JPG and Raw (Fuji .raf) files NOT separated despite having box clicked in preferences

[Tahoe Dave]

Lightroom Version Number

Lightroom Classic 9.4

Operating System

1. macOS 10.15 Catalina

Does anyone know why LR Classic (Mac, Ver 9.4) would NOT treat jpg's and raw files as separate photos DESPITE having the "Treat jpeg files next to raw files as separate photos" box checked in Preferences>General>Import Options?

I'm looking at an old folder of a few hundred captures, that are: All from the same shoot, same day, same card, same import. I do not recall whether that box was checked on import or not, and don't know if that would matter given the disparate treatment of different files with the identical origins and import treatment.

And in the case where LR won't treat them separately despite the box being checked, is there a way to force LR to separate them? In some cases I have 3 different files, raw, jpg and xmp. When I click on "Show in Finder" it invariably goes to the raw file. And then when I "remove" the photo, choosing "delete from disk," it deletes all 3 versions.

I'm trying to perform a bulk purge of raw files WITHOUT doing it in Finder and then forcing a folder sync after.

FWIW, they're Fuji .raf raws. It's my habit to shot in both .raf and .jpg, and then cull later.

Thank you.

 

[kimballistic]

That checkbox only applies to new imports. Any raw+JPG pairs imported prior to checking it aren't affected.

If you'd like to separate the raw & JPG files, first make sure that option is checked, and then synchronize whichever folder you desire to see the JPGs in and they will be added to your catalog as first-class photos (right click on it in Lightroom Classic and select synchronize).

 

[Tahoe Dave]

Thank you. That makes some sense, but not a lot. I'm trying to figure out how they got mixed up in the first place so I don't repeat the goof. Some of the photos in the same import are separated, but many are joined. I must have done something at some time to cause the inconsistency, but for the life of me I don't remember doing it and I can't sort out what was done.

 

[kimballistic]

I hear you, it's not the most intuitive. The best way to think about it is changing that checkbox's status does not change your existing catalog. This makes sense because otherwise it would be 1) removing some JPG photos from the catalog that you may have been relying on, or 2) silently adding photos every time you turn on that checkbox. That's why changes to the checkbox only apply to imports going forward. Best practice would be to decide how you want that setting and then leave it alone.

Personally I leave it checked so that if some JPGs make it through the import process I'll spot them and remember to delete them. I only shoot JPG sidecars so I can check focus at full resolution on cameras (the embedded JPG previews inside raw files are often not full resolution). I have zero interest in the camera JPG once I've got the raw file inside Lightroom. It's just clutter and a waste of disk space.

 

[johnbeardy]

I only shoot JPG sidecars so I can check focus at full resolution on cameras (the embedded JPG previews inside raw files are often not full resolution). I have zero interest in the camera JPG once I've got the raw file inside Lightroom. It's just clutter and a waste of disk space.

AFAIK for Fuji the embedded JPEG previews are never full size. Also, are you aware of my » JPEGs sidecar killer script?

 

[kimballistic]

AFAIK for Fuji the embedded JPEG previews are never full size. Also, are you aware of my » JPEGs sidecar killer script?

I used to shoot Fuji (X100S, X-T1, X-T2, X-T3) but I'm now settled on a D850. I haven't really worried about JPGs in quite a while. Maybe the D850 even embeds fullsize previews; I really don't know. The bottom line: the second I see JPGs in my LR catalog, they go in the trash. Easy peasy.

Edit: OK wow, that looks like an awesome script to cleanup a mess of JPG sidecars. Bravo to you for writing that. I personally don't need it after having manually deleted my sidecars, but wow, that's a lot easier!

 

[Tahoe Dave]

I go in circles on the jpg thing. Right now I'm cleaning out some old stuff, and discovered that I have one day in September, 2019 with 140gb of water polo shots in raw. WP, like any sport, is a game of numbers. You take 20 at 1/500 or better for the one usable action shot...Which is fine if you’re (meaning I'm) disciplined enough to cull ruthlessly. Which I'm not. So in wanting to clean that up, now that my WP star son has gone on to college, the raws will likely never get edited, but he may want to have them one day and may pick a wall hanger that he wants me to tidy up and print. I'm thinking that the easiest way to recapture a huge amount of disk real estate and not spend a ton of time culling or editing, is to move the raw masters.

Which leads me to a follow up advice solicitation.

If I want to get the raws off of that disk, and without caring whether the raws themselves are in the catalog any more, would you 1.) Move them in Finder and re-sync the catalog folder in LR, or 2.) Move them inside LR so the sync process will happen automatically? or 3.) ??? I know that just moving them in Finder without some sort of catalog update is a disaster in the making so that's not an option.

I don't need/want them in my active catalog folder, and have plenty of external HDD storage space to just store them and put them away in a drawer.

The reason I'm doing this is that I got a new iMac with a 4 tb internal, and want to put masters that are likely to be needed on the new drive, but don't want to fill it up with stuff that I don't need.

 

[LexS]

Remember, it also depends on screen size: when too small LR will display JPG and Raw in one