How to choose from a 1000 holiday pics

How to choose the perfect photo series from a trip? When you took a 1000 photos or more, how do you choose the right photo story, e.g. to create a photo book?

Being an analog photographer from the 90's, I know how to work without this luxury problem of the digital era. We used film, 36 exp. max and on most occasions, even weddings, we used only 8 to 10 rolls. We just never made it to the 1000.

Now what can you do cut down the number of photos:

1. Try not to shoot that 1000 photos. Really, limit yourself to a certain number of photos per day or occasion, let's say 25 max. This can be done and will make you more aware of which moment you really want to capture.

2. Delete the bad ones immediately.

3. After the holiday or wedding let the photos simmer for a while. When you look at them with a fresh mind a few days later, choosing will be easier and will go much faster.

4. Divide the photos in topics. Start by sorting the best photos of the places you went to, and choose max. 10-20 per topic. Ofcourse this depends on the trip. A beach holiday has less 'places' by number than a six-week jungle trekking.

5. Not more than 80 pages per album. After 25 pages most of your audience will be bored. The best choice is 40 to 60 pages, with 80 to 100 photos in total. If you're really want to challenge less is more, create an album with only 20 pages/40 photos.

6. Or just pick one. Think of the iconic photos you know, often those single photos tell a complete story. Why do you need more pics to tell yours? Your goal: only to take epic photographs.

7. Learn how to tell a story. Invest in a course or workshop to learn about the tips & tricks of picking the right photo.

Don't go for just postcard landscapes, zoom in, take close-ups of details you noticed

When you do take a landschape photo, try to find something different, like these shades of umbrellas without sunbeds

All these pictures were made by our 11 year old son: look fresh, with pure eyes 

Children look at life in a pure way. The greatest gift is to learn how to see fresh.

Invest in storytelling with Artstudio23. If you still cannot choose, we will be more than happy to create your holiday or wedding album for you. With nearly 20 years of experience, Artstudio23 knows which photo works best and which ones to skip. It's all in the eye. Melanie & Hans know how to see life with pure eyes.