Photo Organization/Sorting Mishap

[P-Shooter]

I couldn't find a subforum that this fit in, and since this invovles software I thought would be the closest fit.

I have created a mess for myself. I have 3 separate locations that I have saved photos. 2 external hard drives and my Mac's internal hard drive. Each of these sources is duplicated in one way or another. Is there any easy way (or less complicated then checking folder by folder, file by file) to combine these sources into 1? Otherwise I feel like burning it all to DVD and starting fresh for late 2009 forward. If I have duplicates so be it.

Also, I've been using Adobe Bridge with the CS3 suite, and it seems very useable for organizing. Is there anything you've used that you like better and why?

Thanks!

[dmcantrell]

I've written a PERL script that runs in a CMD window to do something like this. Are you fluent in any scripting languages?

[P-Shooter]

Unfortunately, no!

[RKEnnis]

It depends on what you mean when you say you want to find duplicate images. If you want to find images files that are EXACT duplicates, there are quite a few utilities that will work. Here's a link to one:

Apple - Downloads - System/Disk Utilities - Araxis Find Duplicate Files

Finding files that are the same photo, but in a different format, compression ratio, or crop size can obviously be more difficult. It' can also take quite a while. Here is a link to a utility that claims to do this (I haven't used it personally):

Download dupeGuru Picture Edition for Mac - Find duplicate pictures on your computer. MacUpdate Mac Software Downloads

[P-Shooter]

Originally Posted by RKEnnis

It depends on what you mean when you say you want to find duplicate images. If you want to find images files that are EXACT duplicates, there are quite a few utilities that will work. Here's a link to one:

Apple - Downloads - System/Disk Utilities - Araxis Find Duplicate Files

I mean just file names. If I have duplicates because I saved as a different name I'll just have to deal with that. This situation isn't going to be the case for 95% of the files. Thanks very much for the link.

Originally Posted by RKEnnis

Finding files that are the same photo, but in a different format, compression ratio, or crop size can obviously be more difficult. It' can also take quite a while. Here is a link to a utility that claims to do this (I haven't used it personally):

Download dupeGuru Picture Edition for Mac - Find duplicate pictures on your computer. MacUpdate Mac Software Downloads

Hopefully I won't ever have to be in this situation.

[MicWayWal]

Kris,

I store everything by date. Most of my work is done on important dates; a wedding date, anniversary, or other notable date for my clients. It is an easy way to reference.

If I shoot an assignment or just for fun today, then those images will be stored or put in a folder called: "2010-01-22 *name of shoot*".
In that folder I have several more folders; RAW Files, Previews, Final Images, Creative Ideas, Deleted, Album and so on. EVERY file for that shoot is put in one of those folders without exception. I now know where every image is at for that assignment or job. You have to be anal about it.

I also do one other thing. I rename my files first before I work on them. I start the number with a date made up of number and letter combinations. For example; the first file from the first session today would be 10A22_0001. 10 is the year, A is January, 22 is the day, first session of the day starts with '0001', the next session would be the same date but the sequence of numbers would start with '1001'. With this system there is no way to repeat a file number for 10 years.

Several advantages:
This will put all my assignments or shoots in the order that they were shot.
When that drive is full, I pull it, date it and I know where my work is at.
I also can use the computer's search feature to look for a file by date if I misplace something. Don't have to buy software or keep it updated when I buy a new computer.
Years from now I know where the other files from an assignment just by knowing the file name.
It also lets me know where my files are at to back up. I don't have to search for them. They always are in that ONE folder.

One other secret is to create a blank assignment folder with all the other folders in it, I title it 'Z Client Folder'. The Z will keep it at the end of my drive. Then you can just copy that blank one, paste it the drive, rename it for the date of the assignment and all your working folders are now in the new client folder.

[linque]

Good luck on your duplicate hunt.

A common workflow you will find nowadays is to use Adobe Lightroom (or Aperture) to do most of your editing, then use Photoshop for the more detailed work if needed. Lightroom is also a great tool for organizing and tagging photos on or after importing from your camera. You can try the Lightroom 3 beta version until April 2010 for free.

There are some great videos here if you want to learn more about it.

[ran man]

You may want to try DoubleKiller which can be found at following link.
This is NOT a fast program. It searches for duplicate files by comparing any combination of name, size, modification date, and content. You can exclude files or limit the scan to files matching masks like *.MP3, etc.
When the scan is finished a list of all duplicates files is displayed and you can manually or automatically select the files to be removed. The result list can be sorted and exported to a textfile readable by both humans and spreadsheet applications. DoubleKiller is a stand-alone executable that does not need to be installed, just extracted and run, and does not alter the system in any way without the user's prior permission.

DoubleKiller - Free software downloads and software reviews - CNET Download.com

Be very careful in deleting files

[P-Shooter]

Thanks to all for your suggestions. I used the Araxis utility for Apple and it was pretty quick considering the large amount of files I was dealing with. I had created such a mess. First I had to remove the duplicates from each single source, and then decide which would be the master. Then, had to compare the other 2 sources against he master. And then of course go through all the subfolders and merge anything that was not a duplicate. Now I'm importing them to Lightroom folder by folder and using keywords and tags as appropriate.

I really wish I would have done this in the first place. Now that I'm taking my photography more seriously, I can see that this facet of the hobby overwhelmingly important. What's the point of taking all these great photos if you can't find them. My organization project is about 60% complete, and am already begining to see the benefits.

So word to not-so-wise. If you're starting out, whether P&S or SLR, develop your organization method early, it will save you in the long run.