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Library module Merging LR catalogues and eliminating duplicate images. Question aout virtual copies

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bill.fischer5

bill.fischer5

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I have merged 4 catalogues in LRC. These come from several failed attempts to get organized. The result is that there are lots of exact duplicates.

They are the same file type, size, and have no edits.
The refer to the same Image file and folder in finder
The regular copy comes from catalogue A. The Virtual copy come from Catalogue B

Question 1
If one is an original and the second is a virtual coppie. Does it matter which one I delete?

Question 2
Can I make the virtual copy from Catalogue B an original. than I could delete delete the one from Catalogue A

I want to be sure to have oritional (negatives) saved on my hard disc for all my photos.
 
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What you describe is not really possible. You cannot have a VC in a catalog unless the original image it was created from is also in the same catalog (and in the same folder). So your statement that the Regular copy (I assume you mean import from actual image) is from catalog A and the VC is from Catalog B can't be true but I am probably misunderstanding what your are describing. In any event, if in the merged catalog if you have a VC it is derived from a regular (called master) image and in fact both images point to the same physical image file on disk.

Q1) If you have a master image with a VC derived from that master image in a catalog and you remove the master image from the catalog it will also remove the VC from that catalog at the same time. On the other hand if you remove the VC, the master image will remain in the catalog.

If you'd like a VC to become the master, there is a menu item to do that. Select the VC and then use menu path "Photo -> Set Copy as Master". At the same time this will change what had been the master into a VC.
 
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Cliftdan: thank you for telling me the name for the "master photo". All the photos I am talking about are in one new merged catalogue. I know which LRC Catalogue each photo has been merged from because I have identified it with a KW before merge. Let's see if I understand what you are saying. In Order to keep the photo that was identified as coming from catalogue B I should convert it to a Master. Will that automatically convert the other photo to a VC? At that point I should be able to delete it from the catalogue BUT NOT THE DISK.

Your answer to the second questions telling me how to convert a VC to a master is just what I needed
 
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bill.fischer5 said:
Cliftdan: thank you for telling me the name for the "master photo". All the photos I am talking about are in one new merged catalogue. I know which LRC Catalogue each photo has been merged from because I have identified it with a KW before merge. Let's see if I understand what you are saying. In Order to keep the photo that was identified as coming from catalogue B I should convert it to a Master. Will that automatically convert the other photo to a VC? At that point I should be able to delete it from the catalogue BUT NOT THE DISK.

Your answer to the second questions telling me how to convert a VC to a master is just what I needed
Click to expand...

There is only one “original image” file in a Lightroom Catalog. A virtual copy is a set of develop instructions. A master copy is also only a set of develop instructions. Both copy types apply to the same file. When you merge catalogs, If the same file exists in both catalogs, and the develop history is the same, then there is only one master copy of instructions. If the develop history is different, one is designated as the master and the other develop history becomes a virtual copy. After you have merged catalogs, you can decide to promote a virtual copy to master and demoted that master to virtual.
If you delete a virtual copy, you do not delete the master copy of the underlying file referenced by both. If you delete a master copy, you will also delete any virtual copy because you will also delete the reference path from the catalog to the file on disk.


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clee01l said:
There is only one “original image” file in a Lightroom Catalog. A virtual copy is a set of develop instructions. A master copy is also only a set of develop instructions. Both copy types apply to the same file. When you merge catalogs, If the same file exists in both catalogs, and the develop history is the same, then there is only one master copy of instructions. If the develop history is different, one is designated as the master and the other develop history becomes a virtual copy. After you have merged catalogs, you can decide to promote a virtual copy to master and demoted that master to virtual.
If you delete a virtual copy, you do not delete the master copy of the underlying file referenced by both. If you delete a master copy, you will also delete any virtual copy because you will also delete the reference path from the catalog to the file on disk.


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Click to expand...
Thank you. That explanations is very clear and helps. You said that if the develope history is identical than only a master copy should be in the merged catalogue. Are KW's considered a develop instruction? I ask this because I have identical images that merged from two different catalogues that have no edits on either of them that have a master and a VC.

Is there a way to promote a batch of VC's at once? I have hundreds that should be premoted.
 
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bill.fischer5 said:
Is there a way to promote a batch of VC's at once? I have hundreds that should be premoted.
Click to expand...
Keywords are metadata but differences here would be another way to generate VCs. If the identical images were imported into two separate catalogs there would be a develop history difference and this would cause a VC.

If you look in the Adobe Feature requests you will find a request to implement a batch process to promote VCs to Master. It is several years old now and no action has been taken. Promoting VCs to Master ia unfortunately a one image at a time process.
 
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