[This is a guest post from Melissa Dean, a boudoir photographer, author, and educator based in New Mexico, to share some workflow thoughts and surviving the culling crunch. Melissa is working on an education platform, “Melissa Dean – Methods.” Follow @melissadeanboudoir on Instagram for updates.]
There was a time where I would finish a session, feel incredible about it… and then immediately feel the weight of what came next. Hundreds and sometimes thousands of images would be sitting on my card. I would, of course, have multiple versions of the same pose. Essentially the same photo, just slight shifts and micro expression changes that maybe only I would really notice, but either way, I was going to have to cull through them. I used to be an overshooter. I was drowning myself in photos and I would dread pulling them into Lightroom to begin to cull.
Culling would take me HOURS and not because I was slow, but because the rendering would require SO. MUCH. TIME. I tried Adobe Bridge. I tried Lightroom. Every time, I found myself waiting… waiting for images to load, waiting for previews to render, waiting for the program to catch up to me. Those little pauses don’t seem like much, but when you’re making hundreds of decisions, it becomes everything. When I would go too fast, the system would lock up, or worse, crash. It was, without question, the worst part of my workflow.
At some point, I had to be honest with myself. I was overshooting. My systems weren’t working. Culling was an absolute nightmare, and I was spending too much time and struggling with it all. I started by becoming more intentional with my shooting (but that’s a whole different conversation) and started seeking alternatives to Lightroom and Adobe Bridge.
When I found Photo Mechanic, it wasn’t just about speed, although the speed is what gets your attention first. When I say it’s fast, that almost feels like an understatement. It was the first time my culling process could actually keep up with me. There’s no waiting for images to load. No pause between frames or rendering that took forever. The instant preview and being able to see the image immediately without interruption, is what makes fast, confident culling actually possible. It just shows you what’s already there. This became especially critical once I moved into a same-day reveal workflow, where every decision had to happen quickly and efficiently.
Instead of:
wait → render → analyze → decide → wait → render → analyze → decide
It becomes:
move → decide → move → decide → move → decide
It made a massive difference and more than you might realize. It was so much more than just culling. The faster you move, the less emotional you get. The less emotional you get, the clearer your decisions become. My galleries were stronger. My editing became seamless. Galleries were delivered faster, and my clients weren’t overwhelmed with hundreds of photos.
My process is pretty simple now…on purpose. I’m really not trying to be perfect. I’m trying to stay in motion.
First pass: instinct.
I’m moving fast. If it’s a yes (or even a maybe) it gets marked. I don’t zoom in, and I don’t overanalyze. No getting stuck in tiny details here. I’m not looking at pores, shadows, or micro-expressions. I’m looking for what stands out immediately. Strong images don’t require debate.
Then I refine in rounds. Not all at once. That’s way too overwhelming. If you try to go from 800 images down to 50 in one pass, your brain is going to fight you.
So I narrow it down in layers:
First round: gut reaction
Second round: strength (what’s actually powerful?)
Third round: impact (what belongs in the reveal?)
Each round gets easier because there’s less noise. This is a small piece of the system I teach inside my Same-Day Reveal workflow… and even this shift alone can completely change how you move through your images.
Also, I added one filter that changed everything for how I run my second and sometimes third round: “Would I post this?” and/or “Is this the kind of work I want to shoot more of?”
You know what they say…what you show is what you attract.
I learned this the hard way. Early on, I posted work that I liked, but didn’t actually want to keep shooting. And sure enough, those were the exact types of sessions people kept asking me for.
So now, if I wouldn’t proudly put it on my website… it doesn’t make the cut. Because, of course, that would be the photo that the client posts, and then you start getting inquiries to shoot the sessions that drain your energy.
While you’re culling, don’t hesitate, and if you do, be aware. Hesitation is usually your answer that it’s not aligned with what you want to shoot. Don’t force it. Attachment will slow you down more than any software ever will.
Sometimes we keep images because:
- We worked hard for them
- The lighting was tricky
- The moment felt special
But hey, we’re not building an archive. We need to remember that we’re building a powerful experience. Your client doesn’t need to see everything. They need to feel something, and that only happens when you show your strongest work. Now, I’m able to shoot, cull, edit, and present images the same day. I’m not rushing and I’m not dragging unnecessary weight through my process anymore.
I trust my eye, I trust my decisions, and I’ve built a system that supports both.
If you’re sitting on thousands of images… avoiding the cull…It’s likely a system problem.
You need a workflow that allows you to move, decide, and trust yourself again. Photo Mechanic didn’t just make my workflow faster, it made it possible. It gave me the ability to move through my images with clarity, trust my decisions, and stay in momentum without getting stuck. And when your tools support that kind of flow, you’re not just working more efficiently… you’re working in a way that actually feels aligned.
About the Author:
Melissa Dean is a boudoir photographer, author, and educator based in New Mexico, known for her immersive, same-day reveal experience that blends artistry, efficiency, and deep client transformation. She began her photography journey in 2011 and officially launched her boudoir studio in 2023, building a six-figure business by redefining what a photography session can feel like — guiding clients through a fully supported experience from shoot to same-day image reveal.
She is the creator of The Same-Day Reveal System, where she teaches photographers how to shoot with intention, cull with clarity, and eliminate editing backlogs through streamlined, high-impact workflows. Her approach combines technical efficiency with intuitive decision-making, using tools like Photo Mechanic to support a fast, fluid culling process that keeps photographers in momentum instead of overwhelm. Melissa is also the author of Let Her Die: Killing the Version of You That Keeps You Small, and her work centers around self-reclamation — helping women release who they’ve been taught to be and reconnect with who they actually are.
Follow Melissa Dean on Instagram: @melissadeanboudoir