Need help navigating image archiving software?

I know we're supposed to be discussing Bridge here, but the simple fact is that many folks don't use Adobe products and yet still need to find a way to archive a large collection of image assets. More critically, perhaps, Bridge as we know all too well is a browser program and for truly effective image archiving we should be using a database program. (Money, money, money.)

So, if you're keen on finding just the right database program to organize your images, where to turn?

There are few resources today that provide a broad, up-to-date look at DB programs available to help you sort and archive images. One that I've recently discovered is an incredible print magazine called c't Digital Photography. affiliated with Rocky Nook Publications in the US, the magazine is in fact printed and published in Germany, and is also available in a cool app for the tablet. The magazine is in a large format, feels solid, looks professional, id in English and comes with a free cd of tutorial files and demo software (something that has pretty much gone away here in US magazines).

In the Fall 2012 issue (no. 9) one of the feature articles is called "Organize your Photos," and covers a wide assortment of database archiving software. Using tables, charts and wonderful illustrations, the article, deftly written by Sascha Steinhoff, discusses everything from "Database Basics" to "File Import and Management," and "All about Metadata."

The really important part of this very long article comes, of course, near the end: "Image Database Software Test Results," where the author nicely lays out in two easy-to-read tables, "Image Database Software for Network and Multi-User Environments" and another table for "Single-User Environments."

Finally, there is a page-by-page look at each of the major programs discussed, with key information and handy screen shots.

Anyway, I subscribe now. For more information check them out online. Oh, and their magazine app is tres cool.

A very brief review of cataloging software

No matter how well Bridge works right now, at some point it will no longer do what we want and expect it to do -- of course, it shouldn't be doing it now but it does. And for that we should be thankful.

But someday the image library will have to migrate to a program specifically designed to manage a large collection of photos, probably a catalog-based,  database software program that focuses on organizing and cataloging images and digital assets.

Adobe Lightroom, Apple's Aperture (Mac only), Expressions Media (Phase One) and Extensis Portfolio are four of the more well-known programs that also allow non-destructive image editing and offline workflow as well.

I should mention that hybrid programs such as Apple's iPhoto and Photoshop Elements both have cataloging and image adjustment features. However, iPhoto is Mac only and neither were really designed to handle the demands of large image libraries. iPhoto also lacks the more (much more) robust tagging, search and editing features required for anything other than the most basic of image collections.

For those of us in search of the holy grail of photo archiving, finding a resource that compares the wide variety of tools is scarce indeed. Fortunately, there is an excellent, albeit dated source on the Impulse Adventure website. There you can find a very helpful table comparing the various large- and small-scale programs. (You can also cut and paste this URL: http://www.impulseadventure.com/photo/flow-catalog-compare.html.)

For enterprise level collections (50k images on up) you would probably do well to consider cross-platform systems with robust cataloging features:

1. ACDSee Pro 4 (WIndows only) - $240
2. ACDSee Pro (Mac)  - $170
3. Expression Media 2 -  $200
4. FotoStation Pro - €489/$700
5. Lightroom (Adobe) - $300
6. Photo Mechanic - $150
7. Portfolio 8.5 (Extensis) - $200

All have trial versions with varying restrictions. I did not include Canton's Cumulus or Extensis Portfolio Server 9 since they apply to Workgroup and Enterprise levels and have an entirely different pricing structure (read: expensive).

Of course, licensing for large numbers of users will drive the costs up no matter which catalog program you settle on.

Anyway, last year I tested Expression Media 2 and Portfolio 8.5 (single user) products. My primary criterion was discovering how many image files could one catalog handle before it slowed to a crawl or simply stopped working altogether. Our unique situation requires that users in our creative group be able to search as many images as quickly as possible. It's pointless to create 10, or 30 or 50 or more catalogs since searching requires searching across ALL images, and not just selected catalogs. And searching across catalogs is not possible.

That's the challenge.

I spent some time with Expression Media 2 (before it was sold to Phase One) and found its features robust and catalogs responsive. I liked it's easy to learn and easy to use interface. Cataloging was not a problem and searching within catalogs seemed to work fine. Please note I only catalogued a fraction of our image library, however. The process at the time was simply too tedious and time-consuming.

Portfolio 8.5 also has a nice interface but I found the cataloging of our large library incredibly slow and the catalogs it did produce were often unresponsive in searching. In earlier tests with Portfolio I was disappointed in the program's handling of xmp metadata, particularly keywords created in Adobe programs.

I have to admit that my tests were by no means systematic and I never did catalog the entire library so your experience may be different.

I am presently finishing cataloging our entire library using Adobe Lightroom 2 and my next series of posts will focus on the ongoing lessons from that experience.

If you have any questions or comments, don't hesitate to contact me: steve at steve soper dot com.

Have a great spring.