Moving files in LR2?

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  CynthiaM Registered Users Posts: 364 Major grins

  November 7, 2009 edited November 7, 2009

  bike21 wrote:

  So I am finally getting more and more used to LR2, thanks to some great help from around here
  
  Another quick question regarding the catalog and moving files. I am trying to keep my MB Pro free of many projects as possible. Basically I want to only use the HD as a workspace and store very few files on it, especially from weddings & larger events.
  
  So the question is... (stay with me here)
  
  If I physically move the files from their current locations on my HD to an external drive and as long as I don't delete the project from my LR2 catalog...will my edits be preserved when I re-locate the files at a later point if needed? Or should I just export the projects as DNG and not worry about it?
  
  Thanks again for your help!

  I believe that your edits will be there if you make certain to do one of the following:

  • In your Catalog Settings>Metadata if Automatically write changes into XMP is unchecked, make sure you have saved changes to metadata before moving your files. I don't use this setting so I am not 100% sure how it works; LR might automatically do this every time you open and or close but make sure, first.
  • If you have this box checked off, then make sure you move not only the raw files, but all of the xmp files. If you use Bridge to move the files, you won't see the xmp files, but Bridge will automatically include them in the move. When you open LR after moving the files, you will see questions marks associated with each image that has been moved. If I remember correctly, when you right click on any folder of missing images, you will have the option to have LR re-locate them and it should relocate all of your images, too.

  As an added precaution, you should copy the files, not move. If something happens in the move (power surge, you drop the hard drive) you could lose a lot of files, whereas if you copy and if one of these events occur, you will still have the originals. Once you confirm that all has copied, then you can delete from the original drive. I once had a whole backup drive corrupted playing beat the clock before a hurricane was about to come through when the power went out while the drive was being written to out and a friend lost a lot of images off of her main drive (her ONLY copy of the images) when she dropped and damaged the external drive to which she was moving, not copying, the images.

  Cynthia Merzer
  My Fine Art Photography
  My Infrared Photography
  www.CynthiaMerzerPhotography.com

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  ivar Registered Users Posts: 8,395 Major grins

  November 7, 2009 edited November 7, 2009

  Just move them to your external drive inside LR2 Nothing will change, except that the photos are not available if you have not hooked up the external drive of course.

  Ivar
  www.ivarborst.nl & smugmug

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  colourbox Registered Users Posts: 2,095 Major grins

  November 7, 2009 edited November 7, 2009

  It depends on how you move the files.
  
  A. If you can see both disks from inside Lightroom and move the folders between disks inside Lightroom, Lightroom will remember where they were and will re-link when that disk is attached again. This is the safest way because since the images never left the database they never get disconnected from their edits/other metadata.
  
  B. If you move the files between disks behind Lightroom's back, then you'll have to link them up later from inside Lightroom. There will be a question mark on lost folders and you'll click them to tell Lightroom where that folder is. If they are all under the same top-level folder, everything underneath will simply fall into place and get reconnected unless you moved them around under there.
  
  C. If you move the files between disks behind Lightroom's back and simply re-import them later, you'll be starting over because they'll be imported as new, never getting reconnected to their previous edits. While you could export as DNG or with XMP and later re-import, you'll only get the last edits and the EXIF and IPTC. You'll lose Collections, Virtual Copies, History, usage in slide shows and print layouts, etc. anything that can't be saved in the DNG/XMP. That's why I try to avoid letting images ever get disconnected.

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