LR mobile to LR Classic.... how to prevent re-download

[Stanley J]

Lightroom Version Number

LR Classic 9.2

Operating System

1. macOS 10.15 Catalina

I use the camera in LR Mobile on my iPhone to take photos, which I then download to a specific folder in LR Classic on my desk top titled "iPhone 11 Pro" .
However, after I down load a photo and if I then move that photo from the iPhone 11 Pro folder to a different folder within LR Classic, that photo will then re-download from the phone to the iPhone 11 Pro folder.
Is there a way to prevent this re-download without deleting the photo from the phone.
I did try to search Google and this forum for an answer to no avail.
Any advice appreciated.

 

[johnbeardy]

That's the way Mobile is supposed to work, so you can prevent the problem easily by not downloading and importing the files manually.

 

[Califdan]

which I then download to a specific folder in LR Classic on my desk top titled "iPhone 11 Pro

Please explain how you do this. Do you let the LR Cloud Sync process copy the images to Classic or do you import the images into classic by hand?

 

[Stanley J]

Please explain how you do this. Do you let the LR Cloud Sync process copy the images to Classic or do you import the images into classic by hand?

I do use the LR Cloud Sync process.

 

[prbimages]

That's the way Mobile is supposed to work ...

Hmmm, that's not my experience. For me, it works the way the original poster seems to think it should work. Namely, I take a photo with my phone (a cheap-ish Android), it syncs to the folder I have designated in Lightroom Classic, then I move it from that folder into a different folder. It does NOT re-download from the cloud again.

Is there a way to prevent this re-download without deleting the photo from the phone.

I don't know! It just works for me. I don't know of any specific setting that might affect this. Weird.

PS: I don't name my download folder with the name of the phone (e.g. your "iPhone 11 Pro" folder) because the same folder will be used whatever phone you are using, or if you import using Lightroom Cloudy or the web app. My folder is named "Lightroom Cloud".

 

[Stanley J]

I don't know! It just works for me. I don't know of any specific setting that might affect this. Weird.

Hmmm, I think I jumped the gun on this. I had taken a couple of hundred photos on the phone. Then downloaded them to my folder in LR Classic. Then moved them from that folder to a different folder. I then clicked on the LR Identity plate and saw it was syncing a quickly escalating number of photos. So I quickly paused syncing and then wrote my OP after doing a bit of searching.
After I read your "it works for me". I started syncing again.....and it did indeed indicate it was syncing many photos, but I let it run this time and then the numbers started to decrease. THOSE COUPLE OF HUNDRED PHOTOS NEVER DID IN FACT DOWNLOAD AGAIN. So the process does work like you said and my OP is mute. Sorry for wasting people's time.

 

[prbimages]

No problem ... good to know it works as you and I think it should work! For me the syncing process does seem to take a while, longer than I would expect even for a single photo, so yes, you do need to give it time.

 

[johnbeardy]

Hmmm, I think I jumped the gun on this. I had taken a couple of hundred photos on the phone. Then downloaded them to my folder in LR Classic. Then moved them from that folder to a different folder. I then clicked on the LR Identity plate and saw it was syncing a quickly escalating number of photos.

OK, you'll see these "syncing x photos" whenever you do certain things to photos which are already synced. So if you change their captions, that message will appear but will be relatively brief since LR is only syncing the metadata.