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Archive 2017 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?

  
 
graham_martin
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


Once I have finished importing my images into LR, it then immediately switches from Library to Add. Why does it do this? I have to wait for up to a minute for it stop switching back and forth from Library to Add. Once it has finished, it lets me go to Develop in the normal way.


Mar 04, 2017 at 08:48 PM
Jeff Donald
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


Sorry, but it doesn't do that on any of my systems. It might be helpful to know what OS and version of LR you're using.


Mar 04, 2017 at 08:55 PM
graham_martin
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


I use Windows 10, and I use LR CC which updates automatically.


Mar 04, 2017 at 08:58 PM
egd5
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


Are you importing directly from a card or from your computer after you have already downloaded from the card?

I download to my pc first, do initial cull, then import to LR. I'm pretty sure mine will then give me options at the top, but I always just keep it on add.



Mar 04, 2017 at 10:18 PM
graham_martin
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


I ingest via PhotoMechanic, choose the images I want to edit, put them in a subfolder on my hard drive and then "select all" for editing. This automatically launches LR. I don't create a new catalog.


Mar 04, 2017 at 10:21 PM
Ian.Dobinson
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


Have you tried launching into LR and then going to the import dialogue ?


Mar 05, 2017 at 01:54 AM
Jeff Donald
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


I'm not a windows users, but it sounds like Lightroom is importing each file separately. I agree with Ian, launch LR, open the Import Photos & Video dialog/module and select your Source (files culled), select ADD and then click the Import button.


Mar 05, 2017 at 09:04 AM
graham_martin
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


You may be on to something there. If I first open LR, create a new catalog, and then import the photos the program launches normally without then switching to the Add mode. It seems that this only happens when I launch LR directly from PhotoMechanic. When LR opens via PM, it does not ask me to create a new catalog.


Mar 05, 2017 at 09:18 AM
Ian.Dobinson
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


graham_martin wrote:
You may be on to something there. If I first open LR, create a new catalog, and then import the photos the program launches normally without then switching to the Add mode. It seems that this only happens when I launch LR directly from PhotoMechanic. When LR opens via PM, it does not ask me to create a new catalog.


why are you creating a new Cat when you import with LR open?

also using ADD its no bad thing if the images are on a hard drive on your machine .

I've tested various ways and found that copying all my images to a destination folder on the drive my images are kept using COPY/PASTE and then launching the import dialogue of LR and using ADD was faster than using the COPY command when my images were still on my CF card .

infect I know its best practice to do any/all moves WITHIN LR but if I'm moving large numbers of images from location to location I will do so outside of LR and then point LR at the new location . you just need to know what youve done and point LR at the correct location as soon as possible (while its fresh in your mind )



Mar 05, 2017 at 12:34 PM
graham_martin
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


Ian.Dobinson wrote:
why are you creating a new Cat when you import with LR open?

also using ADD its no bad thing if the images are on a hard drive on your machine .

I've tested various ways and found that copying all my images to a destination folder on the drive my images are kept using COPY/PASTE and then launching the import dialogue of LR and using ADD was faster than using the COPY command when my images were still on my CF card .

infect I know its best practice to do any/all moves WITHIN LR but if I'm moving large numbers
...Show more

I always create a new catalog each time I create a new gallery. Have I been doing that wrong?



Mar 05, 2017 at 05:38 PM
schlotz
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


Guess we better get down to definitions. LR's catalog can literally be ALL the photos you've taken OR something less like single catalogs for each wedding. LR itself is a data base which is why all photos can be in one. It has the ability to define collections. So in my first example each wedding could have been put in its own collection thus maintaining one catalog. Add the use of keywords and searching becomes important especially since you can't search across catalogs. Not certain what your def of a gallery is but it does sound like a collection.

Have you been doing it wrong, no I wouldn't go that far. Is there maybe a more efficient way to manage all the photos you use LR with, probably. JMTC

Matt



Mar 05, 2017 at 05:54 PM
graham_martin
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


schlotz wrote:
Guess we better get down to definitions. LR's catalog can literally be ALL the photos you've taken OR something less like single catalogs for each wedding. LR itself is a data base which is why all photos can be in one. It has the ability to define collections. So in my first example each wedding could have been put in its own collection thus maintaining one catalog. Add the use of keywords and searching becomes important especially since you can't search across catalogs. Not certain what your def of a gallery is but it does sound like a collection.

Have
...Show more

I call them galleries, but they are the same as collections. Typically I create a separate catalog for each collection. If I am shooting a baseball game, I will create a catalog such as "Nease HS v Creekside baseball." I have never learned the other way of having one master catalog. I usually create a separate folder for each year, and then create sub-folders for each new collection/gallery.




Mar 05, 2017 at 06:49 PM
Ian.Dobinson
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


graham_martin wrote:
I call them galleries, but they are the same as collections. Typically I create a separate catalog for each collection. If I am shooting a baseball game, I will create a catalog such as "Nease HS v Creekside baseball." I have never learned the other way of having one master catalog. I usually create a separate folder for each year, and then create sub-folders for each new collection/gallery.



Ok fist let me say the is NO real wrong way to set up a catalogue system with LR . there are many ways to do things and whats going to work for you won't suit someone else

but I think we need to get some of the wording straight so we are all on the same page .

a Catalogue is LR's database of images and all their edits . its stored in 1 file called 'name'.LRCAT .
are you saying that for every shoot you create a new catalogue ? so that you have loads of .LRCAT files on your machine ?

now I'm not saying thats wrong or bad but it means you have no way to combine images from multiple shoots . LR does not know images exist in other catalogues .
if you want to go back to an older shoot to find an image you would have to close LR and open up that older catalogue .


Personally I have all my images in 1 catalogue .
my folder structure is set out by date . i.e. I have a master folder with Year subfolders . each year folder has month sub folders . each month subfolder has subfolders for each shoot . if a shoot was to span 2 months then it would be in the earlier month . (i.e. if I'm was to shoot an event on the 31st of aug and the 1st of september the images would be in the August folder )

now I also rely heavily on COLLECTIONS . both manually created and smart . these collections are the source of most of my image browsing .
so I've got collections for each type of shoot I do . Family , Motor sport , Macro etc . and in these I have sub collections . and some of these will have more sub collections .......

so If I want to find a certain shoot I just have to drill down in that set of collections .
I use collections heavily because you can have the same image in multiple collections but it only exists on your drive once . and if you edit that image then those edits show up in every collection that that time is in .

so in your example (baseball) lets say you had a master catalogue of all your baseball shots

you could set up collections for each game . but you cold also set up collections for each team . if you made those smart collections and say had them looking for a certain keyword then every time an image had a team name keyword it would automatically be added to that teams collection .



Mar 06, 2017 at 02:35 AM
dhphoto
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


graham_martin wrote:
I always create a new catalog each time I create a new gallery. Have I been doing that wrong?


I do the same thing, then I store the LR catalog with the RAW files so it gets back up, it stops the catalog from becoming enormous

I don't have LR with me but from memory you can set it up to add files later which is what has probably happened. Nothing to worry about



Mar 06, 2017 at 05:48 AM
schlotz
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


Ian explains it quite well. I would add this... Do not confuse where you store your actual photo files on a hard drive with how LR operates with a catalog. LR catalogs DO NOT contain your actual photos. Having a defined 'folder structure' on your hard drive that you follow is important to effectively managing your stored photos. Good read is the DAM book (digital asset management) see amazon.

When you use LR, it is pointed to where ever your files are stored and as Ian pointed out, the .LRCAT (catalog) file it creates ONLY has a reference pointer to the actual photo location (not the photo itself) and it maintains edit info (text data of all the buttons and sliders you pushed during an edit session). Thus, the size of information contained in the catalog for each photo is minuscule compared the actual photos themselves.

Having said all of that, there are many who choose to manage their work from a macro perspective. I personally maintain 3 LR catalogs. I shoot a lot of soccer, landscapes, and other stuff. Therefore one catalog for soccer (that spans more that 17 years worth), one for landscapes (again a number of years that include scans from film days) and the third which is a catch all for anything else. By design they are mutually exclusive so it helps me when I sit down to a LR session. Note: all photos regardless of type are physically located in one folder structure on the computer i.e. '\yyyy\mm\dd', some with subfolders for special circumstances.

JMTC

Matt



Mar 06, 2017 at 09:10 AM
graham_martin
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


Ian, I do in fact have tons of catalogs. I am going to give your system a try going forward. Anything that will make things more efficient and save time is certainly worth a go.


Mar 06, 2017 at 09:46 AM
DavidBM
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · Why does LR CC switch to "Add" after importing files?


graham_martin wrote:
Ian, I do in fact have tons of catalogs. I am going to give your system a try going forward. Anything that will make things more efficient and save time is certainly worth a go.


Having multiple catalogues might work for you, but tons isn't a good idea. The beauty of LR is that you can catalogue everything together, but still create collections.

Lots of ways to create those collections. One is to make sure that your collections all share a unique keyword, and you can then create a smart folder collection everything with that keyword. Or you cam create a manual collection for every batch of photos for which you would previously have created a catalogue.

I prefer, as do many LR users, to use LR for the sorting, and just have all your actual images on the disk in one big directory broken down into folders by date (which is how LR will do it by default). This makes it much easier to back up all your actual image image files - it's a nightmare if they are all over the place on your HD.

Then, provided you regularly also backup the catalogue (another reason not to have too many catalogues: each needs backup) you should be golden. Remember the catalogue does not contain the images, just the information about the images. The catalogue needs to be backed up separately from the image files (LR will remind you about the catalogue, but not the image files)



Mar 06, 2017 at 11:30 PM





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