4 Ways to Maximize Your Editing Efficiency

If you're anything like me, part of the reason you're drawn to livestock photography is because you enjoy working outside. You'd rather spend your time in the barn than in the house, so when picture day is done and you have to find the time to sit down at the computer to edit, it can be frustrating. I won't even hide it a little - I hate editing, so anything I can do to reduce the amount of time I need to spend in front of the screen is a huge bonus. 

Here are four tips I've learned that help me be a more efficient photo and video editor. 

1. Log ID's Accurately      By spending time in the picture pen making sure you've accurately identified all the animals and logged that I.D. with the image, you'll save time in post-production because you won't need to look for missing I.D.'s or spend time figuring out which unidentified black cow that is in your picture or video. 

2. Build a Workflow        Efficiency is built on a foundation and that foundation is workflow. A good workflow accounts for backup and arcival of your work and allows for step by step processing of your images. 

3. Batch Your Tasks       Did you ever notice that once you're in the flow of doing a certain task, it just keeps going faster and faster?  Batching is one of the best ways to create efficiency, especially on large projects. In the editing process, you need to complete sorting, labeling, color correction, advanced editing, cropping, exporting, and delivery.  That's a lot of steps to take. When you batch steps across an entire group of images, you'll find it's much easier to get into flow. Not only will the work go by more quickly, but you'll also find that your editing becomes much more consistent as well. 

4. Batch Export Videos       This batching tip deserves its own space. I see so many people using Premiere who don't know batch exports are possible, which means one by one you have to man your computer while it exports videos, rendering the program useless until the export is complete.  One way to batch export is this; As you complete each video go to File/Export/Media then hit Queue. It will add your videos to a render queue, then when you're done with all of your edits in the project, you can hit the play button and your videos will render while you hit the hay. 

Establishing your own workflow and becoming an efficient editor will take time and practice, but with these quick tips, your editing should start to move faster in no time! Good luck!