p.2 #1 · Would I be Better off Using Lightroom 3 (or 4)?
ChipinSD wrote:
I would estimate 85% of my images are in JPEG, not RAW format. Does LR3 treat them the same way in terms of nondestructive edits?
All editing is non-destructive, but unless you tell it not to Lr will put metadata inside jpg, tif and psd files, or outside raw files (in .xmp sidecar files). I prefer not to have keywords and such inside the image files.
What are your thoughts about having the photos stored on a network drive of an SBS server? The network drive consists of two hot swappable mirrored drives, and it is a gigabit network.
gigabit network = approx 100MB/s perhaps. More like 50. Slower still if the drive(s) cannot handle fast data transfers such as when the heads are flitting about all over the place, but that applies to internal drives too. Nothing will be faster than internal drives and most external interfaces are slower for the high-speed transfers.
Striping the drives may speed up transfers until they hit that same ethernet limit but will not improve access times. It can be even more beneficial for internal drives.
The extent of the slow down of external storage depends in part on how much editing you do in Lr Develop module vs Library module, whether you have Lr writing all metadata changes to every file, etc.
Where should I configure LR3 to save its data - on the local drive or the server?
Local drive. Faster access, and it is independent of file access on the external drive happening at the same time. It's also more portable - as in you can review the catalog even when the external storage is off-line.
p.2 #2 · Would I be Better off Using Lightroom 3 (or 4)?
I won't get into RAID discussions (because I don't use it... probably should) but you can find eSata enclosures pretty readily. I have a Thermaltake BlacX enclosure that holds a bare OEM SATA drive. I think it was about $40 2 years ago. Easily swapped when you run low on space, OEM Sata drives are pretty cheap and eSata should be just as fast to access and use as internal Sata. Mine was actually plugged into an internal SATA port for a while before I got a new motherboard with an external connection.
I'm reasonably sure that you have room in your computer for another hard drive - pop the case open and look. Then add a 2 TB internal drive and you're good to go for a while.
p.2 #3 · Would I be Better off Using Lightroom 3 (or 4)?
Hi All,
Thought I would let you know that I just ordered an eSATA enclosure and bare drive from New Egg. In terms of the drive I bought the WD Caviar Black 1.5TB 7200rpm. It had really great reviews on multiple sites for performance and reliability.
The enclosure was a Rosewill RX-358 that has a USB 2.0 and eSATA port. The enclosure had great reviews from a lot of people. I really like the built in fan, something unusual for a one drive case.
In case you are curious, here are links to the products:
I should have them by Saturday. I also finished installing CS5.1 64 bit and LR3.6 64 bit. Can't wait to start using them. Once I confirm that I like the enclosure, I will buy another in Silver to use as my primary backup. Then my secondary backup will be external USB drives and my Zenfolio account.
p.2 #5 · Would I be Better off Using Lightroom 3 (or 4)?
One recommendation that no one mentioned is to start using LR 3 from today forward. It will take you awhile to figure out how it works best for you. Don't go back and do a lot of work on your files until you get used to the SW. It is a wonderful data base and very useful but much different than Bridge.
Also, forget LR4 until you know it is stable. LR3 will be more that you need for a year or two. Upgrading is easy and LR3 prices are dirt cheap right now.
p.2 #6 · Would I be Better off Using Lightroom 3 (or 4)?
Can't write a long post right now, but PM me for contact details and let's talk on the phone (ideally right after you install LR3 so you can follow along on-screen, or using Skype so I can share my desktop with you and show you what I'm doing).
I'll explain to you how I do my photo imports with LR3, how I have the system rename and batch process all the files, and how I do triage and selections with it. Save you a week's worth of trial and error and make everything quicker.
And like others, I definitely think LR3 is great for you. Pick it up for $99 or so if you can find one of those sales (Amazon had it for that price today IIRC), and stick with it for a year or so before upgrading to LR4.
