More photos.

My giant order from ScrapbookPictures.com came today. Super exciting to have all these photos in hand. Like I said in my post the other day there is really nothing quite as inspiring as a fresh stack of photos. I went with matte finish and am really impressed once again with the quality (and I do like that they are here in Oregon).

There were a couple questions on that post the other day regarding getting all those photos uploaded and printed. My process tends to go a little something like this:

1. Upload photos from camera to computer (I use iPhoto).

2. Quickly (and I mean quickly) go through them and delete the obvious bad ones - now as many of you know I am a fan of blurred photos so I will usually hang onto them if they can tell a story but I don't need to have 10 of the same blurred shot...one will do just fine. Also, if I have 20 of Simon playing on the floor with a game I will keep one or two and delete the others. We do not need to have more than a couple of him playing with a game on a particular day...the reason? Because we will be taking more of him playing with another game the next day. Make sense?

3. Adjustments to the photos: I am not one to make many adjustments (color, etc) to my photos. Sometimes I will adjust the color a bit, lighten a shot, or crop, but for the most part I leave them be. This is due to two reasons: (1) it takes too much time to mess with them and (2) I like that they are a true representation of the shot I took.

4. Upload to an online photo developer. Costco or ScrapbookPictures.com have both been good for me. On Scrapbook Pictures you can change to black and white, add borders, crop, etc after you have uploaded before you check out. You can also add cool border features designed by Karen Russell. I also love that you have the option of getting an index print.

5. Wait patiently for them to come to my house (or pick them up at Costco).

6. Open up the package with glee and feel super inspired by all the contents.

Ever since I took Stacy Julian's Library of Memories class last year (and have been following along again this session) I have been storing my prints in these 5x7 holders (see photo above) from Cropper Hopper. They work good for me and how I tend to work with my photos. Right now, since I am in the middle of a big project, I am keeping the box open out on my desk so I can grab a couple and get to work. I am also using some three-up albums from Pioneer to store photos from trips and enable me to better see what I have on hand.

People often ask about my photo organization and I am really pretty much a student of the Stacy Julian philosopy of storage and albums. Notice I say student. This means that I am still working towards a fully functional system. I love her approach, philosopy, and attitude.

I think photo organization and storage is one of the biggest issues we all face as life artists. It can be super overwhleming. It's all about tailoring a system to fit your own needs, working conditions, etc.

Back to work.

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40 thoughts

  1. Sara B says…
    02/02/2007

    Okay, officially inspired here. As soon as I get my scrap room "done" (is that ever possible to be done?) I am starting on the photos. I go through so much ink printing at home that scrapbookphotos.com looks like a good alternative. Thanks for sharing your system!

    Reply 0 Replies
  2. Caitlin says…
    02/02/2007

    Hey Ali! Saw this quote and thought of your work..
    "Art is life, life is life, but to lead life artistically is the art of life."
    Peter Altenberg
    Have a good day!
    Caitlin

    Reply 0 Replies
  3. Heather in Washington State, USA says…
    02/02/2007

    Okay, here's my system:
    http://kandas-adventures.typepad.com/kandas_adventures/2007/02/photo_organizat.html
    I think it's pretty similar to yours, but I thought I'd share anyway. A lot of my scrapbooking buddies have been wanting me to put it online, so there it is.
    Thanks for the inspiration.

    Reply 0 Replies
  4. Amy Hummel says…
    02/02/2007

    I think I'd totally have a system if I had more room! But for now, I just have all of my pictures stored on my computer (as they are all digital). Computer wise, I have them stored into different folders based on the year they were taken. If a certain year has a lot of picutres, then that folder is broken down into months. 2007 has started off in months, because I'm already off to a tremendous start with picture taking! My amout of pictures has significantly increased since I got my Canon 20D.
    Speaking of cameras, I loved your post the other day (with the link to another blog) about photography and blurry photos. I've been more inspired to keep blurry pictures lately. I think this happened after reading your Designers Eye book. So it was really refreshing to see a professions photographer talk about blurry pictures & using a flash. Because I have decided long ago that I love the colors and motion provided by pictures taken with no flash.

    Reply 0 Replies
  5. Sudie says…
    02/02/2007

    Thanks for the inspiration! Love your process. Now, back to work for me.

    Reply 0 Replies
  6. Missy says…
    02/02/2007

    Ali-
    Totally loving the Starbucks coffee wrapper in the background - those things inspire me to no end!
    Love the organization - I just recently reorganized all my photos - now I just need to pick the ones that are destined for a SB page.
    Thanks, as always, for being you!
    Missy
    simplegifts.typepad.com

    Reply 0 Replies
  7. sue says…
    02/02/2007

    More good information and more classes to sign up for! Thanks and have a good weekend! Go Bears!
    Sue

    Reply 0 Replies
  8. Karla Dudley says…
    02/02/2007

    Wow...I really needed this post! I have been looking into ordering picts on line. I have developed one card of photos at the store and it was very cool just to have them there. I find I get caught up in correcting and printing that I rarely get anything done. Thanks girl!
    -Karla

    Reply 0 Replies
  9. karenconnollylarson says…
    02/03/2007

    I DID IT!!!
    Thanks for the inspiration...998 photo's are being printed as we speak. I am also an artist that does best with the live photo's in my hand, brings all the great spirit into the project. I gave you a shout out on the comments part of my order. Thanks Ali!

    Reply 0 Replies
  10. Irma says…
    02/06/2007

    Hi Ali,
    I liked your system of organizing photos. My only problem is that I print so many varied sizes that they would never all fit in a 5x7 Cropper Hopper. Is there a reason you print mostly 4x6? vs cropping it on scrapbookpictures?

    Reply 0 Replies
  11. Wednesday Cox says…
    02/08/2007

    Ali...I think I know you and I can't for the life of me figure out why?...my name is Wednesday Cox (my maiden name was Miller). Did you go to OSU? Were you in a sorority. I'm a HUGE scrapbooker, and I saw your photo in Simple Scrapbooks this month regarding the new CKU Home Study classes. So cool. How did you get hooked up working with CK?
    :-) Wednesday

    Reply 0 Replies
  12. hillary says…
    02/08/2007

    Hi Ali - thaks for the tips - I too use iPhoto and follow a similar routine. . .although I don't delete nearly what I should. I purchased a couple of those 5x7 boxes, and I was wondering how you arrange your prints in them? What are your categories?
    Thanks for always sharing and inspiring!
    Hillary

    Reply 0 Replies
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