Where are my photos? iPhoto library hides them AND renames the folders

Question

I recently upgraded to Lion OS and can no longer see my photos and videos in Finder. A search shows that they are all in a dir that is actually an iPhoto library. Bizarrely it has been given the name of the first lot of photos that I imported in to iPhoto from a flash drive - so all of my photos are "packaged" inside a file called "mom's photos"!!!. In Finder it appears as a data item - NOT as a folder - the contents of which can be seen by clicking "Show Package Contents". Inside this "package" is the directory tree that Get Info shows is the path for a photo file. The photos have been arbitrarily put in to directories called "Modified" and Originals within which they have been stored in folders with year names ("2003", "2006", etc) that have no connection to the date the photos were created or their file names.
Is this considered to be progress by Apple?  How can I work with my files independently of iPhoto or iMovie (raw video being also inside the iPhoto library "package")? How can I reverse the renaming of the folders? Can I rename the iPhoto library to a default name - such as "iPhoto Library" for example!
Any pointers on how to deal with this new regime for handling photos and video will be welcome
jilsybean

Answer 1

It's really very simple.
If you want to manage files, use a file browser.
If you want to manage photos, use a Photo manager like iPhoto.
No version of iPhoto has supported the user accessing the files via the Finder. None at all. In versions 1 to iPhoto 6 it was possible to view the contents of the library, but accessing was not supported. Making changes within the iPhoto Library was not supported. Renaming files and folders corrupted the Library.
So, with iPhoto 7 (released in the autumn of 2007) the library was moved into a package to protect it from Users making these changes.
How the files are stored simply doesn't matter. Why? Because everything you need to do can - and should - be done via the iPhoto application. It's a database, after all, and like any db requires that you manipulate the data via the app itself, not a back door.
iPhoto is your go-to app for anything you need to do with your Photos. You simply never access them via the Finder.
So, you can edit either with iPhoto - or in any other app: 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.
Or, you want to access your photos for any reason at all:
There are many, many ways to access your files in iPhoto:   You can use any Open / Attach / Browse dialogue. On the left there's a Media heading, your pics can be accessed there. Command-Click for selecting multiple pics.
(Note the above illustration is not a Finder Window. It's the dialogue you get when you go File -> Open)
You can access the Library from the New Message Window in Mail:
There's a similar option in Outlook and many, many other apps.  If you use Apple's Mail, Entourage, AOL or Eudora you can email from within iPhoto.
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.
If you want to access the files with iPhoto not running:
For users of 10.6 and later:  You can download a free Services component from MacOSXAutomation  which will give you access to the iPhoto Library from your Services Menu.
Using the Services Preference Pane you can even create a keyboard shortcut for it.
For Users of 10.4 and 10.5 Create a Media Browser using Automator (takes about 10 seconds) or use this free utility Karelia iMedia Browser
Other options include:
Drag and Drop: Drag a photo from the iPhoto Window to the desktop, there iPhoto will make a full-sized copy of the pic.
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.
Show File:  a. On iPhoto 09 and earlier:  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.    3.b.
b: On iPhoto 11 and later: Select one of the affected photos in the iPhoto Window and go File -> Reveal in Finder -> Original. A Finder window will pop open with the file already selected.
All of the above are a: faster and b: safer than rooting around in the old library folders.
I know it's a change but you'll get used to it. And, of course, if you don't, you can always use another app.
Regards
TD