BATCH COVERSION FROM RAW TO JPEG

[Andrew Goble]

Lightroom Version Number

Lightroom CLASSIC CC

Operating System

1. Windows 10

Hi, I shoot all my pictures in RAW in order to retain the maximum detail to ensure the best picture possible can be achieved after adjustment. It seems to me that the very big plus point that LR does not change the original RAW file is in fact it's Achilles heel. I have over 30000 photos that I view and adjust in LR. I do not have many jpegs of these pictures. It occurred to me that if, in the future, I cancelled my subscription to Adobe what will happen to my adjusted pictures? I pay monthly for LR and PS CC but once that stops so will the ability to view adjusted pictures, I would think. The original RAW file is a long way from being viewable.
My question (I got there in the end) is can you batch convert photos into jpegs within LR rather than having to convert the files individually. With over 30000 pictures, that will take a while.
Andrew

 

[johnbeardy]

You would select all the images in grid view, and use Export. It'll still take a while.

 

[Roelof Moorlag]

It occurred to me that if, in the future, I cancelled my subscription to Adobe what will happen to my adjusted pictures?

• You can continue using Lightroom after canceling subsription to approach your photos with all edits. Some things are not possible then anymore (like most editing and cloud options)
• You could export all photo's (select all) as Tiff (whith the edits 'baked in' the images) when you want to move over to another DAM, that is a better option than jpg.

 

[Johan Elzenga]

Hi, I shoot all my pictures in RAW in order to retain the maximum detail to ensure the best picture possible can be achieved after adjustment. It seems to me that the very big plus point that LR does not change the original RAW file is in fact it's Achilles heel. I have over 30000 photos that I view and adjust in LR. I do not have many jpegs of these pictures. It occurred to me that if, in the future, I cancelled my subscription to Adobe what will happen to my adjusted pictures? I pay monthly for LR and PS CC but once that stops so will the ability to view adjusted pictures, I would think. The original RAW file is a long way from being viewable.
My question (I got there in the end) is can you batch convert photos into jpegs within LR rather than having to convert the files individually. With over 30000 pictures, that will take a while.
Andrew

When you cancel your subscription, Lightroom will go into 'expired mode'. In that mode everything keeps working, except the develop module and the map module. That means you will continue to have access to your images, will be able to view them and export them, and you can even still use the Quick Develop block in the library module to make some smaller changes, including applying develop presets.

 

[Paul_DS256]

Andrew, I would disagree with " LR does not change the original RAW file is in fact it's Achilles heel. " I originally thought the same and previously used Capture NX 2 from Nikon which did update the image. I now find NOT updating the original picture as very compelling.

I think your larger question is what happens if I decide to use another post processing tool other than Adobe's?

Well, I'd suggest as part of your workflow, you export a TIFF/DNG version you are happy with. It is likely you have no further need for post processing these.

I know that ON1, a competitor to LR, will read XMP files so you have a migration path if needed.

As pointed out, you can export multiple files at once.

 

[Roelof Moorlag]

I know that ON1, a competitor to LR, will read XMP files so you have a migration path if needed.

I doubt if ON1 does recognize all XMP metadata from Lightroom. Perhaps the simple things like ratings and keywords but certainly not the edit instructions. So, in that way (preserving edits) this seems not to be a very usuful migration path.

 

[Johan Elzenga]

It's more than that. On1 does seem to read Lightroom edits as well, although it will still be an interpretation and so it won't give an exact match: https://www.on1.com/products/photo-raw/switch/

 

[Roelof Moorlag]

Very interesting indeed!
"No more fear in losing years of work in Lightroom. The new migration tool uses AI-powered algorithms to transfer Lightroom-edited photos, keep the non-destructive settings, and move them into ON1 Photo RAW 2019.2. " according to their site.
Of topic of course but it seems to be an reassurance for those who are affraid of 'lock in' the Adobe ecosystem.

 

[Andrew Goble]

Thanks to John, Roelof and Johan for your prompt replys.
I like the idea of converting to Tiff so will look a little further down this avenue.

You would select all the images in grid view, and use Export. It'll still take a while.

Cheers for this John. The obvious, sometimes, can be the hardest thing to see.

 

[Andrew Goble]

• You can continue using Lightroom after canceling subsription to approach your photos with all edits. Some things are not possible then anymore (like most editing and cloud options)
• You could export all photo's (select all) as Tiff (whith the edits 'baked in' the images) when you want to move over to another DAM, that is a better option than jpg.

Sound advice Roelof. I will look at exporting in Tiff format.

 

[BarrySchwartz]

All my original RAW images from my various camera lines are converted to DNG, which, while developed by Adobe, is open-source. While not every kind of software will recognize DNGs, most will. There are lots of advantages, including the fact DNGs are slightly smaller, they enable the ability to enter lots of IPTC metadata, and when copying to another drive to have safer check-sum processes to make sure the images have been copied correctly. Also, it's worth noting that Leica and Hasselblad RAW images are DNGs right out of the camera, so they also believe in DNGs. All this will help mitigate problems with preserving the images should one stop using Adobe products.

 

[PhilBurton]

I doubt if ON1 does recognize all XMP metadata from Lightroom. Perhaps the simple things like ratings and keywords but certainly not the edit instructions. So, in that way (preserving edits) this seems not to be a very usuful migration path.

ON1 makes some impressive claims on their website, including this statement about migration from Lightroom:

Lastly, RAW processing and editing settings from Lightroom's Develop module including crop, retouching, and local adjustments are migrated non-destructively so they can be re-edited in ON1 Photo RAW 2019.2.

"Local adjustments" seems like a very "flexible" term. Probably the only way for someone interested in migration to determine what this term means, is to download a trial version, actually do the conversion, and then examine the results for suitability.

Phil Burton

 

[Dan Marchant]

It seems to me that the very big plus point that LR does not change the original RAW file is in fact it's Achilles heel.

It's not.

It occurred to me that if, in the future, I cancelled my subscription to Adobe what will happen to my adjusted pictures?

Nothing will happen. Your catalog will still be there and you will still be able to access your images in the library module and all edits will be intact. You just wont be able to use the Develop module (or map module) to do new edits - unless you restart your subscription. (Actually you can do some limited global adjustments using the Library modules Quick Develop panel).