Rainy Day Discoveries

Going digital has dramatically changed my workflow for processing images. Where the creative process following capture was left to the lab or even an automated computer/printer, we now have the opportunity to finish the creative work to the print. I have found that the number of images I take home has dramatically increased as well with the “free” image storage (following purchase of the cards). I say “free”, but there is actually a significant cost associated with taking home large numbers of image files: disk storage, portable hard drives, archival costs and the most significant: TIME!

Time is a currency that obeys the laws of supply and demand like any other currency; it increases in value the less you have of it. We all have to balance time with our spiritual life, family, work, exercise, entertainment, hobbies, social obligations, etc, etc…. Surely I am not alone in feeling the limitations of time in daily life. So back to the subject of all those digital images (hundreds and hundreds of them), I have a tendency to process the images that catch my eye on the first pass through of grading the files and move on to the next shoot. Usually this catches the best shots, but as time passes our “eyes” have a tendency to evolve, our aesthetic senses have a tendency to change as we walk through life.

After several months I decided to review the RAW images from the Navajo lands workshop I attended in October of 2005. On this pass through the files I found several images that did not make the original cut for whatever reason. After processing these images I found that they were among my favorite images from the trip. I am not sure if this is because they are fresh to my eyes or if they are actually stronger images, only time will tell. So the next time you are sitting inside on a rainy day take a look through some of those old images with a new set of “eyes”, there may be a diamond in the rough.

Thomas Even
www.pbase.com/tomeven