Tethered camera
When I shoot tethered, the camera software writes each frame directly to a fixed folder on my Mac.
A real working session
How I process one fountain pen model after another
I built SizeFold around a job I repeat: photograph one pen model, reject the weak frames, make the platform versions, archive the originals, and clear the input folder for the next pen.
Release note: this article describes the development build I use. Model-based naming, the To Delete folder, and automatic input-folder refresh are planned for the next Mac App Store update. Processing still starts when I run the workflow.
One pen model per batch1:1 and 3:4 in one runInput folder clears after success
Where the batch begins
Every shoot ends in the same folder
That evening I had several fountain pens to photograph, with multiple views and detail shots for each model.
Phone and LocalSend
When I use my phone, I send the finished group to the Mac with LocalSend and choose that same folder as the destination.
One model stays together
I finish one pen model before adding the next. Its overview, nib, cap, material, and detail shots become one batch with one shared model name.
Before processing
I only make the decisions that change with this batch
The crop, output folders, color settings, and naming rules are already saved. I do not rebuild them for every pen.
Review the actual photographs
I move through the folder and look for soft focus, missed focus, a pen in the wrong position, or a composition I do not want to deliver.
Move rejects out of the batch
A weak frame goes to the To Delete folder from the browser. It leaves the current batch without being permanently erased, so I can still check it later in Finder.
Enter the model once
I type the current product model once. Any output configured for Model + number can then produce names such as ModelName-001.jpg, ModelName-002.jpg, and so on.
Two destinations
The same photographs need both square and portrait crops
I still need 1:1 product images for established ecommerce listings. I also see storefronts asking for taller formats such as 3:4 or 4:5.
What I needed for this shoot
My actual deliveries were 1:1 and 3:4, both available in SizeFold. I kept one saved configuration for each ratio.
Each configuration owns its result
The square and portrait versions can use their own crop, dimensions, color treatment, filename rule, and output folder.
One run creates both
I check the two saved configurations and run the batch once. Every accepted source produces the square and portrait files together.
Image detail
Crop the original pixels when resizing is unnecessary
Fountain pen photographs often depend on small details: the nib, engraved text, trim, and surface texture.
Original Crop keeps the crop's pixel dimensions
When a platform does not require a fixed output size, I use Original Crop. SizeFold removes the area outside the crop without scaling the retained region to another pixel size.
No unnecessary resampling
The exported dimensions are the real pixel dimensions of that crop. Avoiding an extra resize helps preserve the detail recorded by the camera.
The JPEG is still newly encoded
This is not lossless JPEG cropping. SizeFold renders a new JPEG from the original, while the source file itself remains preserved.
The working rhythm
Finish the batch, clear the folder, repeat
Once every enabled output for a source succeeds, the finished images go to their configured folders and the original goes to the archive. When the whole batch succeeds, the input folder is empty again.
Load one model
Tethered capture or LocalSend places the next pen's photographs in the input folder.
Inspect and reject
I remove the frames with focus, position, or composition problems and keep the photographs I want.
Name and run
I enter the model, confirm the saved 1:1 and 3:4 configurations, and start the workflow.
Start the next batch
Products and originals have moved to the right places, so the cleared input folder is ready for another model.
Failure behavior: if a required output fails, its original stays in the input folder for retry. A failed file is not treated as finished just to make the folder look empty.
Why I built it
The useful part is the handoff between batches
After using this workflow myself, I found the rhythm easy to keep.
The settings are not the work
I should not have to re-enter the same crop ratios, treatment, folders, and naming rules for every pen. Those decisions belong to the saved workflow.
My job is to judge the current photographs
For each model I only need to decide which frames are good enough, enter the model, and run the batch.
It feels like a pulsed production line
One batch enters, pauses for inspection, runs, and leaves the input folder clear. Then the next model arrives and I repeat the same action.