I need to keep track of a list of photographers, and what photographs (by subject name) that they have on file. What would be a good program that would allow me to enter all the info, and then be able to search on a particular subject’s name and find all the photographers who have pics of that person?
I know of a couple of good app link sites, but database is such a common term that I end up with too many hits. Is there a name for the ‘type’ of database app I’m looking for? Thanks.
Want to minimize costs? Then you could download MySQL, and that would give you the database server (the ‘engine’, so to speak, that specializes in handling data). Then have a look at Freshmeat and you’ll find plenty of front-ends, that is, graphic interfaces to manage your database.
I believe you can configure OpenOffice to be used in much the same way you could use Access on Windows - have a look at their website.
Oh, the cost? Zero.
Appleworks, which may have come with your computer, can do databases. It’s simple and very easy to use. Since your application sounds pretty simple, this might be the best bet.
Filemaker Pro is very nice and easy to use, but costs $300.
You can’t beat MySQL for power.
If you’re not afraid of dinking with the Terminal a little, MySQL is the way to go – free, robust, and fast.
The O’Reilly DevCenter has a free chapter from their book, “MacOS X Panther For UNIX Geeks,” covering MySQL – it’s got instructions for downloading, installing, and configuring MySQL in the first few pages.
If that’s too intimidating for you, check out Server Logistics’ MacOS X/MySQL installer package. Everything you need in one file, all from the GUI.
You might want to look into software that specifically lets you organize images (DAM, or Digital Asset Management)…it’s very difficult to impossible to work with thumbnails in most off-the-shelf database applications. And even if it can do it, low-end db’s will suck up space for the images like you won’t believe. Also, if you don’t know how to properly design a database, you might just end up with a big mess.
You may want to look at Cumulus or Extensis Portfolio. On the higher end (depending on your resources), there are other DAM systems such as Virtual Ticket.
Don’t know what your budget is, but if you’re working with digital images, a DAM system, small- or large-scale, is probably the way to go.
If you’ve got money and you want something easy, check out FileMaker. It’s super neato. But not as powerful as a relational DB like MySQL.
If you just need to simply track data about photographers and their photos, then really Excel or AppleWorks will serve you well without imposing a significant learning curve.
The new version 7 of Filemaker is a fully relational database that will also allow you to display the screen renderings of each photo. But that can be expensive and requires learning the application language and screen design capabilities.
A more photography-specific “asset management” tool that I have used is iViewMedia and the pro version. Similar in look to iPhoto (and you could use that to a limited extent too), iView allows you to capture and manage a lot of data (metadata) about each photo.
Go cheap and easy at first.