Photos: the chain of pain

The old way

Give your film to the photo lab and order several prints > keep negatives in an archive book, with special non-acid sheets > stick photos in an album, archive sheets, a scrapbook or leave them in a shoe box, > or send them by letter to family and friends who can keep these memories for ever.
But if you want to go digital, you can always order a CD Rom from the photo lab or do it yourself.

Time and time again

Digital is not for people who are very busy, nor for those who do not have the time or the inclination to mess around with computers, image processing software, home printers, expensive ink cartridges and the rest of it.
Your PC acts like a darkroom enlarger and processing unit, but also as a storage device and an archiving-retrieving system.

The chain of pain: the complicated, time consuming digital route

  • storing, managing and archiving photo files: difficult + time consuming
  • store the high definition original files (Raw files, or TIFF) on hard disk
  • make backup copies on CDs/DVS to archive your originals(=negatives) 
  • when formats change, make backup duplicates again (Blue-Ray. etc.) 
  • process your high definition originals, correcting colour, sharpness, contrast,etc... 
  • archive those as working originals, (in TIFF) on hard disk + archive on CD 
  • convert to a format compatible with a local photo laboratory (JPG) and archive on CD
  • get prints made on photo paper through chemical processing for archiving 
  • you can make your own prints on your inkjet printer: very time consuming | expensive for small formats | durability of ink jets 
  • convert your files to a smaller size for the Web, archive on CD
  • send your photos as attachments to emails: beware of the size limitations and use a compression utility like Winzip or Winrar. 
  • upload the photos to the on-line photo album service service (Flickr, Photobucket, Picasa and many others) 
  • for your own web site, convert to a smaller size (640x480 or so) and archive on CD 
  • then you can contact/email family and friends so they can see and share your photos; 
  • prints can be ordered too and sent to any address (snail mail)
It is true that digital photography offers a wide range of new possibilities to illustrate your own blog, to enrich your website, to accompany your posting in a forum, to share with family and friends. But quick and easy, it is not.

The most expensive photos in the world