Digital Photography - Above and Below Water -
Page 5 - Work Flow


I shoot all my digital SLR files in the Raw mode. This allows me to set the white balance and make changes to exposure and color balance in the computer. The following is a description of the workflow involved in converting a raw file into a useable format. The two real choices for saving files in a digital camera are raw and jpeg. My camera also offers tiff and compressed raw. The tiff file is 17mb and takes to long to download to the compact flash card and also allows fewer photos per session. The compressed raw mode does not work well so I have not considered it. The jpeg format would allow more photos per session but jpeg is a loss type format. The loss of quality occurs every time a jpeg file is opened, changed and resaved. If you are shooting in the jpeg format, the first thing that you should do is open the jpeg file and save it immediately as a tiff file. You can then make changes to the tiff file as much as you want. Tiff is a lossless format. You will not lose quality on each save. The raw format is just what it sounds like. Nothing is done to the photo by the camera.

Dive / Photo Log:

One of the first things that I did was modify my dive/photo log to accommodate digital photos. I added boxes for starting photo number, ending photo number and then the number of photos shot per dive. My digital SLR provides sequential numbered files. I have the camera set so the numbers continue from card to card. Each photo has a unique number.

My Divelog

After I download my photos from my camera to my laptop or home computer, I put them into folders. Each folder is named after the dive location where they where taken. I then do the following.

Rename Files: I rename each file to reflect the subject. My system is to provide a three letter designation for category. For example: FSH is cold water fish; COR is coral; CRA is crab, TUR is turtle. I then use a two to three digit number to designate particular subject. Ex: FSH-01 is greater amberjack, FSH-02 is beau gregory; FSH-03 is bergall. For warm water fish, I use the category FIS.

Nikon View: I open up Nikon View 6 software and preview the raw files. I delete the ones that I know will not make the cut. The rest move onto the next step.

Nikon View

Adobe Raw Converter : My prime photo editing program is Adobe Photoshop 7 . I have been using Photoshop for years. I am not a super user but I can get around the program pretty well for my needs. I purchased a plug-in from Adobe named Adobe Raw Converter. To access it, I use the Adobe Image Browser in Photoshop. I double-click on one of the raw photos and it opens in the Adobe Raw Converter. I make changes to the white balance, exposure and the shadow setting. I don't usually make changes to the other settings. In my screen capture below, the depth is set at 8 bits/channel but I normally use 16 bits/channel and then change to 8 bits in Photoshop after making as many changes as I can using the 16 bit mode.

Adobe Raw Converter


After I make my choices and click OK, the photo opens up in Photoshop. I will usually check levels on the photo and make any changes that I need to fine tune the exposure. I use a Photoshop action to put basic photo information into the "File Info" section found under the "File" menu at the top of the program. I also sharpen the photo using a sharpening action that I purchased from Fred Miranda .  Fred Miranda has a great web site that features equipment reviews, discussion forums and many actions for Photoshop and Photoshop Elements 1 and 2. For those of you who have not used actions, an action is a series of commands that you play back on a single file or a batch of files. For example, you can create an action that applies an Image Size command to change an image to a specific size in pixels, followed by an Unsharp Mask filter that resharpens the detail, and a Save command that saves the file in the desired format.

Most commands and tool operations are recordable in actions. Actions can include stops that let you perform tasks that cannot be recorded (for example, using a painting tool). Actions can also include modal controls that let you enter values in a dialog box while playing an action.

Fred's sharpening action works really well and I am happy with the purchase.



I have two courses of action from here. I will either enter more file info like the file name, a caption, etc. or if I have numerous shots of the same species, I will wait and add the info in another program that follows. I will now save the file as a tiff file. In this case, I save it in a directory in the My Documents folder named D100 Converted/Fish/Yellow cheek wrasse . After I save the file and close it, I will move the raw file into a folder named D100 Raw/Fish/Yellow cheek wrasse . Another option before closing the tiff file is to convert it to a jpeg file and Save for the Web. I would normally save it in a subfolder of D100 Converted/Fish/Yellow cheek wrasse . The subfolder would be named Jpegs . One thing that you will notice right away is that this takes time. It took about eight hours over two days to process the files from my South Carolina dive trip (two days diving - four dives).

Imatch: After all the photos are processed, I open my Image Database software. I use Imatch by Mario Westphal. I can batch caption images which is a real time saver. I can also add keywords and other information to multiple images. I can keep track of images that are offline (on DVD for example). I use a separate database for my raw files and one for my tiff files. Imatch is a very powerful program. It has scripting features that speed up the workflow. This program was a good choice for me.



Well, that's it! Or is it? Not really. Now I have to back up my files to a second hard drive and then store a copy on DVD. There is no doubt in my mind that the workflow for digital is much higher than with slides. But then again, I couldn't shoot 97 photos on one dive with a single film camera. My newest concern is what happens if my laptop craps out while away on a trip. How do I save all the images that I shoot. I am now researching portable storage devices. When people say that digital is cheaper than film, don't believe it.