still struggle with catalog merging

[guido.coza]

Hi Guys
I still seem, not getting it right to merge my catalogs and always have the latest edits.
I keep all pictures on a external drive. Now and than I move new pics from either iMac or laptop to this external drive. Than I edit/delete pics either on laptop or on iMac on this drive. On top I edit some of the new pics before I move them to the external on either computer.
How will edits on laptop reflect on iMac catalog or vice versa??. so far I "export/import as catalog" but not all changes are showing!???
There is no real master catalog, however I could make either or the master.

 

[Johan Elzenga]

Lightroom does not edit the pictures themselves, it keeps the edits stored as instructions in its catalog. That's how you should look at what you're doing. Edits on the laptop are in the laptop catalog, edits on the iMac are in the iMac catalog. So unless you use 'Import from Another Catalog' to synchronize these catalogs, your edits will not carry over if you copy or move the images themselves.

 

[guido.coza]

Hi Johann that is what I am doing,

so far I "export/import as catalog" but not all changes are showing!???

I deleted pics on the laptop than went on the imac did the export as catalog import from catalog on the imac.
When I "synchronize folder" on the iMac more or less the amount of pics I deleted on the laptop before showed "missing".
Also I have now duplicate keywords where I shouldn't have. Examples Lion should be under carnivore>cats>lion Now I have "Lion " as separate keyword plus the hierarchy

 

[Johan Elzenga]

Synchronize folder is the wrong thing to do in this case. I never said you should use that. Doing this may import the images again as copies. You should only use 'Import from Another Catalog'.

Duplicate keywords can occur if you don't have the same keyword hierarchy in both catalogs. That could have been avoided by exporting the keyword list from one of the catalogs, and then importing this list into the other one. Right now you will have to solve this manually, I'm afraid.

 

[guido.coza]

Synchronize folder is the wrong thing to do in this case. I never said you should use that. Doing this may import the images again as copies. You should only use 'Import from Another Catalog'.

Hi Johan
Maybe i did not make myself clear. After "import from another catalog" I want to make sure the catalog is up to date with all the changes and edits. I choose the folder in the side panel and go to synchronize folder in the library tab. Now there should be no missing photos or pictures to be added. But it looks to me, not all the changes done on the laptop are carried over to the desktop catalog.

That could have been avoided by exporting the keyword list from one of the catalogs, and then importing this list into the other one

Do you mean I need to import keyword list separately to the catalog

 

[Johan Elzenga]

Maybe i did not make myself clear. After "import from another catalog" I want to make sure the catalog is up to date with all the changes and edits.

'Synchronize Folder' is for importing images that are not in Lightroom yet, but are in a folder that Lightroom already knows. You do not need to do that after you used 'Import from Another Folder'. In fact, it can be the reason why you see this problem: if there are old xmp files in that folder too, and you let Lightroom read those xmp files during 'Synchronize Folder' (it's one of the options), then the old information in those xmp files will overwrite the new edits you made. That is why it seems the edits aren't carried over. They are carried over, but by using 'Synchronize Folder' you delete them again.

Do you mean I need to import keyword list separately to the catalog

Yes, and you have to do that first (before you start adding keywords) so you add keywords from the same hierarchy as in the other catalog.

 

[Johan Elzenga]

One more thing, just to make sure you understand the dialog correctly. If Lightroom detects duplicate photos during 'Import From Another Catalog', it will ask you what to do. If you choose 'Nothing' behind 'Replace', then your new edits will be ignored for those photos. Choose 'Metadata and develop settings only'. You can preserve the old settings as a virtual copy to make sure you don't lose anything.

 

[guido.coza]

Ok that are two new info"s thanks a mill!! ( keyword and
Now that you staff member, you might could suggest a easier way.
I can't be the only one with this set-up and if I check the net, it is full with the same question over and over.
My catalog has some 68k pictures. It took days if not weeks to go thru the face recog. thing. Many times I edit keywords (delete pics in different folders with same keyword)
So now I have to export my entire catalog as I do not know where which face is or which rose I deleted!
There must be a way to sync two catalogs from two different machines where only the changes are detected and adjusted on a common location!??

 

[Johan Elzenga]

My catalog has some 68k pictures. It took days if not weeks to go thru the face recog. thing. Many times I edit keywords (delete pics in different folders with same keyword)
So now I have to export my entire catalog as I do not know where which face is or which rose I deleted!

I'm not sure I fully understand what you did and/or what you want to do. What do you mean with 'delete pics in different folders with the same keyword'? Do you mean you had duplicate images in Lightroom and deleted some duplicates? I also don't see what 'export my entire catalog' is supposed to do for you. Do you mean you want to select all your images and then use 'Export as Catalog'? Why? That will simply give you a copy of your present catalog...

There must be a way to sync two catalogs from two different machines where only the changes are detected and adjusted on a common location!??

Edits and metadata are stored in the Lightroom catalog, not in the images. So that 'common location' must be one of the two catalogs. If you import the one catalog into the other with the settings as I just showed you, and you've got one catalog with all the edits. Or is that not the question?

 

[guido.coza]

I'm not sure I fully understand what you did and/or what you want to do. What do you mean with 'delete pics in different folders with the same keyword'

Lets say I have rose pictures all over the show and think I need to have a cleanup and delete the ones that are not up to scratch anymore, I would highlight the keyword rose and it brings up all 500 rose pics. Now i delete 200 of those in all sort of folders. (Still keep a monthly folder structure) After that I do the same to elephants, lions and beerbottles.
I could not afterwards know where this edited deleted pictures are located so I have to export the entire catalog!??
BUT I just read in another post about having the catalog and the images both on the external HD
It would solve the problem of having to export large catalogs as I never work on both machines simultaneously. I would plug in the ex to the iMac if i am at home and to the laptop on tour the two computer would be seen as different volumes and the catalog is always up to date????

 

[Johan Elzenga]

Lets say I have rose pictures all over the show and think I need to have a cleanup and delete the ones that are not up to scratch anymore, I would highlight the keyword rose and it brings up all 500 rose pics. Now i delete 200 of those in all sort of folders. (Still keep a monthly folder structure) After that I do the same to elephants, lions and beerbottles.
I could not afterwards know where this edited deleted pictures are located so I have to export the entire catalog!??

That would accomplish nothing. Deleted images are gone from the catalog. If these images are also in the other catalog and you want to delete them from there too, you should mark them as 'Rejected' and not delete them. Then, after you've synchronised the catalogs, you can delete the rejected images from both catalogs.

I just read in another post about having the catalog and the images both on the external HD
It would solve the problem of having to export large catalogs as I never work on both machines simultaneously. I would plug in the ex to the iMac if i am at home and to the laptop on tour the two computer would be seen as different volumes and the catalog is always up to date????

Yes, having your catalog on the external disk too is a much easier solution than constantly synchronising two catalogs by using import from another catalog.

 

[guido.coza]

one last question. Can I just move the WHOLE LR folder to the exHD and point LR when opening to the new location?? Or is there a better easier way??

 

[Johan Elzenga]

Yes, in fact you must move the whole catalog folder. The only thing you need to do is let Lightroom know it should use the catalog on that EHD from now on. The easiest way of doing this is to start Lightroom by double clicking on the catalog file on that EHD. You only have to do that once (on each computer). After that, Lightroom will remember the new location.

 

[guido.coza]

Thanks Johan you are a star !!!

 

[guido.coza]

one more thing however, just to make sure. I point LR to the ircat folder and it will open automatically from the latest backup !?

 

[Johan Elzenga]

one more thing however, just to make sure. I point LR to the ircat folder and it will open automatically from the latest backup !?

I'm not sure I understand your question. Lightroom will open the catalog you moved to the EHD if you followed my advice. That is your new master catalog from now on and Lightroom will know that.