Copying photos from Lightroom Classic to new external hard drive

Question

I'm using Lightroom Classic 12.1 on a Mac Book Pro running Ventura 13.1.  I copied folders by dragging folders from Mac'c hard drive to new external hard drive. Then I used import on Library module to get Lightroom to recognize hard drive.  However none of the metadata transferred.  The photos transferred but no ratings.  Is there any way to get the metadata back?  If not how do I copy photos to a new external hard drive without loosing the metadata.

Rob_Cullen · Answer

Using "Import" was totally the wrong thing to do unfortunately. (Photos import with no metadata, etc)

You do not say if you created a new catalog, or 'imported' to a previous catalog- It may influence how you go forward with a fix.

The correct procedure should have been to 'Update' the folder location, or re-link, the ("Missing") Folders and Photos (in the Catalog Folder panel) to their new location on the new external drive.

The topic is covered in these links-

MOVING PHOTOS- 2 Methods

MISSING FILES AND FOLDERS-(Computer Darkroom)

Sign up

To post, reply, or follow discussions, please sign in with your Adobe ID.

Sign in to Adobe Community

To post, reply, or follow discussions, please sign in with your Adobe ID.

Scanning file for viruses.

This file cannot be downloaded