Workflow process help

[Photog82]

Hi,


I'm wondering if there's a better way for me to handle my editing workflow. Here's what I do and why:


1-Cull photos in Canon DPP4
2-Color correct in Canon DPP4
3-Run Digital Lens Optimizer using the Lens Tool in Canon DPP. I find that this really brings out the details in my photographs.
4-Transfer photo to Photoshop
5-Go through my editing process, levels, etc. I will sometimes use actions to add certain things, etc.
6-Save as JPG
7-Save as PSD


Now, if I want to save those edits, I have to save as a PSD but those take up A LOT of space in addtion to my CR2 RAW files which I keep. I feel that Canon's software does an excellent job with color and sharpening so I always start there.


If I were to pull a RAW file directly into Photoshop and edit with ACR or editing in Lightroom, my edits are saved to a sidecare file which is fine unless I have extensive edits and still need to save to a PSD but I don't always need that. I feel that the native Adobe color grading is poor.

[NFLD Stephen]

Hey James;

That is pretty similar to my workflow, except I don't always do all steps and I seldom save the PSD. For most of my family "snapshots" I'll just do a quick edit with DPP: color/whitebalance & cropping mostly, and sometimes the lens optimizer or adjust various sliders (highlights, shadows, exposure, saturation, etc). For shot's where I think it is worthwhile I'll open in photoshop and do further edits there. This really varies with the shot and I've been trying to expand my options here. I'll do any mixture of exposure blending, focus stacking, luminance masking, color corrections, etc. I'll always save the RAW files and then a JPG once any edits are done. I very rarely save a PSD or TIFF file as I don't really want to waste the space and I typically don't go back to a file after I've finished the edits. If I do, it's usually because I want to try something different so I'll want to start from the RAW file again anyway.

Interested to see other's workflows too....

Stephen

[HDNitehawk]

I use Lightroom.
But even if I was using DPP I wouldn't use it to sort.
I prefer Adobe Bridge for sorting, it is a free program.
You can sort and delete with key strokes in full screen mode quickly.
Plus you can star while sorting, if you do it before you import to LR it pics up on the stars. It does nothing after you import.

[Photog82]

I use Lightroom.
But even if I was using DPP I wouldn't use it to sort.
I prefer Adobe Bridge for sorting, it is a free program.
You can sort and delete with key strokes in full screen mode quickly.
Plus you can star while sorting, if you do it before you import to LR it pics up on the stars. It does nothing after you import.

LR will import your starred photos just fine from DPP. Culling is just faster in DPP, for me at least. I love LR for cataloging, not for editing though just prefer PS- I just don't like the huge PSD files at times.

[Kayaker72]

Sorry I can't be more help. I have been questioning my own workflow, both as I am not really keeping up and I wonder if there is a better end product than jpgs yet.

But, for what it is worth, I am:

• Culling more in camera than I used too.
• Import into LR
• Initial culling of photos (LR is slow to bring each shot into focus, IMO)
• Process in LR (culling more along the way), primarily adjusting sliders for:
  
  • Color temp-vibrance
  • Tones
  • Vignetting
  
  
• Export as JPG

Really, very minimal.

[wsmith96]

My workflow is similar to Brant's.

I do initial culling on site in camera, then import to LR and continue culling. Next, process in lightroom and export the ones I like to jpeg. I have photoshop, but rarely use it. I've also been trying to integrate DXO into my workflow via LR export, but find I'm a creature of habit and continue to go the LR only route. Why did I spend the money?????

[Minerve101]

I am an enthusiast, farther from pro than the usual forum participants. I am satisfied with a different approach.

For a long while I have used Photoshop Elements as my organizer and its editor as one of the two ways to process. For shots that do not benefit much from the Digital Lens Optimizer, I skip DPP.

When I have been using a “good” lens, I usually cull mostly in camera. I then pull groups of 6-12 raw files into the Adobe Camera Raw ( that is part of Elements editor) and apply basic corrections to the whole group. Next I perform any special adjustments to individual files that are still in the editor. I then convert to jpegs with a box checked that puts them automatically into the organizer.

For a weaker lens I edit with DPP. I typically change the profile of a batch to Neutral, apply DLO , then change to the desired profile or custom adjustments for that batch. Next I convert the batch to jpegs and insert the whole batch into the Elements organizer.

It is easy to further cull from the Elements organizer. If I need to manipulate portions of an image , I do that in the Elements editor using the jpeg file.
For a rare shot that is special to me, I may go back to the original RAW file and start over again with either DPP or Adobe Camera Raw, depending on what I need to change in the processing.

After a few months I get rid of the RAW files from my working computer. They are still available backed up on a portable drive. The ultimate archive is on an SD card in a safe deposit box.

I realize there are many additional features with the full version of Photoshop, and that a pro who comes home from an event with 2000 shots will want something like Lightroom. However, I don’t feel limited by the PSE software for my level of skills.

[Joel Eade]

I shoot small RAW images if I am going just for a bunch of snapshots like a family gathering or some other event where I know there will be no need for large image files ..... for these events I will crop and do basic image adjustments in DPP4 then batch convert and downsize them to jpegs and put them all into a folder.

For more serious applications I shoot large RAW files ... I start in DPP4 to pick only the very best images for individual processing in Photoshop CC ... the number of images processed this way is much lower because of the time & attention to detail applied to each image individually. The final edited images I keep usually as 16 bit tiff files.

For back up :

1. I keep the memory cards (until after step 3)
2. Upload all keepers to Zenfolio
3. Back up my MacBook to an external drive every 1-3 months
4. Reformat the memory cards as needed
5. Annually write all my images for the year on to ceramic M disks stored in bank safe deposit box

[peety3]

Late to the party, but figure I can chime in nonetheless.

If I am tethering, I tether into Capture One. Blows Lightroom out of the water on so many levels. Either during or after the session, I cull the images down to the winners or at least the top of the heap, and use Cmd-J to move those selected images to the Selects folder. I then copy those *.CR2 files into the corresponding LR catalog (see below) in the Originals folder.

I create a new Lightroom Catalog for every gig - just keeps things cleaner for me. Once the catalog is created (there's something magic about the folder it creates so I don't mess with it and just let it do it), I create subfolders "Exports" and "Originals". The original images are put into the Originals folder, often via scripts I use to ingest my memory cards. Every image gets 5 stars and a standard preview is created so I can see the whole image faster once that's done. I set a filter to only show the five-star images, and do (final, if mostly culled in C1) culling by downgrading any unamazing images down to fewer stars. 50% of editing happens in LR and 50% in PS, so I do the things that I want the most RAW control in LR, use Cmd-E to send the image to Photoshop, do my thing in PS, save and come back to LR, and finish the editing. Export to the Exports folder in whatever sizes are correct for the need. All of those JPEGs go through JPEGmini for file size savings.

Once the export is complete and images delivered, the LR catalog (and C1 session if used) go to our NAS. I rerun the sync job to copy the newest NAS files to my direct-attach Drobo, and rerun the sync job to the 2 (of 4) offsite drives I use for backup. Those drives go to my $dayjob office and storage unit, respectively, and the drives that were there come home.