Notebook

My tests from a while ago stopped being scientific. I really didn't find much to compare except iPhoto, iView MediaPro and Portfolio and when i started directly comparing iView and Portfolio, well, Portfolio just looked sad.

The basic reasoning behind my choice of iView hinges around these features:

• Importing is fast.
• The 1500x1000 JPEG previews in my 20D's RAW files let me shoot RAW but manage with iView.
• There are some excellent scripts out there for it to handle keeping multiple catalog files in sync and to import new images from a memory card.

Already, I have added our 14 2000-2004 digital photo archive DVDs (~5000 images for 49.6GB of media) to catalogs, as well as all of the images that i have shot since March with my 20D.

This program is very capable and I am still in the process of locking down my workflow. It is very close to complete, however, which is a huge leap from where I started.

Posted by at 8:40 AM | Permalink

i ran a few import timing tests to have some data to start working with.

The test consisted of a 1 GB compact flash card with 126 RAW photos and 3 jpegs.

• iPhoto: 19 minutes
• iView Media Pro: 4.5 minutes
• PhaseOne Capture Pro: 4.25 minutes
• Portfolio (with 1000x1000 offline preview files being created): 23 minutes
• Portfolio (straight import): 4.75 minutes.

This tells me a couple of things. The first is that iView and Capture Pro definitely not doing anything but copying the files and stashing the builtin thumbnails. The second is that i definitely want offline preview files so i can see what i want once i archive my files. However, i probably don't need to create those files upon import for every file (since i may be ditching a ton of the files anyway).

Winners:

• iView: Very quick import, plus excellent speed when switching views between thumbnail and edit mode.

Losers:

• iPhoto: I have no option but to import and create jpegs at import time. I know that iPhoto is a consumer app, but still. That kinda pisses me off. It is otherwise very simple. I wouldn't mind using the "digital shoebox" model if it didn't take so long.

Neutral:

• Capture Pro: Not exactly sure what i would do with this at the moment. A separate app for RAW processing doesn't seem necessary at the moment, but we shall see.
• Portfolio: Unless i turn off the offline preview stuff, this suffers the same fate as iPhoto. If i can generate the offline preview files after i throw out any shots i don't want this will get a boost.

Posted by at 12:40 AM | Permalink

Now that i have my 20D and tracey has my Canon S50 we have a problem. Let me back up a bit. We have had a problem for a loooooooooong time.

I went to school for photography. I shoot all the time. I also collect photoraphs that i find, or from my family or a book or a pile of garbage i pass by. Also, i used to run a digital imaging lab at a downtown service bureau and I had access to a drum scanner. This whole equation leaves me and tracey with lots of photographs. In case you are wondering what a lot is, let me break it down for you:

• organized and archived digital image CDs (~650MB each) (jason only): 60 (38 GB)
• organized and archived digital image DVDs (~4.7GB each) (family): 14 (63GB)
• Random stuff on my hard drive that i haven't archived yet: 25 GB
• Black Binders (the besseler ones, my favorites) filled with negatives or transparencies: 10. Each of these has somewhere around a hundred sheets of film.
• Boxes of photos that i have found: 12. Each has 500-2000 photos in it.

Grand Total: An unweildy mess.

So. Over the next couple of weeks I will be examining several solutions for dealing with this problem.

My requirements are: * Mac OS X compatible * Automatically import pictures from my EOS 20D and Tracey's S50. * Allow me to search for pictures on offline media. * Allow me to tag photos with custom metadata. * Integrate well with photoshop for editing. * Help organize for burning or exporting.

In fact, i have created a spreadsheet that i will be using to evaluate the different options. View my requirements (and their relative weightings) as a PDF file.

Posted by at 9:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)