Lightroom DNG Conversion and Workflow

[gragra]

Hi,

Thanks for reading.

Trying to figure out most suitable workflow to acheive the following outcome:
1. Lightroom catalog with keeper DNG files
2. Separate keeper canon CR2 raw files stored outside above catalog in separate file directory (even drive) with same file names as DNG


I tried:
1. Import CR2 photos from disk
2. Renaming, keywording and flag/reject photos
3. Delete rejected CR2 photos (for good)
4. Generating DNG from remaining CR2
After step 4 I note that my catalog only shows the DNG photos which is fine but the CR2 photos along with XMP sidecar are still in the original folder in explorer with the new DNGs. Did lightroom remove the CR2 photos from the catalog? Is there any automatic way to move the CR2 files during the conversion process to a new location so I have one file system for original CR2 raw and another file system for DNG which catalog references.
[FONT=&quot]
Hope this is clear???

Thanks again for taking the time to read. Would appreciate any input.

G

[/FONT]

 

[Denis Pagé]

Welcome to the forums gragra!

Do not import the raw CR2 files. Instead, in your step 1, convert to DNG to new location at import time and eliminate step 4.

 

[Richard Earney]

Back the CR2 files up in case you ever need them, and just use DNGs.

 

[gragra]

Thanks Denis/Richard,

I understand there is an option on import to convert to DNG and backup originals.

What I was trying to avoid though was backing up original CR2 files that are definately not keepers thus having identical dng and cr2 files for keepers only. Convert to DNG at import means the reject CR2 files are not removed.

Suggestion in another forum was to create 2 catalogs one for cr2 the other for dng. Initial import into cr2 catalog deleting rejects, keywording etc then export leftover CR2 to dng. The reimport dng to second catalog. Does this have merit?

G

 

[Denis Pagé]

Suggestion in another forum was to create 2 catalogs one for cr2 the other for dng. Initial import into cr2 catalog deleting rejects, keywording etc then export leftover CR2 to dng. The reimport dng to second catalog. Does this have merit?

Only you know! The more there are rejects, the more it does have merit. If you reject only a few percent, then why care?...

 

[johnbeardy]

I certainly wouldn't create a second catalogue, a recipe for chaos, but do import NEFs and add initial metadata and adjustments, and delete the rejects (roughly 2 out of 3 frames), before creating the DNGs.

I do this by exporting and ticking the add to catalog check box. That's partly because LR's Convert to DNG is faulty and doesn't associate the existing NEFs' 1:1 previews with the DNGs which have taken their place (Adobe have still failed to fix this). Secondly, I want the DNGs in separate folders as I keep the NEFs as another backup format.

John

 

[Brad Snyder]

I think we're missing the fact that your recipe should have worked.

Take a look at Step 3 in your process in the OP. Lr offers you an option there of 'Removing' the images from the Catalog, or 'Deleting' the images from the hard-drive. It seems that you either didn't receive that option or made the wrong choice.

I'm not exactly sure how the 'Delete Rejected Photos' option works (I don't use it), but you might just try selecting all the rejects and then deleting in Step 3.

 

[johnbeardy]

Good point, Brad. I do use the 'Delete Rejected Photos' option and it gives the choice of deleting or removing. Remove is the default, which would be the wrong choice for the OP.

John

 

[Denis Pagé]

Good point, Brad. I do use the 'Delete Rejected Photos' option and it gives the choice of deleting or removing. Remove is the default, which would be the wrong choice for the OP.

John

Does the "Refine Selection" do the same John? (offering the option)

 

[johnbeardy]

No, that's different.I'd almost forgotten it, but Refine does something like knock all the flags down one notch - so flagged items become unflagged, and unflagged ones get reject flags. It doesn't initiate deletion or removal, and seems to be geared towards people who go over a shoot a few times. I don't think I've ever used it or heard of anyone doing so, but you never know.

The choice Brad pointed out is Cmd-Backspace / Ctrl Delete.

John

 

[gragra]

So I ran a little trial:
1. Import CR2
2. Rename
3. Flag / Reject and delete rejected. Denis: There are enough of these rejects to warrant not just importing to DNG and backing up all CR2. Brad: I was doing the delete step properly removing from both catalog and drive.
4. Export to DNG
5. Import DNG to another catalog.

I centainly think John is correct when he suggests two catalogs is a recipe for caos so I have opted out of this approach.

Thinking I need to:
1. Import CR2
2. Rename
3. Flag/Reject and delete reject

From this point I possibly have couple of options but which one is best?

4a. Convert to DNG with delete originals option unchecked. Looking at both the source folder and the catalog this action seems to convert the file to dng leaving the dng in the catalog in current location and removes the original raw from the catalog but not the folder which is all fine but having the DNG which will have subsequent work performed on them and the CR2 backup copies all in the same folder outside the catalog is a little messy. Would be nice if option was available to convert to dng and in subfolder of existing folder or possibly better still a mirror folder structure elsewhere.

4b. Alternative is to Export using add to catalog checkbox as suggested by John possibly using set to same folder as original loaction using the sufolder option to separate the DNG from the CR2 files in the folder. I would then probably want to remove the original CR2 from catalog so there is not 2 of each photo isn't automated the way it is in step 4a or use stack with original option maybe? Or do I want to create a separate file structure in the step exporting the DNGs to another location separate from the CR2?

I suppose a key question here is do I want to keep the orignal raws and dng together in the same folder or separate?

Any thoughts on 4a or 4b?

Phew! That was a little long. Appreciate those that read it all.

G

 

[Victoria Bampton]

gragra, welcome to the forum!

My current personal workflow runs along a similar theme, although I don't delete rejects. I do however convert to DNG and keep an archive CR2, and I want the filenames to match. This is what I do... make of it what you will.

1. Import with backup on - this is a temporary backup, just in case something goes wrong before I finish sorting.
2. Rename files
3. (You'd flag and delete rejects at this point)
4. Use the OS to copy the folder to my CR2 backup structure. Export as Original format to the other drive would do the same.
5. Right click > Convert to DNG with delete originals turned on.

That leaves my DNG in my current locations, and my CR2's in a matching structure on one of my externals.

 

[gragra]

Hi Victoria,

That sounds look a good approach and I'll give it a go. Thanks for the help.

Can I ask what people do in relation to exported files for print (I would just use local camera store that does a good job):

- Do you store jpegs in same folder as dng or subfolder or elsewhere?
- Is it worthwhile exporting these into catalog or does that just confuse things?

G

 

[Brad Snyder]

Conventional wisdom is export, print, delete. This leverages Lr's DAM by giving you a print on-demand operability, without having to maintain a separate catalog structure to track the output. For that type of work, that's how I do it personally. I just keep a tickler 'To Print' folder for low volume stuff, with subfolders for common aspect ratios.

Of course the workability of that, and the effort invested, will depend greatly on the volume of printing, particularly repeat-printing.

 

[Denis Pagé]

...Refine does something like knock all the flags down one notch - so flagged items become unflagged, and unflagged ones get reject flags.

Said like that, it is so clear!
Lesson learned.
Never used it but I do have a use for it so...