Question re: second catalog in lightroom 4

I created a second catalog in lightroom 4 and imported a number of photos. the photo id number i.e. the name of the photo was not imported so the second catalog has an entirely new set of identification numbers. this is not helpful to me as I have references/notes to the original numbers. how do I indicate that I want the original names/numbers to transfer to the second catalog? can I fix what has already happened?
Also: now that I have the second catalog, I want to delete some photos with out deleting the photo from the original catalog. so far, when I delete a photo it gets deleted from both catalogues in lightroom.

Question: Are smaller catalogs faster?
Answer: At some things: yes; other things: not at all.
Yes: when doing whole catalog metadata operations, like displaying consolidated metadata, and lib filtering, and updating smart collections.
No: when editing in develop module, or displaying thumbs or loupe view in library module.
Why?
Databases use random access (read/write directly from/to pre-computed location) for reading and writing info for a single photo. - Therefore it is just as fast even if there are millions of photos and 100's of gigabytes in the database (catalog).
However some things do require Lightroom to read or write *all* records of the database, and process the data - those things take longer when the catalog is bigger.
So, whether to split your work into multiple catalogs depends on how you work. For me, a second catalog when traveling, consolidated with main upon return is my only use for a second catalog. But for people who work for independent clients, or who don't re-access older photos... - multiple catalogs makes more sense.
Summary: How you divide your work (photos) into catalogs depends mostly on how you work. Dividing into multiple catalogs for general performance improvement is not recommended, unless it really fits your workflow. However you do it, I recommend minimizing switching back and forth - lest you become crazy... .
Just my .02 opinion - YMMV...
potato321 - until you know what you're doing, I'd definitely recommend consolidating back to one catalog: just import your 2nd catalog into your main (original) catalog. Make backups of both catalogs first, in case you run into trouble.
PS - I agree with both Cornelia and dj-paige: having the same photo in more than one catalog is a recipe for disaster - just don't do it (ok, I could imagine some really unusual circumstance where this might make sense, but in 99.9% of cases: no). Now that I think about it, I did have all the same photos in Lr3 catalog and Lr4-beta catalog when I was strattling both worlds, but at the risk of sounding immodest: I knew what I was doing.
PS - Catalogs don't suck photo file data into themselves, they reference it from where it sits, in "independent" files on the disk, *but* you can duplicate physical photo files into the same directory as the catalog when you export a catalog - so be careful: it's worth knowing exactly where your photo files really are... - and whether you've inadvertently created duplicates... - I help way too many people recover previews who've inadvertently deleted photo files.
PS - I wish Lightroom had a checkbox you had to check: "I swear I understand the basics of catalog/photo-files and importing, non-destructive editng/xmp, and embedded-previews vs. rendered raw data" before it would allow you to open Lightroom - until then, it just presented the basic tutorial... (joking, but you get the idea - right?).
Rob

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Question from PSE user: does Lightroom offer a better tagging workflow than Elements?

I would just like to piggyback onto this question, rather than start a new thread.
I have been a user of Elements since before it was called Elements. But I have grown increasingly dissatisfied with the product over the last couple years as it has not improved any in its organizational features.
My primary usage is for organizing. I tag all my photos so that I can search and find things easily. I have 2 main problems with the Elements workflow. #1 is simply that the application takes a long time to launch and become responsive. Sometimes it takes 30 seconds before any of the UI will respond to clicks. Yes, I have a lot of photos, (~20,000) But I don't know if Lightroom may be more powerful or more efficient in that regard.
#2 is the primary problem. Tagging takes forever. I have so many tags that there is a long list that runs off the screen. If I am tagging a series of shots that have different combinations of people in them, and those tags are spread out in my list, it takes forever to tag, select, tag more, scroll around to select and unselect tags, tag some more, repeat the process. It's excruciating. I've left feedback for Adobe several times through the years that they should add a recently used tags window where recently used tags will float to the top so that they are always available without having to scroll around to get to them. But they have not improved the tagging workflow one bit over the years.
So the question boils down to, does Lightroom do a better job in the tagging workflow? Is what I described easier in LR? I'm sure that I will download a trial to check it out, but i just wanted to know if an experienced user has thoughts on that.
Thanks

I don't have a weak machine, I'm running with 8GB of RAM and an SSD for my applications drive, although the catalog is on a regular hard drive that I use as the data drive.
This is most likely irrelevant to your Elements speed issues. Repairing or optimizing the catalog file may help
I'm not sure how a hierarchy will help with the tags, as I already have them arranged in groups of family and groups of friends. The problem is that you get events with a lot of people from different groups and there's no way to avoid having to hunt all up and down the list. You can't really predict what grouping of people will apply. That's why I've really been hoping for a recently used tag list...that would be sooo perfect.
Yes, but the ability to search for keywords and type a few letters in and see related keywords will help.
So if you have just tagged a photo with the Anderson Jones keyword (because someone in the photo was named Anderson Jones), and now you need to also tag the same photo with the William Barber keyword (because someone in the photo was named William Barber), you don't really need to scroll, you just need to type in a few letters of William and then select the proper keyword from a much shorter list.

Two questions about Camera Raw and Lightroom

I am now shooting in RAW image format only and cataloging those images into Lightroom.
My first question is: How do I open an image in Camera Raw from Lightroom? When I right click on an image in Lightroom it gives me a choice to edit in > Photoshop, but does not offer the choice of editing in Camera Raw. In fact, when I go outside of Lightroom and just double-click on one of those RAW images, it opens in Photoshop. What is going on? Before I installed Lightroom, double-clicking on a RAW file would cause it to open in Camera RAW.
My second question is: Lightroom seems to have all of the same controls over processing a RAW image as the Camera Raw plug-in does. Does that mean I no longer need to open images in Camera Raw? Should I just do all of my adjustments inside of Lightroom? I take it that the sidecar xmp file is the same whether modified in Lightroom or in Camera Raw.
Pleas set me straight on this.
Thank You,
Ken

Your second question:
My second question is: Lightroom seems to have all of the same controls over processing a RAW image as the Camera Raw plug-in does.
Answers your first. Lightroom and ACR share code, so the rendering you get from Lightroom with the same settings is exactly the same as in ACR. What happens is that when you say "edit in Photoshop", ACR gets called by Lightroom and the Develop settings get passed along. ACR then renders the RAW with those settings and opens it in Photoshop. So, because you already have a working interface to the settings, there is no point in showing them to you again.
Does that mean I no longer need to open images in Camera Raw? Should I just do all of my adjustments inside of Lightroom?
That depends on your workflow. I no longer open any images in ACR directly as Lightroom provides a more effective interface in my opinion. Other people I'm sure prefer the Bridge/ACR approach.
I take it that the sidecar xmp file is the same whether modified in Lightroom or in Camera Raw.
Lightroom does not modify the sidecars by default. All edits are stored in the database. This allows you to have virtual copies with different Develop settings and more tricks like that. You can have Lightroom write out xmp sidecars by choosing "save metadata to file" from the metadata menu in Library or by turning on automatic xmp file generation in preferences. There is usually no real point to doing that however as the "edit in Photoshop" route works just fine. It's only really useful when you have a mixed workflow that still uses Bridge. If you share images with others, you're better off exporting dngs, or exporting subsets of images as catalogs with the images included.

Problem splitting catalog in Lightroom 2.1

I am using Windows XP w/sp2 and have migrated to Lightroom 2.1. There are two people sharing one catalog each with one master folder in the catalog and a hierarchy of sub folders. I have tried to set up a second catalog for the second user. Wanting to be cautious, rather than trying to export the entire second user's master folder at one time I exported a bottom level folder with a few picture files (CR2 & JPG) into a new catalog. This worked fine. I then tried to export more folders to this new catalog, but each time Lightroom created another new catalog for the folder. I now seem to have several catalogs where I only wanted one more. If I try and import to the new catalog I get messages which say the images are allready in the catalog.
I have been unable to find this problem discussed in any of the forums etc. which I have come across. I did see a comment in an older discussion thread that Lightroom 1.x would not accept folders into a folder which contained images. Does this still apply?
I am now in the situation where I need to export a block of folders from the origional catalog to a new or recently created catalog, and add to it the sub folders which inadvertently reside in their own new catalogs. Once everything for second user is in a new consolidated catalog I should be able to drag and drop in order to organize properly. Can anyone help before I make it worse that it is? I do not want to lose adjustment data.
Additionaly is there anywhere in Lightroom that will list all of the catalogs which have been created? The only list I can find seems to be in file > open recent, which does not distinguish between catalogs and folders within a catalog. File > open catalog, just gives access to everything on the C (main hard) drive.
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I don't think you are describing anything that is a bug or problem, just a misunderstanding: you just cannot export TO an existing catalog, which you already discovered.
Whatever it is you want to do, you need to either export an entire set of images at once, or import into another catalog that does not have the images already in it.
Maybe you can export the images you didn't, already, to a new catalog, then import those individual catalogs into it. It's a bit unclear what your exact situation is so it is hard to describe in detail, what to do.
One thing that might help you is that you can right-click on a folder in the catalog's folder list and say "Add Parent" and it'll move that folder and all it's peers down one level so you can then synchronize that parent folder and get to the other folders that are peers to the ones already in the catalog.
The only way to find all your catalog files is to do a file search for *.lrcat files.

Import Elements catalog into Lightroom

Hi everybody,
I used PSE on my notebook for a couple of years now. As i bougth a new pc recently I want to upgrade to Photoshop CC / Lightroom. So here is my question:
Is it possible to import my elements catalog into Lightroom including my tags?
I still have got my copy of Elements 11 installed on my notebook, I´ve got a trial copy of PSE 13 on my new pc and already imported my catalog. I also installed Lightroom 5.6 on the pc.
I already looked on the internet but I only found one video which shows the solution I need but on Lightroom 3 and the function used in the video isn´t avalible in 5.6 any more.
If you need any more information please feel free to ask.
Greatings from Germany
Sebastian

Roy, I am 99% certain that importing PSE 7 catalog to LR 2 is not possible at this time. The release cycles of the products did not coincide for that to happen. However you can import from PSE 6 I believe.
I feel sure that this will be addressed soon........... but don't know when.

How do you move one (1) Photo Folder from one Catalog to another Catalog in Lightroom 5?

I want to move one (1) Photo Folder from one Catalog to another Catalog in Lightroom 5 and my laptop (no external hard drive involved). I have already started the editing process in Catalog #1, but due to the size of the Catalog #1, I want to move the current job and future work to a new Catalog.
Currently the backup feature takes an hour to complete. There are also significant delays during large image edits.    So I am thinking, that by moving over to a smaller Catalog, Lightroom will work faster.

Hello ... and thanks for your response.   But I have discovered a couple problems. And I am sure it is "operator error"
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Any ideas?
I am going to create a second new catalog and try your option #2 now.
Thanks

When importing from an old Lightroom 2 catalog into Lightroom 4 (also from Windows to Mac) I seem to have lost all the development history of my photos. Is there any way to retain that?

I finally managed to get through the process of moving files and catalog from Lightroom 2.7 on a PC to Lightroom 4 on my Mac. I think I did it all correctly and all my file and previews and some tagging seems to be there. Two things are lost
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2 - The collection names seem to have come over, but they are all empty. This is also a lot of work lost, though not as important as #1
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For iTunes Help
Add artwork to songs and other items
Music and video you buy from the iTunes Store comes with its own artwork. You can add your own artwork to songs and other items in your library.
You can add many popular types of still image files, including JPEG, PNG, GIF, TIFF, and Photoshop. You must convert WAV files to another format before you can add artwork to them.
Album artwork for the currently playing item appears to the left of the progress bar. To view album artwork at a larger size in a separate window, click the artwork.
Hide
Add artwork to music and video
Do any of the following:
Add artwork to one item at a time:
Select an item in your iTunes library and choose File > Get Info.
Click Artwork and do one of the following:
Click Add, select an image file, and click Open.
Drag the art file to the artwork area.
To add artwork to another item, click Next or Previous.
Add the same artwork to multiple items: Select the items, choose File > Get Info, click Info, and drag an image file to the Artwork area.
Retrieve album artwork for songs in your library from the iTunes Store: Control-click the songs and choose Get Album Artwork from the pop-up menu.

Why do i get the following message when i attempt to open my backup file for lightroom cc? "Lightroom cannot use the catalog named "Lightroom Catalog" because it is not writable and cannot be opened". This message just started coming up after downloadi

why do i get the following message when i attempt to open my backup file for lightroom cc? "Lightroom cannot use the catalog named "Lightroom Catalog" because it is not writable and cannot be opened". This message just started coming up after downloading lightroom cc (previously using lightroom 5)...am i backing up properly or not???

Open Pictures folder and move the files named lrcat-journal and lrcat.lock to Desktop.
Make sure that , they are not inside Pictures folder any more and try to open backup from Lighrtroom and check..
Any LRcat file with .lock extension , move it to Desktop.

How can I use the same master catalog in Lightroom 5 on my PC and Mac?

I have been using a PC with a Sinology NAS for picture storage. The master catalog has been generated from this PC. I would like to use the same catalog on my Macbook Pro. Is there a way to sync the two computers using one common catalog?

Some users have a shared catalog on an external hard drive, which if portable can be carried around. I’ve never use network storage; but in theory it could work if all the file paths were identical on both machines.
The alternative is to use a travel catalog. I dpo this on my Macbook Pro using a 128gb SD card. It means I can then process, edit photos and add metadata etc. When I get home, I import the travel catalog to Lightroom on the Windows PC to combine it with the master catalog.
Here is a video tutorial which demonstrates the use of a catalog on location.
http://tv.adobe.com/watch/the-complete-picture-with-julieanne-kost/how-to-use-lightroom-5- on-location/

Is there a way to migrate Elements 11 (on Windows) catalogs to LightRoom 5 on Mac?

I have just converted to LightRoom on Mac and would like to migrate my Elements 11 catlaogs that exist on my PC. Can this be done?

On your PC, download the 30 day free trial for Windows, then upgrade the PSE11 catalog to Lightroom, then move Lightroom to the Mac via http://www.lightroomqueen.com/how-move-lightroom-to-new-computer/

Import a 2nd Photoshop Elements Catalog into Lightroom 2.1?

Okay Lightroom Gurus ...
On my old computer (Windows XP), I had several Photoshop Elements 5 catalogs, one of which was my main catalog, and the others were photos I hardly ever used. I imported the main catalog into Lightroom 2 just fine and have been running with it ever since.
Then, my old computer crapped out, I bought a new Windows Vista 64 computer, installed Lightroom 2.1, transferred the Lightroom catalog and continued along just fine.
But now, on my new computer, I want to import one of the other Photoshop Elements 5 catalogs (which still exists and still runs in PSE5 on the Vista 64 computer), but the command in Lightroom to do the import seems to have disappeared! I can't find it! Where did it go and how can I get it back? Is this a Vista 64 or Lightroom 2.1 issue (or is it me)?

Roy, I am 99% certain that importing PSE 7 catalog to LR 2 is not possible at this time. The release cycles of the products did not coincide for that to happen. However you can import from PSE 6 I believe.
I feel sure that this will be addressed soon........... but don't know when.

Cannot open my catalog in lightroom (2,7)

When I try to open my catalog in LIghtroom (2,7) it says the catalog is already opened in another application. But it is not as far as I can see. Somebody who knows what to do? Or i it a crash?

Thanks so much!!! I really learned something and many hours of work
were not spoiled.
maidi
25 jul 2011 kl. 15.33 skrev Pete Marshall:
With LR closed, check to see if there is a file ending in .lock next
to the catalog. Like this
http://forums.adobe.com/servlet/JiveServlet/showImage/76881/
Capture.JPG
If there is then delete it and then open LR again.
The lock file should be deleted every time LR is closed, but if your
computer has crashed or you have shut it down without closing LR
sometimes it doesn't. LR can have only one catalog opened at a time
and the presence of the .lock file indicates to LR that a catalog is
open.
>

Sharing of a Catalog in Lightroom 4

Is it possible to share a catalog in Lightroom 4. In other words is it possible to have the main catalog and be able to share it on another computer.

Arthur,
Sort of. You can't have the catalogue on a network drive. It has to be local to the computer using it.
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Hal

I have a subscription on Adobe cc and I am trying to instaal it on a second pc. Lightroom ok, but failure 47 on Photoshop. I also get the message that I downloaded a trial version, but as I said I am already a customer. What to do?

I have a subscription on Adobe cc and I am trying to instaal it on a second pc. Lightroom ok, but failure 47 on Photoshop. I also get the message that I downloaded a trial version, but as I said I am already a customer. What to do?

Han,
You should be able to install CC on a second computer, licensing rules allow you to install on two computers.
Please first try signing out and back in: https://helpx.adobe.com/creative-cloud/kb/sign-in-out-creative-cloud-desktop-app.html
If you open an application that's part your Creative Cloud membership and you see a message stating you're running a trial, see this link:
Creative Cloud applications unexpectedly revert to trial mode | CS6, CCM
Pattie

Is the catalog from Lightroom 5 compatible with Lightroom 6? Also, can Lightroom CC 2015 and Lightroom 6 use the same catalog?

I am a current Lightroom 5.7 user - I have purchased and installed Lightroom 6, but have not launched the program yet - will LR 6 make changes to my LR 5 catalog, such that it cannot be used in LR5?
Also, can LR6 and LR CC 2015 share the same catalog?

Lightroom 6 will require an updated database are catalog format. When you first start Lightroom 6 after you have installed it, it will prompt you to upgrade your catalog. This will create a new copy of your catalog in the new format, leaving your Lightroom 5 catalog intact and usable if you still have Lightroom 5 installed. Lightroom 6 and Lightroom CC can use the same catalog. But they cannot share the same catalog because that catalog must be installed locally on both computers. The Lightroom catalog cannot be placed on a network drive.

Question re: second catalog in lightroom 4

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