Pick Just One

ArtSpring Theatre, 2:39:06 p.m. to 2:39:23 p.m.

These are six consecutive photos taken over 17 seconds during the first dress rehearsal for tonight’s GISS Music Show. And this is what the processing/catalogue program I use looks like as I fly though 500 to 1000 or more images, attempting to separate the wheat from the chaff.

Typically, I’ll photograph a 90 minute rehearsal in the afternoon or evening, head to the office, transfer all the images to the computer and choose about one third of the images to keep. Then I go through the keepers more carefully doing a super minimal edit (adjust colour, straighten, crop), throwing out some more images for various infractions, as I go. Next, I decide on the hero shot(s) for the Gulf Islands School District website front page slider (needs to fit a space 1840 x 800 pixels), and start a new WordPress post, in a web browser, for the event. The post typically contains some text and a few chosen photos.

So I go through the remaining images doling out two stars for images I think will work together on post. Next I select all the 2 star images and give them a proper edit—or as proper as I can given the time constraint. I add them to the post, then publish, check the home page slider and check the post.

Then, back in the processing program I create a gallery of the 200 to 500 minimally edited images, then upload the gallery to the web server. Back in the browser, I let the performers know the link to these images, and update the web post. The fresh post will be there to advertise the show, usually by 11 p.m. or so. Maybe.

It’s a marathon, 6 to 8 hours total.

Today’s actual post is here, on the SD64 website.

Any questions?

* I just document what I see. The real stars of the show are the performing arts students (like the multi-talented, Gr. 11 student Sophie above) and the equally driven and long suffering instructors— Bruce, Sonia and Jason)