Sunday, November 26, 2023

Lightroom or Lightroom Classic?

My journey Lightroom Classic -> Lightroom 

When I began using Lighroom Classic I have organized my files by date, yyyy-mm-dd. Often in Lightroom Classic, LRc, I would change the file name with the date + area/category.

When I bought a course to learn Lightroom, before it was known as Lightroom Classic, the suggestion to organize by date. So that's what I've done. 

Then along way, after a few years, I watched this, by Scott Kelby
 It made sense but should I change? Not likely. But I decided to there's no time like the next shoot. So I created a folder CATEGORIES. I used all caps to make it standout. Then I added subfolders for each category. Now each shoot goes into a category. Since the images are where I want them input just add to the catalog.

Then along comes Adobe MAX 2023. And in Lightroom CC they rebrand it and drop the CC and add the feature ‘Local’. Ok so? 

I'm happy with Lightroom Classic and then I listen to Mattk’s new podcast, 

Then the videos 

  Scott Kelby

Terry White

Brian Matiash 

Ok, Ok. Look into it.

Maybe 90-95% of the time I used the Library and Develop modules. Can I live without a few features that Lightroom Classic has that Lightroom can't. I think so. Let's give it a try.

But, there's always a but. The big but is. Don't move, rename any folders outside of Lightroom Classic. Any or all folders created within Lightroom Classic are only moved or renamed in Lightroom Classic.

Why? Edits are still non-destructive, no catalog, no import. But the Adobe Cloud? All my images are on my external drive. I don't need ‘no stink’n cloud ‘ or badge's as they said in “Blazing Saddles”. I don't NEED Adobe Cloud But when I want to use it I can choose to “copy to the cloud”.  copy is the operative word. A copy with your edits is, let say exported, to the cloud. Just like when in Lightroom Classic you sync a collection. 

Basically you are not required to change what you currently do. 

Me, I'm all in. That doesn't mean I'm deleting Lightroom Classic and it's supporting files. So maybe I'm not so All In. I'll hedge my bets. I have been 


You may want to read https://www.matiash.com/blog/common-lightroom-myths-busted


EDIT:

I had my main photography folder is called Photo Library. Under that folder I had "Photos go here" for my lightroom classic folders and subfolders. So to keep Lightroom, Deskltop,  separate from Lightroom Classic I used Lightroom Classic to change "Photos go here" to Lightroom Classic. In file explorer/finder I created a folder called "Lightroom Desktop". Under my new folder, Lightroom Desktop I created my Categories folder and subfolders using the same as I created in Lightroom Classic. 



2 comments:

  1. Many are concerned j they the photography plan 20MB and they will run out of space. Usually I don't edit in the cloud. When I do I export as a jpg and then load the jpg in the cloud and then delete the cloud file. Of course I insure the image with edits, using the sidecars.

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  2. Here’s the exact **Lightroom Classic** procedure to create XMP for **every single photograph in your entire catalog**, no exceptions:

    ---

    # ✅ Create XMP for *All* Images in the Catalog

    ### **Step 1 — Go to Library Module**

    You must be in Library, not Develop.

    ### **Step 2 — Select All Photos in the Entire Catalog**

    On the left side:

    1. In the **Catalog** panel (top-left), click **All Photographs**
    2. Press **Ctrl+A** (Cmd+A on Mac) to **select everything**

    This ensures *every photo in your entire catalog* is selected — regardless of folder or collection.

    ---

    ### **Step 3 — Write XMP for All Selected Images**

    Top menu:

    **Metadata → Save Metadata to Files**

    OR press **Ctrl+S**.

    Lightroom Classic will now:

    * Create `.xmp` sidecar files for **all RAW files**
    * Embed metadata into **DNG / JPEG / TIFF / PSD**
    * Overwrite any existing XMP with the current catalog metadata

    ---

    # ⚠️ Important Notes

    * This may take a long time if you have many images.
    * You do **not** need to do anything outside Lightroom; this is the official method.
    * You only need to do this once unless you want to keep XMP updated automatically.

    ---

    # (Optional) Enable automatic XMP writing

    If you want Lightroom to keep XMP up to date going forward:

    **Edit → Catalog Settings → Metadata → ✔ Write changes into XMP**

    ---

    If you'd like, I can also tell you how to **confirm all photos actually got their XMP files** or create a **smart collection showing images missing XMP**.

    ReplyDelete