Back in the film days, before I left on an assignment, I would stop at a camera store and purchase enough film for the shoot. Of course, I would estimate this from a shot list provided by my client and add more, based on some WAG (Wild Ass Guessing) factor. In most cases, I would buy the film in "blocks" of twenty, as 20 boxes of 35mm film rolls 24 or 36 exposures were wrapped in cellophane like this. I would buy these blocks because they had the same emulsion number and, therefore, I could expect to get consistent results. Anything left over went into my fridge for those quick homework or for fun and testing. After the assignment, I delivered the film, never often the E-6 chrome, in two batches: odd numbers arriving one day and the even number when I picked up the first batch the next day. If lab accidents occurred, only half of my film was at risk at any time. Once I returned to my office with the developed chrome, I would display it on a light table to look at. Regardless of the film format I used, 35mm, 120/220 or 4x5, I had to view them with a magnifying glass. I would go through them all, setting aside, in two batches, the definitive keepers and the junk shots. Everything is much easier with digital, including the last part about selecting images. Instead of using a magnifying glass, I can look at each image full screen and even zoom in further to see critical areas. Now, that I am not limited by a finite number of images (memory cards notwithstanding), I tend to take more photos than necessary, even some occasional photos along the way or a few, which I call experimental. Working on large batches of exposures requires a tool that can quickly perform a variety of tasks. Recently, I had the chance to...... half paper ......# Present a slideshow of your photos Initially, I was reluctant to add another software application to my workflow since I had thought about importing files in Adobe Lightroom and working with them was enough for us. However, I can definitely see the effectiveness of using Photo Mechanic on the front end to quickly get to a stage where I can make any necessary changes. Photo Mechanic views JPG, TIFF, and RAW (even JPG + RAW) files faster than most applications I've used. I don't know about you, but frankly I don't like hard work, I'd rather shoot or drool over new gear. Photo Mechanic is quite efficient at what it does, and for what it does, it leads the pack.(1) It is always wise and highly recommended to make at least one more copy of the folder with all your images as a backup. You should never work on the only originals.