• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

PhotoNaturalist - nature photography tips and tutorials

nature photography tips and tutorials

  • Home
  • Articles
  • eBooks
  • About
  • Contact

Reviewing Old Photos

December 6, 2017 by Steve Berardi 7 Comments

Photo by Steve Berardi
Photo by Steve Berardi
In a previous post, I talked about why you should periodically review old photos. In the post, I specifically referred to photos that you originally overlooked and didn’t think were “good enough” to process and share.

Well, I’ve recently realized how valuable it can be to also review all your photos that made it to the “good” pile, especially concentrating on your favorite images. Once we take a photo we’re proud of and post-process it and share it online or print it, we usually stop thinking about it. But, I think it’s really helpful to review these photos periodically for a variety of reasons.

Here are some things to think about when reviewing your old favorites:

1 — Look for similarities

I think one of the most important ways we grow as artists is by developing a unified vision for our work. We all have something we want to say about nature, and photography is our chosen medium to deliver that message. And, I think one of the best ways to find that message (if you don’t know it already) is by reviewing your favorite photos and asking yourself what’s similar about them? It’s okay to start off simple by recognizing patterns like, “all my favorite photos are close-ups of flowers” — but, also try to dig deeper than that. Look for common perspectives, compositions, or emotions that are illustrated in your favorite images.

Personally, from reviewing my own photos, I’ve learned that I really like to illustrate contrast in nature. Not only with color and brightness within an image, but also across images. I love creating images of the desert that show how harsh an environment it can be, but also on the other end I love creating images that show how colorful and friendly the desert can be.

I’ve also noticed that most of my favorite images were shot at focal lengths between 28mm and 35mm. As a result, I’m now trying to focus on creating images with the field of view from that focal length range.

2 — Look for opportunities to learn or improve

Another thing you should look for when reviewing your photos are opportunities to learn or improve existing images. I have a set of photos that I really like and then another set of photos that I think are “good” but could be improved somehow. I like to go through these photos that “need improvement” and ask myself “what could I have done to make this image stronger or its message more clear?” The answers to these questions don’t always come easily, and that’s perfectly okay. In fact, it’s better if the answers don’t come easily, because that means you’re really getting to the core of the image and not focusing on simple technical matters like “it’s not sharp enough.” The important thing is to begin asking the questions. Eventually, the answers will come to you.

What did I miss?

Do you also like to review your old photos for some reason? Is there some insight you always look for when doing this kind of review? If so, please share it with us by leaving a comment below. Thanks!

Get more nature photography tips in our free weekly newsletter


steveb2About the Author: Steve Berardi is a nature photographer, software engineer, and founder of PhotoNaturalist. You can usually find him hiking in the beautiful mountains and deserts of southern California.

Filed Under: Philosophy, Tips Tagged With: images, message, perspective, photos, review, vision

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Mario says

    December 6, 2017 at 5:25 pm

    Great article.

    Looking back at some of my “Best of” lately, i realized that i had a small tendency to oversaturate some subjects like Loons on water. I re-processed them, and they look much better. For now…

    Reply
  2. Sherry says

    December 6, 2017 at 5:48 pm

    I look back at mine and study my lighting and thinking was my shutter wrong or my aperture. I have a harder time discerning this when in shade or clouds coming and going with my light. Iam still acwork I’m progress.i do love wildlife and nature.

    Reply
  3. Marc Bell says

    December 6, 2017 at 6:24 pm

    I looked back 50 years ago when I was teenager and man, the photos I
    took were just amazing. I sat down shaking my head. Looking back
    at the old images is one of the best things to do. Just amazing.

    Reply
  4. Gary says

    December 6, 2017 at 7:05 pm

    Hi Steve
    I’m always cautious about dumping images on impulse, unless they are not sharp, they are never going to be sharp!
    I’m fully aware of the rapid advances in LR and PS and have a second look before hitting the X ,
    Also, as our PP skill increases, sometimes an average image can now be turned into a wall hanger
    ……….Gary

    Reply
  5. Frank Kennedy says

    December 7, 2017 at 5:31 am

    10-15 years ago, I was going through all my prints to put into a photo album. I found a nice picture of my mother and my wife’s mom. They are deceased. I really had no pictures of the two together. I don’t know how I overlooked it (it’s a nice shot) but now all our kids have a picture of both grandmothers.
    Similarly, I just bought a new computer and after transferring all pictures – I am relabeling and going through all of them and finding some really nice shots that are worthy of my website! There’s gold to be found in them old pictures!

    Reply
  6. Marc says

    December 7, 2017 at 9:18 am

    I like to look back on old photos to see how much I have improved. I don’t track my changes or even notice them from one photo shoot to the next but having a look back at earlier work gives me that perspective. I find it really motivating when I can see how much my images have improved over time.

    Reply
  7. amruta says

    December 9, 2017 at 4:15 am

    Very helpful! I’m working on my photography but it’s really frustrating to me. Thank you for the great tips, the only thing I need now is a remote!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Before Footer

Topics

aperture bird photography birds camera close close up clouds composition depth of field ebook exposure flower focus gear histogram image landscape lens lenses light Macro moon nature nature photography photo photograph photography photonaturalist photos photoshop sharp sharpness subject sun sunrise sunset telephoto Tips tripod vision weather wild wildflower wildflowers Wildlife

Footer

Popular Articles

  • 7 tips for getting sharper photographs
  • How to use the histogram for a good exposure
  • How to resize your photos (the “sharp” way)
  • 13 tips for better wildflower photography
  • How to photograph dragonflies (free eBook!)
  • RAW vs JPEG: Who wins?
  • How to get sharp photos of birds in flight
  • What to photograph on an overcast day
  • What is a natural photograph?
  • Three elements of a great landscape
  • 11 tips for avoiding memory card problems
  • Tips for photographing shorebirds
  • What mode should you shoot in?

Categories

  • Book Reviews
  • Close-Up
  • Gear Reviews
  • Landscapes
  • Macro
  • Philosophy
  • Photoshop Tutorials
  • Tips
  • Uncategorized
  • Wildflowers
  • Wildlife

Copyright © 2025 · Wellness Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in