Splitting the iphoto library

hey everybody.
i have about 7000 high-resolution pictures in iphoto. now with all the music in itunes and the other stuff - and my hd only being a 80gb disc- my hd is full. since i need all my data and music with me, i'd like to save space by putting fotos on an external drive.
but: i don't want to put the entire library on an external drive. i thought that maybe i could keep the good ones as originals on my hd and put the others on the external drive.
so, is it possible to split the library? and, is it possible to move photos between the two libraries afterwards? how is it done? are there any negative aspects of doing this? ...

1. Copy the iPhoto Library Folder from your Pictures Folder to the External Drive.
Now you have two full Libraries.
2. Launch iPhoto. It will open the Library on your mac. Delete from it the pics you don't want to have with you: (Put them in the iPhoto trash and go iPhoto Menu -> Empty Trash). (Hint: Do this in batches of less than 100 at a time. iPhoto won't trash more at one go: protection against little ones being er, helpful)
Now you have a Full Library on the External and a sub-set of it on the Mac.
To choose between libraries: hold down the option (or alt) key on launch and select 'Choose Library'.
Managing multiple libraries is greatly facilitated by using iPhoto Library Manager. It is also the best way to move albums/rolls/pics and metadata between Libraries.
Regards
TD

Similar Messages

  • Splitting up iPhoto library into two locations

    How do I split my iPhoto library to have some events on my laptop (in one library) and some on my external drive (in another library)

    Here's one way to do what you want:
    Make sure the drive is formatted Mac OS Extended (Journaled)
    1. Quit iPhoto
    2. Copy the iPhoto Library from your Pictures Folder to the External Disk.
    Now you have two full versions of the Library.
    3. On the Internal library, trash the Events you don't want there
    Now you have a full copy of the Library on the External and a smaller subset on the Internal
    Some Notes:
    As a general rule: when deleting photos do them in batches of about 100 at a time. iPhoto can baulk at trashing large numbers at one go.
    You can choose which Library to open: Hold down the option (or alt) key key and launch iPhoto. From the resulting menu select 'Choose Library'
    You can keep the Library on the external updated with new imports using iPhoto Library Manager

  • Why is the iPhoto Library file so big?

    Why is the iPhoto Library File so big?
    I cancelled the option in settings that it copies the files to the Library but the LIbrary file grows and grows when I import new photos?
    Can someone help me?

    You have disabled "Copy items to the iPhoto Library"?
    Then the original image files should not be imported; you can check this by selecting one of the recently imported photos and using the command "File > Reveal in Finder > Original File". Does it show you a file outside the library?
    Your library will grow in size, when you import and edit photos, even if the originals are not included. iPhoto will store thumbnails of your photos, previews of the edited versions, of the faces, and if you sync your library with iTunes, there will also be an iPod Photo cache, that can be quite large:
    iTunes: Understanding the iPod Photo Cache folder
    You know, that  disabling "Copy items to the iPhoto Library" is quite risky, don't you? Just in case you are not aware of the risks - iPhoto does provide no tools at all, if the connection between your referenced original files and your thumbnails in iPhoto gets broken. Or if you need to move your photos to a different drive, when the drive fails, as will happen one day. You will not be able to migrate the library to a new computer or restoring from your backup will be difficult. You will need third party apps like iPhoto Library Manager to recover from such a situation.
    If you need to free space on your mac it is much safer to move the whole library to an external drive, or to split it and relocate the partial library with the older photos to an external drive.
    -- Léonie

  • Splitting an iPhoto library?

    I've been using Macs since 2005 and have been taking digital photos for a few years before that (not including prints I've scanned), si I have a rather large iPhoto library - currnetly standing at 81GB. On my 1TB iMac this isn't a problem, but as I have an Apple TV for watching movies wirelessly, I'm thinking of switching back to a high end Macbook Pro with a 256GB SSD. Obviously, I don't want a third of my storage space to be filled with decade old family photos, but I also don't want to lose them.
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    To store on an external drive:
    Make sure the drive is formatted Mac OS Extended (Journaled)
    1. Quit iPhoto
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    3. Hold down the option (or alt) key while launching iPhoto. From the resulting menu select 'Choose Library' and navigate to the new location. From that point on this will be the default location of your library.
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    Make sure the drive is formatted Mac OS Extended (Journaled)
    1. Quit iPhoto
    2. Copy the iPhoto Library from your Pictures Folder to the External Disk.
    Now you have two full versions of the Library.
    3. On the Internal library, trash the Events you don't want there
    Now you have a full copy of the Library on the External and a smaller subset on the Internal
    Some Notes:
    As a general rule: when deleting photos do them in batches of about 100 at a time. iPhoto can baulk at trashing large numbers at one go.
    You can choose which Library to open: Hold down the option (or alt) key key and launch iPhoto. From the resulting menu select 'Choose Library'
    You can keep the Library on the external updated with new imports using iPhoto Library Manager
    Or you can use the Split Command in iPhoto Library Manager
    Regards
    TD

  • Every time I open Iphoto I get the following message:  "A photo has been found in the iPhoto library that was not imported.  Do you want to import it?  Yes or No"  Any suggestions?

    Every time I open Iphoto I get the following message:  "A photo has been found in the Iphoto library that was not imported.  Does anyone have any suggestions?

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  • The iPhoto Library is locked, on a locked disk, or you do not have permission to make changes to it. iPhoto can try to repair the permissions.

    Hi, I have the following message when opening iPhoto:
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  • I am trying to transfer my photos from old mac to new mac.  I copied the iPhoto library to an external hard drive, then imported it to the new iPhoto.  It turned my 2000 photos into 12,000!!  What happened?

    And how do I turn off FACES? 

    I copied the iPhoto library to an external hard drive, then imported it to the new iPhoto.  It turned my 2000 photos into 12,000!!
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  • Iphoto locked up, I forced quit and now when I try to open iphoto it gives me a Caution note...The iphoto library is locked, on a locked disk, or you do not have permission to make changes to it.  What do I do now?

    I had to force quit from iphoto...
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    Try Rebuilding the iPhoto library and post back with results. BTW if you don't get an answer on this forum there is an iPhoto forum too.

  • I don't know what has happened but I can't open iPhoto. When I try to open it I receive a caution "The iPhoto Library is locked, on a locked disk, or you do not have permission to make changes to it." How do I solve this??!!

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  • How can I back up the iPhoto library when iPhoto won't open and I can't simply copy the iPhoto library packet because "some of the data in the packet cannot be read from or written to"?

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    OT

  • Whenever I try to open iPhoto, a message comes up saying that 148 photos have been found in the iPhoto Library that have not been imported. It asks me if I want to import them and I say NO but then it places them in a recovered photo folder. I keep deleti

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    Click to view full size
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    OT

  • How do I rename the iphoto library on one computer before importing it to another location with other iphoto libraries?

    How do I rename the iphoto library on one computer before importing it to another location with other iphoto libraries?

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  • Is it possible to copy the iphoto library and albums from a G5 to a macpro

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  • I have an external hard drive connected to my iMac 2006; the OS on this iMac has been upgraded.  I wanted to have back up copies of all our photos on iPhoto; I moved the iPhoto Library folder to the EHD.  Now I want to delete a lot of the photos on the iM

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