[pure-silver] Re: Getting Organized

From: "Elias Roustom" <elroustom@xxxxxxxxx>


At the risk of revealing too much about my worst habit, the lack of
habits, I'm going to ask if anyone else has the same problem I'm
having. Two years into photography, I now have sheets and sheets of
negatives, prints experimenting with every sort of technique or paper
or developer, and no order to any of it. I'm at a point now where
it's getting hard to move forward with any photographic project
without looking for something under something else...
   I'm going to assume I'm not the only one who has an obsession
with this craft and is also very busy (with paying work). I've got
some ideas of how to dig out, straighten up and fly right, but I'm
curious how some of you have dealt with putting your house in order?
Not only about storage and retrieval, or record keeping, but about
anything pertaining to managing current projects and planning future
projects. I could use some inspiration, and some good ideas.

Elias


"Junk expands to fill all available space"
I'm not sure I can give a definative answer, but you did ask just for inspiration and good ideas...
One thing I do when I feel the walls closing in is to make a list of things I need to do. I find great satisfaction in crossing things off the list and watching it get smaller. Don't get bogged down with personnal management software- just use a piece of paper. Seeing things crossed out is inspiring.
For my professional photos (professional meaning that people are paying me for them), I maintain a database of negatives, cross-referenced to the customer. The database also has a field for the type of photo: "Hi-key baby", "Outdoor senior", "Location Group", etc. Then if I need a certain type of photo, I can search the database for a codeword.
For my pleasure photos (no one commissioned them), I file the negatives in photofile pages- clear plastic pages that can be directly contact printed. The pages and the contact prints go in a notebook chronilogically. Sometimes I will print them to an appropriate size and make an album- the negs for these go in the album. For example, I have albums of various civic events: July 4th celebrations, etc.
As for the various types of paper and developer, you either need to set up a notebook with samples and procedures so that you can refer back to it when you need a certain effect, or, you need to standardize on one paper and one developer so that you will have consistency in your work. Bear in mind that if you choose the standardization route, that paper and developer will be discontinued in six months or less! For me, I prefer to standardize the darkroom and do my experimenting with the camera. Too many varibles and you don't learn anything.
I feel your pain: I'm currently trying to sell my property and move halfway 'cross country to the old homestead. I know that all the 'stuff' I have here won't fit in the property I want to move to, so I'm constantly looking for things that can go on eBay, go to the salvage yard, or just go to the dump. I feel this is getting organized, but I have a pile of stuff waiting for someone to bid on, a pile of scrap metal stuff needing to be sorted for salvage, and a pile of stuff needing to go to the dump (the dump charges $20 for up to a ton, so I want to be sure my truck is dragging when I go there!).
The best encouragement I can offer is to keep as much of your chaos in the darkroom as possible- that way you can turn out the lights and not have to look at it! 
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