How separate JPGs from RAW files for deletion

[petra.liljestrand]

Lightroom Version Number

LR Classic ver. 10.3

Operating System

1. macOS 10.15 Catalina

Hi All,

I have an old folder with 1800 pix. I unfortunately imported a jpg and a RAW version of each photo. Now they show up as e.g., "DSC_1543.NEF+JPEG" in the library. I want to delete the JPG files, but can't "access" them within Lightroom. They are sort of "hiding" under the RAW files. I can't go into the Finder and delete from there, because I also have images that exist only as JPGs, and I wouldn't be able to tell which ones from Finder. (Besides it's bad practice to delete from outside of LR). Please help!

(On a different note, I did delete a few jpgs from the Finder. To my surprise, they still show up as described above, in LR)

 

[Rob_Cullen]

One method is to-
1) Set the Preference to 'on' checked for [Treat JPG Files next to raw files as separate photos]. Restart LrC.
2) Import the Folder that contains the matched JPGs (Note: only the JPGs will Import. The raws will be 'greyed' out as they are already in the Catalog)
3) You then have the JPGs showing in a List within the 'Catalog' Panel as "Previous Import"
4) Select the "Previous Import" list and select all these *JPGs only [Ctrl+A] to Delete from Disk. OR (to be safer) Flag-Rejected, these images to be considered for Deletion at a later time when you can examine closely.

CAUTION: Your "images that exist only as JPGs" will complicate the method!
If they (the lonely JPGs) were already IN the Catalog- then they do not Import again and do not show in the ""Previous Import" list. So 'safe'.
If the were NOT in the Catalog- then you have to be careful you do NOT Delete them in step 4) above, as they will also appear in the "Previous Import" list. *Also you must NOT select TIF and PSD files that may not have been imported previously. (See the Flag-Rejected hint)

 

[Gnits]

Tip for future use.
I have set up my preconfigured export as jpgs to go into subfolders of the original folder with relevant names (I use FullJpg, Web). I use Web for email and images to be posted on social media etc.

I usually only import raw files.... but occasionally I make a mistake and import raw plus jpg. In that scenario.... I know that all jpgs stored in the same folder as the raw files are jpgs from my camera. I can therefore easily select only these jpgs and delete them. This avoids the scenario of deleting by mistakes jpgs you may have created (within Lightroom, photoshop or any other editing tool) by mistake.

Btw... if I take a round trip to Photoshop I store the resultant psd in the same folder as the original raw image. In that way it is easy to see the original raw side by side with any resultant psd's.

 

[Califdan]

Here's a blog I wrote on this very topic...

LR010 - LR Classic, how to remove redundant JPG's

Dan

 

[johnbeardy]

If you shoot raw+jpeg routinely, you can use the script below.

John