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adamh9472359
adamh9472359
Participant
June 13, 2023
Answered

Edit part of a large catalog

  • June 13, 2023
  • 1 reply
  • 305 views

I have about 200k images in my lightroom Classic catalog. It is about 4TB. My laptop is "just a little" smaller. I'd like to be able to take a portion of that catalog with me when I travel, do some editing, then update the master catalog at home when I return. I would want the edited versions to overwrite the older versions rather than just importing them again, giving rise to more duplicates. (I'm down to 200k from about 1.2 M by finding and eliminating duplicates)

 

Seems as if this should be a straightforward process, but I don't see it. I need some help on both exporting to the laptop and re-importing on return.

 

Thanks,

 

Adam

 

 

 

This topic has been closed for replies.
Correct answer KR Seals

1. Select the folders you want to take with you.

2. In the File Menu -> Export as a catalog

3. In the next screen, Choose the location and name of the catalog your are exporting. If you can get by with out all the full size original files, do not check Export Negative Files, but check Build/Include Smart Previews. Also check Include available previews.

4. Take the resulting set of files to the laptop and in the File Menu - Import From Another Catalog.

When you return, you can reimport the travel catalog back into the desktop machine.

Note: Unless you will be doing Exporting or Printing, smart previews will work just fine for processing. If Exporting or Printing, you will need the original files.

 

 

1 reply

KR Seals
Community Expert
KR SealsCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
Community Expert
June 13, 2023

1. Select the folders you want to take with you.

2. In the File Menu -> Export as a catalog

3. In the next screen, Choose the location and name of the catalog your are exporting. If you can get by with out all the full size original files, do not check Export Negative Files, but check Build/Include Smart Previews. Also check Include available previews.

4. Take the resulting set of files to the laptop and in the File Menu - Import From Another Catalog.

When you return, you can reimport the travel catalog back into the desktop machine.

Note: Unless you will be doing Exporting or Printing, smart previews will work just fine for processing. If Exporting or Printing, you will need the original files.

 

 

Ken Seals - Nikon Z 9, Z 8, 14mm-800mm. Computer Win 11 Pro, I7-14700K, 64GB, RTX3070TI. Travel machine: 2021 MacBook Pro M1 MAX 64GB. All Adobe apps.
    adamh9472359
    adamh9472359Author
    Participant
    June 25, 2023

    Thank you!. One follow up question. Part of my usual editing is to zoom way in to be sure that an image is in focus. It would seem that I can't do that with the smart previews, or can I?

     

    Adam

     

    KR Seals
    Community Expert
    KR SealsCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    June 26, 2023

    I'm sure you can, but you would be zooming in to a ~2500 pixel wide image (the size of the smart preview). 100% of that will not be the same as 100% of a larger image, ~8500 pixels in a 45MP image for example.

    Ken Seals - Nikon Z 9, Z 8, 14mm-800mm. Computer Win 11 Pro, I7-14700K, 64GB, RTX3070TI. Travel machine: 2021 MacBook Pro M1 MAX 64GB. All Adobe apps.
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