Virtual Copies and Exposure Setting

I've read that the SDK is for export/web/metadata, so apologies for asking a question when I the answer is probably no...
What I'd like to be able to do is write a plugin that would enable me to select an image in the library, and then automatically create virtual copies, with each copy having a variation on the exposure settings, in effect creating a bracketed set, which I can then export for exposure blending.
Is this type of functionality feasible right now?
On the LR/Enfuse plugin guide it says that when batch processing LR/Enfuse can re-import the blended result image into the source image stack, which gives me hope that the SDK can do things with the Library module.

No, it's not possible to do this with the current SDK. The limitation you'll hit with what you're proposing:
You can't create virtual copies of photos via the SDK.
You can't change develop settings via the SDK.
I've noted these as feature requests for future SDK enhancements but I can't make any promises about when/if it might appear.

Similar Messages

Naming Presets for Virtual Copies and PS Edits

I'm new to Lightroom 4.1 and have been setting everything up... I'm having trouble with figuring out an efficient, clear naming system to distnguish Virtual Copies and Copies Edited in Photoshop. I tried using the "File Template Editor in the external Editing window... but I find it VERY confusing. Can anyone recommend a system and the way to enter it as a Preset in the File Template Editor.
My Image File Naming is as follows: KOBRIEN_YY_00001.dng
Thanks in advance for all suggestions!

Best to set the Rename Template from within the 'External Editing' panel of Lr Preferences. The format should be along the lines shown in screenshot. You add the custom text after the template has been saved.
Above should work OK for photos edited in Photoshop, but Virtual Copies are a different beast and can't be renamed using templates. If you do try it the master is renamed, not the copy. The thing is, VCs must have the same base name as the master. However, you can manually edit the Copy Name field in Library Metadata panel.

Virtual copies and using Description, or title etc to print

Hi!
Never really use the text features in LR.
I've built a strip sheet to print. 4 strips with 4 versions (VIRTUAL COPIES) of the same image with different exposures.
I remember in the Print Module, you can add text. in this case I'd like to add the exposure (manually is fine) Example: NORMAL +1/3 +2/3 +1
So, this is a virtual copy problem.
It wont allow me to add the text to DESCRIPTION, Also, Under: Title, I can add say NORMAL, but that is the same for each image. Can't be individually labeled?
Is there anyway to label, title, description, etc, a series of the same Virtual Copies. Again, it would be great to print the actual exposure, but I'd be happy manually labeling the VC.
Thank you!
Max

Autowrite is in catalog settings. have you tried another catalog and optimised the current one??
Picturequest wrote:
Okay
In LIBRARY MODULE - Right Panel - METADATA
If I type in the TITLE or DESCRIPTION or COPY NAME, if I then hit enter, tab or return, the cell goes empty.
This is not Virtual Copy related. Even a sing RAW selected, behaves the same.
I can't find the autowrite to XML setting in the Prefs? Not sure where it is.
Weird!

Virtual copies and history?

I want to creat virtual copies that include the history so I can rever them from BW back to the origianl color. Why is the history removed when you creat virtual copies?

Alan - thanks for the tip. The conundrum of "which history should be shown" for multiple virtual copies isn't actually one at all. When a virtual copy is created, the history of the parent image is duplicated; further edits to that particular virtual copy are added to the top of that copy, just like they are now. Subsequent edits to the master copy don't affect any of the descendant VC's, including their history.
Andrew - why does it have to be a new iteration? It clearly isn't, since it has inherited all of the non-destructive edits from the parent. And you haven't addressed my workflow issue - how do I identify all of the edits made to a virtual copy? Right now, I can't; Lightroom throws this information away. There's no penalty if Adobe duplicated the edit history, you don't have to look at it if you don't want to.
Cornelia - someone has already created a feature request, here it is:
http://feedback.photoshop.com/photoshop_family/topics/new_virtual_copies_should_inherit_de velop_history
Cheers,
Tim

Virtual copies and smart collections

Previous answer not satisfactory.
Are virtual copies considered by LR to be the same image. Then why have them. They are different especially after I add more processing.
Therefore when i make a smart collection of aspect = square and rating is 3
all versions should show up. Not the way it seems to work LR5.7 on Mac 10.9
Then I sort at top for 2014 and select to go into a regular collection Best squares of 2014.
As it works now it is useless because I have to rely on memory to know I made a different version based on a virtual copy.
I consider this a bug... Again read my other post today.
If all you can do in collection is just the easy filters what is the point. I can do it manually.
If this take rocket scientist to code an algorithm to figure out virtual copies are different than originals then get them on it ASAP.
This is what gets me. If you know they don't work put it right out front on the help page what IT DOESN"T DO. BE HONEST
YOU are getting paid for that. Why should a customer have to waste his time when feature is obviously deficient.

Disclaimer: I have no idea what you're talking about, nor did I read your other post today. That said, here are a couple of points which may be pertinent:
* Virtual copies are 100% different photos (in the catalog database, in collections, etc..).
* Internally, the main difference between a virtual copy and a real copy is that the virtual copy omits the associated file and records the associated (master) photo instead.
PS - I recommend understanding how it works before jumping to conclusions about how it doesn't..
Note: be aware that there are master-photo/virtual-copy attribute filters in the library module (which remain active in develop module..).

How does LR3 handle virtual copies and xmp files?

Hi,
I see only 1 xmp file and yet I have several virtual copies of that same photograph... where are the corresponding xmp files? I am using exiftool to place some info in the CR2 files and then need to update the corresponding xmp file...
Thanks,
Juan

Hi Juan,
Virtual copies are only stored in the LR catalog, never in the XMP sidecars. If you update the XMP using exiftool and update the metadata in LR, both the original and the virtual copy will be updated with the XMP data.
Marc

Virtual Copies And Collections Issue

I created a few virtual copies for the purpose of having B&W versions of images. Then I added a new collection named B+W and added these virtual copies to the collection. The counter for the collection incremented correctly but when I selected the collection, none of the virtual copies appeared there even thought they were counted in the collection.
Any one else experience this or can corroborate that this is a bug?
Jim

Similar problem, Jim. I asked about it twice in this self-inflicted thread:
http://www.adobeforums.com/cgi-bin/webx/.3bc36332/0
Got no response. Which is one reason I mentioned in the "Split This Forum?" thread that I'd be grateful for a stepped-up Adobe presence in the U-to-U. Because for all their generosity of time and spirit, even the most helpful users sometimes don't know the answer, and having somebody like George or Jeff jump in a say, "It's a bug; we're working on it," would save precious time.
Mac OS 10.4.9

Virtual copies and DNG files

I may have completely misunderstood something, but I thought the metadata in a DNG file was contained within the file. The virtual copy function in LR1 is very interesting for making different versions of the same image, but if the image metadata for the virtual copies is in XMP files, does this preclude the use of this function with DNG files?
Martin

Thanks. So the XMP metadata block in a DNG file will just contain any non-destrictive edits made on the original file. The information about any edits in virtual copies are then in accompanying files (XML?). Or is this information only contained within the Lightroom database?
I am just trying to understand how the information is stored and if it is accessible to other applications.
Martin

Virtual copies and history from the original photo

When I make adjustments to a photo and them make a virtual copy, the history of the adjustments I made does not carry over. Does anyone know if there is a quick and easy way to create the virtual copy that contains ther detail history of the original photo? Thanks

I don't think there's a way - it would be nice though...
_R

(Finding and) deleting virtual copies

Hi.
Somehow I have managed to create virtual copies of 1000 or so photos. This happened (I believe) while trying to clean up a collection folder. So what I want to do now, is to sort out - and isolate? - the virtual copies created accidently. I tried using Library Filter/Virtual Copies and the sorting by edit time, but still it seems it will take some time to find the ones that were made virtual copies by intent and those which weren't. As I also have done quite a lot of editing work prior to this accident, I'd rather not go back to a previous back-up.
So, to sum it up: what is the best way to find only the virtual copies created since, let's say 10 o'clock this morning?
Thanks in advance,
ole k

I may be a bit slow, but I still don't quite get this: LR is able to sort (in Smart Collection) by Added Order, but there is no way of seeing when the VC was actually created?
Please also see my last question rgd. what I should put in the box next to "Contains". (o or 0 or nothing?). Whenever I make a VC, in the metadata list i t will be called "Copy 1". This means that my smart collection will include both the VCs that I've made intentionally and those made by mistake, right - I mean as long as it's got "Copy #" in the name box? In case, I can't quite make the number of files listed match with what I'd expect to find there, but if you suggest that using this method and then sort descending (why not ascending?) and then deleting, I'll trust you and do just that.
BTW, you (John) were absolutely right about the source of this confusion, I had - of some reason - checked the box next to Create Virtual Copy in the Create Collection menu. Needless to say, it is no longer checked . . . . .
ole k

Find and export Virtual Copies: Easy to add and ( i would argue) Necessary

I haven't found an easy way to go back and easily select all virtual copies in a library in order to export them.
A virtual copy is easy to miss and sometimes its hard to remember where you made changes in a large collection.
There needs to be a search option for file types in LightRoom that can find the virtual copies and allow them to be collectively exported as real copies.
If not a search function, then please simply insert a "save all virtual copies" option in the export area. Perhaps it could have the option to export all to their respective original file's folder OR to a designated edits folder with some tag to refer to the original location.
I would very much appreciate an official adobe contact if at all possible :-/

You can filter out Virtual Copies using a button on the filter bar located in the bottom right corner of the Lr application window (just above the filmstrip). Click a folder (folder panel) to narrow the filter to a specific folder or subfolders or the top most folder to show all virtual copies. You'll also find the second button will show only Master photos.

What's the difference between Snapshots and Virtual Copies?

I've been using snapshots if I want several versions of a photo. I have the original, then I can turn it b/w and have a snapshot called BW, or I can have a very saturated version and call it Saturated, etc.
But I just watched a tutorial where the guy made virtual copies and made changes to them.
They seemed to do the same thing. I just thought that one benefit to the virtual copy version is that you can have each variation show in a slidshow or web gallery (so for that alone, I may go to virtual copies). Other than that, how do they differ and when would one use one over the other?

I use both...for different reasons.
In the case of VC's, it's useful to create them for use in collections where you might want to crop and fine tune images for things like web galleries or slide shows were the changes are not something you want applied to the originals but snapshots don't make the adaptations easy to accomplish.

'Virtual' Copies to (optionally) start all settings from 0

I would like to have the ability to make a 'virtual' copy that looks like the current image, except that all the sliders/settings start at 0. This is different from making the original virtual copies and resetting the sliders/settings, which would just bring it back to the imported version. This is like actually having a virtual copy of the current image as it is, rather than a virtual copy of the original image with the same settings applied - a subtle but very important difference.
The reason for this is so that presents would be A LOT more useful. Say you have a preset for B/W that'll kick up the exposure to +0.5 and the blacks to 20. If you had to do that in the first place just so the image looks 'normal', then applying the preset may not actually do anything for you - some shots may need a +1 exposure adjustment on their own, so that in effect the preset should result in a +1.5 exposure adjustment over the original, whereas if you apply the preset to the current implementation of Virtual Copies, you end up dropping to +0.5 instead of actually going up an additional +0.5
To get around this and to have some consistent results in my images (by using presets), my current workflow is driving me crazy. I end up importing all my RAWs, adjusting exposure, contrast, etc., and then exporting the files to JPG. Then I import them all, and apply my presets, but that's so tedious and I have to export twice.
Please, please help and implement this.
Thanks for listening. I love the product, btw
PS - Another way to get around this would be to allow the option for presets to be relative rather than absolute. Ex: The B/W preset will do an actual increase of 0.5 to the exposure and an increase of 20 to the blacks. That would be great too, and might actually be preferrable.

This seems to be a very frequently requested feature, and fo rus it would certainly be the #1 missing functionality.
We use Lightroom to work on large batches of event/wedding photographs, all taken in RAW format.
1. With current 'absolute' presets, there's no telling what it will do to any given photograph: a "antique photograph" preset will do wildly different thing to a photograph under tungsten, as to a photograph under sunlight or fluorescent or flash.
2. Similarly, our workflow is interrupted: instead of being able to colour/exposure correct all images and then apply a preset to this _fixed_, 'normalized' version, for consistency of look; we have to play with images one by one, or go to workarounds like export/import: all of which defeat the point of Lightroom as a workflow-enhancing app.

Fix stacks or decouple them from Virtual Copies

Stacking is too limited if it can only be used in a generic folder views without using keywords or criteria to also filter the images down. Worse, virtual copies seem to be accessible only via stacking. So when stacking is disabled then virtual copies are inaccessible and you can't even tell they exist! LR should either allow access to virtual copies without stacking so they can be accessed anytime OR expand stacks to work all the time OR AT LEAST grey out the create virtual copy command when stacking isn't permitted so we don't sit there creating virtual copies and then can't access them and wonder why not. It's taken me two days to sort out this limitation all the while thinking that I had shut stacking off and/or that LR was broken.

Stacking is very limited indeed! This is one of the main reasons why I moved away from iPhoto.
Photo Books in the Aperture trial, better keyword handling and better Stacking are what is making me want to eBay LR and go with AP.

Can I label virtual copies?

Hi,
I'm looking for an easy way to handle virtual copies and what I'd like to do is to put a label on each VC but there is no way to do this. Say I have an image that thas been processed to my satisfaction and I'd like to have one VC be a 5x7 crop and another an 8x8 crop. I'd like to label the VC as such (e.g. sunset 5x7 and sunset 8x8). Otherwise, I can't tell quickly what each VC represents. This gets more time consuming when I have 6 or 8 VCs of the same image.
Perhaps there is a better way?
Thanks,
Tanguero

Thanks, this was helpful and got me on the right track. I did have to look up where the 'copy name field' existed and how to get to it as I wasn't familiar with it, but it did work.
Another related question is whether I have to be in the Library mode in order to modify the copy name field? My workflow is such that I'd like to create and label 3 or 4 different crop VCs while staying in the Develop mode. Is there a way?
Thanks,
T

Virtual Copies and Exposure Setting

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