4 Reasons to Never Delete Images…
… from your camera. Everybody, it seems, uses the delete button on their cameras. Hey, there must be a reason it’s there, right? Heck, I know I’m guilty of abusing this button too.
It’s about time though that we make this delete button obsolete. Why? Let me count the ways…
- The LCD on your camera lies. You got that right – the LCD on your camera lies. As of this posting, there is no way to calibrate the little screens at the back of your camera. Even if there were, there you can’t always control your ambient light – and that can sometimes make a gorgeous image look like crap on that tiny LCD. Wait until you get to a larger screen, then make your judgement.
- You can’t trust your fingers. If you delete images straight from you camera, you will, at some point, delete an image you don’t want to erase. Call it clumsiness, Murphy’s Law, or plain bad luck – but whatever you call it, it will give you a headache. Yes, you can try to recover it when you get back to your computer, but in the meantime, you can’t use your memory card.
- Your batteries are weak. That LCD at the back of your camera is a power hog, and the more time you spend reviewing, trimming, and deleting images, the less time you have to shoot. If you keep deleting images, before you know it, you’ll end up with an empty battery and an empty memory card.
- You’re too slow. Even the best multi-taskers cannot shoot and review images at the same time. If you keep deleting images from your camera, you’re going to miss everything you want to shoot. At the end of the day, all your shots will be reminders of the ones that got away.
Yes, I know there are times when it’s just so tempting to delete in image from your camera, but do try to resist the urge. Cameras are made for capturing images. Leave the editing to the computer.
• Luis • 5 December 2007 •
#2 — I did exactly that just last week. Took a series of test shots while preparing for a job, started deleting them, and accidentally deleted the last shot from the previous job. That was the kick I needed to stop deleting on the camera.
[...] Lightchasers weiss, warum man niemals Bilder von der Kamera löschen sollte. [...]
Andrew: I’ve done all the items on this list several times – that’s why I can dispense this advice so freely. I’ve lost shots due to hasty deletes too.
Anyway, one way to prevent what happened to you is to backup as soon as you can, or if you have enough memory cards, to simply use a fresh CF for each job.
4 Reasons to Never Delete Images… | LightChasers Photography…
We’re all guilty of abusing the delete buttons on our cameras. Here are 4 reasons we should stop….
Good advice Luis, I decided a long time ago never to delete on the camera as you don’t have a backup.
I always copy to my PC & make sure I have a backup before I even think about hitting delete, mistakes are just too easy.
If you need to delete to make space, buy another card or just take less shots is my advice.
Chris: I should heed my own advice – I found myself deleting shots at an event a few nights ago. I only deleted a couple of shots before I stopped myself.
Great advice, Luis. I’ve always been amazed at the difference in appearance between images on the tiny LCD and the on my monitor. Makes a HUGE difference. Also, sometimes you find little treasures that would have otherwise been deleted – clever blurred shots, 1/2 in-1/2 out of focus beauty. I even see from time to time that the blurred or rejected image had the proper positioning or crop, so they’re good to learn from, even if you can’t ultimately use the photo. The number one reason I keep all of my images is because there are always hidden gems in the pile, you just have to look for them. Sure, it’s takes longer to go through all of my shots, but it’s well worth it.
Thanks for sharing you insights.
Cody: Thank you! Aside from images that are practically all black (my Poverty Wizards do fail me sometimes), I keep pretty much all my shots too – and for the same reasons. Sometimes, you don’t see the gems until you go through your archives weeks, months, or even years later.
[...] 4 Reasons to Never Delete Images… LightChasers Photography If you delete your picture while shooting on the field here are 4 good reasons not to do so anymore [...]
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Also, if you never delete images it makes the job of recovery software much easier should the filesystem get messed up on the card. And deleting images can potentially be one of the operations that leads to garbled filesystems…
[...] I’m writing this specially for myself! I delete pictures faster than I take them sometimes… Here is a recent article from LightChasers explaining why we should never be doing [...]
Another good reason is that it may take a little time to appreciate them. I tend to have very stringent ideas on what I want from a picture, and am disappointed if it wasn’t what I imagined. Some of my favorite pictures are ones that I didn’t like at first even when I got them on the computer. After seeing them a few times and having unsolicited positive comments from co workers, I start to see the picture for what it is, instead of how it differed from what I wanted it to be. (My computer scrolls through all my pics as a screen saver – that is why my co workers see them.)
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#2 agreed! I have lost many shots that way.
Kendall: That’s another good reason – I didn’t think of it because fortunately, I’ve never had a corrupted card.
Janet: I’m usually the only one who has access to my computer, so until I upload my images, other people don’t usually have the chance to comment on them. I wonder how many more images I’d keep (or delete) if I had the unsolicited input you get.
photopreneur: You’re not alone – I’ve lost quite a number of images that way too.
Vier Gründe Fotos nicht von der Kamera zu löschen…
Vor einiger Zeit las ich einen interessanten Artikel (via Martin Gommel) in dem englischen Blog lightchasersphotography.com. Da er mir gut gefiel, bat ich den Autor Luis Cruz um die Erlaubnis ihn zu übersetzen und veröffentlichen zu dürfen. Er hatt…
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Great post! Photos should never be deleted on camera. They should be reviewed, sorted and deleted upon downloading on to the computer. Professional photographers never delete images.