Me neither. I have all the photos imported where I want them, with suitable renaming and folders created, but I use Lr to add EXIF data on import. Likewise using Lr to export my photos direct to the web means I can utilise it's ability to sync photos and keep track on them should I alter it later on.

Fair play. Thanks everybody.

I'm just very fussy about the way I do things and I don't like my computer telling me what to do!

Alternatively, I am very happy to let my computer worry about such things. It does a far better job than ever I could do myself. I know, I tried it before I bought Aperture.

Endless folders, named for dates of the download or shoot, endless files with only a meaningless name like _IMG_3849.cr2. What happens when the camera rolls round the 9999th image? All the filenames start over, with only the date info to go on. AAAARGH! I would spend upwards of 30 minutes trying to remember the date I took a particular shot, then spent and half-hour trying to find it in the thumbnails, only to find I was in the wrong place all the time...

It's much easier to let the pooter do the graft. It's what they were invented for.

Maybe you're right, Heather. Maybe I'm just old-fashioned. And maybe, if I start taking a lot more pics, I'll need a better filing system....

If there was one bit of advice I would give any photographer is get a good library system on the go early. Get into a routine of downloading your pics and giving them a few basic labels so you can at least find them easily enough (date, time, location and subject are fine to start with). Then I go through the downloaded pics and delete all the ones I screwed up, the duplicates and any that I don't deem worthy of keeping then apply a 1* rating to all that remain. Those that I process from RAW I give a 2* rating to and those that I post on any forums get 3*'s. I pick two or three pics that I particularly like from each batch that have 3*'s and give them 4*'s and finally, if there are any that I'm absolutely bowled over by, I give them a 5*.

Because I'm talking about my aviation pics here, from 3* and above I add more labels - fin numbers, registrations, squadron numbers, special paint schemes, armament options or anything unusual. Now you may think this is overkill but the more information you put in, the easier it is to locate a particular pic in the future.

Adobe Lightroom does all of the above with the added advantage of being able to process images without altering the original (it just remembers the settings you applied). I use Adobe Bridge (which comes with Photoshop 4) and Adobe Camera Raw to convert my images from the camera before working on them in Photoshop. The easiest (and cheaper) system to use is Lightroom but as I use Bridge/Camera RAW and Photoshop at work, I found it more convenient to use it at home as well.

Whatever decision you make I would urge you to build a catalogue NOW. I left it until I had over 10 thousand images and it took weeks. Now I would estimate it adds 10-15 minutes to each days photography but it will save you hours in searching for one particular pic and the longer you leave it, the more time you'll spend looking for that pic.

Al

Thanks Al. Very helpful

Shot a few hundred at my friends 30th on Sat night and was dead to myself yesterday, so may start with those tonight after work.