Blue Pixel

Thursday, December 31st, 2009 by Reed Hoffmann

I'll admit I've never been a big fan of New Year's Resolutions. It seems that either you're going to get something done or not, regardless of the time of year. However, it makes a good topic for a blog post :) With that said, here are a few resolutions that would be good for any photographer to make.

First, if you don’t have a good plan for renaming the images from your digital camera, the beginning of a new year is a great time to start. From January 1st, 2010 on, you can have a consistent scheme for this and use it the rest of your life. What’s a good format to adopt? Whatever makes sense to you, provided it’s impossible to ever have another image with the same filename. That’s why I use the date shot and a sequential number as part of the name. My method, which I’ve been using since soon after the start of the millennium, has the date shot, then a one-word title, then a number that indicates where that photo is in that shoot. So if I were to shoot some photos on Jan 1, 2010, I’d likely rename them as 20100101_NewYear_001, 002, etc. And, just as important, take advantage of most browser’s ability to rename files during the download process. My favorite browser that does this and much, much more is Photo Mechanic (http://www.camerabits.com).

Speaking of renaming, maybe it’s time to look at your workflow and think about whether it’s truly efficient or not. Again, good browsers won’t only rename, but they can also automate the download process with folder creation and adding IPTC.XMP metadata. Someday your images will be part of a database administered through a catalog, and having that metadata, including captions, locations, etc. will make that catalog much more useful.

Most photographers I talk to have old images that aren’t organized. No time like the new year to start digging into those, scanning them if they’re not digitized, and moving them into coherent collections too.

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Or in the digital age, one medium. Have multiple back-ups, both on DVD and hard drive, and have at least one set of your most important data off site. And remember to update those back-ups regularly. Six months ago is not regular.

Make sure that your family will have photo memories in the future. Too many people shoot photos on the camera phones and never off-load them, or save pictures from their camera to different computers. Consider putting a server on the family network (they’re easy to set-up and use these days) or at the very least, go around “harvesting” photos from the various devices everyone uses. Ten years from now they’ll thank you.

And speaking of family, get out those old, fading, disintegrating albums and copy those photos (much easier than scanning them). Don’t let your family memories turn to dust.

Make it a goal to get at least one new imaging software program this year and really learn it. If you haven’t tried Adobe Photoshop Lightroom or Apple Aperture yet, those would be good places to start. All-in-one photo applications like these are probably the future for photographers. While neither of them do everything I want yet, they have some strong points, and learning about them now will make the later transition easier. If you’re already familiar with them, then dig into a cataloging program like Expression Media (by Microsoft, cross-platform). Regardless, pick one piece of software and use it to expand your knowledge base.

If you’re a Windows user, upgrade to Windows 7. I’ve been running the beta version, and now the release version for most of 2009 and can’t say enough good things about it. Time to move on from XP, and if you’re a Vista user, you’re going to enjoy the upgrade too. ‘Nuff said.

As you upgrade camera gear and computers, consider donating the old stuff to local high schools. Most have photography programs, but no money to support them. This is especially true in the cities. There’s no better feeling than knowing an old piece of equipment is finding a new life, and maybe changing one as well.

And finally, try something new with your photography in 2010. Maybe start playing with lights, convert a camera to infrared, work in black and white for a few months, buy a close-up lens and get your knees dirty, or find some other way to explore your world in a different way. Photography offers endless variety – pick a new direction and make it your own.That’s one sure way to make 2010 a year to remember!