share your M9 post-processing workflow

[amoz]

I am new to digital (been hooked on the MP for what feels like forever), and not too familiar with all the options. I would say import in Bridge, then take to Photoshop. What essential steps/programs should I undertake/run?

Thanks for sharing your experience on this!

 

[Jim-st]

If you got Lightroom with your M9 I'd suggest you use it, and shoot raw (.dng) files. LR will enable you to manage your files on your HD's (use a card reader with LR running to import & backup , and then you're ready to go into the Develop module and start "developing" in the digital darkroom. From there you can always get back to your image files to re-work them, or move to output as slideshow, jpeg/web gallery, or print.
Nothing to beat it, IMHO - but do look around other current threads in Photo Software forum & elsewhere here

NB Bridge is just a browser, LR's library is a gretaly superior DAM (file management) tool - again, IMHO

 

[Ronald M]

Put them in Pictures /folders organized by date, then subject.

Bridge will find the folders. Use sub folders for originals, processed, finished.
I have an untitled folder with all the subs made. I duplicate it, then title it. Saves making the structure every time.

DNG to to ACR, then photoshop. Make a master and save it with layers intact. Make the different size final jpg files from that master as the start point. Never reopen , change, and save a JPEG.

Do as much work in ACR as you can.

 

[Phil_F_NM]

I'm a linux user, so it's a bit different.

Import from the card to the harddrive into a folder yymmdd and sometimes I append an abbreviation to the folder depending upon subject.
Roll through individual images in a raw viewer (creates a big thumbnail, basically.)
Open the image in UFRAW converter.
Export to GIMP for saving and resizing.

Phil Forrest

 

[jaapv]

I import the images using ImageIngester Pro, adding copyright information to EXIF and sorting by date automatically, plus adding keywords, automatically drop the images on a harddrive that is dedicated to photographic data (actually a RAID array)

I then open the images in Capture One 6.0, do the RAW conversion adjustments of my choice (except sharpening and noise) and export to CS5 as 16-bits TIFFs. CS5 will open in Adobe Camera Raw, where I do the noise control and sharpening, and I finish the shots off in CS5.

High-ISO images I will open through Bridge because of te impressive noise and sharpening controls of ACR 6.0


However, since you are a beginner, I would stick to a Lightroom workflow in your case, and buy the appropriate Scott Kelby book to teach yourself the ins and outs.

 

[Jim-st]

I import the images using ImageIngester Pro, adding copyright information to EXIF and sorting by date automatically, plus adding keywords, automatically drop the images on a harddrive that is dedicated to photographic data (actually a RAID array)

I then open the images in Capture One 6.0, do the RAW conversion adjustments of my choice (except sharpening and noise) and export to CS5 as 16-bits TIFFs. CS5 will open in Adobe Camera Raw, where I do the noise control and sharpening, and I finish the shots off in CS5.

High-ISO images I will open through Bridge because of te impressive noise and sharpening controls of ACR 6.0


However, since you are a beginner, I would stick to a Lighroom workflow in your case, and buy the appropriate Scott Kelby book to teach yourself the ins and outs.

That's an interesting workflow, Jaap. I used to use ImageIngester Pro, but gave up on it when LR came along, allowing me to add copyright info, keywords and camera calibration settings in the Import screen. It also allows me to drop them in the appropriate drive, simultaneously backs them up on another drive, and names the folders in my "house" style, just like IIPro.

I've never used C1, though I think an old copy fell out the box when I opened my ex-demo M8. I'm curious as to why you use it to do RAW conversion and then move into ACR (another RAW converter) to do noise and sharpening. Do you find some advantage in C1 to outweigh the complication of switching between apps which basically do the same thing?

Again, I find the Develop module in LR, which is built on ACR, provides a smoother interface for seamlessly moving through RAW-file processing, correcting White Balance, Tonality, Sharpening, Noise, CA, etc etc, with no need to actually "convert" to a TIFF unless I need to have a TIFF - usually to add something like a caption to a print, or text such as "Merry Xmas" to a card (and even then, the TIFF conversion only happens when I save out the file from PS). Having less TIFFs on my photos drive has spared me some expense, I think

But for me the absolute clincher is the Print module in LR. This enables repeated printing of files and has a range of output settings for the different paper I use. The Print process in PS is far more complicated, and I'm glad to have now only to take any image once through PS to soft-proof it, then I can run off subsequent iteration in LR

Different strokes for different folks, Jaap, but I am curious why you take what seems to me such a long way round.

Finally, I'd recommend to the OP that Martin Evening's LR books have a better balance of info vs jokes than I usually find in the works of Mr Kelby. (I did buy his first-draft .pdf ebook for LR1 for Digital Photographers : it suggested he begins by writing the jokes, then goes on to add the factual stuff in later drafts. Never again.)

Regards

Jim

 

[RZetter]

I'm a linux user, so it's a bit different.

Import from the card to the harddrive into a folder yymmdd and sometimes I append an abbreviation to the folder depending upon subject.
Roll through individual images in a raw viewer (creates a big thumbnail, basically.)
Open the image in UFRAW converter.
Export to GIMP for saving and resizing.

Phil Forrest

Have you ever tried Bibble 5? I find its workflow much smoother than UFRAW+GIMP.

To OP: Lightroom is probably the way to go.

 

[jaapv]

Jim, I still find both color and detail better in C1, reason I use that for the primary conversion. It is not such a long way around, I kind of use it like an extended Bridge before I get into the CS5 workflow, and it all works seamlessly together. The whole process is very quick and quite automated - open, correct,crop , hit "process" then walk through ACR with presets for ISO and camera, open in CS5 (if needed as smart object) which I have stocked with actions under the f-keys, so in the end I tend to process an image in minutes or less. I then save to a folder, as I do not do the actual printing myself - There are excellent online labs that have better printers than I could ever afford.... It helps a lot to work on two screens, keeping the tools and browser etc on the righthand one and the actual image in front of me.

As for Lightroom, I tried to use it quite a few times, but somehow the interface does not mesh with my brain..

I agree that Martin Evening's books are excellent, but I would not recommend them for a beginner. Scott Kelby, despite the 5th-form humor, does work very well for the first steps I find.


And yes, ACR is a raw converter by history, but nowadays it offers fairly extensive extra tools - and it is non-destructive, so I moved some things I used to do in Photoshop backwards into ACR. CS5 has many of the advantages of LR nowadays too, like editable adjustment layers. I am quite happy with my workflow.

 

[Jim-st]

Jim, I still find both color and detail better in C1, reason I use that for the primary conversion. It is not such a long way around, I kind of use it like an extended Bridge before I get into the CS5 workflow, and it all works seamlessly together. The whole process is very quick and quite automated - open, correct,crop , hit "process" then walk through ACR with presets for ISO and camera, open in CS5 (if needed as smart object) which I have stocked with actions under the f-keys, so in the end I tend to process an image in minutes or less. I then save to a folder, as I do not do the actual printing myself - There are excellent online labs that have better printers than I could ever afford.... It helps a lot to work on two screens, keeping the tools and browser etc on the righthand one and the actual image in front of me.

As for Lightroom, I tried to use it quite a few times, but somehow the interface does not mesh with my brain..

I agree that Martin Evening's books are excellent, but I would not recommend them for a beginner. Scott Kelby, despite the 5th-form humor, does work very well for the first steps I find.


And yes, ACR is a raw converter by history, but nowadays it offers fairly extensive extra tools - and it is non-destructive, so I moved some things I used to do in Photoshop backwards into ACR. CS5 has many of the advantages of LR nowadays too, like editable adjustment layers. I am quite happy with my workflow.

Thanks for sharing that, Jaap. Maybe I should have a look into C1, but I have to say that with the M8 I do find I can work most of the time (95%+) with the HSL/Colour/B&W panel occluded, as beyond White Balance and sometimes calibration, I never need to do any colour correction or development on the M8 files. Not so with any other camera, but to my surprise I find the M8's colour rendition to be spot on once WB and calibration are set. Hopefully the same will go for the M9 if & when...

So I think I'll be sticking with LR, and just hoping they get the soft-proofing sorted sometime soon.

Just goes to show, there's no one answer to the OP's question. Whatever floats your boat!

Regards

 

[flyalf]

M9 workflow

M9 workflow

Hi,

I shot only in .DNG, and:

1)copy all pictures to local disk (on NAS) by cable to a "RAW-folder". I allways use one sub-folder per "import", with "YYYYMMDD_name_of_event_100Leica". I want all pictures so that I can find them by folder independent of SW, and hate flat structures with metadata only. The NAS folders are automatically backed up to another disk by NAS.

2) I then import all pictures in LR 3.3 from folder with my own preset(s), and add metadada info during this (add words in "Add Keywords" field).

3) I start work in LR in "Library" by marking all photos that dont want to keep ("X").

4) I then delete all files from disk by LR. Sometimes this commands fail, and I have to repeat command. I know that others are having same LR problem.

5) I then rate all from "Library". 4-5 stars are for those I want to improve by "Develop" in LR (adjust / crop, etc).

6) I then filter all pictures on 4-stars and above so only these are shown.

7) I then adjust all 4-5-stars pics in "Develop". During this some are usually down-rated and disappear from LR GUI. The one with 5 starts are intended to be exported in jpeg. During this round similar copies are often marked "X", and I return to 4)

8) I then filter only 5-stars to be shown

9) All 5-stars are exported to al "YYYY_best_of" with sub-folders according to import folder names. I keep sub-sub-folders with given size (800, 1024, 1240 according to need. 5216 size are my default for printing, other are sharpened for WEB). Some of these are also added to my "Sets".

10) I then add signatures by SW "Faststone Photo Resizer" and all new files are exported by this program to new "Signed" sub-folder. The reason for not using LR is from what I see missing signature functionality in LR. Also the plug-in I have tried in LR 2.63 for signatures have been cumbersome in installation, and with very poor performance (often export have failed).

11) Import sub-sub-folder (1240) are then normally deleted (since these are photos without signatures).

12) Last step are WEB publishing or printing order. I do not publish from LR

Edit:
and when starting next photo session I:
13) Format card in M9

Edit 2:
LR catalog files must be kept at local PC disk, so I take backup each time I leave LR. I the:
14) Use 3rd party SW (Total Commander) to sync this to folder on NAS (that are also auto taken bcup by NAS to other disk).

 

[Phil_F_NM]

Have you ever tried Bibble 5? I find its workflow much smoother than UFRAW+GIMP.

Isn't Bibble a program I have to buy? Anyways, I looked at it and while it was nice it didn't strike me enough to change up what I do. I'm testing the Darktable project and really like what they have done. I have yet to build the newest version and run it through since I've been non-photographically busy this last month or so. Come February, I think Darktable is going to become my primary workflow tool.

Phil Forrest

 

[charles.k]

I import the images using ImageIngester Pro, adding copyright information to EXIF and sorting by date automatically, plus adding keywords, automatically drop the images on a harddrive that is dedicated to photographic data (actually a RAID array)

I then open the images in Capture One 6.0, do the RAW conversion adjustments of my choice (except sharpening and noise) and export to CS5 as 16-bits TIFFs. CS5 will open in Adobe Camera Raw, where I do the noise control and sharpening, and I finish the shots off in CS5.

High-ISO images I will open through Bridge because of te impressive noise and sharpening controls of ACR 6.0


However, since you are a beginner, I would stick to a Lightroom workflow in your case, and buy the appropriate Scott Kelby book to teach yourself the ins and outs.

I have two M9's, and I find that I use virtually indentical workflow to Jaap. I download the original files via Adobe Bridge, and then proceed to C1 Pro 6.01, for the initial PP. Export in CS5 as 16 bit TIFF in ProPhoto. I agree with Jaap, the connection with C1 and CS5 works seamlessly, and you have opportunity to take advantage of both programs in areas where they excel.

One of the neat features of C1 is the ability to input lens corrections for the magenta edge with FL 35 and less. It really makes a difference to the shots, the before and after.

 

[swoop]

I do 95% of my work on a laptop these days. I have an Asus UL20A with 4GB of RAM and a 500GB HD. I keep 3 batteries in the car that provide 2-4 hours of battery life each.

I place the SD card into my laptop. It opens up Lightroom and I then import into a folder labeled for the current month (January) that in a folder for the current year (2011). I go through photos and add my selected images to quick collection. Then I go through those and edit down further. Then I go through them all and write in my captions. After that I begin processing. I adjust exposure, then fill light to brighten dark/contrasty shadows. Dodge & Burn portions of an image and then adjust white balance. I export at 2500 pixels wide at 300dpi into a folder labeled for the day (Jan10). I plug in my USB 4G cell modem and connect to the internet. Open up an FTP app and then I upload the photos to a server at the newspaper. And then I move on to the next assignment.

When I'm done for the day I clear out my quick collection.

When it comes to backing up photos. I drag everything over into a single hard drive and then place that on a shelf.

 

[amoz]

Thanks y'all, very helpful!

 

[sojournerphoto]

I import into Lightroom 3, adding copyright and keywords at the same time (I do this with film scans too). My main photodrive is a RAID 0 array, so I create a backup copy on a non-raid array at the same time.

Work in LR3, going to CS5 if necessary, and then export to an output folder for printing via Qimage, which I find better than LR3.

Mike

 

[sepiareverb]

Mine is pretty simple, I don;t find that the M9 files need that much work. I tend to use the DNG converter like film processing in B&W, then use PS like the darkroom.

I shoot only RAW, and import from the card to my external drive. I have a lot of cards, so work through them and stack up the imported ones till I need them. I then back up the external drive before I wipe the cards.

I open the DNG files with Adobe RAW Converter in Photoshop CS5, tweak WB, and do some adjusting to Fill Light and Black, maybe some correction of vignetting, deal with any adjustments I need to with individual colors.

In PS I do the sizing, sharpening, burning & dodging.

I save finished files in folders by month, images ready for printing to a separate drive.

-Bob

 

[jarski]

wonder what LR does, thats not possible in Bridge ? metadata such as keywords and copyright can be done easily in Bridge. backup is more flexible (too flexible to some?), because user can customize it how he/she pleases (directory structures and naming conventions). ACR (incl. camera profiles) & PS integration to Bridge are excellent in latest CS versions. so what else is there ?

 

[robert blu]

Slightly out of topic, but as a digital beginner, ask when shooting raw (dng) + jpg what do you do with the jpg files? Just delete and work only the dng's or any other use ? thank for answer
robert

 

[jaapv]

If you don't need the JPGs why would you record them, or is it to get B&W on your chimp screen? Anyway, they don't do any harm, so keep them for that lazy day when you need to e-mail the image in a hurry.

 

[jaapv]

Mine is pretty simple, I don;t find that the M9 files need that much work. I tend to use the DNG converter like film processing in B&W, then use PS like the darkroom.

I shoot only RAW, and import from the card to my external drive. I have a lot of cards, so work through them and stack up the imported ones till I need them. I then back up the external drive before I wipe the cards.

I open the DNG files with Adobe RAW Converter in Photoshop CS5, tweak WB, and do some adjusting to Fill Light and Black, maybe some correction of vignetting, deal with any adjustments I need to with individual colors.

In PS I do the sizing, sharpening, burning & dodging.

I save finished files in folders by month, images ready for printing to a separate drive.

-Bob

Bob- you do one-pass sharpening in output. that is incorrect. Basically you need to do multipass sharpening: 1. capture sharpening/noise reduction,2. creative sharpening,3. output sharpening.