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Keywording anomalies

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BobT

Active Member
Joined
Apr 7, 2009
Messages
634
Location
Australia
Lightroom Experience
Advanced
Lightroom Version
Classic
Lightroom Version Number
11.3.1
Operating System
  1. Windows 11
I use keywording extensively. Some hierarchies are about 5 levels deep. Occasionally I'll find some key words with no image attached, thrown to the top level of the Keyword List. Some are old and rarely used, some are new. They are all and duplicates of ones in their correct place with images. Since there are no images attached, I delete them and so far have not detected any images lost. The catalogue is optimized and backed up weekly. Can anyone hazard a guess as to why this is occurring? Is there a limit to key word use? Perhaps there is some function that automatically creates key words from metadata.
 
Solution
This can happen when you re-import an image exported by LR, depending on the Include On Export setting of containing keywords. So if you have a hierarchical keyword A > B, and you set the keyword properties so that A isn't exported, and then you export and reimport a photo with the keyword B, the imported photo will have a top-level B keyword. Then if you remove that re-imported photo, the top-level B will be left behind.

Alternatively, if you imported a photo from someone else that had those top-level keywords, and then removed that photo from your catalog, you'd have those orphaned top-level keywords.

Is there a limit to key word use?
Windows LR limits you to displaying at most 1500 - 3000 lines in the Keyword List panel...
This can happen when you re-import an image exported by LR, depending on the Include On Export setting of containing keywords. So if you have a hierarchical keyword A > B, and you set the keyword properties so that A isn't exported, and then you export and reimport a photo with the keyword B, the imported photo will have a top-level B keyword. Then if you remove that re-imported photo, the top-level B will be left behind.

Alternatively, if you imported a photo from someone else that had those top-level keywords, and then removed that photo from your catalog, you'd have those orphaned top-level keywords.

Is there a limit to key word use?
Windows LR limits you to displaying at most 1500 - 3000 lines in the Keyword List panel (depending on your display settings). But that wouldn't create orphaned top-level keywords.
 
Solution
This can happen when you re-import an image exported by LR, depending on the Include On Export setting of containing keywords. So if you have a hierarchical keyword A > B, and you set the keyword properties so that A isn't exported, and then you export and reimport a photo with the keyword B, the imported photo will have a top-level B keyword. Then if you remove that re-imported photo, the top-level B will be left behind.

Alternatively, if you imported a photo from someone else that had those top-level keywords, and then removed that photo from your catalog, you'd have those orphaned top-level keywords.


Windows LR limits you to displaying at most 1500 - 3000 lines in the Keyword List panel (depending on your display settings). But that wouldn't create orphaned top-level keywords.
Yep, that sounds like what's been happenning. I'll check out the Include on Export setting. Thanks :thumbsup:
 
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