Hi Kirby
1. So far I plan to use Stacks for both uses: "version stacking" and "alike stacking"; since i've begun to do that, I have however become more selective in the "alike stacking" grouping. I only stack pictures that have the same angle (not topic), in order to keep some sense to browsing through projects with stacks closed.
2. You're correct. With the precision that I want ultimately across my entire library each single pic, or each Pick of a stack, to be rated 1★-5★
Now in this discussion we are drifting away from the intial topic (a UI issue) to a more fundamental one, which is workflow.
So please let me rephrase the workflow issue, as I see it:
I am not a professional photographer. I take pictures for my pleasure. Some are of my kids, some are from some places I went to that I want to remember, and some try more or less to convey an artistic value.
Formerly, they used to be printed and stored. Now they are only digital.
By rating and documenting them, I believe I give the photographing process a meaning.
Every pic has a keyword (including names of my kids), a project named by the context, a date.
So basically :
1) the goal of archiving the growth of my kids is achieved
2) the goal of archiving the places I went to is achieved
Now, by rating them, I kind of feel that the "artistic" process is completed. The picture has been taken, and the output has been evaluated. In itself, this gives me a feeling of accomplishment. And I believe there is a collateral effect that I more or less conciously learn how to take better pictures, through a feedback loop. Indeed, rating it I reconsider the framing, the composition, the relevancy of settings for the shot (speed, aperture, zoom,...) also the editing opportunities to optimize the rendering. For example, I realize that some contre-jours cannot really be saved. Which will make me avoid some of them in the future. That rapidly in zooming you have shallow depth of field, ...
I knew all of that, but by actually checking the results, i begin to qualify more when it is acceptable , and when it is not.
Additionnaly, I intend to print some of my best pics, and I would not want to forget some hidden jewel somewhere.
As you see, the rationale for rating is objectionnable, but so far, I tends to fit my psychology.
After this long disgression, i can come back to the issue of workflow.
I have two processes to define.
- One is for taking care of all the pics in my library (the 10 000); I can tell you it is a bit painful, and I am trying to find some way to make it easier. With some pic editing put in it to make it more rewarding, we are talking weeks of labour, part-time. So far i feel the need to work project by project, in order to have the benefit or remembering each context, to have intermediate goals, and to avoid messing up something on a too big scale
- One is to define how I will handle future pictures. I am quite open to suggestion here. So far, I follow this pattern:
1) Import as raw+jpeg, as the apple raw conversion process is not perfect and I want to keep the "original" rendering
2) Delete missed ones
3) Stack
4) Document ( check dates, places, faces, keywords)
5) Rate, 2 or 3 iterative passes
6) Edit the best ones (chromatic abberration, red eyes, sharpness, contrast and shadows, reframing ...). Try alternative versions
7) Print some
8) (Planned) Sharing projects through iPad (need the next version to be fast enough) and AppleTV (need to update my Home Cinema, current quality is too low). Step 8 recommend that I do not stack too heavily in step 3.
9) Keep with me the best ones (automatic iPhone synchronization)
Hope this helps. Thank you for your interest
