P: Include additional metadata in XMP (flags, collections, VC's, etc.)

Anything

Forum software managled my punctuation. Should read:

While it would be technically possible to store sets of [collection, flag] settings in metadata...

Steve wrote, "I don't want to create a big catalog file just to transfer a few flags between machines."

Using File > Export As Catalog can be pretty fast if you just want to transfer metadata. Uncheck the options Export Negative Files, Build / Include Smart Previews, and Include Available Previews. On my machine, exporting a project with 260 photos as a catalog takes just a couple of seconds, and the catalog file is only 9.5 MB (about three times as large as the corresponding .xmp files). (On most machines, creating and copying 1000 files of 10K each (10 MB) is typically slower than creating one file that's 30 MB.)

To build on Victoria's comments, as a general mechanism, synchronizing just the .xmp files to transfer metadata has a number of issues that, while they may not affect you, would affect others wishing to transfer or synchronize metadata to another machine:

- LR doesn't use .xmp files for JPEGs, TIFFs, and DNGs.

- .xmp files don't capture a large amount of metadata, including: collections, stacks, virtual copies, develop history.

More generally, many, many people want LR to provide the ability to share catalogs and projects between computers and users much more seamlessly than the current mechanisms allow. It's the second most popular unimplemented feature request in this forum:

http://feedback.photoshop.com/photosh...

I agree that it is inconsistent to include ratings and color labels but not flags.

This probably has its roots in versions 3 and earlier, in which flags were "local" to collections -- that is, a photo could have a different flag in each collection containing it. While it would be technically possible to store sets of settings in metadata, there would be lots of details making it much more complex than simply storing a "global" rating or color label.

LR 4 changed flags to be global, and according to Victoria's write-up at the time, one reason was "future compatibility with other applications". It would have made sense at that point to store the flags in metadata just like ratings and color labels.

(Note that a "pick" is a flag setting -- Photo > Set Flag > Flagged -- and is not stored in metadata.)

I don't want to create a big catalog file just to transfer a few flags between machines.

If star ratings and "picks" are saved in the XMP file then surely the "rejected" flag should be there as well? I see no logical reason not to include it.

That the expected behaviour, and flags aren't the only information that's limited to the catalog. Use Export As Catalog to transfer all of the information between computers.

When marking images as "rejected" this flag appears be be saved in the local catalog but not in the XMP files. If I copy the XMP files for a project to another machine and synchronize metadata the rejected photos don't show up as "rejected" on the new machine. Other changes - eg. flagging files as "picks", changing the star rating or adding a coloured flag are copied across via the XMP file as expected.

Thanks Divya. Any progress in the last 7 months?

Yes, I'm getting the same behaviour Ethan. I think "Place Embedded" is the same as dragging an image onto the document - both do not upscale correctly in Generator.

No solution after you posted this 8 months ago... yikes.

+1. I'm trying to develop a web/mobile Photoshop workflow training for art directors and designers versed in print at my company, and I really want this feature to be locked in and working properly before I commit. We've adopted a mobile first interactive methodology here, so an easy workflow for high pixel-density displays is tremendously helpful and could probably save us many thousands or tens of thousands of dollars a year in time gained for all designers on both coasts.