Aperture 3 organization question

[HE15MAN]

Do you guys import all your photos into Aperture, and keep the photos in a file elsewhere on your computer/HD? Does doing this create two copies of the files, or just map those photos to show up in Aperture? I am trying to figure out the best way to get all my images (Raw and JPEG) organized. It is a MESS!

Thanks!

 

[mtbdudex]

I'm 2 months into using Aperture 3, so not by any means seasoned user.

My workflow:
initial: massive import all iPhoto library into Aperture library as new; 212GB
I've not thrown away the old iPhoto library yet, but shortly will.

Now;
I import directly into Aperture Library.

Back-up strategy; External 2TB time machine. Upon import I force a back-up immediately, wait until done before I eject the SD card.
I re-format the card in camera, Aperture was taking way too long to delete files and sometimes not clear if done.

My AppleTV is now sync to Aperture for photos as well.