digital photography

How I Culled Through 1,009 Travel Photos

While we were in The Netherlands, I took 1,009 photos (using my iPhone 7 Plus) and 20 videos. I love photography because it’s fun to capture shells on the beach, the sunrise or sunset, architecture, people, coffee, bikes, and hundreds of other beautiful details. I also love sharing my photos on the blog, social media, and with loved ones.

Nonetheless, I don't want to get so caught up in documenting an experience that I forget to enjoy the experience itself or develop what Linda Henkel calls the "photo-taking-impairment effect”—where taking photos dulls or even prevents people from forming memories.

Overall, I felt like I struck a good balance on our vacation. I fostered my love for photography and enjoyed each moment of the trip. However, 1,009 photos are a lot of images! On my next trip, I want to take fewer photos and do a better job of composing a photograph before I take a snapshot. Hopefully, that will make me a better photographer, and I won't have to spend as much time deleting images when I get home.

Today, I thought I’d share how I sort through my photographs. Feel free to steal or adapt my strategies.

1. It's essential to make the time to look at my photos and reflect on the experience. If I'm not going to look at my photographs or share them with friends and family, I'd rather not take images.

2. Transfer your images from your iPhone to your laptop.

3. Backup your photos on Dropbox.

4. Use the delete button ruthlessly.

5. Once you've deleted poorly composed images, repeat steps 1 and 4.

6. Start the editing process in Lightroom.

7. Add your photos to a folder or collection in Lightroom.

8. Share your photos with family, friends, and on the blog.

Parting words

The steps above help me cut down on digital clutter and stay organized. The process takes time, but once I get into the deleting and editing groove, it's fun! Most of the time, I tend to edit my photos lightly. For example, I’ll adjust the exposure, contrast, or the warmth of an image, and that’s it. However, it’s rewarding to play with different filters, apps, and other photo editing tools because it sparks my creativity and I learn new skills. Plus, it's helped me view the editing process as a form of art.