Would u edit ur pictures in the field, or quietly back home?

Hi guys,

I am going for a 10 days trip to Indonesia, and will bring a laptop with me to view the images taken and delete the unwanted ones.

As I have a laptop not that powerful, I thought I would not start editing the raw image during my trip.

I was wondering was do u do guys ? do you actually edit the pictures on the day, or only view them ?

Cheers

Daniel

I throw out the obvious crap in the field and make most other decisions at home

I throw out the obvious crap in the field and make most other decisions at home

So you do not actually open any raw editing software such as lightroom or photoshop, but you only view them ?

This is important for me to decide If I really need a powerful laptop

Cheers

Hi Daniel,

I've found it's important to me to be able to see the images well enough that I can learn from each days shooting so I can hopefully improve. One of the huge values of digital to me is the ability to do this. Back in the film days, I'd get home with 30 plus rolls of Velvia and hope I got a shot. You wouldn't necessarily need a laptop for this but I'd sure like to have a way to review the images with enough detail to see sharp focus, depth of field, etc. One of the Epson P-5000 Storage Drives or similar units might work for you. For me the $600 cost was close enough to the price of a basic laptop that I went that way. It's fun having Lightroom on trips, just don't spend time playing on the computer when you could be diving.

have fun,

Steve

So you do not actually open any raw editing software such as lightroom or photoshop, but you only view them ?

 

This is important for me to decide If I really need a powerful laptop

 

Cheers

Another option if your laptop cannot run Lightroom, is to consider Photomechanic, you cannot do quite as much editing as Lightroom, but still a great program for initial sorting and basic editing. I don't know what your laptop limitations are, but sometimes just adding more memory if you can, will make the difference.

I've found having a minimum 12" laptop to be a great tool to have on location. You can see the results and make adjustments as needed... and also be able to know which shots you wanted are done and can concentrate on something else.

I'm with the majority. I transfer to my laptop, review and dump the obvious losers. Anything questionable I keep until I get home for review on a larger monitor. This allows me to judge the days shooting and reduces wasted hard drive space on both computer drives. Sometimes I see a great subject shot poorly and re-do the same dive the next day.

I used to edit some images in the field, but it became a waste of time, as I would start from scratch when I got home.

It can sometimes irritate others on the trip, because I generally don't let them view my unedited shots.

I use Nikon View to look at RAW images in the field.

I tend to edit in the field. Like most, usually deleting no-hopers on the day of downloading and then deleting. Then a couple of days later I delete more heavily. I know many other snappers have watched me mercilessly culling shots they would keep. But I tend to only keep the best one of a series. I have learned over time that in the end you are judged as a photographer based on your very best shots, not the nearly ones. I don't really shoot for stock so I delete away.

That said if I did not dive as much as I do then I would not edit so heavily. I should add that when I visit a location for the first time I edit less severely.

I find the editing process the best way to know what I have really got from a trip and what I have not. Which ideas need more work and which are "in the bag" and I can more on from.

Alex

Hi guys,

 

I am going for a 10 days trip to Indonesia, and will bring a laptop with me to view the images taken and delete the unwanted ones.

 

As I have a laptop not that powerful, I thought I would not start editing the raw image during my trip.

 

I was wondering was do u do guys ? do you actually edit the pictures on the day, or only view them ?

 

Cheers

 

Daniel

I am pretty mmuch with everyone else. I used to do more eediting, but now more dump and view so I can try to enjoy things more on the trip. I may mark the ones I like if I am not doing anything for a few moments. It would change I would guess if I was staying in places forr real extended times, but otherwise you can miss some of the forest through the trees by taking too mucch time in front of a computer screeen. I do way too much of that at home anyway

I usually do not delete things though, with hard drives and compact flash (or other media) so inexpensive I move them off for looking at more later to see what I did wrong or what I would like to change down the road. And sometimes getting back home on a bigger monitor without feeling rushed may be an easier way to make a decision of what is good or bad.

I apparently do a lot more editing in the field than most do. I do the usual quick culling and more critical selecting of images. I find the sooner I do it, the more familiar I am with the dive. That helps not only with selection but the feedback loop that helps me learn. I'd say that what Alex says makes complete sense but since I don't dive as often as he does I never cull as ruthlessly. My goal is to bring back a collection of images to show---if it's a crappy trip then it's a crappy collection. A pro's goals are different.

I also perform the bulk of my conversions on location. Most will say that they want a big monitor for that but that's why I bring a 17" machine. My goal in the initial conversion is a neutral, linear rendering with correct exposure, black and white points. That doesn't take a big monitor or a large gamut. For the most part, what it takes is some practice and a good histogram. It has to be a pretty bad notebook not to be able to do this job.

When it comes to creative editing, obviously a better workstation is valuable, but with Aperture, Lightroom, and Lightzone performing these tasks nondestructively there's no reason NOT to perform them even if they have to be adjusted when you get home. No job is complete until you've looked at them carefully on a system you trust. You will make changes but what does that cost you?

I've found that most times I have left Lightroom for Photoshop on the road that I've been unhappy with the result. The reasons for doing that are becoming fewer, but I think in those cases you really need the right monitor to help you. You can edit on the road up to completion or to the point where a decision you make isn't easily undone.

I also prefer to review, cull and edit in the field. How much I edit depends upon the alternative entertainment available during surface intervals. On liveaboards, I prefer "playing with my pictures" to most of the normal surface interval pursuits like reading, sunning, napping or watching movies. For land-based trips, I try to spend more time touring around and playing with the camera between dives. I find it very relaxing to zone out and focus on the photos

I don't do this for a living. Therefore, over the years, I have found that its very difficult to get motivated to sit at the computer at home and edit photos after a long day at work staring at a computer screen.

If you do edit in the field, one thing I have definitely learned is that its imperative that you synchronize the color profiles of your home and laptop monitors. Get a Spyder (or equivalent). Color management is critical. Otherwise, that orange fish on your laptop may be brown on your home computer. An exaggeration, but there's nothing more frustrating than re-doing hours of incorrect white balance adjustments done on an uncalibrated laptop.

Stefan

I bring my Macbook Pro with a 17" screen and edit on the dive boat. I like being able to review the dives and tune my technique. I also like to put together slideshows to share with others. I color profile the monitor so I haven't had major issues with color shifts. Of course I only shoot RAW and edit with Photoshop nondestructively, so anything done can be undone.