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CLIP AND SAVE BEGIN AN ASSIGNMENT by formatting the card using the Format Card function in the camera. When the card has been used in another camera, formatting ensures file system compatibility. Plus, it removes existing image and saves time when editing.
then… DIGITAL IMAGE
WORK FLOW COPY STEP 1
Copy the images from the card to the computer, even the desktop, where you can work with them quickly and efficiently. At some point, a CompactFlash or SD card will go bad. It is a certainty. To prevent problems, after completing an assignment, copy all images off the card immediately. Leave them on the card for the next person who uses the card to reformat. At this point, you have two copies of all of the images in case something goes wrong. Never “erase all images” on your card. Always format the card. Modern digital cameras provide both an “Erase All Images” option and a “Format Card” option. Formatting the card prevents errors by reorganizing the folder structure and resetting the card to factory standards. Never erase any of the images by using the computer. The erasure can cause even more errors than “Erase All Images.” The computer process can lead to an ERR-99, a generic error often caused by memory card problems.
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CULL STEP 2
“Viewers react to photos very personally. They interpret the photos in terms of their cultural heritage and environment. Picture editing does not deal in absolutes. Taste and judgment are essential because so many variables can influence editing decisions.” Angus McDougall Picture Editing and Layout: A Guide to Better Visual Communication
In this example, Lauren Roberts, a photographer for the Times-Record-News in Wichita Falls, Texas, used the Label function in Adobe Photoshop to select images for culling. She went through all of the images, by herself, and put a red label (Command/Control + 6) on the images she wanted to delete. She deleted the images that did not warrant any further examination.
STEP 2A: Delete the subpar images by yourself. That is, delete the out-of-focus, extremely overexposed, extremely underexposed and otherwise unusable images. Don’t waste your time looking at them ever again. Don’t waste disk space storing them. Caption information can be included in Adobe Bridge, Adobe Photoshop or a myriad of other programs.
Roberts used Ratings in Adobe Bridge. First she went through, with a partner, and put one star on any image to be considered. Then they added two stars to the best images. Then three. Finally four stars indicated the 25 images to be archived.
STEP 2B: Select images for archiving with a partner, who is a fellow photographer, a designer or an editor. Go through the images and select the images that will be archived. Do NOT select any images for which the photographer failed to get caption information. THREE PRAGMATIC TESTS FOR JUDGING PHOTO MERIT. Technique: Do the camera techniques enhance the message? Is the photo of high enough quality to be published? Aesthetics: Is the photo’s composition well organized and aesthetically appealing? Does the composition, including essentials such as Rule of Thirds, framing and leading lines, facilitate the message. Message: Does the photo make a clear statement? Does the photo meet the ethical standards of responsible journalism? Does the photo invade the privacy of its subjects or libel them? Angus McDougall | Picture Editing and Layout: A Guide to Better Visual Communication
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STEP 3
CROP & COLOR CORRECT While a new photographer can be trained to do basic digital editing, some staffs prefer to leave all color correction to the editors once an image has been chosen for publication.
CROP
Photo by Matt Stamey, The Gainesville Sun
Cropping can enhance a photo’s message by paring away parts that divert attention from the center of visual interest. “Any photo worth publishing has an intrinsic shape that best communicates its message. Both the photographer and picture editor should agree on the proportions and size that will enable a photograph to speak most effectively. If a photo is cropped well, everything within the crop marks should be essential to its message.” Angus McDougall | Picture Editing and Layout: A Guide to Better Visual Communication
COLOR CORRECT
There are two goals when color correcting an image in Adobe Photoshop (or similar tools). First, restore color to be as close to the actual scene as possible. Second, adjust the levels so the image will reproduce well. “The photo’s reputation for truth-telling needs to be zealously guarded. An irresponsible editor can make an honest photo lie by the way he (or she) crops, captions or alters it electronically.” Angus McDougall | Picture Editing and Layout: A Guide to Better Visual Communication | “As journalists, we believe the guiding principle of our profession is accuracy; therefore, we believe it is wrong to alter the content of a photograph in any way that deceives the public.” National Press Photographers Association Statement of Principle
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STEP 4
NAME & CAPTION
Without a useful file name and complete caption, the images become useless almost immediately. No image should be archived unless it is properly named with a complete caption.
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NAME THE FILES SOMETHING USEFUL Using Adobe Bridge (or similar software including Adobe Lightroom or Apple Photos) or individually at the system level, rename images so the files will be easy to find by a designer unfamiliar with the assignment. File names should enable individual photos to be found quickly and easily. For example, in a folder named “Football” in a sub-folder named “Oct. 13 game,” files might be named “Brees makes touchdown,” “fumble,” “Coach Hurst yelling.”
INCLUDE CAPTION INFORMATION A complete caption includes the basic information of who (the names of all identifiable people), what, when and where. It also includes a photo credit and appropriate copyright notice.
STEP 5
Place photos into folders sorted by readily identifiable topics, and copy images to a server that is backed up, preferably off-site, on a regular basis. Encourage individual photographers to maintain their own backup as well. When searching for images, especially days, weeks, months or years later, it is easiest to find images placed into into folder topics that hold related subjects (sometimes grouped in secondary folders) — organized like books in a library that are sorted by topic. The metadata for the image contains the date the image was created and modified. SPRING 2016
Now you can reformat the card and begin a new assignment.
ARCHIVE
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STEP 6
SIZE, SAMPLE, CHANGE COLOR SPACE Once an image has been selected for publication, change the color space, size and resolution for each separate publication. The process may necessitate having multiple copies of the image. Keep the original.
RESOLUTION
COLOR MODE
Convert the Image Mode to Grayscale AFTER correcting all problems with white balance and toning highlight and shadow areas. Use Image > Adjustment > Black & White (or another appropriate method) first to accurately convert colors to accurate levels of gray.
ORIGINAL FILE | From the camera, this was a 7.63 MB image at 72 PPI.
This now indicates the maximum size the image can be used without distortion. YEARBOOK* FILE | With Resample unchecked, change Resolution to 300 PPI.
Photo by Noah West, Bentonville High School (Arkansas)
For online and print media, most publishers accept RGB. Rarely is there a need to convert to CMYK*. For images to be published in black and white, after toning the image, convert the Image Mode to Grayscale.
FILE FORMAT
NEWSPAPER* FILE | With Resample unchecked, change Resolution to 170 PPI. Notice that the image size changed
ONLINE* FILE | With Resample checked, change width (or height for a vertical image) to 1024 pixels or to a size appropriate for your website or social media outlet. * Always use the resolution, color mode and file format recommended by the publisher, online or in print.
For online and print media, most publishers accept JPEG* files. PNG may be preferred online, and Photoshop may be necessary for print files with a transparent background.
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SIDEBAR
FILE INFO
While the most traditional method of editing the caption fields involves using Adobe Photoshop and adding the caption in the Description field under File > File Info, users can edit the metadata in a variety of software packages, apps and even by using online tools.
GIMP
The current stable release of GIMP is 2.8.16. The current development branch is GIMP 2.9 and will lead to the next stable GIMP release 2.10, expected sometime in 2016.
ADOBE PHOTOSHOP
Open an image. View the metadata dialog box by selecting File > File Info. Add the caption in the Description field and the photographer’s name in the Author field. Photographers can also define a template to automate adding information, everything from copyright information to keywords.
ADOBE BRIDGE
Select an image. View the Window > Metadata panel. Under the IPTC Core section, add the caption in the Description field and the photographer’s name in the Creator field.
PHOTO META DATA
The $3.99 app, available through the Apple App Store, enables users to edit all of an Image’s metadata, including the IPTC Standard Photo Metadata and Caption/ Description and Creator fields, on an iPad or Macintosh computer.
ADOBE LIGHTROOM
In the Library module, open the Metadata tab. Add the caption information in the Caption field and the photographer’s name in the Creator field.
Adobe Photoshop uses IPTC tags to store file information that includes the Description and Author fields. GIMP does not support IPTC tags, loses them from JPEG files on loading, and cannot save them. GIMP 2.9.2 features an experimental dialog to view Exif, XMP and IPTC metadata — something developers said they have “been meaning to provide photographers for quite a while.”
APPLE PHOTOS
Import the photo. Then view the Info for the image. Add the caption information in the Description field. There is no way to edit the Author/Creator field.
PHOTOSMITH
The $4.99 iPad app, available through the Apple App Store, allows users to sync photos directly to Adobe Lightroom. Directly in the app, users can edit the metadata, including caption and creator. Even without Lightroom, users can bring the images on to an iPad and edit the metadata in Photosmith.
Photo by Stephanie Atchley, Buffalo Island Central High School (Monette, Arkansas)
SPRING 2016
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