal hard drive, or you will lose all of your data.

Once Erased, launch Super Duper (Thanks, Josh for the heads up) to copy all of your data over from your original internal hard drive. Pretty easy. The software works without purchasing a license, but if you want to schedule your backups or access a few more features, you will need to purchase the software. This is a good idea for me, as this will enable me to create a bootable backup drive that I can take with me while on workshops or safaris. Remember: whatever can happen, will.

Once the copying process is complete (mine took about 2 hours for a 50% filled up 80GB drive), you will need to remove the internal drive and replace it with your new one. First take off the laptop batter, then there are 3 screws to unscrew. You then pull the white tab that is connected to the hard drive, and pull the hard drive slowly out.

The original drive is attached to a caddy, which you will need to transfer to your new drive. A Torx T9 screwdriver will do the trick. Voila. Swap them out, and pull your machine back together.

You should be good to go. I now have a 120GB drive with roughly 80GB of unused space.

Here is another great resource

Aperture 1.5 vs Lightroom beta 4

Wow. Where do I start?

Now that I have my hardware all setup, I am now digging down deep into both Aperture and Lightroom. There are many things to love about each application, but here are some quick bullet points on where my head is at the moment:

Aperture pluses:

• Dust spot removal tool built-in


• Integration with photoshelter.com for stock and print sales (HUGE benefit)


• Very nice video tutorials that ship with the product


• 'Stacks' and 'versions'


• Backups to vaults

Aperture minuses:

• RAW conversion quality close, but not as good as ACR, C1 or Lightroom


• 24" display a minumum, but a 30" display is ideal. Not easy to work on a small-ish Macbook screen while on-the-go


• Sluggish importing a large amount of images, even with a MacPro 2.66ghz machine with 5GB of memory and an X1900 graphics card.


• No ability to hold down option/alt key when working with black points, so I have absolutely no idea what I am clipping out of my image.


• Backing up to vaults requires managing images inside a library, instead of referencing them elsewhere.

Lightroom beta 4 pluses:

• Acceptable performance, which should be better with released version in 2007


• I love the interface


• RAW conversion tools, as well as output quality, is top notch


• Workflow takes a 1-2-3 approach

Lightroom beta 4 minuses:

• Not a released product


• Modal approach, which means certain tools are not available unless you are in the intended module.


• Workflow takes a 1-2-3 approach


• No integration at this time with photoshelter.com


• No spot/dust removal tool in this release (perhaps in final product?)


• Unclear backup methodology

The pragmatic side of me tells me to adopt Aperture 1.5 as my application of choice, but the emotional side of me tells me to hold out a little longer for Lightroom. I certainly like the interface much better in Lightroom, as well as the RAW conversions. This is a young market at the moment, and these products will only get better with time. I can be convinced to use either product at this time, and it benefits me and my workshop and safari customers to know both of them, so I am going to run parallel for the next few months.

Stay tuned.

Looking for a new wide format printer

Well, I think it is time to upgrade my Epson 4000 to something newer. I have a ton of choices to look at, such as the Epson 3800, the HP Z series and the Canon IPF5000 or 9000. I love having a 17" wide carriage, as most models have better capabilities for paper cassette for cut sheets. I like to put a small stack in the printer and walk away. I would consider an Epson 7800 or 9800, but I would have to use roll paper to do more than 1 print at a time.

The new Epson 3800 is a nice little printer, but the paper handling isn't what I am wanting. The good thing is that most of the printers I am considering have excellent output, and it comes down to usability. I am moving in a direction of printing very large, so I can personally oversee my print orders for my commerical customers. More and more of my prints are being put in office spaces, including large common areas. So printing large appeals to me. One option is to keep my Epson 4000 for smaller jobs and pickup a 44" or 60" printer for my large output.

Michael Reichmann seems to enjoy his Canon IPF5000, so I might take a look at their larger offering. The HP Z3100 series looks nice, as they have a built-in profiling solution inside of the printer. I have learned, however, that building profiles is much more than just printing targets and reading them back. 75% science and 25% art.

Time to go kick some tires.

New MacPro desktop

Well, my transition to the Mac is almost complete. I purchased a MacBook earlier this year for my travels, but have still been using a Dell machine for all of my serious Photoshop and image management work. Yesterday I purchased a new MacPro 2.66ghz desktop with an upgraded ATI X1900 video card. I haven't made any changes with my existing 24" Dell LCD monitor, but I anticipate either picking up an Apple 23" for an additional display or moving up to the Apple 30". Take a guess which one I want.

So my transition is almost complete. I am now starting to use Aperture 1.5, even though I dabble with Adobe Lightroom beta 4 from time to time. Being in the workshop industry, it is good for me to know both of them. I was at PhotoPlus in New York last week, and I signed up with PhotoShelter. They have a plugin for Aperture that allows for the syncing between my Aperture library and their archiving and selling solution on the web.

So why is this great? I have been looking for a capture-to-output solution for a long time, and this might be the ticket. My images will be imported, culled, tagged, rated in Aperture. I will also have all of my RAW adjustments there. Then select images will be archived onto PhotoShelter for my print sales and stock customers. For print sales, I can let PhotoShelter's technology go to work for me, allowing for searches and shopping carts. Once I receive an order, all I have to do is do what I enjoy most: printing the image. On the stock photography side, they just signed up with Photoquote, which will put my stock library out on the web (instead of somebody sending me an email with an inquiry) with visible pricing, based on need.

I am very happy at the moment, because I have had a difficult time trying to mentally piece together many different technologies to solve my unique needs. iView? Photoshop? Custom web pages? Stock agency? Outsourced printing services? Not any more. Now I get to focus (literally) on what I do best and what I enjoy: photography.

Back home from Africa

Well, after 3 solid weeks of photography, I am back home. I took a tremendous amount of images, and I know I have some images that will put a smile on my face. It will take a while to sort through all of the images, mostly because I am still figuring out how to come up with an efficient workflow on my new MacBook. The new Adobe Lightroom beta 4 looks promising, but I will tackle that on another day.

I learned a few things from this past trip. I learned that I feel most comfortable using 1 series Canon cameras for wildlife, and just about any camera will do for landscapes. In the past 2 safaris I have taken very different approaches from an equipment standpoint, and I learned quite a bit from those experiences. Here are some bullet points:

• It is quite difficult moving back and forth between a 20D/5D and a 1DMkII/1DsMkII from an interface standpoint. I strive for simplicity, and prefer to have all of my cameras setup in a similar manner. Moving between a 1DsMkII and a 5D is challenging in a fast-paced environment.


• The buffer on a 1DsMkII is not adequate for wildlife photography (duh).


• The 1DMkII or 1DMkIIN is still an awesome camera for fast autofocus and high frames per second shooting.


• I love full frame 24x36mm viewfinders.


• The 400mm f/4 DO IS and 500mm f/4 L IS lenses are difficult to choose between. I would take either in a heartbeat.


• Canon needs to incorporate their new anti-dust technology in all EOS cameras. Period.


• I wish I could locate Safari Lager here in the USA.


• Epson P2000 devices are atrociously too slow for 12mp and higher cameras, especially when shooting with 8GB CF cards.

I hope to have my first round of images posted in the next few days. Time to sort through them all, deleting/ranking/processing along the way.

On my second safari, we saw 58 lions, 3 rhino, 1 leopard and 3 cheetah. We had some amazingly close elephant opportunities, as well as hordes of wildebeest and zebra. Giraffe were in abundance, including a number of drinking giraffe.
I am glad to be back home, but I look forward to returning in January.

Baggage challenges for Photographers....

Well, this has been a challenging 24 hours since the world found out about the terrorist plot that would have originated from the United Kingdom. With this event, security has been heightended all around the world, and the stress related to traveling by air is certain to go through the roof. Especially if you are flying through/from/to the UK, as at the moment carry-on baggage is not allowed. This is a huge challenge for traveling photographers. Especially wildlife photographers with a ton of gear and at least one large prime lens.

I will be writing down my reflections on how to pack photographic gear that has to be checked. There are many paths to go down, but my gut reaction is to use a Pelican case for all photographic equipment, packed inside of a nondescript duffle bag. Here is some information from the TSA in the USA:

Media have also reported that laptops, cell phones and electronic items are no longer allowed. Is that true?

No. TSA continues to allow laptop computers, cell phones and other electronic items.

What can people expect at the checkpoints?

Passengers may experience longer lines at airports and should plan to arrive early. Check with your specific airline and airport before flight departure time to determine how much time is needed for your flight. Passengers should pack their patience and ensure that that they do not bring any liquids to the security checkpoint in carry-on luggage. These items are no longer permitted on board the aircraft. To expedite the process, avoid having clutter in your bags and minimize the number carry-on items.
More on my thoughts later.

My Digital Accessories on the Road

I am often asked what digital gear I carry while away on a photo shoot, so I here is a quick list of the essential workflow tools that I take on the road with me.

Computer

I use a MacBook notebook computer (updated 04/2008: Macbook Air) for most of my computing needs, both at home and away. I use a dedicated desktop computer (currently a Dell PC, but will be moving to a Mac desktop when they are announced and shipping) for my critical color management applications, but all of my email, word processing, etc happens on my MacBook. I have the 2ghz MacBook with 2GB of RAM, and I have upgraded the internal hard drive to 120GB. Since my typical safari trip has me leading back-to-back safaris, I needed the ability to store between 40GB and 60GB of digital images from my current camera setup, which is sure to change in the future.

Storage

I use a Epson P-2000 storage device as my backup hard drive, as well as a method to offload my images in case my MacBook craters on me. I never know. It could happen at any moment.

I also have an external 100GB USB hard drive as my second backup device, and I keep this hard drive with me at all times when traveling overseas. I also carry my original MacBook's 80GB hard drive in a padded case, and this will allow me to have a bootable computer in the event of a hard drive failure. I create a fresh backup of my internal hard drive to this 80GB drive at least once every few weeks.

Compact Flash Cards

Ok. My name is Andy Biggs and I am addicted to compact flash cards. I have to admit that I have a boneyard of compact flash cards dating from 2002. Only 11 more steps to go towards my full recovery.

My 'collection' of cards that I actually use are the following: (1) 8GB Sandisk Extreme III, (2) 4GB Sandisk Etreme III, (1) Sandisk 2GB Extreme III, (2) Lexar 80x 2GB, various 1GB and 4GB Microdrives to be used as loaners.

I use Lexar USB CF readers, but I am evaluating other options to make sure that I am using the latest and fastest readers available on the market today.

Electrical Plugs

A few months back, while out on safari, Thomas Knoll (one of the original authors of Photoshop), introduced me to the Road Warrior universal electrical plug. I have seen devices like this in the past, but nothing so compact and, well, universal. What a wonderful product. It seems that I only see great innovations like this from the Japanese market, and I was glad to finally find a source for such a product here in the US. The Road Warrior allows me to carry a small and lightweight adapter that will work in any country around the world. Time to put away my multiple sets of plugs. I usually take 3 or 4 adapters on each trip, per country. Sometimes I might need 3 totally different sets of adapters for a single trip. Not any longer, since I found this product.

You can purchase the Road Warrior from Madsonline for US$28 each.

Software

I seem to test and use many different software applications on a daily basis, so this is just a quick list of applications that I am using at this very moment. This list will most certainly change as I get more acquainted to the Mac environment.

• Photo Mechanic - for downloading, renaming, viewing and culling of images.

• Adobe Camera Raw - for digital raw conversions

• Adobe Photoshop CS2 - for final image cleanup

• Adobe Lightroom - I am evaluating the application, and I suspect this will be my future all-in-one application for downloading, renaming, viewing, sorting, culling, rating, raw converting, and outputting of images.