Media Management Software

John Rappa · June 14th, 2010, 08:49 AM

I have been using Adobe Elements Organizer to keep track of my Media files but with over 15,000 images and the increasing number of audio and video files, the software has become slow and unstable. I started looking at Adobe Lightroom, but I would like to know what others are using for photo/video/audio management (catalog) software.

Clint Martin · June 22nd, 2010, 04:12 PM

Adobe Bridge?

John Rappa · June 22nd, 2010, 07:51 PM

Yes, I have been using Adobe Bridge (not Lightroom, like I mentioned in earlier post). I was looking for a standalone solution. Thanks.

Craig Parkes · June 26th, 2010, 04:07 AM

CAT DV is pretty regularly recommended for Video, not sure about how useful it is for all other media but I know it supports it.

Brian Parker · June 28th, 2010, 07:51 PM

I recommend J.River Media Center. It's actually consumer software for home media collections, but is so powerful I've been using it exclusively for years to organize my video and photos for work too. You can create and switch between multiple libraries, so it's possible to separate out between personal and work files.

With it you can create custom views. Unlike itunes which just has "Genre/Album/Artist", in J.River Media Center you can create any field (ie. "Project" "Subject" "Country" "City" etc.) and then have a pane for each field. You can even have more than just the 3 panes that itunes has.

The other amazing thing that beats all the other competition in my book, is that you can create more than one view. So you can create a view called "source" and have it just show files which you've tagged as source footage, and another view called "Archives" which contains all your exported masters.

Finally, it's a great music player to have while you're working.

John Rappa · June 29th, 2010, 06:24 PM

Thanks Brian, Given your success, with J.River Media Center, I'm downloading and given it a try.
I have more questions, but I should give it a try first...
Craig, I also reviewed CAT DV and I can see where this would be the tool of choice for large projects. Looking forward to the day, I can't live without it !!!

June 14th, 2010, 08:49 AM	#1
John Rappa New Boot Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Tampa, FL Posts: 21	Media Management Software - Any Recommendations? I have been using Adobe Elements Organizer to keep track of my Media files but with over 15,000 images and the increasing number of audio and video files, the software has become slow and unstable. I started looking at Adobe Lightroom, but I would like to know what others are using for photo/video/audio management (catalog) software.

June 22nd, 2010, 04:12 PM	#2
Clint Martin New Boot Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: AJ, AZ Posts: 14	Adobe Bridge? __________________ http://skinnymoose.com/onstand/

June 22nd, 2010, 07:51 PM	#3
John Rappa New Boot Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Tampa, FL Posts: 21	Adobe Bridge Yes, I have been using Adobe Bridge (not Lightroom, like I mentioned in earlier post). I was looking for a standalone solution. Thanks.

June 26th, 2010, 04:07 AM	#4
Craig Parkes Major Player Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Auckland, New Zealand Posts: 444	CAT DV is pretty regularly recommended for Video, not sure about how useful it is for all other media but I know it supports it. __________________ www.afterglow.co.nz

June 29th, 2010, 06:24 PM	#6
John Rappa New Boot Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Tampa, FL Posts: 21	J.River Media Center Thanks Brian, Given your success, with J.River Media Center, I'm downloading and given it a try. I have more questions, but I should give it a try first... Craig, I also reviewed CAT DV and I can see where this would be the tool of choice for large projects. Looking forward to the day, I can't live without it !!!

June 28th, 2010, 07:51 PM	#5
Brian Parker Major Player Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Tokyo Posts: 230	I recommend J.River Media Center. It's actually consumer software for home media collections, but is so powerful I've been using it exclusively for years to organize my video and photos for work too. You can create and switch between multiple libraries, so it's possible to separate out between personal and work files. With it you can create custom views. Unlike itunes which just has "Genre/Album/Artist", in J.River Media Center you can create any field (ie. "Project" "Subject" "Country" "City" etc.) and then have a pane for each field. You can even have more than just the 3 panes that itunes has. The other amazing thing that beats all the other competition in my book, is that you can create more than one view. So you can create a view called "source" and have it just show files which you've tagged as source footage, and another view called "Archives" which contains all your exported masters. Finally, it's a great music player to have while you're working.