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Archive 2017 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom

  
 
mbphoto_2.8
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


I usually edit my images on a 500GB SSD, then move the whole folder (RAW + exported jpgs) to my raid storage.

I just did this but wanted to go back and work on a few of those images. When I open the catalog, it can't find the folders. "Find missing folder".. done.

Unfortunately, now that I have assigned the correct storage location, all the settings, ratings, edits, etc. are gone. Please tell me that Lightroom didn't just delete the applied changes I made to 1'500 photographs?!?!



Jul 22, 2017 at 03:30 AM
mbphoto_2.8
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


Because I went through the subfolders over and over again, I can't go back and "undo" the whole thing..

I realised that I clicked "synchronize" folder, instead of "update folder location"..



Jul 22, 2017 at 03:59 AM
mbphoto_2.8
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


The catalog I'm afraid for doesn't have any backup for as long as 2 weeks..
I added thousands, and edited 1'500 files since then (Dunno why there wasn't a backup created, it should do so every week) and never saved any XMP files alongside my RAWs.

As a consequence, I just stored xmp files for ALL the other images I have in my other catalogues..



Jul 22, 2017 at 05:19 AM
Ian.Dobinson
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


OK , a few questions /suggestions

1: are you sure you've opened up the very latest catalogue ? maybe an earlier cat opened without the edits ?
2: are the xmp files stored with the the actual raw files ?
3: do any of the files have any history ? maybe all files were selected and the reset button clicked by accident look in develop on the left hand side


now for shutting the stable door after the horse has legged it : sorry: but for future use its worth saying .

1: you sa it should back up every week . its better to ask LR to at least prompt you to back up when exiting LR . then if you've done anything in LR (like importing and working on all those files) your going to say yes to the back up . if you've not done anything in LR for a few weeks its pointless have weekly backups .

2: unless you do work in other programs that use XMP files (and open the image direct from that program) I would say imp sidecar files are not a great idea . they get lost too easily or at least its too easy for them to loose contact with the file they are connected with . LR keeps all your edits in its own database regardless of the sidecar file anyway . it also keeps a few more bits of info like Flags and labels that are not kept in the sidecar .
I suppose if your running the same images in multiple catalogues the XMP is a good idea but then I would say its better to run 1 large catalogue than lots of small ones and use things like collections etc .

3: do you do ALL file moves WITHIN LR ? if you do everything in LR yes its slower but it does mean LR can keep track of its files much better . I will say that I do sometimes move files outside of LR but will point LR at those new locations as soon as the move is done . but if I can I'll do it in LR




Jul 24, 2017 at 02:10 AM
mbphoto_2.8
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


Hey

1. Yes, I went through the catalogues and backups manually.
2. Unfortunately, no, I didn't store xmp files so far.. Just started with that and went through all my catalogues to make sure my other images had them.
3. No, they don't. The issue being that with the move and "sync" order, the catalog basically discarded everything and "reimported" the files as "new" images.


I'll definitely set backup differently now. And probably also start moving files within Lightroom. I'm just too used to drag&droping everything.



Jul 24, 2017 at 03:12 AM
Alan321
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


Set Lr to auto-save EVERY time you shut it down. It will build a history of catalogs that can be backed up properly to separate media with your general backup system or even File History. It's easier to delete excessive catalog history than it is to recreate a new catalog from scratch.

If all of your images on each drive share a common folder somewhere up the folder hierarchy, then you can (a) show that common folder in the Lr folder list, and (b) use that single folder to find all of the "missing" images in one step, whenever you change drives.

Moving files within Lr is advisable unless you are willing lose any edits you have done with those files so far (which may be the case when you are just playing around or if the extra time taken outweighs the need to repeat the edits when the files are moved). However, when doing a bulk backup, you can safely use a different program to copy your entire image hierarchy to a backup drive and just point the Lr catalog at it later on if and when needed. This presupposes that you still have access to a working catalog. I suggest that when you are doing such a bulk library backup, you should also copy the Lr catalog to make sure that it also is backed up on the external drive. Even so, you will still have to point it at the images unless you change the drive letter, because it (the catalog) is still looking for the original drive letter that had the original image files.

Further benefit may be obtained by backing up your ACR cache because, although slow, doing so is a lot quicker and easier than rebuilding it from scratch. But, at least you can rebuild it from scratch, so you do have the option. It just takes time rather than effort. Your catalog is very different in that regard.

You must backup your catalog carefully and often, and to different media. It contains all of your editing and cataloguing and rating work and absolutely must be kept safe from any device failures, fire, theft, etc. If you are thinking of just one or two backup copies then you still don't get it You need more than that to keep it truly safe.

With a program such as Total Commander you can move and copy things around with verification. Alternatively, use the free ExactFile program to create a digest of checksums for all of your images and your catalog. Copy that digest with your images wherever they go. Then, by simply double-clicking on that digest file, exactfile will verify that all of your files still match the originals. ExactFile is clever enough to use all cpu cores for faster operation (a maximum of one file per core at any time).

So long as you keep your catalog backed up and keep a history of backups, you will not need the .xmp files. They just slow Lr down. The history of catalog backups is important because it can let you trace back to where something went wrong, either with your edits or with file management. In itself, the catalog history cannot undelete any accidentally deleted image files but it can let you undelete the edits you had previously applied to those deleted images. From there you can export those edits to a new catalog and subsequently import them into the latest catalog (after you have undeleted the images and imported them).

In case you missed it between the lines of that last paragraph, Lr will only ever let you access one catalog at a time. You never use two versions of a catalog at the same time with the same Lr program.

- Alan


Edited on Jul 28, 2017 at 05:54 AM · View previous versions



Jul 24, 2017 at 09:13 AM
mbphoto_2.8
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


Thanks a lot Alan!

Will look into the creation of safer backups now.

I don't have just one catalog. I set up new catalogues frequently. (one for work, one for private stuff, a new one every year, etc.)



Jul 25, 2017 at 02:59 AM
Alan321
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


I can understand wanting to separate work stuff from personal stuff. However, unless you produce mountains of stuff too big for a single catalogue, there is merit in not separating each year into different catalogues because a single catalogue allows more comprehensive searching based on keywords, equipment metadata, etc.


Jul 28, 2017 at 05:52 AM
Ian.Dobinson
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


Alan321 wrote:
I can understand wanting to separate work stuff from personal stuff. However, unless you produce mountains of stuff too big for a single catalogue, there is merit in not separating each year into different catalogues because a single catalogue allows more comprehensive searching based on keywords, equipment metadata, etc.





Yeah pretty much my thoughts .
The more catalogues you run the more risk there is of something going wrong .
If you've split stuff into separate years for example then how would you build in any cross over ? I mean with personal stuff you could build a collection based on a type of subject (a particular bird or plant or a place ) which would be made up of different dates shot .

I can fully understand with pro work like weddings etc not wanting any cross over (would t be good if Uncle Tom from 1 wedding makes it into the wedding images of someone else becuse of some keywording mistake would it lol) .
But in that case I think I'd put all the images and the lrcat file on its own external drive and file that away incase of any repeat business.



Jul 28, 2017 at 08:46 AM
mbphoto_2.8
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


Thanks for the suggestion.
What's considered "too big" for lightroom catalogues?

I take about 5-10k images a year..



Jul 28, 2017 at 12:45 PM
Ian.Dobinson
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


mbphoto_2.8 wrote:
Thanks for the suggestion.
What's considered "too big" for lightroom catalogues?

I take about 5-10k images a year..



to some no amount of images is 'too big' while others run tiny catalogues . in truth LR can handle way more images than I have in my single catalogue .which is about 90K at the last look. do I have 90k of good images ? hell no I have tons of duplicates that date back to when another program seemed to go mad backing things up . and i tend not to delete much as you never know when you need something that when you did the 1st cull was just junk . I have an image of a family member that turned out to be the very last image taken of her . no its not good at the time of import it went straight into the reject folder as it has a huge object in the frame which encroaches onto her . but heck I cant go back and get a redo of it .

if you work with LR well and use things like collections / smart collections and keyword well then having many 100k of images isn't a problem .
I'll admit that my earlier use of LR my attention to things like key wording was poor and now I'm paying for it if I try and dig up something from the past . but I'm also working my way back so things are getting better .






Jul 28, 2017 at 02:07 PM
mbphoto_2.8
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


I mostly use Windows folder structures for the whole "organisational" stuff.
Pictures/2016/USA roadtrip and so on.

Will have to invest more time into the keywording and collection process.



Jul 30, 2017 at 03:19 AM
Alan321
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


mbphoto_2.8 wrote:
I mostly use Windows folder structures for the whole "organisational" stuff.
Pictures/2016/USA roadtrip and so on.

Will have to invest more time into the keywording and collection process.


No, you don't "have to", and it may or may not be worthwhile. The biggest obstacle is that it takes lots of effort to set up and populate the data before you can ever benefit from it, but the idea is that when you really need to find something quickly, you will be able to do so.

Much of the camera, lens, exposure, date and time data is already available for searching. So if you think your 85mm f/1.2 shots are not too sharp, then you can easily find others for comparison. That might indicate that they have all been a bit soft, or perhaps that your lens or camera AF is deteriorating, or that only high-contrast subjects in bright light look fuzzy.

Consider these points:
1. what will your star ratings mean ?
2. How long before you'll change that definition ?
3. How long to implement the change on previously-rated images ?
4. Keywords are easy and flexible, but start small and work up as and when needed.
5. If you need to find something and neither the folder hierarchy nor the in-camera metadata helps narrow it down enough, then you can benefit from a key word (or phrase). So choose one and begin to use it.
6. If a key word brings up too many images then you need another one as well to help refine your list. e.g. if you had "pets" then you might need a name for each one, or maybe just the last one if you have almost no photos of the others.
7. If you can find what you need quickly then you don't need to refine it further.
8. How many is enough ? It might be a hundred if you have a big monitor and you can handle searching through a hundred thumbnails. It might be just 20. It is unlikely to be 1000.
9. Quite separately from ratings, you can use labels (colours) too. They can complement or refine your star ratings, or be totally unrelated.
10. You can make up collections too, which are independent of ratings and labels, but be aware that membership in a collection is NOT included in .xmp files. If you lose your Lr catalogue then you lose your collections.
11. keywords can have a hierarchy of their own, and you can move them about to change that hierarchy to suit your needs. Doing so does not require that you edit the image metadata - it's all handled by Lr.
12. It's up to you whether the keywords are built into the image files or just the catalogue. You may not what your key words going with the image files to someone else. They might be upset that it's only got a three star rating, but they won't even know for sure what three stars actually represents.
13. If you have already separated your more important images from the lesser images, then you can prioritise your keywording accordingly. Don't waste time on the bad images until you have time to spare.



Jul 30, 2017 at 08:09 AM
mbphoto_2.8
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Where did my edits go? - Lightroom


Thanks, very helpful tips there!

For now, I use stars to simply "select" the images I deem worthy of being developped (as I only shoot RAW), so I filter for "rated" when I go into the develop module.
Then, once the images have been edited, I decide how many stars one image actually gets, although 5 star images are quite rare I usually don't post anything with two stars or less online and most of my posted images get 3 stars, the good ones 4.

I really need to look into keywords, as it has gooten quite messy with ebay stuff, little hikes and trips, etc. now.
I.e. I have "ebay" folders withing dozens of other folders, from my various cameras and it's a pain to gather these images now that I want to sell loads of things at once.



Jul 30, 2017 at 08:40 AM





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