Speed Up Your Photo Editing Process: 5 Essential Tips

We are all too familiar with this struggle - spending countless hours behind the screen, editing photos when we could be spending time with our loved ones or focusing on growing our businesses. But it's time to change that.

In a recent video, I shared five essential tips to help speed up your photo editing process. I also gave viewers an exclusive look at a beautiful 500-image engagement session that I managed to cull and edit in just three hours. Here's a recap of those tips:

1. Batch Editing

If you have multiple photos shot under similar conditions, you can edit one photo and then sync the settings across the other photos. This is called batch editing, and it's a major time saver. I could have never edited more than 750 wedding galleries without being able to strategically sync settings while maintaining cohesiveness among different camera bodies and lenses.

2. Presets

Lightroom allows you to save your settings as a preset so that you can apply them to other photos with just a click. This is a huge time saver. I recommend spending some time creating your own presets for different types of photos and watch your workflow accelerate. I also create custom presets for photographers and highly recommend not only creating presets for your hero colors and tones but also for the new incredible AI masking tool. It's going to save you a ton of time and also help you elevate your images.

3. Keep Your Catalog Organized

Right after checking consistency in the reference images my client sent, I organize my Lightroom catalog. This step, though it may seem time-consuming initially, can drastically speed up your workflow. By using collections, ratings, and flags to sort and filter your photos, you can quickly locate and edit the photos you need. This organization process saves you hours in the long run and allows for seamless navigation through the catalog, enabling you to maintain focus on the editing process.

4. The ShuttlePRO v2

The ShuttlePRO v2 is a game-changer and a professional tool. I own two, and I highly recommend it if you're regularly editing catalogs in Lightroom. This controller comes with 15 fully programmable buttons that can be assigned to your most used Lightroom functions. For me, the most used buttons are the crop tool and the sync button. These assignments significantly enhance editing speed and efficiency.

Link to **Contour Design Shuttle PRO V.2 Mouse *

5. Keyboard Shortcuts

Even if you don't want to use a tool like the ShuttlePRO v2, I highly recommend, at the very least, learning the shortcut keys in Lightroom - and not just the basic ones. Editing faster is all about efficiency. For example, 'R' is for Crop, 'Q' for Spot Removal, and 'V' for converting to Black and White. Make a habit of using these keys and you will see your editing speed increase.

So there you have it. Five expert tips to help you cut down your editing time, spend more time with your loved ones and focus on the aspects of your business that really matter. Give these tips a try, and let me know how they improve your editing speed. See you in the next video!

Need Help?

If you need help, you can find links below to

👩🏻‍💻 my Free Editing Guide “The Ultimate Guide to Saving Time Editing in Lightroom”

✅ the Notion Template for Photographers

🎧 my Editing Course “The Editor’s Blueprint”

🎞️ the Signature Style Sessions where I create custom presets for you and help you achieve an elevated style.

Also, feel free to check out the videos on my YouTube channel for more help.

Happy editing! 💗

*Please note that links marked with an asterisk (**) are affiliate links. This means that while you pay the same price, I receive a small commission from the brand. This helps support my work and allows me to continue providing you with quality content.