Curious about everyone's LO's

[ColleenSwerb]

So I started a new system for organizing my LO's for the coming year, and I was curious to know how and what everyone else stores.

I have a folder in my digi-scrap folder for Layouts. I just took all my 2007 LO's and backed them up, but some files I only had the gallery size, some I had gallery and PSD but no full size jpg, etc. It's all very random and that bugs the he!! out of me.

So this year I started a folder for 2008 LO's, inside that I have a folder for PSD's, a folder for full size jpgs, and a folder for gallery size jpgs. I also added a folder for all the lo's I do for a particular month, and within that are folders for jpg and gallery size jpg. At the end of the month I'll move them all to the overall 2008 folders they belong to.

Did you follow all that? LOL! Anyway, I'm just curious what everyone else does

[MikkelPaige]

Hmmm...interesting topic! I never thought to ask anyone else.

I basically have 2 folders. 1 is a "Layouts" folder and I have all my psd and full size jpgs in there and then within that folder I have my 2nd folder which is my "Resized for Web" folder. That folder has all my reduced layouts that I use to post at the forums.

If a layout's in the "Layouts" folder for a few months without me editing it I move the psd file of it to my EHD. (Which we both discussed we need to start burning DVDs of last night!) I guess it'd be nice to see what date it's from, but I suppose if I needed to know that info I'd just go to a detail list view of the files and see what date they were last edited. I just like having them all in 1 folder for the most part. :-)

[tmcquaid]

You know, I never put much thought into this. I have a layouts folder and then a subfolder within that for archived layouts. When I'm working on a layout it pretty much stays in a general folder with a few other common files that I use a lot. When I'm done I'll move the .psd into the layout folder. I don't save full or gallery size .jpgs. I delete them as soon as I'm done working with them. Once I've backed up a layout to my EHD and to a DVD, I move it into the archived folder. I probably should start dividing them up into years, etc. but right now they're just all lumped together.

[ditzyscrap]

I have on my hard drive a "To Be Moved" file that all my layouts go into...I save the PSD and a 500 and a 600 gallery verison. They stay together because I name them exactly the same anyway (like my latest one is outside.psd, outside500.jpg, outside600.jpg). I never save full-sized files...just don't take up the extra room. If I need to save a whole bunch so they can be printed, I can just create an action and do them all at once...only takes a few minutes.

So anyway, when I back up to my EHD, they go directly into my "To Be Moved" folder on there, and then I move them around to their final destinations. I have a folder called "Layouts" and inside there are "Mason", "Natalie", etc...all the albums I hope to print them into, lol. And so I just throw them all in there. I think I have "Web Size" as a subfolder in those as well, but can't remember.

I don't like having too many layers of folders, it bugs me SOOO much! LOL!

[ColleenSwerb]

That's actually a good point about the full size jpg's being useless. If I'm saving the psd's, I can just make one from that no problem. Good stuff.

*Goes to delete the full size jpg's*

[lhaslem]

my system is similar. I have a folder for layouts where I keep all the tiffs/psds and then within that folder is a Web (for smaller jpegs) and a Burn to DVD folder for the larger JPEG files. I try to back these up monthly - I don't back up the psds or tiffs though, just full sized, finished jpegs.

[AmyK]

I'm really glad you asked this, as I'm trying to work out a new system. Mine is a mess!

Right now, I have multiple folders in my Layouts folder. Only the .psd files I am working on go there. Once I'm done, flattened .tiff files go in a Finished folder, a .jpg goes in to my To Print folder, and a webes version goes in my Web Res folder. I save my archive layouts in .tiff format, which decreases the quality loss you might get with a .jpg (which is compressed). I like the idea of having a yearly folder to do all this!

[MikkelPaige]

A note/question on full size jpgs.

I don't delete them for 2 reasons: 1, if I ever print them I like having the highest resolution possible and 2, if they get published don't magazines requested 300 dpi images?

[ditzyscrap]

Mikkel, if you're keeping the originals (PSD or TIFF, whatever format you choose), you just have to save them as JPG when it's time to print or get published. You don't need to have them on hand, taking up space all the time. You won't lose quality or anything, because PSD and TIFF files aren't "lossy".

Though JPG's aren't "lossy" unless you continually change and resave over them. But IMO, there's not any point to having the same file on your computer (or EHD or DVD) in several formats - it just takes up precious space!

[Stacey42]

I have a layouts folder. In it I have a PSP folder, where I keep the .pspimage version of my layouts. I also have a resized folder, where I keep the 500x500 web version. It has subfolders by year & DVD name. I keep all the websized on my computer but I move the .pspimage ones off onto DVD when I have 4GBs of them.

I have another 'to be printed' folder where I put the 12x12 or 8x8 or whatever sized .jpgs that I am waiting to print. But they get deleted as soon as they are printed. I'm way behind on my printing & I can't afford to print all my layouts so this folder varies in size. At the moment I have 20 or so from early 2007 waiting to printed individually at 8x8 and 30 or so waiting to become a 8.5x8.5 viovio book.

[MikkelPaige]

Bree, I see your point :-) You speak the truth!

[lhaslem]

Bree - good point. I guess I just figure that eventually I'll ditch the psd/tiff files and then I'll have the JPEGs for future printing or whatever. Just haven't been brave enough to trash those yet (in case of a typo or whatever) .

I also hate having to open an original file again because it takes 4-EVER in PSE...but I just got a new computer with more power so hopefully that won't be such a problem anymore...haven't really gotten to scrap on it yet .

[meems]

good topic, I need to work on my so-called system too.

I have a big folder for layouts and within that I have a folder for each designer's CT I'm on. Then I get really random by making folders for whatever challenge I might be doing. It gets confusing for me though b/c I sometimes don't remember where I put a layout. One of these days I'm going to burn my PSDs to a DVD. And possibly upload the fulles jpegs or tiffs somewhere . . . . I like to have stuff in multiple locations . . .

[Alinalitas]

I have a directory for scrapbooking altogether, within that, one for the .xcf (GIMP) files, and one for the small jpgs .

[nun69]

I have a LO Folder labeled "Digi Layouts" and under that I have them seprated by year"2007""2008" Etc....I upload each of my LO's {jpeg} to scrapbook pictures.com as soon as I'm done....then I go back and resize them for gallery viewing...once I've uploaded to all the galleries I want to, I delete that jpeg file and only keep the .psd file...if I ever need to, I can just reopen the .psd file and save another jpeg if needed...I just got an EHD for XMAS, so I will be backing my files up soon!

[Traci Reed]

I have a "Layouts" Folder and subfolders for year/subject (i.e. 2007, Heritage, Wedding, etc) Like This:



And then in those folders I have all my full size JPEGs saved and labeled by the date the pictures were taken on (not the date I did the LO)



That way I can put them in their albums in the correct order, etc in case I didn't date the actual layout. I don't save the PSDs *GASP*. I don't EVER go back and mess with layouts and I print them when I finish them. If I have a typo, I live with it, just like I would if I wrote something incorrectly on a paper layout. It gives em "character" . So the PSDs are a big waste of space for me (we're talking 100s of megs per layout!)

I save for web to a folder on my desktop called "LOs to be Posted" and delete the web versions after they've been posted, another space saver... I'm all about saving space! LOL

[Paula]

I keep the full sized jpgs for printing and once I print, I delete the psds. I have a folder with all my web sized LOs and I delete those once I upload them to the web.

[nun69]

wow, that is some great organization Traci, maybe I'll start doing that...except I haven't come to terms yet with deleting my psd files...just can't let go...of coarse now that I have a 500 gb EHD I hope I have enough space to store more than a few!

[nun69]

Traci...how to you label a page if you put multiple pictures on there from different dates?

[Traci Reed]

Well I rarely do that, but it would depend on what it was? If it was all from the same vacation, I'd just put the first day of the vacation date and then Hawaii Vacation or if it was a year in review, then I put the date of the last picture and then 2007 review..etc, etc..just something to put it in the generally correct date order..I'm a bit obsessive about it! LOL

[newfiemountiewife]

I have two folders. One is CT LOs, one is Non CT LOs. Inside each is a PSD folder and a web folder. That's the extent of my organizing at this point LOL