As a photographer, it’s easy to get bogged down in creativity without really thinking about how effective your process is. Since time is the most valuable resource you have, you need to make the most of it. In this article, I will share some tips that have helped me become a master of productivity.
The secret to being productive, as I’ve discovered myself, is that you need to feel like you’re having a productive day. It’s hard to say objectively what was and what wasn’t a productive day. So I’d like to invite you to consider the tips in this article as tips to help you make your day more productive, not objectively quicker. I’m not going to teach you a crazy Capture One hack to let you edit thousands of photos in one sitting. Such a hack does not exist, although we all wish it did.
Amount
The feeling of wasting time is familiar to everyone; There are days when we just feel like we’re doing nothing. There are days when we’re busy all day, but by the end, we feel as though we’ve done absolutely nothing. It is important to understand that productivity is never about the amount of work, it is about the work that you produce. Take me as an example. I could spend all day as an administrator and do other boring, mundane tasks and feel like I was doing nothing. On the other hand, I can spend four hours on the road, take 12 shots, have 10 good shots at the end of the day, and feel like I’ve accomplished more in a day than I could in a month. I’m not advocating that either, but I’m just trying to point out the difference in production numbers. You need to plan, which is a huge topic in itself, and achieve your goals in the most effective way.
How often do you check email? With the digital age, it has become the norm to reply to everything as soon as possible. Some always open emails and turn on phone notifications for emails. While there are speed benefits to this, the downside is not being able to focus on your task. I find that it’s best to check email twice a day: midday and 4pm. This tip comes from a great book by Tim Ferris: 4 hour work week. Although the title sounds deceptive, the content is well worth your time. Back to email, a personal tip is to limit reading to one email at a time. This will help you respond faster, as well as keep your inbox clean. If you choose to forward by email, reply to, read, forward, delete, or archive each section. Since doing this, I find that I reply to all emails that require a reply. It saves the embarrassment of “sorry, I forgot”.
Write everything down
Even though I’m generation Z, I prefer pen and paper over digital. Digital workflows, especially for to-do lists, can only be so good. There is strong evidence against having a digital process for to-do and note lists. It all boils down to how well you remember what you need to do.
Take the shot list example. While there is a digital template that I use for them, most of the time it’s just filled with scribbles, notes, etc. If possible, I also use a whiteboard for mood boards and Other notes about the project. Personally, writing everything down is an amazing productivity booster. 
The same goes for ideas. I highly recommend keeping a small idea notebook so you can draw, write, and create concepts for your images. Having tried both digital and physical, I can hardly remember what I was thinking if I typed it in.
Have good hardware
This goes without saying, but the hardware makes a huge difference. Not too long ago I started tinkering with a Samsung T7 SSD, it’s been an amazing performer in my workflow and I’ve reviewed this. Good hardware makes you faster by eliminating file transfer and load times in Capture One or Lightroom. By far, a good digital workflow would be the best way to save time. While there is little noticeable difference between 500 MB/s and 1 GB/s transfer speeds, it all adds up. A good computer such as new Mac M1 will do wonders for your workflow. 
Set realistic goals for the day
This may sound silly, but a lot of people are guilty of over-planning and underperforming. It’s simply unavoidable trying to fill your to-do list with as many things as possible. This leads to being overworked and still feeling unhappy, as well as feeling like you’re not productive during the day. Try to allocate specific time periods for each task and think twice before adding another.
Mass quests belong together
I lump all the tasks together unless it’s urgent. For example, when it comes to writing, I sit down and type a few articles together and then edit a few articles together. It’s very inefficient to do the post editing format pipeline in one go. The same applies to editing and trading. My estimates will come out in batches, so will treatments and other things. Marketing is also blocked to take a day. Editing skills wise, I try to select images from all the styles to see how the story fits together, then I color them, also in one go. Re-editing made elsewhere; You can find out why by reading this paragraph.
Stop thinking
Overall, productivity is a feeling rather than a defined way of doing things. You can feel “productive” and send an invoice a day. You can also send 20 invoices, do a photo shoot and marketing for each art director in your country and feel it’s not working. Be realistic, set clear goals and you will feel productive. Use other tips to be more productive.
