WAP Digital Asset Management Blog

Server setup for Sale

2010-12-26T19:20:00.000-08:00

On the off chance that anyone still reads this blog, I have a great deal on a complete server and storage setup for sale I no longer need - this is a great setup for a DAM solution. E-mail me for details, and check out my used victoria post.

Cheers, Josh

This blog has moved

2010-04-25T17:31:00.001-07:00

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DAM Assignment Re-Do's

2010-02-26T13:13:00.000-08:00

If you'd like to resubmit either of your DAM assignments, read this!

See the appropriate posts here on the blog for assignment details in case you've forgotten.

1) Re-do's must be placed in the File Drawer in the Resource room no later than 4:30PM Friday March 5, 2010. Anything handed in after this will NOT BE ACCEPTED.

2) Re-do's may only be done for assignments - quizzes may not be resubmitted.

3) If you handed in your assignment late the first time, the same late deductions will be made to your re-do even if it is handed in on time.

4) If you didn't bother to submit your assignment the first time, don't bother to do it now - I won't mark it.

Questions? Let me know!

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2010 Josh McCulloch.

Expression Media and you

2010-02-12T09:54:00.001-08:00

It has been brought to my attention by one of you that the future of Expression Media is currently in limbo...

Though much of this is based on speculation, it appears that Microsoft is unsure whether they will continue developing Expression Media. First of all, I want to let you all know that I had no idea this was the case - I based this course around The Dam Book which was recently updated (less than a year ago) in which Peter Krogh, the author, makes a strong case for EM2 as the best cross-platform DAM application. There is a post on the DAM Forum here discussing this very topic. Of interest especially is that Peter Krogh still advocates EM2 as the best choice for managing your archive (see page three of the above linked forum discussion) where he states:

"Unfortunately, I really can't say much. I hope that Microsoft will make an announcement before too long regarding the future of the product.
In the meantime, it remains the best cross-platform asset manager, and the work you do there can be exported back to the file, so you can take it with you to other applications if you choose."

Though it is important to note he still feels it is the best application for the job, more importantly is to note that the work you do there can be exported back to your files to take with you. This takes us back to one of the over-riding themes I've be preaching during this course - that we need to make sure the work we do in any given program can be taken with us & moved to another program. The uncertain future of EM is a perfect example of why we need to think about this - who knows, one day Adobe may be replaced by some other imaging company, or they may stop developing Lightroom altogether!

On a related note, I did find that you can still order EM2 from the online Microsoft store here. It appears as though it is an upgrade, though you can even use basic programs like Apple's iPhoto or Windows Photo Gallery as prerequisites for an upgrade. All in all, not a bad price at $99. FWIW, I'm happy using EM2 for my archive, and will continue to use it well into the future. I, like Peter, feel it's the best option. If you are unsure about EM, fear not. The vast majority of the content of our DAM course was based on the theory of DAM, and we used certain software to put those theories into practice in class. If you are happy using Lightroom, I urge you to read and implement the Lightroom workflow chapter from the DAM book - it's not perfect, but it'll get you 90% of the way.

Feel free to sound off in the comments!

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2010 Josh McCulloch.

RapidFixer - Camera RAW Adjustments right inside Bridge

2010-02-06T21:46:00.000-08:00

Wanna speed up your edits in Bridge even more? Check this out:

Some of you may have noticed the "RapidFixer" link on the right side of the WAPDAM blog. Check it out if you haven't already. Basically, RapidFixer is a Bridge plugin (developed by Peter Krogh, the author of the DAM Book) that gives you commonly used ACR adjustments right inside the Bridge interface. There is no need to open ACR at all unless you need to access an adjustment not available via RapidFixer (I still open images in ACR, but not as often. You also still need to open ACR at the end to export your DNG's too). Check out this screenshot of my Bridge window with RapidFixer enabled (I've highlighted the RapidFixer buttons - click to enlarge):

The buttons along the top control colour mostly, and the buttons along the bottom control exposure, tone, contrast etc. Note that these controls are actually changing the ACR adjustments they correspond to: You will see the updates immediately in Bridge. Really cool. Another great way to spend $50 IMO. (Though it doesn't say specifically on the RF website that it is compatible with Bridge CS4, it is) You DAM geeks out there will also notice to the left of the screenshot that I have an expanded "Working Files" area with a few extra folders in there to reflect a few extra steps I do in my ingestion workflow. I won't go into detail, but I'd be happy to answer any questions that arise. You can also see a few of the hard drives I use on a daily basis - Note that I have backups of each of these also.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2010 Josh McCulloch.

Final Quiz

2010-02-06T21:43:00.000-08:00

Just a reminder about your final quiz...

Your second (and final), take-home quiz (which I handed out at the end of our last class) is due at the same time as your final assignments, which is this coming Friday, February 12th at 4:30 PM. Please place them in the DAM Assignments drawer in the filing cabinet in the Resource room along with your assignments.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

First Quiz Re-Do's

2010-02-06T21:39:00.000-08:00

Just a reminder about your first quiz re-do's...

First quiz re-do's (which I handed out at the end of our last class) are due at the same time as your final assignments, which is this coming Friday, February 12th at 4:30 PM. Please place them in the DAM Assignments drawer in the filing cabinet in the Resource room along with your assignments.

As I mentioned in class, I will be basing your mark for this quiz on whichever one is higher, either the first one, or the re-do. You can't lose, so make sure you do it!

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2010 Josh McCulloch.

The basics of going from Originals to Derivatives

2010-02-06T21:27:00.000-08:00

Just thought I'd reiterate what I went over at the end of our final class. Here are the basic steps for going from your DNG files to the various types of derivatives:

Once you have archived your DNG's (by copying your DNG's from the step "4_Converted to DNG" folder into the "1_Archive Originals" buckets), and then imported them to your "Originals Catalog" EM catalog, you'd follow these basic steps for making Derivatives of those files:

1) Select the files you want to work on (you don't have to make derivatives of all the files from a shoot, of course - leverage those ratings we did to only work on your best!)

2) "Sync Annotations" (Action>Sync Annotations... This ensures all your metadata comes along with your derivatives)

3) With the images still selected, right click & choose "Edit with... Photoshop CS4".

4) The files open in PS, and you do your work on them. At this point, you have two options:

a) If you are done working on the files, then you can save them as PSD/TIF files into the current "Derivative" Bucket (making sure to append the filenames according to what type of derivative you've made - see first class PDF notes), then import them into your "Archived Derivatives" catalog, or

b) If you are not done working on your files at this point, save them into the "Working Derivatives" folder inside the Working Files area. Leave them there until you are done working on them, then follow the steps I outlined in a). The key here is not to archive your derivatives (move them into the current "Archive Derivatives" bucket) until you are sure you are done working on them. Sometimes my working derivative files will live in the "Working Derivatives" area for weeks while I tinker with them before finishing and putting them away in the current bucket.

In the future, if you need to re-open derivatives that you've already archived (because you didn't like the work you did previously, etc), you have a couple of options:

1) Open the derivative file (PSD, TIF etc) into PS, make your changes, then just hit "Save". This will save the adjusted file right where it lives - which could be an old bucket that has already been backed up to DVD. In this case, you could re-burn the DVD (overkill I think), or just rely on your Hard Drive backups to keep the changes made. If you don't re-burn the DVD, the file will still be on the DVD, just not the most current version. I prefer this route as it is simple and clean, and these situations happen quite rarely (provided you aren't too hasty in archiving your derivatives in the first place). However, if your main and backup HD's both crash and you have to recover from DVD, you will not have the most current version of some files - a risk I'm willing to take to keep things a little simpler.

2) The second option (not my choice) would be to remove the derivative from your "Archived Derivatives" catalog (delete it), then go back to your "Archived Originals" catalog and open the corresponding DNG into Photoshop, do all your work, then save them as PSD/TIF files into the current "Derivative" Bucket (providing you are done working on them - making sure to append the filenames according to what type of derivative you've made - again, see first class PDF notes), then import them into your "Archived Derivatives" catalog. This essentially replaces the previous version. The reason I don't like this method is that in the case of a multi-drive failure (where my main and backup drives both fail) and I have to rebuild from DVD's, I could potentially have multiple derivative files with the exact same name.

Hope this helps. Questions? Post 'em here.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2010 Josh McCulloch.

Final DAM Assignment Details

2010-02-06T21:17:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone, Your second (and final) DAM assignment is as follows:

Continuing with the same 50 images from the ﬁrst assignment and at least 150 more, (at least 200 DNG files total - you are welcome to use more, if you so choose), deliver two Expression Media catalog ﬁles:

1) One catalog ﬁle of your "Original Files" (should be named “Archived Originals” or something similar) of all 200 DNG images (or more) catalogued with the following criteria:

• Your highest-rated images in a Catalog Set called “Portfolio”
• Various images in at least 2 other Catalog Sets of your choosing (ex: Jobs, Personal Work) - more is better
• All images must have ratings, location, copyright, rights usage terms, keywords (including rating & label “backup” keywords), captions, your contact information, EXIF, etc
• Some images with labels applied (Expression Media Labels, not Bridge Labels!)
• While I do not need you to submit the actual DNG ﬁles, All 200 images should be catalogued from the corresponding “Bucket” (ex. “RAW_001”, "RAW_002", etc) and NOT CATALOGUED FROM YOUR WORKING FILES AREA. I will be able to see this in your catalog ﬁle.

2) One catalog ﬁle of your "Derivative Files"(should be named “Archived Derivatives” or something similar) with the following criteria:

• at least 20 derivative ﬁles created from the above 200 DNG ﬁles
• derivative ﬁles must be named correctly according to the type of derivative they are (see notes from first class - available on my FTP)
• all derivative ﬁles must carry over ALL metadata as shown in the DNG catalog, including Catalog Sets (hint: "Sync Annotations" before making derivatives)
• While I do not need you to submit the actual Derivative ﬁles, All derivative images should be in the corresponding “Bucket” (ie. “DRV_001”) when catalogued. I will be able to see this in your catalog ﬁle.

Catalog Files should be burned to DVD, labeled with your name and “DAM Assignment #2” and delivered to the DAM Drop Box in the filing cabinet in the Resource room NO LATER THAN 4:30 PM Friday February 12th.

Only deliver your two Expression Media Catalog ﬁles on one DVD. I DO NOT NEED YOUR DNG OR DERIVATIVE FILES.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

Final Class Requirements

2010-02-03T22:05:00.000-08:00

Better late than never! If you were fully prepared for class three, you're pretty much good to go already...

1) Bring your laptop & hard drives

2) Bring along the 50 or so images (DNG Files) on your computer or Hard Drive that you submitted for your first assignment, along with any other DNG files you'd like to catalog. A few hundred or so would be great, but even if you just bring the 50 or so you prepared for the first assignment, that'll do.

3) Install the trial version of Microsoft Expression Media on your computer. This was actually a requirement for class 3 so you should have done this already, but we ran out of time to jump into Expression Media in that class.

Links are as follows:

Expression Media 2 (MAC)

The Mac download is the combined updated version. Mac users, this is all you need to install.

NOTE Windows Users: You will need to install EM2 Service Packs 1 & 2 in addition to the software, and must be installed in order. These are critical updates. Links are as follows:

Expression Media 2 (Windows)

Expression Media 2 (Windows) Service Pack 1

Expression Media 2 (Windows) Service Pack 2

4) You are welcome to read Chapter 11 in the DAM Book, either before class or after to reiterate what we covered.

See you soon! Cheers, Josh

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

First Assignment - Due at beginning of next class

2010-01-30T19:30:00.000-08:00

Here are the details for your first DAM assignment:

At the beginning of next class, deliver between 50-75 images on a DVD that were:

• Ingested with Image Ingester Pro
• Renamed according to the naming setup discussed in class
• Bulk Keyworded on Ingestion
• Batch Captioned on Ingestion
• Copyright, Contact, Rights Usage Terms etc embedded
• Location information embedded,

then moved on to Bridge CS4 where they were:

• Rated & Labled
• Ratings & Labels backed up as keywords
• Further Keyworded (Higher Metadata for Individual High Value Images - ie 2+Star images)
• Best (1 to 2+Star - your choice) images Corrected in Camera RAW
• Converted to DNG with full size JPG preview

Only the Final DNG images need to be delivered, NOT YOUR ORIGINAL RAW FILES (NEF, CR2, etc). Images should be delivered on DVD - no exceptions will be made!

Please label your DVD with your name & “DAM Assignment 1”.

Questions? Post 'em here.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2010 Josh McCulloch.

Backups & Drive Considerations

2010-01-30T19:12:00.000-08:00

I just had a question from one if you regarding bootable backups, so I thought I'd put a quick post together on the subject. Here goes...

Question #1: I'm just trying to get my DAM system all in place and I am wanting to get a bootable back-up drive for my operating system (based on your recommendation from 1st class). I have got the trial of Chronosync in which I noticed they have an option to set up a bootable hard drive, is that all I need in addition to a hard drive?

Answer: Yes, that is all you need! Follow the on-screen setup in Chronosync and you're good to go. Note that I have links to backup software for Mac and Windows on the WAPDAM blog, or the right side of any page. Chronosync is a Mac-only program. Read the chapter in the DAM Book for more info on backups.

Question #2: Is it a particular kind of hard drive I need and how many GB can I get away with?

Answer: If you are on a recent Mac, any USB 2.0, Firewire 400 or Firewire 800 can be used as a bootable drive. Older Macs were unable to boot from USB drives - only Firewire worked. Note that for Macs, Firewire 800 is the fastest connection for external drives and is recommended over other connections whenever possible. Windows users should (generally) stick to USB 2.0.

As to drive size, the bootable backups must be that same size or larger in GB as your laptops internal drive - smaller drives will not work!

Question #3: Which on that topic, is there any brands that you can recommend to go for and those to stay away from?

Answer: As a general rule, I have always found Seagate Drives to be very reliable. Western Digital, and LaCie are also reputable brands, though I have heard of issues with certain models from all the brands I've listed here. I have been extremely happy with my LaCie "Rugged" series external drives. They have a "Triple Interface" - they can connect via USB 2.0, Firewire 400 or Firewire 800, and can be "pigtailed", allowing multiple drives to be connected together to occupy only one port on my laptop, and they are "Bus-Powered", meaning they are powered off the port on my computer and do not require a separate power cord. Note that they aren't the cheapest external drives, but like everything else, you get what you pay for. Avoid cheap drives - you will likely regret buying them when they suddenly die on you...

Questions regarding backups? Post 'em here in the comments.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2010 Josh McCulloch.

Third Class Requirements

2010-01-27T16:29:00.000-08:00

Next class (this Thursday and Friday), we'll be moving on to use Adobe Bridge & ACR to review, rate, keyword & adjust our images. Here's what you'll need:

1) Bring your laptop & hard drives

2) Bring along 50 or so images on your computer or Hard Drive that were ingested with ImageIngester and have been renamed, had bulk metadata attached, including copyright info, contact info, batch keywords & captions, etc.

3) Make sure you have Adobe Bridge installed on your computer. Ensure it is up to date! Run the Adobe Updater on your machine to ensure you have the latest version.

4) Install the trial version of Microsoft Expression Media on your computer. Links are as follows:

Expression Media 2 (MAC)
The Mac download is the combined updated version. Mac users, this is all you need to install.

NOTE Windows Users: You will need to install EM2 Service Packs 1 & 2 in addition to the software, and must be installed in order. These are critical updates. Links are as follows:

Expression Media 2 (Windows)

Expression Media 2 (Windows) Service Pack 1

Expression Media 2 (Windows) Service Pack 2

Drop a note in the comments if you have any questions or trouble installing the software.

5) Finally, read Chapter 10 in the DAM Book to review what we'll be covering in class this week.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2010 Josh McCulloch.

DAM Class Catchup

2010-01-27T16:15:00.000-08:00

For those of you that have missed one (or both) of the DAM Classes so far, here is a quick recap of what we've covered so far...

In the first class, we went over the basics of DAM, including what DAM is & why you need a DAM system, and learned about different types of DAM software. We learned about about Metadata, including the different types of Metadata & how they are stored & used. We also covered how we set up our Archive (image storage), considering both the Information Structure (file & folder arrangement) & the Hardware Structure (the Hard Drives & Computers we store our images on). Finally we covered the basics of image backup. If you missed this class, make sure to download the PDF of my lecture from my FTP server. Ask a classmate for the login details. Also make sure to read Chapters 1-6 in the DAM Book.

In our second class, we covered the beginning of the DAM system: Ingesting our images from our cameras & memory cards. We used ImageIngester Pro to do this - make sure to see the blog posts related to that topic here & here. Also make sure to read Chapters 7&8 in the DAM Book - most everything we covered in the second class is covered there.

If you have any questions about what we've covered so far, please post questions in the comments here. If I don't hear anything, I'll assume we're good to go...

Watch for another post shortly about requirements for our third class.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2010 Josh McCulloch.

Class 2 Recap

2010-01-23T09:58:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone, Thanks for hanging in there in the second class, we had a lot of material to cover and you all did really well! If you have any questions specific to what we covered in this class (Image Ingester, or the ingestion process in general), post them in the comments here...

For you Group 3 folks, this post is a bit premature, but it will give you a chance to see a bit about what we'll be covering in your upcoming make-up class this Tuesday.

As promised in class this week, here are a few screenshots of some of my ImageIngester settings for your reference...

Note here the text under the "Keywords" field is:

{@QF.keywords}, {@client.name}, {@project.name}, {@QF.country}, {@QF.province}, {@QF.city}, {@QF.location}

This will fill the IPTC keywords field with all the keywords you enter into the keywords "quick field", your client and project name, as well as all of your location information you enter into those quick fields. Slick.

Note the text for the "Rights Usage Terms" and the Instructions" field are the same. Mine read as follows:

{@QF.rights} All rights reserved except those specifically granted herein. Please contact Josh McCulloch at (250) 216-8028 or josh@joshmcculloch.com to inquire about any reproduction rights.

Watch for another post soon with details on what you'll need for next (our third) class.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2010 Josh McCulloch.

Classes Cancelled this week (Jan 14 & 15)

2010-01-14T07:52:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

I've been fighting a cold over the last couple of days, and it seems to have finally gotten the better of me. I woke up this morning without my voice and won't be able to teach this week. These classes will likely be re-scheduled - I'll let you know as soon as I know.

In the meantime, make sure you've got everything ready to go for our next class as I outlined in our previous class. See the other posts here on the blog for details.

Cheers, Josh

Copyright © 2009 Josh McCulloch.

Thinking about becoming a Staff Photographer? Read This.

2010-01-11T17:48:00.000-08:00

Requirements for the Second Class

2010-01-08T23:01:00.000-08:00

It's time to start this DAM process. Here's what you'll need for the second class...

1) Make sure to review Chapters 1-6 in the DAM Book and ensure you have a solid grasp on that content. Post any questions related to the first class to this blog post: Summary of the First Class.

2) Read Chapters 7 & 8 in the DAM Book

3) Read the following two posts (including the comments) on my main blog:

- Post Production Workflow

- Post Production Workflow Follow-Up

These posts summarize what we'll be covering in our next two classes. Read them over a couple of times and try to wrap your mind around what what we'll be doing and why. Don't worry if you don't understand everything, we'll be covering it all in the next two classes. Note that my current workflow is somewhat modified from these as they are written, but the majority of it is still very relevant.

4) Bring your laptop, memory card reader, and a memory card with approximately 50 RAW photos (no more, please) to class. The photos should all be from the same location, with similar subject matter. Subject matter is up to you. We'll be using these images in class to learn the DAM workflow, and they will be used for your two class assignments. Images must be on a memory card, not stored on your computer.

5) Make sure to have the following software installed on your computer for the next class:

a) Image Ingester Pro (Version 3.2 - Demo links below)

Macintosh Download Link

Windows Download Link

Note that this Demo is limited to 25 ingestions, so please don't go over this limit prior to class!

b) Adobe Bridge CS4 - This should have been installed automatically when you installed Photoshop on your computer. Double check that it is. If not, you should be able to install it from your Photoshop CS4 install disc. Make sure to run the "Adobe Updater" to ensure you have the latest version installed.

c) We will NOT be needing Microsoft Expression Media until the third class. As it is a 30-day trial, please don't install it until just before the third class, otherwise your trial may expire before you need to hand in the final class & assignment.

See you next week - enjoy your weekend.

Cheers, Josh

Copyright © 2010 Josh McCulloch.

Summary of the First Class

2010-01-08T22:58:00.000-08:00

Hey guys,

A few notes about the first class...

First, the full PDF of all the slides from the first class are now available for download from my FTP server. Go and get 'em. (Friendly reminder: this is copyrighted material, please don't share these notes)

Second, any questions related to the first class should be posted in the comments here. I will not be responding to comments left on any other posts that relate to the topics covered in the first class. Let's keep them together for everyone's benefit.

Watch for another post soon detailing what you'll need for the next class.

Cheers, Josh

Copyright © 2010 Josh McCulloch.

Welcome to the WAPDAM Blog - Start Here

2010-01-07T10:01:00.001-08:00

Hello students of the Western Academy's Professional Photography program! My name is Josh McCulloch, and I'll be instructing your Digital Asset Management class. Check out my website to learn a bit more about me and the work I do. Hit the link below for the rest of this post...

To say I'm excited about teaching this course would be an understatement, partly because I'm a geek and really get stoked on stuff like this, and partly because it is such an important part of being a working photographer these days, and I would have loved to have learned how to manage my files properly back when I first went digital in 2001. My buddy Chad and I were the first Western students ever to switch to digital, we were so pumped to be sporting our new 5.47MP Nikon D1X's, scoffing at those suckers still paying for film! Of course, we didn't bother to tell them our cameras cost almost $7k for the body alone, and that we spent more time developing our images than they did because we had no clue how to work with so many images at once on a computer... So here I will be sharing what I have learned since then, and things have certainly changed. But that'll have to wait until the course starts.

When I was first approached by the school to teach this course, I pretty much knew I a) wanted to teach it, and b) wanted to have a corresponding blog to go along with the course. I am going to pack so much information into your heads in four classes that this blog will become the hub for all things related to the course. I'll be posting re-caps of classes and assignment details, answering your questions, posting various links of interest, etc.

While I would hope all of you are familiar with what blogs are and how they work, some of you may not be. Check out this post and video on my main blog to learn more about blogs, RSS, etc. Understanding what blogs are and how to use them will make this blog more valuable to you as we progress through the course. If you still have questions, place a comment at the bottom of this post and I will comment back to answer you as best as possible. As this blog will be your access to me throughout the DAM course, you will (hopefully) be posting lots of questions for me to answer, so you might as well get started!

On a related note, I would appreciate you signing your name to each comment, either by adding it to the bottom of your comment if you are not logged in to a blog account (first name & last initial is fine), or better yet, by signing in to your account to comment.

If you'll look to the right of this page (and any other page in this blog), you'll see I've added a bunch of links for your reference. These relate to the software we'll be using, different forums and support groups related to DAM and DAM software, as well as industry trade groups related to DAM. Check them out, there is lots of great information there for you.

I'm sure you hear this from most, if not all of your instructors, but you will only get out what you put in to this course. I want to see all of you succeed in your careers as professional photographers, and guess what? Properly managing your digital assets is a key component to making that happen. You either need to learn it (and learn it WELL) and then implement it, or hire someone to do it for you. And I'm guessing right now not many of you have the budget to do that (and neither do I).

The days of being "Just a Photographer" are gone. Today, you need to be your IT department, your Digital Asset Management department, your marketing department, your legal department (along with a good attorney), your bookkeeping department (along with a good accountant), and more. I'm looking forward to helping you get your DAM department off the ground.

Cheers, Josh
Copyright © 2010 Josh McCulloch.