Frame Ledger / edit intent

Separate Creative Versions from Delivery Files

Keep experiments without confusing the final output.

The decision

A creative version and a delivery file have different jobs. One explores an interpretation; the other meets a particular recipient or display requirement.

A practical sequence

Name versions by purpose rather than only by a growing number. Keep a natural baseline and a clearly labeled alternate when the difference is meaningful. Compare each against its own intent. Choose the version for the current output before exporting. Put delivery files in a separate destination so a black-and-white experiment cannot accidentally replace the selected color version.

Worked example

A portrait may have a color baseline for an album and a monochrome interpretation for a personal print. “album-color” and “print-mono” explain the distinction better than “final2” and “final3.” If the print needs a different crop, record that change under the print version rather than altering the album selection silently.

What can go wrong

Do not call every intermediate change a new finished version. Too many unnamed alternatives make review harder. Application-specific virtual copies or snapshots may not be independent image files; check documentation before assuming they can be opened elsewhere or survive a catalog failure.

Your completion record

Record version purpose, source filename, chosen interpretation, and delivery destination. Keep the original and the editing record separately backed up. The next person opening the project should be able to identify the current selected version without guessing from modification dates.

Before continuing, check the record against the actual files rather than relying on memory. Keep uncertain decisions labeled as uncertain. The next useful step is the specific task named in your completion record, not a fresh pass through the entire archive.

An alternate has earned its place when you can name the different audience or presentation it serves. If both versions solve the same problem, choose one and keep the other clearly marked as an experiment rather than a competing delivery candidate.