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Posts Tagged ‘Collections’

British Museum launches revamped online collections database early with 1.9M images

30 Apr

On Tuesday, April 28, the British Museum announced that it is the latest institution to make digitized images of its various collections available for free online. The ‘revamped’ online collections database now contains 1.9 million images that are offered to the public under the restrictive Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0 license, which allows for non-commercial use with attribution.

According to the announcement tweet from British Museum, its team expedited the release of this new online database so that the public can browse the museum’s collections while in quarantine at home. The launch follows similar big digitized collections launches from institutions like Paris Musées and The Smithsonian.

This revamp simplifies things for public users who are no longer required to register in order to use the images. Going forward, anyone can browse the online collections database and download any of the 1.9 million images for non-commercial use with attribution. Each image is scanned at a high-resolution; the online viewer enables users to zoom in on objects to view fine details.

According to the British Museum, this collection features two million years’ worth of history that spans six continents. The museum digitized nearly 4.5 million objects, making it the largest online collection of its kind. British Museum explains that its revamped interface not only provides access to these images for free but also makes it easier for the public to find the specific items they’re looking for.

The online collections are vast, including everything from ancient Egyptian sculptures to Assyrian artifacts, Greek objects, Iranian jewelry, artwork from the Roman Empire and much more. Viewers can sort through the content based on collection galleries, as well as searches using museum numbers, persons, places and keywords.

This launch is a welcomed addition to the growing body of digitized artifacts and other works made available to the general public online. However, the release isn’t without criticism. Unlike The Smithsonian and Paris Musées, both of which released their online collections with Creative Common 0 licenses, the British Museum’s collection is made available under the CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license.

Author and activist Coro Doctorow highlighted some of the concerns related to this in a recent tweet thread, pointing out, among other things, that UK law states that copyrights can only subsist in cases where the work is ‘original in the sense that it is the author’s own ‘intellectual creation.” Among other things, the nation’s copyright law [PDF, page 3] notes that it’s ‘unlikely that what is merely a retouched, digitised image of an older work can be considered as ‘original.”

Critics have also pointed out that Wikimedia Commons only allows images that aren’t ‘subject to copyright restrictions which would prevent them being used by anyone, anytime, for any purpose,’ meaning the British Museum’s digitized collections can’t be included in the Commons catalog.

Despite these concerns, the revamped database is a step in the right direction. The British Museum has been commended for the effort it put into this launch — not just for the high-resolution images and scans of the content, but also the number of tools and information the museum provides for each listing.

The database includes the name(s) of the original excavator who discovered the items, where the object was found, the materials it is made from, the technique used to craft it, its size and weight, its present condition, where it was acquired, its registration number and more. The collection is available here.

Via: ianVisits

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Instagram ‘Public Collections’ feature discovered in Android app code

28 Feb
A view of the ‘Saved’ post section of the iOS Instagram app, also known as ‘Collections.’

Two years ago, Instagram released a feature called Collections that enables users to privately group posts together for organized safekeeping. The company now appears to be testing a new setting that would allow these users to make their Collections public. The discovery was made by software engineer Jane Manchun Wong, who has an excellent history with uncovering unannounced features in mobile apps.

The new public setting for Collections is not available to users, but Wong recently published a screenshot of what the feature currently looks like. Instagram told TechCrunch that it is not testing the feature, which indicates it is still in development. It’s possible the new option may appear for some users in the future when (if) public testing starts.

With the public option, Instagram users would be able to create curated Collections featuring a variety of content from different Instagram users. Based on the above screenshot, it appears Instagram would enable users to add contributors to their public Collections.

Public Collections would help address the issue of unauthorized content sharing via screenshots, as well as offering an alternative to Pinterest ‘boards.’ As with any unannounced feature, it’s possible the final product will differ from the version still in development. Likewise, Instagram may scrap the project and never release the ‘public’ Collections setting.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Adobe just made it way easier to import Lightroom collections into Adobe Portfolio

11 Oct

Adobe has announced that Portfolio, its online website publishing service for CC customers, has a new integration with Lightroom that lets users import their collections and add photos to their website with next-to-no effort.

As of this new update, a users’ Lightroom content will simply show up within Portfolio’s ‘Manage Content’ section under the ‘Integrations’ tab. From there, users are able to choose any of their Lightroom Collections to import to a Page on Portfolio. When added to the website, Adobe says the full Collection appears as a new Page with a photo grid, which you can then customize by removing images and/or rearranging the grid. Other elements, such as text and videos, can also be added to the page.

Finally, Adobe also says that Portfolio will now automatically import new Behance projects to new Pages within a chosen gallery—assuming the user chooses a default import gallery and has their Adobe ID associated with a Behance account.

Imported content is tagged with either a Lightroom or Behance badge in the Manage Content section to show where it was imported from.

To learn more about these new features or give them a try for yourself, head over to the Adobe Creative Cloud blog or download the latest version of Portfolio and give Lightroom import a shot for yourself.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Four Advantages of Using Lightroom Collections

29 Jan

In this article, I will explain Lightroom Collections, a very powerful cataloging feature. We’ll focus on how using Lightroom Collections and Collection Sets can help you build a significant portfolio of your best work. Then we’ll move on to the difference between Standard and Smart Previews and how combining Smart Previews with Collections makes it even easier to review and process your best work. Next, we’ll learn how Lightroom Mobile dovetails with Collections and finish up with a few tips on using both of them to share your images. It’s a lot of info (it’s a long one) so buckle up.

Four Advantages Lightroom Collections

A little background first

A year ago at a photography conference run by a consortium of local camera clubs, I had the pleasure of introducing Lightroom expert Tim Grey to the audience. After I introduced him, I sat in on his seminar. He asked everyone to raise their hands if they organize their image files chronologically by date. Knowing that most experts agree this is a terrible way to organize your files, very few attendees admitted to organizing this way. I raised my hand because of course, I do. It just makes my brain happy to be chronological. Mr. Gray asked me how I could ever keep track of or find images by date, so I explained how I also used Lightroom Collection Sets and Collections. He laughed at me and told me to put my hand down. He felt I didn’t really organize things chronologically at all.

Use Lightroom Collections to Build Your Portfolios

The main goal of Lightroom Collections is to create cohesive groupings of your best images. Naming and how you sort and organize your images is up to you, based on how and what you shoot. The key to building a portfolio using Collections is to include only your absolute best images. If you shoot 10,000 images on a two-week photo trip, the images you put in your Collections are the top 1%, the best-of-the-best. These are the ones you share online, upload to sell as stock images, prepare an exhibit or your work, or make some prints for your own walls.

How to Create Collections and Collection Sets

You can find Collections in the Develop Module, on the left-hand panel between Folders and Publish Services. To create a new Collection or Collection Set, click the + (plus sign).

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Once you click the + (plus sign), a dialog box pops up. Click Collection Sets to create a container that will hold multiple, related Collections. Or, if you just have one group of images that isn’t related to anything else, click Collections.

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NOTE: In this article, we’re focusing on Collections, not Smart Collections, which work a bit differently. Read this for more on that topic: How to Create and Use Smart Collections in Lightroom.

Collections Versus Collection Sets

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This is the dialog box for creating a Collection.

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This is the dialog box for creating a Collection Set.

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I’m headed to Nevada soon so I created a new Collection Set for Nevada. To do this, type the title of your Collection Set in the 1st box and click Create.

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When I’m in Nevada, I’ll be staying in Ely so I created a Collection within my Nevada Collection Set for Ely.

To do this, first, check the box indicating that this Collection sits inside the Nevada Collection Set. When titling Collections, repeat the title of your Collection Set (e.g. Nevada: Ely Nevada). This is important because it helps maintain the file structure in Lightroom Mobile. (More details on that in a few paragraphs.) Make sure you also check the box to Sync with Lightroom Mobile.

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Second Collection for wild horse images.

I’ll also be photographing the wild horses in the Antelope Valley HMA, so I created a second Collection within my Nevada Collection Set for that called – Nevada: Antelope Valley Wild Horses (as shown above).

Now you can see the new Nevada Collection Set within the Collections tab on the left panel (below). Note that the icon for the Collection Set is like a large file box. The icons for the two collections inside of it are smaller, like file folders. Both say that they contain zero images because I haven’t added anything to them yet.

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How to Name Your Collections Sets and Collections

As you can see, I most frequently organize based on location. My Collection Sets are often names of countries or American states. That works for me since I travel a lot to make my images and I often go back to the same places over and over again. When I create a collection of my best images of Italy, I’m not interested in whether I made the image in 2013, 2014, 2015 or 2016. I’m interested in whether it’s the best image I’ve ever made in that region of that subject.

If you’re a macro flower photographer, it might make more sense for you to name your images by flower type and color. E.g., your Collection Set could be called Peonies, and your Collection names would be Peonies: Pink, Peonies: White, Peonies: Purple.

You would be able to continue that naming structure across all flower types that you photograph: Zinnias, Dahlias, Daisies, etc. By naming this way, if you get a request for an image of a pink peony, you know exactly where to find it. Click your Peonies Collection Set and scroll down to the Collection called Peonies: Pink.

If you want to have more comprehensive portfolio-like collections, you can have a Collection Set called “Best of”. Your Collections can be called Best of: Peonies, Best of: Zinnias, etc. You can even have a Collection called Best of: All Flowers, which would be the most superlative macro flower images you have ever made.

Collections Add a Second Level of Organization to Your Files

Basically, Collections are a secondary organization structure for your images. The first (for me) is chronological organization. Think of those folders as archives. All images live there. Collections are a second tool to harness the best of those images and make them easier to find. How you name them doesn’t matter as much as consistency. By consistently naming your Collections, you’ll be able to take the most advantage of their features and quickly locate your portfolio-worthy images.

Think of a Collection like a bookmark. Each time you create a Collection, you’re basically bookmarking the images inside of it so that you can quickly and easily find them by clicking on that Collection. You can bookmark each image as many different ways as you want by adding them to multiple Collections. A flower image could be in your Collection called Peony: Pink. It can also be in Best of: Peonies and Best of: All Flowers.

The main purpose is always to include your best work. You never want to scramble to find that great image you think you took two years ago in in Italy but you’re not sure exactly when? Or what town? By using Collections, you’ll always know exactly how to find that awesome image which is worth its weight in gold.

Adding Images to Collections

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Now that you know how to create and name Collections, and why they’re useful, YOU need to add some images to them. First, select an image. The one above is from a group of images I made on a recent trip to Georgia (USA). I like it and have processed it, so now I select and drag the thumbnail to the Georgia: Cumberland Island Wild Horses Collection. Once the Collection name is highlighted, just release the image and it will drop into the Collection.

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To remove an image from a Collection, first select it. You can see it’s highlighted in pale gray, which means it’s been selected. Right-click and when the menu pops up, scroll to the bottom and select Remove from Collection. Voila! The image will be removed from the Lightroom Mobile Collection too.

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Bonus Feature That Makes Collections Even More Useful

If you are looking through your Collections and find the perfect image, but wish it was shot in vertical rather than landscape format, you need to be able to find the original folder where your image file lives. Luckily, Lightroom builds in a neat little trick to help you to quickly jump to that folder.

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For example, in the Italy: Tuscany Collection, there is a beautiful landscape looking over Barga with lush green grass and heavy clouds sitting on the mountains above the village. To check whether this image is available in a vertical orientation, select the image and right-click to bring up a menu. Scroll to the top of the menu and click; Go to Folder in Library.

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Lightroom takes us from the Italy: Tuscany Collection to the main folder where all of the RAW images taken that same day actually live on the hard drive. You can see in the left side panel we’re now in the 2015 May 20 folder. I think of these folders as archives. They contain all the RAW images I shoot, even the so-so ones or the ones that are near duplicates of other, better images. And – good news – there is a very similar image in a vertical orientation.

Standard Previews Versus Smart Previews

Whenever you upload images using Lightroom, Lightroom creates a small Standard Preview. This preview is like a tiny little jpeg allowing the program to quickly show you your image. If you want to edit that image, Lightroom usually needs to be able to access the original image file.

If you have just a few images, you can keep the files on your computer’s hard drive but since you’re an avid photographer, you probably have your images saved on external drives. The more images you take, the more external hard drives you probably have containing all of your images. If you’re looking for your best Italy images from the last 10 years, you might have to look through images on four hard drives. That can get a little unwieldy. To solve this problem, create Smart Previews for all of the images that you have organized in your Collections.

Creating a Smart Preview

To create a Smart Preview, click on the icon next to where it says Original Photo in the right side panel. A dialog box will pop up. Click Build Smart Preview.

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Now in the right side panel, you can see that the icon has changed and the text now reads Original + Smart Preview.

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A Smart Preview is a larger jpeg than the Standard Preview. The advantage is that it lives on your computer with your Lightroom Catalog files. A Smart Preview takes up far less space than an actual image file but it still contains plenty of information available in it for you to increase the size of the image on your screen, to magnify the details, and even to process it within the Lightroom Develop Module. Any changes you make to the Smart Preview will carry over to your original image once you connect your hard drive too.

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This file is a Smart Preview. You can see the icon on the image and also in the side panel on the right.

If you click on that icon, Lightroom shows a dialog box letting you know the image isn’t available but that Lightroom knows where it should be. In this case, if I attach the external hard drive and click Locate, Lightroom will find the image for me. Note that LR is also telling me that I can process the image without the original which is exactly what I want.

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NOTE: You cannot export an image if you are only working from a Smart Preview. You also cannot edit it outside of Lightroom (e.g., like Edit in Photoshop).

Here you can see that since the external hard drive for this image is attached to the computer, the full image file is available. Lightroom doesn’t show the Smart Preview icon in the Grid View since you’re working with the actual file. In the side panel on the right, LR does show you that this image has a Smart Preview available.

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How are Smart Previews Helpful?

Let’s say you’re printing images for a solo exhibition, and want to showcase your images of Italy. There’s no need for you to slog through the 25,000 images on your miscellaneous external hard drives. All you need to do is open Lightroom, click on Collections, and scroll down to your Italy Collection Set.

Because you’ve made Smart Previews for all your images, you don’t even need to have the hard drives which contain the actual images connected to your computer. This is the key to pairing Smart Previews with Collections. Even if your external hard drives are at home and you only have five minutes before you head back to work, you can begin selecting exhibition images on your laptop. Once you get home and can connect to your external hard drives, you can finish the selection and start printing.

How Lightroom Mobile Dovetails with the Collections Feature

If you are an Adobe Creative Cloud member you are getting so many more features than constant updates to Photoshop and Lightroom. One of those features is Lightroom Mobile. The mobile app doesn’t have the processing power of the full version but I don’t typically use it to edit images so that’s not an issue for me. I use it mainly to have my best images at my fingertips all the time.

Sync with Lightroom Mobile

To Sync with Lightroom Mobile, you need to be logged in to your Adobe CC (Creative Cloud) account and you have Sync turned on. Click your nameplate in the upper left corner to ensure you are logged in and Sync is on. My nameplate has been customized, yours might simply say Lightroom. Here you can see that Face Detection and Address Lookup are off but that Sync is on. If you’re ever confused about the on and off positions, just hover your cursor over the box or triangle. A dialog box will pop up letting you know if that feature is on or off.

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On the left of each collection is a double-sided arrow (see below). This indicates that these Collections are being synced with Lightroom Mobile.

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You can toggle Sync with Lightroom Mobile on and off by clicking this arrow. When you turn syncing off, Lightroom will double check with you and let you know that it will remove these images from Lightroom Mobile too.

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If you leave Sync with Lightroom Mobile on, Lightroom will sync the images in your Collections to the mobile app. This is a good time to install the app on your phone and tablet if you haven’t already. Now that you’ve installed the mobile app and logged in, your phone or tablet will be busy grabbing copies of those collections.

While Lightroom Mobile is working, you’ll see the cloud icon in the upper left-hand corner will have three moving dots. When the dots stop moving, the mobile app should be synced with your desktop or PC.

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Remember earlier when we created a Nevada Collection Set? And then created a Nevada: Ely Nevada Collection and a Nevada: Antelope Valley Wild Horses Collection? Here they are in Lightroom Mobile.

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We’ve been working a lot with the Italy Collection Set too and you can see all of those folders here on the mobile app.

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When you click on one of the folders – for example, Italy: Lucca – you’ll see that the images are exactly the same as they are on the desktop version.

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Why Collection Names are Important in Lightroom Mobile

Remember back when we were setting up our Collection Sets and Collections on the desktop version? We repeated the name of the Collection Set in each Collection. It seems a little clunky to do it that way but hopefully now that we’re in Lightroom Mobile, you can see why we’ve chosen to name things that way. Lightroom Mobile doesn’t have Collection Sets. Instead, the mobile app organizes everything alphabetically by title.

If we hadn’t repeated the name of the Collection Set when we named our Collections, the names wouldn’t be specific enough. For example, I might not know what images are in a file called Artisan Shops if I don’t know those shops are in Italy. Now, by adhering to this slightly clunky naming structure, if someone (i.e. a publisher, client, gallery owner, friend or fellow photographer) wants to see your Italy images, you can open the app on your phone, scroll down the alphabet to Italy and show them the most important group of images.

NOTE: You can actually change the organization method in Lightroom Mobile by clicking the Organize menu. For our purpose of building portfolios of your best work, it’s best to stick with the default, Alphabetize by Title.

Using Collections to Share Images from the Desktop Version of LR

For many of us, sharing our images is the very heart of why we do what we do. Lightroom has built some handy features right into Collections to make it as easy as possible to share our portfolios.

Let’s start with the desktop or full version of Lightroom. The first way we can share a Collection or portfolio of images is by right-clicking on a Collection. Let’s click on Italy: Lucca. A dialog box pops up. Click on Lightroom Mobile Links. Then, in the second dialog box, under Private Link, click on View on Web.

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That takes us online to Adobe.com. If you’re not signed in, you’ll need to sign in now. You can see that once again, we’re in the same collection where we started. It’s titled the same and the images are in the same order. You can easily share by clicking on the Shared icon that is a box with an arrow sticking out of it.

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Once you click that icon, another dialog pops up. This dialog gives you a link to share. Here’s the link to my Italy: Lucca Collection. https://adobe.ly/2h76GJn. There are also a few options you can choose to specify how much about your images you want to share.

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Depending on where you’re sharing your Collection and why the only box I would suggest you almost never check is Allow Downloads. If you prefer to be credited for your work and to be paid, do NOT check this box or allow anyone to download your images.

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You can share your entire Collection on Facebook, Google+, or Twitter too. Tap the icon for your favorite social media site and follow the prompts. Lightroom will post the link to your entire Collection.

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Another way you can share your images from the desktop or full version of Lightroom is to click the Make Public button in the top right corner.

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Once you click that link, Lightroom will generate a public link.

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When you click a public link, Lightroom again takes you to Adobe.com only this time, you’re not the only one who can see it. Anyone online can see your public Collection as a web gallery. To make the Collection private again, just click the button that says Make Private.

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Using Collections to Share Images from Lightroom Mobile

You can also share from the Lightroom Mobile in almost exactly the same way, with the same options.

Here we have the Italy: Lucca Collection. When you tap the Share button (the box with the arrow sticking out of it), you pull up a dialog. Tap Share Collection. Another dialog box pops up giving you the option to make the Collection Public by tapping Share at the bottom of the dialog. If you change your mind, tap Unshare.

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Why do you even need these links?

You might be thinking at this point that while it’s pretty cool to have shareable links to your Collections, you don’t really need them. That brings us back to the idea of building a portfolio. Regardless of whether you are an amateur photographer hoping to go pro someday, or whether you are a very serious enthusiast, building a portfolio is going to help you improve your photography.

More than that, sharing your portfolio enables you to get feedback on what you think are your best images. If you have a trusted mentor, you can share a link to one of your Collections with her, she can view the images, comment, and you can use her feedback to improve.

These links can also be used to share the image files from your shoot if you are a pro and work with clients. If you’re looking to sell your travel images, you can share a link with a local tourism bureau or to a travel magazine when you pitch a story. Or, if you were in Italy with friends and want them to see why exactly you always carry 30 pounds of camera gear with you when you travel, send them a link to one of your Italy Collections. They’ll re-live the trip as they scroll through your images and maybe even offer to carry some of your gear the next time you travel together.

Sharing to Instagram from Lightroom Mobile

Your sharing options from Lightroom Mobile are similar to the sharing options from the full desktop version and also include Facebook, Twitter, and email. One of the best ways to use the Lightroom Mobile app is to share to Instagram. Since uploads to Instagram can only be done from your phone, if you want to share images from your DSLR, it’s always a bit of a trick getting them over to your phone in a quick, easy way. Lightroom Mobile is the perfect solution.

My Instagram feed is only images of horses so let’s jump to Arizona: Salt River Wild Horses Collection. Click on the image you want to share. Tap the Share button (the box with the arrow sticking out of it). In the dialog box that opens, tap Share…. Then, in the Image Size dialog box that opens, tap either one (it doesn’t matter so much for Instagram). Finally, in the next box that opens, click the icon that says Import with Instagram.

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You might also see an icon that just says Instagram. I don’t use that one because it gives fewer options. The Import with Instagram button takes you right into the app with all the native options to Instagram. Now you’re all set. Caption and hashtag as you normally would and go on your merry way.

NOTE: I’ve really just posted that image to Instagram. Go find it and give it some love so I can give you bonus points for reading all the way through this very long article.

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As long as you consistently sync to Lightroom Mobile, you can easily share your images to Instagram on a daily basis and eventually, your feed will be a living portfolio of your best images.

How do you use Lightroom Collections Sets and Collections?

The goal with this article was to show you how to set up and use Lightroom Collections to build your portfolio, to demonstrate the utility of Smart Previews, to clarify how to sync with Lightroom Mobile, plus a few tips on using Collections to share your images.

Do you use Lightroom Collections? Do these ideas work for you?

Share with me in the Comments below. I’d love to know how you build and share your portfolios.

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How to Create and Use Smart Collections in Lightroom

11 Jan

Collections are one of Lightroom’s most powerful features, giving you a way to bring images from many folders together. Generally speaking, they’re just like boxes you sort your physical stuff into. Nothing goes in unless you put it there, and nothing comes out unless you take it out. What if I told you there was another far more powerful type of collection that can sift through all your photo information and build a collection automatically based on a subset of that information? Well, there is, it’s called a Smart Collection.

Using Smart Collections

You’ll find the easiest way to get to grips with Smart Collections is to begin with a few simple ones and then expand to more complex ones. Let’s start with a couple simple ones.

Creating a Smart Collection

You can create a Smart Collection in a number of ways. First, you can click on the little ‘+’ in the Collections panel header, situated in the Left Panel of the Library Module.

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From the flyout menu, choose Create Smart Collection.

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This brings up the default Smart Collection panel (below).

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Begin by giving the Smart Collection a name. If you don’t, you’ll end up with a list with Smart Collection, Smart Collection 1, Smart Collection 2, and so forth. Use a name that describes what the collection will contain. For example, you could call this one “3 Stars or Above”. Below this you can choose to add the Smart Collection to a Collection Set (which needs to be created in advance). You could add it to the Smart Collections set, which is a default set created by Lightroom.

Adding the rules

The next part is the key to creating the Smart Collection. It’s the rules section that defines what will be in the collection. In the Match flyout, you’ve three options:

  1. All: Every rule must match for a photo to be included.
  2. Any: As long as a photo matches one of the rules, it’s included in the collection.
  3. None: As long as a photo doesn’t match a rule, it’s included.

If you’re trying to narrow down to a limited set of photos, you’ll most likely be using the All option. As your first Smart Collection is a simple one, set the Rating to 3 stars, with “is greater than or equal to” applied in the pull-down menu. There are other options in the list including; is, is not, is greater than, is less than, is less than or equal to, is in the range. These all allow you to refine what appears in the collection. Click Create to make the collection.

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The newly created collection will appear in the Smart Collections set, already selected, and the Grid View will show all matching photos. If you change the rating of one of the images visible to be a 2-star photo, it would automatically drop out of the collection. Why? Because it no longer matches the collection rules (3 or more stars).

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Adding more criteria

Let’s start to narrow down the images you’re seeing. You can either double click on the collection to edit it or create a new one. I’ve double clicked for this example to edit. At the end of the Rating line is a + icon (outlined in red below) which you can click to add another rule. As soon as you do, a minus (-) icon appears, allowing you to remove this rule at any stage. There must always be at least one rule, though.

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Let’s narrow down the collection to show only more recent 3-star images.

The new rule has Rating selected by default. You can change this by clicking Rating and choosing from the possible rule options in the pull-down menu. To get recent images, you need to choose Capture Date from the Date menu.

You’ll notice there’s a different set of options for dates in the figure below. As you want recent dates, choose “in the last” from the list. Next, you enter a number, then choose from days, weeks, months and years. For speed, enter 30 with the default “days” option. See below:

Creating and using smart collections in lightroom 7

Next, change the name to reflect the new options and click Save. The collection will now display only the most recent photos (taken in the last 30 days) with 3 stars.

Creating and using smart collections in lightroom 8

Smart Collection uses

Right now, what you’ve just created could be done using the Filter Bar, so what use is a Smart Collection? Well, they’re great for helping you complete workflow tasks such as:

  • Add Copyright:  Create a Smart Collection with the rule “Copyright Status”, the option “is” and the choice ‘”unknown”. If you use Metadata Presets, generally you’ll have one that sets the copyright information and sets the Copyright Status to “copyrighted”. Add this preset to the files in the Smart Collection to add that information.
  • Add Keywords:  To sort images not keyworded. From the Other Metadata menu, choose Keywords, then set the option to “are empty”. Use this to add keywords to an image. Just remember that as soon as you hit enter in the keywords panel, the image will drop out of the Smart Collection.
  • Event work:  For event work, you’re generally delivering most of the image, except blinks or out of focus shots. Usually, this work is edited quickly. Create a Smart Collection with the rules; Capture Date, is in the last, 1 days, and Pick Flag, is, unflagged. Now run through and reject the duds using the shortcut key X. Export the rest for your client.
  • Labels for workflow stages:  Labels can be used to imply a status with your photos. For example, you could use red to mean “selected, but needs editing”, yellow to mean “processing” and green for “final image”. By creating smart collections for each stage, you can see what needs to be done with each image. Combined with setting a date, you can keep on top on what needs doing!
  • Adding Captions:  Coupled with a recent date range, you can create a Smart Collection with “Other Metadata>Caption” and “is empty”. This shows recent images in need of a caption. Couple with ratings, etc., to narrow down which images need to be worked on.

Advanced Rules

The Any, All and None route does allow a great selection of options, but it’s missing a trick. What if you need 4-5 rules for sure (All), but also need one or two rules that are more like an Any set? That can’t be done using the method you’ve seen so far.

Rejoice . . . There is a way! It’s a little bit hidden, but if you hold down the Alt/Option key, the + icon turns into a number (#) sign. You can click the # to create a subset of new rules. These allow; Any of the Following, All of the Following and None of the Following – so you can mix in options as well.

Creating and using smart collections in lightroom 9

For example, you could specify an “Any of the following” are true and have two options for File Type, one for JPEG, and one for TIFF. This means all the other rules must apply, but either JPEG or TIFF will also apply. (note I’ve changed to 60 days here for a better set of photos to match for the example).

Creating and using smart collections in lightroom 10

The Smart Collection now shows both TIFF and JPEG images with 2-star or higher ratings, taken in the last 60 days.

Creating and using smart collections in lightroom 11

Other options you could use are red or yellow labels, or even non-continuous date ranges. Alternatively you could use the option to exclude information. For instance, you could have a date range of “in the last 1 year” and using “None of the following” could have “in the last 1 month” to exclude the most recent month. Combined with ratings/flags or stars, this could help locate older material still in need of editing.

Finally

As you can see, Smart Collections are a great tool in your file management arsenal, helping you drill down to specific sets of photos easily.

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Behind the Scenes: Hidden Collections Storage at the Smithsonian

22 Apr

[ By WebUrbanist in Art & Photography & Video. ]

smithsonian behind the scenes

It is hard to imagine just how extensive, colorful and generally amazing the plant, animal, fossil and rock archives at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History (NMNH) in Washington, D.C. really are … at least until you see the shelves slide out, as shown in this stunning photo series (by Chip Clark).

museum paleobiology

museum rocks minerals

The museum staff has meticulously collected and cataloged plant and animal species as well as rock, fossils and other organic wonders from around the world. Some are on display, but many more live behind the scenes, shelved for reference and study.

museum botany collection

museum zoology collection

Examining these artifacts helps give researchers and scientists insights into biological diversity and evolutionary relationships, but also assist environmentalists studying conservation and climate change.

museum botany algae

smithsonian butterfly collection

There is something particularly humanizing about these images, shot over the decades by a single staff photographer, which feature not on the each collection but in many cases his colleagues as well.

museum mammals

museum anthropology

Departments shown here include botany and algae, invertebrate zoology, mammals, mineral sciences, paleobiology and anthropology.

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Curious Collections: 15 of the World’s Weirdest Museums

10 Feb

[ By Steph in Destinations & Sights & Travel. ]

phallological museum 2

You might wonder why anyone would pay money to gaze at collections of dog collars, toilets, packets of ramen and mammalian penises in jars, but one thing we’ve learned from this list of weird museums is that absolutely anything can be collected and put on display. These unusual exhibitions range from the bizarre and macabre, like a Peruvian museum of brain abnormalities, to the oddly specific, like Massachusetts’ Museum of Burnt Food.

Icelandic Phallological Museum
phallological museum 1

On the busiest street in Reykjavik, you’ll find a museum filled with shelf after shelf of animal penises in jars. Iceland’s Phallological Museum started as a private collection in 1974 when the founder received a bull’s penis as a joke gift, and it took off from there. “Some of my teachers used to work in summer in a nearby whaling station and after the first specimen they started bringing me whale penises, supposedly to tease me. Then the idea came up gradually that it might be interesting collecting specimens from more mammalian species.

Sulabh International Museum of Toilets, India

toilet museum 1

toilet museum 2

Run by a social service organization that works to protect human rights, sanitation, waste management and social reform through education, New Delhi’s toilet museum showcases the 4,500-year history of toilets around the world, including one disguised as a bookcase and King Louis the XIV’s royal throne, upon which he was said to defecate during court sessions. Sulabh International has been credited with bringing sanitation to India’s poor, and founded the museum to send a message about how important proper disposal of human waste is.

Avanos Hair Museum, Turkey

hair museum 1

hair museum 2

The names and addresses of over 16,000 women around the world are taped to delicate little samples of hair hanging from the walls at the Avanos Hair Museum, a bizarre treasure tucked into the caves of Turkey’s surreal Cappadocia beside the owner’s pottery studio. The first lock of hair went up in 1979, supposedly as a memento for founder Chip Galip, starting a bit of a trend in which women voluntarily left their locks behind. Every year Galip chooses ten hair samples at random and invites the women to come back for a pottery workshop and to stay in his traditional guest house for free.

Momofuku Ando Instant Ramen Museum, Japan

instant ramen museum

The history of ramen noodles and Cup Noodles is celebrated at the Momofuku Ando Instant Ramen Museum in Osaka, a free exhibit with recreations of the ramen inventor’s workshop and thousands of cups and packets of instant noodles on display. There’s also an instant ramen workshop where visitors can make their own noodles.

Meguro Parasitological Museum, Japan

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Get up close and personal with tapeworms, mites and other parasites at the world’s only parasitological museum. Located in the Meguro neighborhood of Tokyo, this museum has over 45,000 specimens in its collection, including the world’s longest tapeworm at 8.8 meters. You can even get yourself a parasite-themed souvenir.

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Curious Collections 15 Of The Worlds Weirdest Museums

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Greater Storytelling Images by Shooting Collections

01 May

IMG_5794.jpg

You hit the export button and now your shot is ready for your website, blog, Facebook photography page, or an email attachment to a client. Be honest with yourself. Why is it a great image? Many photographers fall into the trap of thinking an image is stellar because of its textbook perfection. Beware. “Regular Joe” isn’t as interested in technical precision as they are the story in the frame.

Many photographers concentrate on leaving a shoot with that one glorious image. However, it is rare that a single picture is powerful enough to tell a larger story. Regardless of the technical expertise of a photograph, most people find storytelling images more captivating. Viewers want to attach themselves to a photograph and invest in a greater narrative. Considering this, you would be wise to ease up on the quest for the “money shot” and begin to devote energy to the search of multiple frames that can be pieced into a collection that relates a much more interesting overview of your subject.

In his article “Telling Stories With Photos” Digital Photography School founder Darren Rowse likens a captivating image to a short story. If you are like me, you would rather use your time for reading a whole novel, than to flirt with a short story. When your single image isn’t potent enough or you fail to capture the impressive shot you initially intended to get, shoot variations of a scene and present them as a cohesive collection. Similarly, learn to view each shoot or location as an opportunity to create a visual essay that presents a grander tale.

Possible Variations in a Collection

The following are common types of photographs included in a multiple image collection. While it is not necessary to have each type of photo in your compilation, it is important that your variations have a logical sequence and rhythm.

Setting the Scene

This is the image that creates a sense of place. The scene setter is typically a great opener for your collection. It identifies location and introduces subject matter to your audience.

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Mid-Range Shots

Pull back a bit and give more information to the viewer. Using a wider focal length includes some of the larger scene. By doing so, the collection starts to take shape and you have prepared your audience for the action of your story.

IMG 6054

Portraits

Most collections will have a human element. The reason why portraiture is so popular is because, as viewers of photography, we personally connect in some way to every other human. People identify with others and by including a portrait in your collection, your audience can emotionally leap into your narrative.

IMG 5794

Detail Shots

There is small detail in every scene that most overlook. Whether it is the trampled confetti on a dance floor or the untied lace of a child’s shoe, the magic is often captured in the minutia. Detail shots also make great transitions in a multiple image collection.

IMG 6208

Differentiation Shots – get outside the box

Have you ever been to a tourist hotspot and seen a clump of photographers pointing their 70-200mm lenses in the same direction, from the same height? Even after the individual photographers edit, I am willing to bet that photographs taken from the “clumps” are, you guessed it, the same. To make your photography stand out and to improve the interest of your collection, shoot variations that other photographers fail to notice.

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Action Shots

Action shots are a great way to identify what is commonly thought to be the crux of any story. However, the action shots are just the gravy on the mashed potatoes. The real story lies in the elements surrounding the action. Think about a wedding. The pinnacle of action of a wedding involves the words “I do” and a kiss. However, the best shots are captured before and after that moment. Many photographers concentrate on the action shot and are left without time or energy for anything else. My advice is to shoot every other variation first so that there is the scaffolding on which to build a larger story.

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Closing Shots

How does your story end? To finalize a collection, think about what lasting image you would like to leave with your audience. Make sure that the concluding shot offers your audience a sense of closure.

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The Greater Story

When you pack your gear for a shoot, remind yourself that a single stellar image is not always the greater story. There is photographic gold to be mined if you give yourself time and allow yourself to break from the paralyzing tunnel vision that plagues most photographers. The next time you hit the export button, make sure that you are telling a greater story by producing variations and presenting them as a collection.

Gear tip: quite often, a scene unfolds rather quickly. Whether it a sporting event, party or field trip, photographers should be at the ready to capture the larger story quickly. While many telephoto zoom lenses do not have the character of their prime lens counterparts, they are extremely useful when attempting to create a collection in a short amount of time. Try a 24-105mm (or comparable) lens to capture both the wide and tight elements needed in an effective storytelling collection.

For more on creating storytelling images read these: 

  • Documentary Photography – Six Tips for Creating a Legacy
  • The Secret of Creating a Strong Image – 5 Tips for Creating a Story in Your Image
  • Interview with Jim Mortram – Small Town Inertia
  • 8 Photo Projects in Your Own Backyard

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Why Lazy Photographers Should Use Lightroom Smart Collections

12 Feb

I never bother to keyword or tag my images. I often neglect putting my photos into organized collections. It takes too much time away from my workflow to bother with any of that – so how the heck do I find any of my images?

Lightroom Smart Collections

It’s easy to keep track of your images without painstakingly organizing them shot-by-shot. Lightroom Smart Collections allow you to filter and organize your images based on metadata contained within the images. Often times this metadata can be unique enough to sort your images based on subject, location, and genre.

smart-collections

Smart Collections allow you to define very specific criteria, and you can require many different criteria to be met before an image will be included in the collection. Common settings like ISO, shutter speed and aperture are available, but the options are endless. You can filter based on whether a flash was used, based on GPS data, file type, lens, focal length, capture date, the list goes on.

Below are a few examples where Smart Collections can define a specific type of image with only metadata:

Example 1: pan blurs

Some images can easily get lost amongst others, and pan-blur shots are one of them. I usually photograph these on a whim while shooting other subjects, but they all have something in common. I use a zoom lens with a very small aperture, in addition to a few other factors:

pan-blur-requirements

Slower shutter speeds are usually used, and typically only with one of my cameras. I built the above list of criteria or requirements which gives me a pretty good list of all the pan-blur abstract images I’ve ever taken:

pan-blur-library

There is always a chance that an unrelated shot might meet the same criteria and appear in the collection, so try to be as specific as possible and use as many defining conditions as you can.

Example 2: GPS data

If you have a GPS unit for your camera (or have a GPS built-in), the extra metadata provided by your location can be invaluable to sorting your images. For example, I can easily specify that I want to create a collection of all images I’ve photographed in the Yukon Territory of Canada:

yukon-requirements

You could also further to showcase only the wildlife shots. Because I know that I would only have been using focal lengths longer than 200mm for wildlife, I can add that requirement to find only my wildlife images. A few other shots may sneak in, but it’s a great way to narrow things down:

yukon-library

Entire vacations or trips can be defined this way, and even specific client location shoots can be identified by this location metadata.

Example 3: snowflakes

I shoot a TON of snowflake images each winter, and by looking at the common metadata for each image you can create a “fingerprint” that a Smart Collection can identify. The following Smart Collection will only show snowflake photographs:

snowflakes-requirements

I can also create a collection of just my final print-ready files. As these images need to be edited in Photoshop as part of the required workflow, the final images would then all be TIF files. That requirement can be added to show only my completed images:

snowflakes-library

Conclusion:

Not every subject will have a “fingerprint” that can be defined by Lightroom Smart Collections, but with a bit of clever thinking you should be able to define a good number of your own. As new images are added to your Lightroom catalog that meet the criteria for inclusion in your new Smart Collections, they will automatically appear. The lazy efficient photographer’s dream come true!

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Annual Best-of-Strobist Collections

03 Jan
Starting in 2008 we began the tradition of taking a pause as each New Year approached. The result was the time a space to reflect back on the best work of the year—my choices and yours:

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