10 Ways to Speed Up Your Workflow in Capture One

Optimizing your workflow can save hours and improve efficiency, whether you're working with hundreds of images or a single project. This helpful video tutorial shares practical tips to help you streamline your editing process and keep your creative focus where it belongs: on your images.

Coming to you from Kevin Patrick Robbins of Studio Builder, this thorough video explores actionable ways to customize your Capture One setup. Robbins begins by emphasizing the importance of workspace customization. For those transitioning from Lightroom, the Migration Workspace replicates Lightroom’s layout to ease the learning curve. However, Robbins advises creating a personalized workspace once you’re comfortable with Capture One. You can rearrange tool tabs, add new ones, and remove unused options to fit your workflow. Regular updates to your workspace ensure it continues to meet your evolving needs.

Robbins moves on to setting defaults for tools that handle repetitive tasks. Assigning Pro Standard camera profiles to your images enhances skin tones by reducing magenta hues, resulting in more natural tones. He also highlights setting default noise reduction parameters, like single-pixel corrections, to automatically handle common issues such as hot pixels. Similarly, assigning lens correction defaults for each lens eliminates the need for manual adjustments every time you process an image, saving both effort and time.

Presets are another cornerstone of Robbins’ workflow strategy. He explains how metadata presets can store copyright and contact information, which can be combined with presets for specific shoot locations. Naming presets during imports help maintain consistent file organization, preventing confusion when files are exported. Robbins also stresses the importance of not renaming proofs during export, as this can cause issues when matching client selections to your original files.

Export presets further streamline the delivery process. Robbins demonstrates how creating presets for different client needs ensures that each set of images is processed correctly without repeated adjustments. He mentions tools like JPEG Mini for reducing file sizes. Embedding these steps into your presets ensures consistency while saving time.

Session templates are another game-changer. Robbins explains how templates go beyond imports by saving your folder structure, workspace configuration, and even editing defaults. Each template can cater to specific shoot types, such as headshots or weddings, ensuring every new project starts with a fully tailored setup. This approach reduces the time spent on repetitive organizational tasks and allows you to focus on editing. Check out the video above for the full rundown from Robbins.