P: Ability to sync Lightroom Classic keywords with the Lightroom Ecosystem

I agree that it's a huge omission, and I want to see it rectified, but while they look like strings in the UI, I believe the internal implementation is much more complex (in order to support hierarchies and global keyword renaming, etc.).

I investigated writing a plugin that would sync keywords from LR CC back to LR Classic. Unfortunately, the Creative SDK (Software Development Kit) provides access to all the other metadata fields -- title, caption, capture date, flag, and rating -- but, inexplicably, not keywords!  

If it provided access to keywords, it would be straightforward to implement a plugin that synced from CC to Classic, handling the mapping from flat back to hierarchical keywords nearly seamlessly.  Adding keywords to the Creative SDK would only take a few hours on the part of Adobe engineering.  So please add your vote and constructive opinion to this bug report: 
https://feedback.photoshop.com/photoshop_family/topics/creative-sdk-provide-access-to-lightroom-cc-k...

There is clearly logic to flatten keywords at initial load to Lightroom CC, so if that is acceptable to those who have converted it should be acceptable to use that same logic ongoing (after the initial load).

The best yet ridiculous workaround I've found is to do all my editing and metadata in Lightroom Classic "CC," add the name of the folder in Lr as "title" metadata, export as jpgs, and import to Photos on a Mac, which *does* sync keywords with iCloud, and then... the Apple Photos app on an iOS device can actually do a decent search with that!

That plan is obviously not useful for many reasons, especially with being able to find recent photos I've spent time tagging from a desktop while mobile. There is no ability to do the reverse with Lightroom CC (which would also be how any normal user would expect it to work), and no reason for pros to use Lightroom as a one-and-only tool if such a fundamental capability we rely on simply doesn't work.

This is a glaring problem with the Lightroom workflow Adobe. We'd love to use your mobile app but this method of not using it is what it's come down to in the meantime! Please address this so we can move forward together with CC as an actual professional tool.

Karl. I have found that information recorded in the “Title” and the “Caption” fields do sync. You may find this to be a work around although I agree it would help if the keywords did also sync.

Let me explain why the failure to carry over keywords in the synchronisation is a big problem for me! I am a nature photographer, often hiking many miles to remote locations to photograph rare orchids. There usually (the area being nature reserves) is no or very bad cell coverage. Often I am meeting up with fellow orchidophiles or meet groups in the field - several times I have had chanche meetings with reknown experts. On such meetings you start exchanging information about locations and often show pictures of recent or not so recent discoveries, usually showing photos because they help. Several times I had made false determinations - no „Sensei AI“ will be able to distinguish an Ophrys aymonii x aranifera hybrid from an Ophrys insectifera x aranifera hybrid but the experts often can and will correct the mistakes - so I need to update the keywords on the falsely identified orchids. And there I am, I can open up a paper notebook, write down the image identification (name, date, time) and make a note of the correct identification so that weeks later when I return to my office PC I can go through those notes - just because Lightroom CC can‘t update the keywords of images synchronized from Lightroom Classic CC collections. Very very stupid!

Totally right. Everything is artificial.
This morning in the building site we were offline. I was not able to use search using Lr Cc. I had to use my tinny iPhone screen to show something.
Total mess
And if we complain, somebody will explain either we want to use LR a way it was not intended to.
Or we do not understand the way it is intended to
And finally somebody explain me the 2 software we’re design for 2 audience.
Artificial. Yes. It is the word.

Right on Karl!

Johan, it is a non issue... the could just decide to flatten the keywords if there is any compatility issue. At least just sync the strings, not taking into account the hierarchy.

Los Angeles could very easily be copied as ... just « Los Angeles ». People don’t ask more than that!

Still there is the option in Lightroom Classic CC to synchronize your collections with Lightroom CC - not migrate (that I would never ever do, Lightroom CC is impossible to use if you have more than a few snapshots taken on your iPhone or iPad where I live - the network coverage simply isn't suitable) and the synchronized images are perfectly suited (and designed) to be presented or even edited - but not the keywords because it seems you are too stupid to see the workflow that many have. I have talked to every photographer I know and every single one of them who is using Lightroom Classic CC would like to see the ability to keyword his synchronized collections from Lightroom CC - because it's convenient to sit on a comfy chair and organize the images instead of having to sit in the stuffy office and work on the image editing workplace.

So that's a glaring omission that really get's on a lot of people's nerves. I have keyworded my images extensively in Lightroom Classic CC and would like to be able to search for the keywords in the synchronized colllections in Lightroom CC. Last time I was asked in promptu to show some images from European Mantis because that's what I was talking about at the time - I needed to know in which collection they are (some rather large ones) and about in which position, at the time I didn't find my best shots because I didn't remember in which collection they were. The ability to find them would have been facilitated with ease by entering "Mantis" and then I would have had my images at hand - but no, the keywords aren't available. So, sorry, the discrepancy in keyword design doesn't bother me as a user, as a designer you have made a big mistake if you can't bridge the gap between products that were designed to be used in conjunction!

The differentiation between Lightroom CC and Lightroom Classic CC thus is rather artificial. Lightroom Mobile (from which Lightroom CC was eventually created) was the cloud part of the Adobe Creative Cloud for Lightroom CC (what later became Lightroom Classic CC) - so don't give me the "different audiences and workflows" crap. That's a sorry excuse for not having keywords synchronize!