by Bill Hurter
6.
WORKFLOW
Here are two basic workflow descriptions. The first is a wedding workflow by Michael Ayers designed around JPEGs and incorporates a lot of different features, including uploading to an Internet site for extended sales and proofing.
The second is a RAW file wedding workflow by Neil Van Niekerk designed around using the RAW file’s rich data to enhance each file by batch processing. Van Niekerk hands his final images off to a lab for printing as JPEGs.
There are many other workflows around, almost as many as photographers doing wedding photography, but these two are different enough to provide some good insight into the organization and thinking that went into them.
BASIC JPEG WORKFLOW
This example of a basic workflow comes courtesy of Michael Ayers, an award-winning photographer from Ohio. It assumes that the files were captured as highest quality JPEGs. Ayers’ workflow is a good model because it includes printed proofs, a virtual proof album on CD, and uploading low-resolution JPEGs to a website for general viewing and purchase by guests and relatives.
Uploading. After the images have been captured, the CF cards or removable media are assembled and the process of uploading the JPEG files to your computer’s hard drive can begin. FireWire or USB 2.0 card readers are recommended for this purpose, as their connectivity speed allows you to upload large numbers of image files quickly. Files should be uploaded to folders, which can be broken down according to chronology or function—1. Pre-Wedding, 2. Wedding, 3. Reception, and so forth. Some photographers name these file folders 1000, 2000, 3000, etc., so that files named with those prefixes will be instantly recognizable as “Wedding,” “Reception,” and so forth.
File Backup. All image files should be backed up onto CD-ROMs at this point; these are your source files—your originals. Many photographers use DVDs, as their capacity is much greater and all of the folders can be copied onto one disk. You may also consider a portable hard drive as a suitable backup device.
Edit and Adjust. Michael Ayers always shoots extra copies of some images, especially groups, to insure that he has captured everyone looking their best. At this stage, he goes into the computer browser (Microsoft XP filmstrip browser, Adobe Photoshop file browser, Photoshop CS2’s Bridge) to edit the images. Any poorly exposed images or duplicates are deleted at this point. Some exposures may need color adjustment or contrast changes. At this point in the process, Ayers will adjust these images in Photoshop’s Levels or Curves. He will also fix obvious problems, removing EXIT signs, adjusting odd compositions, etc.
Image Manipulation. It’s at this point that Ayers begins to “play” with the images in Photoshop, using various plug-ins and actions to creatively alter the images. Some will be turned into monochrome or sepiatone images, some will get selective coloring. The full gamut of creative effects is open to him.
Rename. To this point, most images have been saved as high quality JPEGs; Ayers has not saved the images more than once, so there’s no loss of quality from the originals. If he plans on manipulating an image further, he saves it as a TIFF file. When all images are finished and in order, he uses either Photoshop or CompuPic Pro to do a Batch Rename on all the files. His system calls for a three-digit serial number plus the extension, for example: 001.JPG, 002.JPG, 003.JPG.
Some photographers choose to rotate the images at this point for proper orientation. Programs such as ACDSee, EZViewer, or Thumbs Plus are powerful browsers used in conjunction with Photoshop. You can use them to rotate a display of images.
Copy Again. Once the Photoshop work is complete, Ayers makes another set of copies of the finished files in their folders. This time he makes the copies to an external portable hard drive, using either USB 2.0 or Firewire connectivity for fastest transfer.
Ayers recommends disconnecting this hard drive from the computer and storing it unplugged in another location.
Proof Setup and Printing. For proofing, Ayers’ studio provides pages placed into a 10x13-inch General Products album binder. These 10x13-inch proof pages are printed “nine-up” (three rows of three), so each image is about 3x4 inches with a border. He creates these using the Picture Index function in CompuPic Pro, which takes only a few minutes. There are other programs that will create similar proofs, including Photoshop (File>Automate>Contact Sheet II). Ayers sometimes prints these pages out on his Fujifilm PG 4500 printer, otherwise he sends them to his lab.
FlipAlbum. FlipAlbum Pro is a program used to create attractive digital proof books on CD-ROM. Ayers first copies all of the finished images in his wedding folders into a folder called the FlipAlbum folder. The images will become the basis for the virtual proof book made with the FlipAlbum Professional software. Having a complete but separate folder for these images is a necessary step and a safeguard against damaging or changing any originals from the wedding folder.
Special indexes and custom thumb tabs provide quick navigation of all images in a FlipAlbum with just a click. Customers can also look at large amounts of photographs using the table of contents before placing orders with the studio.
For weddings and other special events, the page format can be customized for a beautiful, less institutional appearance. The pages turn forward and backward by clicking on the pages.
Michael Ayers uploads every wedding to Eventpix.com because it adds to his total sales from friends and relatives who attended the wedding or who were unable to attend the wedding.
All images in this folder get resized to 1200x800 pixels. Ayers uses Photoshop’s Batch controls (File> Automate>Batch) and saves these images as low-quality JPEGs at the “3” quality setting—good enough for screen viewing. This ensures the FlipAlbums will run at peak speed and require little disk space on a CD-R.
At this point, Ayers goes through the images in the FlipAlbum folder, selecting and highlighting the vertical images. He then opens them in Photoshop and batch rotates them using an easy-to-create Photoshop action, so all are properly oriented on screen. Every one of these photographs is now oriented correctly and will be used not only for the FlipAlbum CD-Rs but also as the images to upload to the Eventpix.com website later in the process.
Special features of FlipAlbum include the ability to show panoramas, an index, and table of contents, and security options like password protection, expiration date, and anti-copy/print functions. Ayers generally builds several of these CD-Rs so that the couple and significant family members can have them to choose images and place orders.
Uploading to the Internet. There are a number of Internet companies that will display your wedding photos online and even handle online ordering and fulfillment for you. Ayers uses Eventpix.com, because he says it is fast and secure for his clients to use. He finds it has resulted in many additional orders per wedding from people who would normally never have even viewed the event’s originals! He usually uploads about 150 images and leaves them up for two months.
Consolidate Orders. All orders received online, by fax, by phone, or from the couple are consolidated into a big print order in a separate folder for Ayers’ lab using Fujifilm’s Studiomaster Pro software. Studiomaster Pro lets a customer build an order that goes directly to your lab and provides all the tools you need to create a dazzling studio preview for your clients. It also allows cropping, resizing, and retouching to be done to your images before printing.
Later, album orders are also arranged into orders and even “Smart Pages” using this software. Ayers raves about this workflow package, claiming it is quickly becoming the key to his studio’s productivity. (Note: Kodak’s comparable software, Pro Shots, is currently in its sixth generation and is also quite popular with many labs and photographers.)
Thumbnails. Contact Sheet II in Photoshop allows Ayers to print out tiny thumbnails of all of the couple’s favorites, which are now in a folder called “Album Choices.” He prints these little images on adhesive-backed paper and cuts them up into little stickers. He says of this method, “I’ve used many album design software pr
ograms in the past and this manual option gives me greater flexibility with my creative pages.”
Album Layout. Ayers schedules an appointment for the couple to review the album choices, then they stick the thumbnails down onto squares, which represent the pages of the album—almost like playing Scrabble! The couple usually has a lot of input as he shows them his ideas. The album will be built exactly as they have envisioned it.
Retouching. With all the orders and albums ready to be printed, Ayers goes through each photograph one last time to check color and fix any problem, such as blemishes, glasses glare, stray hairs, shiny faces, and even “blinks” are corrected here, if possible.
Ordering. Ayers’ orders from Studiomaster Pro are sent directly to his lab using CDs or FTP (File Transfer Protocol). Most orders are processed and returned in just a few days without rush-service charges. All images are printed on a Fujifilm Frontier on Fuji Crystal Archive Paper.
Album Ordering. Ayers then faxes the order for the album cover, mats, inserts, and panorama pages to General Products, a Chicago album company. This is another area that differs greatly among photographers; Ayers prefers mats and inserts, other photographers prefer digitally generated, hand-bound albums.
Print Sorting. When prints come back from the lab, the quality and quantity are checked. Then the prints are separated with each person’s orders. The album prints are put in order with the layout forms so they can be placed in mats quickly. Missing or damaged prints are noted so they can be sent back with the next order to the lab. All client orders are placed on the studio’s work-in-progress shelves in the production room.
Folders and Mounting. Ayers’ studio uses folders for 5x7-inch and smaller prints, which come from General Products. Larger individual prints are mounted on premium-quality mount board. Ayers believes that presentation is very important if you charge a premium for your work, so get the best photo mounts available for reasonable prices! All album prints are placed in General Products mats and bonded permanently into the inserts, which are placed into the album cover.
Shipping. Many of Ayers’ wedding clients live out of town. If they are local, though, he sets up a special time to present their album and deliver other related orders, as well. Otherwise, he’ll ship the finished products in specially lined boxes.
Archiving. Finally, the entire set of folders is archived to DVD. Michael always makes sure everyone is finished ordering first, and he also tests this final DVD on another computer to make sure that it operates perfectly. He is now ready to delete this set of folders from the hard drive to make room for new weddings. He stores final DVDs in archival-quality containers (like jewel cases) in a cool, dark, and safe place.
Michael Ayers shoots in the more traditional style of wedding photography but does a beautiful job. This studio formal of the bride shows off her beautiful rings and displays elegant posing technique.
Michael Ayers is a superb craftsman, making this wonderful image that incorporates the church interior and ceremony, as well as the shiny marble floor of the church. Image made with a Fuji FinePix S3 Pro.
BASIC RAW + JPEG FILE WORKFLOW
Neil van Niekerk of Planet Neil (www.planetneil.com), a unique web site for digital shooters, has some terrific advice for a RAW file workflow. Neil shoots nearly exclusively in the RAW file format because of the adjustment flexibility and because RAW is much more forgiving in terms of exposure and color balance than the JPEG format. Another appealing aspect of the RAW format is that with JPEGs (as a result of the lossy compression) you’d have to come up with a system where you keep multiple copies and multiple backups so that you don’t overwrite your originals. With RAW, you always have your originals to work on and change with no degradation.
Neil’s digital workflow is structured around his work as a wedding photographer. He photographs between one and three weddings a weekend, and he shoots between 800 and 1200 images at each wedding in RAW file format. His digital workflow is aimed at getting the best possible image in a reasonable amount of time. Neil’s workflow also assumes that, in the last phase, he will convert the RAW files to JPEGs for proofing.
The following is a revised workflow that Neil prepared for use in this book and it reflects the latest developments in new software and RAW-file thinking. If you already have Photoshop CS2, then you don’t need anything more than Bridge and Adobe Camera RAW for your workflow. There is much to be said for working entirely within Bridge and Camera RAW. However, Neil tends to mix and match various other programs in his workflow. He shoots with both Canon and Nikon cameras, and his workflow is slightly different for each because he likes using Canon’s proprietary software, DPP. It is an easy and fast program to use. Nikon’s software is more limited for a volume workflow, and for volume work the other RAW editor programs are far more efficient. Neil uses BreezeBrowser Pro for his initial workflow and for the actual editing process. He also works with Capture One Pro, which is an impressively fast tool for editing images in RAW.
This workflow will certainly change over time as software specific to RAW workflows is developed. At the time of this writing, things are heating up with the release of Aperture, and intended release of Adobe’s Lightroom.
Workflow Stages. The following is a brief overview of the basic stages in this workflow. The workflow is a methodical system and allows you to make sure you always have back-ups so that you can retrace your steps at any point, in case you make mistakes or there are problems.
Image transfer; copying images from CF cards to hard drive.
Verifying RAW files and renaming (let Bridge or Capture One generate previews).
Creating back-ups to DVD and/or other hard drives.
Editing RAW files (select, sort, add metadata, and correct RAW files).
Production; process to JPEG for proofing/web galleries.
Neil notes that the most important step for a good digital workflow is to make sure you have the best possible exposure and white balance when taking the actual photograph. The closer the image is to ideal, the less work you have to do in post-production. Keeping your exposures and white balance consistent for entire sequences of images will also greatly speed up your workflow. This way, if there are any slight errors, you can adjust groups of images instead of laboring over individual shots. This will drastically cut down on the time you need to spend on them in post-processing.
1. Image Transfer and Downloading Images. Since Neil uses a PC, he employs Windows Explorer for this stage, making sure to download all the folders that the camera created. It is important to copy the files, not move them, when you download. With Nikon files, Neil has also used Nikon Transfer, which works very well. With Canon’s multiple folder system, he recommends checking out Downloader Pro, which handles that specific very well.
2. Verifying Images and Renaming Files. Many of the image browsers show the embedded JPEGs, not the actual images generated from the RAW files. It is therefore possible to have corrupt RAW files without realizing it. Therefore, you should not reformat your CF cards until you are sure your RAW files are not corrupt.
If he needs to reuse his CF cards the next day, Neil knows he can’t rely on programs such as DPP, Nikon Browser, or Breeze-Browser to tell him that his images have not been corrupted. In that case, he uses either Capture One or Adobe Camera Raw to generate previews before he proceeds. It takes some time for Capture One and ACR to generate thumbnails, but they are more accurate and allow you to verify your RAW files.
After verifying the images, he orders the images chronologically by the time each image was created. With your cameras synchronized for the same time, it is easy to combine images from multiple cameras into a single folder and have them appear chronologically.
He then batch-renames the images using BreezeBrowser Pro. Although numerous programs allow batch renaming, Neil likes BreezeBrowser because it allows him to simultaneously rename RAW files and JPEGs in the same folder. Neil notes that many photographers rename their files later in their workflow. “I like to ren
ame my files immediately to a more recognizable name than that generated by the camera,” he says.
3. Creating Back-ups to DVD and/or Other Hard Discs. Before editing the images, Neil makes a DVD copy of the verified images and also copies the files to two other hard discs. “You can’t be too paranoid about back-ups,” he says. “Hard discs will fail, so it is important to be thorough and consistent here.”
Neil van Niekerk captures all of his originals in RAW (NEF) format because it gives him the flexibility and control over each image that he demands. Credit: Neil van Niekerk for Milton Gil Photography.
When Neil van Niekerk opens the image in Photo Capture One, which he now uses frequently, he instantly knows what he will want to do to the final image—in this case, some diffusion via Gaussian Blur and some burning in to diminish the background tonality. Original made with Canon EOS 1DS and 70-200mm f/2.8L lens. Credit: Neil van Niekerk for Milton Gil Photography.
At this point, Neil formats his CF cards for the next shoot. Yet, he still double checks to make sure that he downloaded all the folders, and that he recognizes images from each card in the folder that he uses for editing. He also checks that the images on the computer don’t appear to be missing any sequences.
There’s no going back once you start shooting and write files onto a formatted card, so you have to be absolutely sure. It even makes sense to have enough cards to do an entire weekend’s wedding shoots, so that you don’t have to re-use any cards until the following weekend.