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Tag: family photos

August 20, 2017

Are You Telling Your Story?

How’s it going telling the story of your life? What? Not doing that? How about your story over the past year? No? Well, then you might want to take some advice from my father. He’s got lots of stories to tell you. Like the time he went to the top of Machu Picchu.

My 84-year-old father is a great storyteller. He always loves the opportunity to share an exciting experience from years past. When he’s not telling me one of his stories, he sometimes says, “Barrett, these are your halcyon days. Things aren’t always going to be this good.”

I’m never quite sure what his point is other than life throws you curve balls. So, you should make sure to pay attention to the moments when you’re on a happy straightaway.

I suppose it’s a warning… and a compliment… all baked together.

I’ve been around the block a few times myself. So, I’m probably fooling myself if I don’t admit to knowing exactly what he’s talking about.

I think the lesson is to make darn sure to remember the good times, because they were indeed good. It’s easy to forget that with the murky complexities that the future inevitably brings.

The future often clouds the past in some way. Coloring it a new shade.

Digital Memories
Of course, one way to help keep the past straight is to take a photo or a video of a particular moment or series of moments. That’s not rocket science.

Organizing and keeping track of those digital memories over a period of years is something of a harder lift.
(You’ve seen me stress over this challenge before.)

But at the end of the day, your digital memories are mere fragments… not entire experiences. And they reflect a specific editorial point of view that led to their creation. They serve as ‘commercials’ for your life rather than objective and complete ‘documentaries.’

The Good Old Days
You’ve got to be deliberate and pay attention to your life as it unfolds. And acknowledge life’s many chapters in larger chunks of time. Nobody is going to do that for you.
(Unless someone is writing your biography.)

It’s your job to remember your story. So, do whatever it takes to recall it properly.
(Take some notes!)

And don’t forget to acknowledge all of the people who are on the journey with you.
(They share in your story, and you share in theirs.)

Tell Your Story Now!
Yes, it’s important to recognize the good times when they’re happening. But it’s equally essential to look back and give the past a proper nod, now and again.

And keep your ongoing narrative clear and strong as it spans the decades.

It’s your life… and your story. It’s your job to keep it straight.
And your responsibility to tell it.

Thanks, Dad.

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July 30, 2017

The Fix for Your Vacation Photo Mess

Do you have an overpopulation of disorganized pictures from your last holiday trip? Well, I’ve got a new organizational trick that could be a game changer…

If a picture tells a thousand words, then what do a thousand photos tell? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I’d say that nobody in your life has the capacity to look at a thousand pics you might put in front of them.

What am I getting at? I’m here to remind you that you’re probably taking too many pictures. It’s essentially free to snap away these days, and you’ve got a better chance of capturing ‘the perfect pic’ if you take a few at the same time. The problem with that strategy is it’s clogging up your digital life. Trust me. I speak from experience…

And if you think I’ve got a problem, a friend of mine just told me he’s got 7,000 photos to go through from his recent trip to New Zealand. Good luck!

Barrett’s Rules to Organizing Your Photos
I just got back from a week-long family vacation, and I’m not proud to admit that I returned with over six hundred photos.
(That includes the pics from my wife’s iPhone.)
What are you supposed to do with all of that?

I’ll tell you how I’ve been handling the challenge of separating the digital wheat from the chaff…

  • First, I rate my photos on a five-point scale.
  • Then, I throw away the 1’s and 2’s.
    (Total misfires and blurry mistakes)
  • Next, I work with only the 5’s and tweak them as needed in Adobe Lightroom.
    (Brightness, color, straightening, cropping)

And for a family vacation, that usually gets me down to around 100 photos.
This time, I clocked in at 165 ‘best’ photos.

  • Then, I choose my ‘picks’ from the 5’s.
    (I guess that makes them my 6’s.)

That helps to slim the group even more, but I’m always left with more pictures than I really want…

Last week, I ‘invented’ a new step to my photo organization process…

Are you ready for this…?

Slimming Down to 36
How many pictures do you really need to ‘properly’ show off a week-long family vacation?
A hundred?
Fifty?

Let me offer up a radical concept…
What about just 36 pictures?
That’s a nice, round number we worked with in the analog days when rolls of film ruled the world.

How about 24?!
(Okay… baby steps.)

I say force yourself not to go above that number… like you’ve got a physical photo album with only so many pages.

Which Pictures Tell Your Story?
Does it take time to choose the very, very, very best?
It sure does.

Is it hard to figure out which few photos tell the complete story?
Yep.
(And that’s usually a slightly different grouping than your ‘picks,’ which are individually chosen.)

And why have I created yet another step to what is already a long and laborious process to organize your photos?

Because, it’s the big payoff, baby!

If you’ve gone through all of the work to organize hundreds (thousands) of pics, shouldn’t you also have access to the few that truly rock? The ones that say, “Whoa! We’re really awesome!”

The ones that tell your story.

Family Test Case
I implemented my new concept, popped the fabulous few on the family iPad via an iCloud shared photo album and sat down with my wife and seven-year-old son after Saturday breakfast to go through them.

It was perfect.
(Daddy felt like a hero.)

And then, they remembered some moments that weren’t included and wanted to see those too.
(Sigh)

So, I pulled up my folder of 165 ‘best’ pics (the 5’s) and we reviewed those too.
But the fatigue factor was noticeable.
I could tell we wouldn’t go through this group again.

My ‘fewer-photos’ theory was still sound!

Be Flexible
I also realized that when you try to get to the core of your story through just a few photos, one person will likely choose a somewhat different grouping than another.

And that’s okay.

The easy fix is to just add in the few extra pics that your other family members have called out.

So maybe your fabulous 36 grows to 40-something.
(I won’t tell.)

The Better Way
At the end of the day, it’s all about truly ‘enjoying’ your pictures. Sharing them is a big part of that. And receiving a little head nod, Spock eyebrow move, or comment of affirmation is a whole lot better than a look of relief when you’re done with your photo show.

Sure, it’s much easier to swipe through a mind-numbing amount of disorganized pics on your smartphone when you’re trying to show someone a few vacation photos. But that’s always such a mess.

There’s a better way.

And when you’ve mastered my ‘slimming-to-36’ technique, I’ve got your next challenge for you…

Choose the one picture that represents an entire vacation.

Now, that’s deep.

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June 25, 2017

Two Reasons Why You’re Failing as the Family Photographer

It’s not difficult to snap a picture. In fact, it’s never been easier. But if you don’t follow a photo library management plan, you’ll quickly be in a world of hurt. I’ve got seven steps that should help make your day…

No matter how hard I try, I feel like I’m fighting a losing battle as the family photographer. Sound familiar? The good news is you’re probably doing just fine taking the pictures.
(I snap a few winners here and there.)

The problem is what comes after…

Sure, you can quickly flip a photo or two out to your world from your smartphone, but if you’re like me, I like to bring my photos home for review, grading and improvements.

I have a five-point numbering system when I go through my pictures in
Adobe Lightroom:

5 = Great
4 = Good
3 = Okay
2 = Not very good
1 = Terrible

I immediately throw the 1’s and 2’s into the trash, because they’re the stinkers. But then I hold onto everything else. But after years of following this practice, I’ve discovered a severe flaw.

Only Keep Your Best Photos
My plan has allowed me to retain pictures that I just don’t need. More importantly, the sheer mass of accumulating photos clogs up my computer’s hard drive, and they simply take too long to catalog.

The 5’s are the only ones I should be focusing on.
(Sometimes, I also highlight a few of the 5’s as ‘extra special’ by making them a ‘pick.’)

If I’ve nailed the shot as a 5, why would I need to save a version of it as a 3 or 4?

New rule:
When you’re done cataloging all of your 5’s, go through everything else with the intent of deleting them. All of them!

Question why you need to save your 3’s and 4’s.
(Really)

There are No Shortcuts
For me, the underlying problem in my faulty photo management process is committing enough time to do the job right.

That means taking the time to correctly ID your 5’s on the first round of review.

And at the back end, you’ve got to do the ‘clean up’ phase and not leave around a lot of useless 3’s and 4’s you’ll never use again.

Because years will go by, and you’ll realize you’re holding onto way too many pictures.
(Like thousands of them)

Sure, I know I’m a big supporter of taking ‘multiple’ shots of a particular moment to ensure you actually get what you want. But that means you need to choose the best one and then delete everything else!

You Must Find the Time
Second new rule:
This all takes discipline and a daily commitment of thirty minutes of digital photo management.

I know that can be hard to fit in to a busy schedule. So I try to carve out the time first thing after I wake up in the morning with my cup of Joe.
(Yes, you probably need to set your alarm earlier to generate these precious minutes. I do.)

Without this regimen, your system will break down in a number of ways:

  • If you don’t share your photos quickly, their value drops off over time.
    (Who wants to see last year’s photos? Your family and friends want yesterday’s pictures!)
  • Your computer’s hard drive will fill up. Or you’ll have to shell out for cloud storage.
  • You’re never going to create those photo books, as that’s usually the last step in a photo organization plan.

Keep It Simple
I just finished up a few days of ‘staycation’ expecting I would be able to catch up on all of this. Guess what?
Not possible.

If you’re months behind, the only solution is to chip away it.

Thirty minutes.
Every day.

Delete all of your 3’s and most of your 4’s.

Remember, you only need a handful of pictures to tell a story.
Less is more.

You’ve just got to take the time to figure out which ones they are…

Time.

Seven Steps to Success
So let’s review my updated rules for effective digital photo library management:

  1. Don’t let your pictures languish on your camera’s memory card or computer.
  2. Stop grading a group of photos on a five-point scale. Find your 5’s. And that’s it. Really everything else should be deleted.
  3. Proceed with the ‘tweaking phase’ to improve your remaining ‘best photos.’
    (Cropping, color balance, exposure)
  4. Then, go find the four or five best 5’s. Those are your ‘uber 5’s.’ Share those. Family and friends rarely want to see more.
  5. Email your photos to your family and friends within the week!
  6. Don’t forget to copy your 5’s into the appropriate ‘theme’ albums or collections you’ve set up.
  7. Commit half an hour every day to your life-long photo management project as the family photographer.

Thirty minutes.
Every day.
Promise me.

Now, promise yourself.

It’s not a snap, but it’s the answer.

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