Finding photos OUTSIDE of iPhoto 8

Question

With the older versions of IPhoto you could find photos stored in the library easily (without opening the application), and then open them in Photoshop, etc or email them. With this newer version - I cannot figure out how to do this - it is either the entire library you have to open, then edit in PhotoShop, then email it or whatever. This is VERY frustrating. Likewise I just edited some photos and I cannot find them in the iPhoto library, even though in the save menu I see what folder they are in, but this folder does not exist in the IPhoto library that I can see. Am I missing something?

Answer 1

Am I missing something?
Yes.
Quick background: With iPhoto 7 (iLife 08) the old iPhoto Library Folder is now a Unix Style Package File. The change was made to the format of the iPhoto library because many users were inadvertently corrupting their library by browsing through it with other software or making changes in it themselves.
It has never been the correct way to access files via the Finder. Period. This is true of all the previous versions of iPhoto. Any and every time you surf the Library with the Finder, Bridge, Photoshop, whatever, you risk damaging the Library.
For using Photoshop with iPhoto:
You can set Photoshop (or any image editor) as an external editor in iPhoto. (Preferences -> General -> Edit Photo: Choose from the Drop Down Menu.) This way, when you double click a pic to edit in iPhoto it will open automatically in Photoshop or your Image Editor, and when you save it it's sent back to iPhoto automatically. *This is the only way that edits made in another application will be displayed in iPhoto.*
If you use a 'Save As...' command in Photoshop you are creating a new File. Save the file to the desktop and then import it. iPhoto does not know about files saved into the iPhoto Library unles they are imported. If you're doing the 'Save As' to preserve the original version of the file, that's not necessary as iPhoto does that for you.
Other than that:
There are many, many ways to access your files in iPhoto:
For 10.5 users: You can use any Open / Attach / Browse dialogue. On the left there's a Media heading, your pics can be accessed there. Apple-Click for selecting multiple pics.
Uploaded with plasq's Skitch!
To upload to a site that does not have an iPhoto Export Plug-in the recommended way is to Select the Pic in the iPhoto Window and go File -> Export and export the pic to the desktop, then upload from there. After the upload you can trash the pic on the desktop. It's only a copy and your original is safe in iPhoto.
This is also true for emailing with Web-based services. If you're using Gmail you can use THIS
If you use Apple's Mail, Entourage, AOL or Eudora you can email from within iPhoto. With 10.5 you can access the Library from the New Message Window in Mail:
Uploaded with plasq's Skitch!
If you use a Cocoa-based Browser such as Safari, you can drag the pics from the iPhoto Window to the Attach window in the browser.
Or, if you want to access the files with iPhoto not running, then create a Media Browser using Automator (takes about 10 seconds) or use THIS
Other options include:
1. *Drag and Drop*: Drag a photo from the iPhoto Window to the desktop, there iPhoto will make a full-sized copy of the pic.
2. *File -> Export*: Select the files in the iPhoto Window and go File -> Export. The dialogue will give you various options, including altering the format, naming the files and changing the size. Again, producing a copy.
3. *Show File*: Right- (or Control-) Click on a pic and in the resulting dialogue choose 'Show File'. A Finder window will pop open with the file already selected.
All of these are 1. Faster and 2. Safer than rooting through the Library folder.
Regards
TD