Sometimes I hate it, sometimes it's okay, sometimes I like it for a litte while... the only time I really enjoy it anymore is when it's a small personal project or the like (keyword, small).
I try to edit ASAP after a shoot. Usually later-that-evening or next day if possible. I can burn through an average wedding in 1-2 hours and get the JPEG proofs ready for the client. The fast turn-around is really liked by my clients and helps a lot on the 'word-of-mouth' front.
Proof prep = basic lighting levels editing on the RAW files, then a batch output to small colour JPEGs and a repeat to B&W JPEGS. I may or may not do blemishes; if it's something I can do at the RAW stage in a few seconds then I will; if it's gonna take some photoshopping then I won't.
I use ACR in either lightroom or photoshop as I can easily batch-process the RAW files into JPEGs.
I reserve the time-consuming editing (photoshop) for when the client orders prints... then I'll make everything as pretty as possible...
I like editing when I like the pictures. I don't like it when the pictures are boring or average or blah, or I missed the lighting or something.
Slightly off topic. What I hate the most is getting a large wedding party into position and then having to screw around with the lighting until its right and having them just stare at me like I'm some kinda moron till its hammered out. One or two minutes can drag into and eternity. And then I hate getting to that place in the editing, seeing that my lighting is not the greatest, and feeling like they are going to see the pictures and feel justified in their assessment in that moment. My, THAT was convoluted.
I don't hate editing, in fact find it very rewarding work in many cases, but I need to do it in chuncks..so edit, play on Wii, edit, play with cat, edit, go have lunch, etc.
Good thing is I'm getting quicker and more efficient over time.
Ok, I guess I don't HATE editing... but the it does get somewhat repetitive after a while. In a sense, this is good because it speeds up the worlkflow, and I get a good system going. It's also bad because it gets boring sometimes and I feel like doing something else more entertaining. I have a pretty good system setup, but with multiple summer weddings... esp. since I cover a lot of multiple day weddings... it can get tedious.
As far as outsourcing, I don't really like the idea of it. Sure, it may be easier to pay someone else to do it for you... but I like to have full control of my images, and how they are edited. I am INSANELY picky when it comes to how my pictures should be, and I just don't think anyone else would be able to get my vision out but me. I think even if I was a huge company with 9 assistants and 2 other photographers, I would still edit all of my own images personally.
So I guess I just needed to rant. Editing is not that bad, it just sucks a when you have loads of work piled up. Especially when you have other projects you're working on or developing, and have a personal life... it just feels like that extra thing you have to get done. It's a good thing I can work well under pressure, so it's time to just suck it up.. and get it done. Kudos to all of you for chiming in.
brandonwong wrote:
I hate editing, because that means for me I didn't do a good job in the first place. I'd still be doing that rather than anything in the world though.
Just as Saad said, I agree with him. Editing is half of digital photography; exspecially with clients that have grown up with fashion mags.
I used to love it. Now it's like others have mentioned, if I can get to it soon enough, while I'm still enthused about the photos, it's not so bad. If I've shot a bunch of stuff since then, I just have trouble getting my mind on those "old" images.
Also, I've found I can only do it for like 3, 4 hours tops, then I lose all objectivity and become a space case.
That would be when I come here for a break.
I really enjoy editing, just like the reward of the development process in the old days. It is where I see my work take shape into a completed product. I also enjoy the challenge of interpreting the photo into the final image by making artistic decisions on contrast, color etc. I can't possibly imagine that a complete photographer would outsource the post process, it is such an integral part of the entire creative process.
ContagiousIdea wrote:
I don't mind editing at all it's the culling that I hate... Mindnumbing it is.
The culling is the easy part! I can cull a 2000-2500 shot wedding down to 600'ish in 35-45mins.
It's then editing that 600'ish that take time.
In answer to the original question I don't hate editing generally, though I sometimes have motivational issues forcing myself to sit at the computer for that long As I do a lot of weddings I sometimes have to edit 2 weddings a day and knowing you have 7-8hrs of solid computer work ahead of you can be pretty daunting.
Like others have said I enjoy the album part, but that comes months after the edit typically. I also find it easier to be motivated to sit down and edit a wedding where I had very good results and clicked with the bride & groom more so than usual. I've had a great run of these this year so have been getting through a lot of edits with no probs.
My clients always have their photos 3-4 weeks after their wedding.
I'd outsource the editing but I don't trust others easily with my files
The question is ... do you hate enough to change your workflow or shooting style?
I shoot JPEG, get it close in the camera, then correct a wedding in 90mins with that PictoColor app.
IMO, doing localized edits on a fleet of images your clients don't care about is crazy. Global corrections on 95% of the images, then hand done edits of a few favs for the blog. Hand edit client pics for the album, but not everything.
Your family will thank me.
My clients see their proofs in less than 5 business days, often the Tuesday after the wedding.
+1 TomKphoto,
I cut my time by 2/3 doing just that.
Switching to jpegs and getting Presetopia so I don't have to do any editing in Photoshop. I still do a lot of individual photo edits but can do them so much faster in Lightroom as opposed to Photoshop.
Hate is such a strong word. I used to have a job I hated, and I quit because life is way, way too short to spend any time at all doing something you hate to do, especially by choice!
I could never outsource... too much of a control freak. Basic editing on all the filler photos is getting tedious. I know what you mean. I tried lightroom and although it went much faster I just felt like the quality was lesser... not as much control over things. Oh well though editing although not my favorite part is so much better than any other job I could be doing!
ARDENT wrote:
I could never outsource... too much of a control freak. Basic editing on all the filler photos is getting tedious. I know what you mean. I tried lightroom and although it went much faster I just felt like the quality was lesser... not as much control over things. Oh well though editing although not my favorite part is so much better than any other job I could be doing!
As I do a lot of weddings I sometimes have to edit 2 weddings a day and knowing you have 7-8hrs of solid computer work ahead of you can be pretty daunting.