I am new to using LRC. All my folders were saved to desktop. I placed all the folders into one folder to clean up desk top. Now lots of folders are not in single folder. They are not in LRC library either. Missing close to 6 months of photos.

The biggest rule when using LRC is anything you do to the folders in LRC must be done WITHIN LRC. If you switch back and forth between using the Finder/Explorer, you are opening yourself up to a bunch of mental pain.

The reason is that LRC’s central core is a database that’s contained in the LRC’s catalog. EVERYTHING you do within LRC, and where you’ve done it is captured in that catalog. When you’ve done something in the Finder/Explorer, that is outside of LRC’s awareness and therefore, gone. Think of this as living with a blind person who knows where all the furniture is located. Then, trying to be helpful, you move a chair into, what you think, is a better location, but do not let the blind person know about the movement. Later, when the blind person goes to sit on the chair, well, that’s your fault becuase you did not let them know about the move.

Fortunately, to fix this is mostly easy. If you see some images with exclamation points “!” in the thumbnails, those are images where LRC is trying to find the chair where it knew it last was. If you click on the “!,” LRC will ask you where that file is now located and will bring up the Finder/Explorer search window. As long as you can guide where in your computer’s the one image is in, it will not only locate where that image is, but also all other images in that folder. And, if you moved multiple folder/subfolder sets, (e.g., folder “California” that contains “Los Angeles,” “San Francisco,” and “San Jose,” and that structure was maintained during your move, then LRC will be able to know the whereabouts of all of those images and you’re done with that set. 

Since you do not provide enough information about how much “furniture” you moved, it’s impossible for us to know how busy you’re going to be to fix all of the information. Just be patiend, and in the future, move all folders and images from within LRC the Library Tab.

FWIW, it took me too long to learn this, so do not feel bad.

Please be more speciifc.

What do you mean with: “LRC folders went to desktop”. Which LrC folder do you mean? The folder with your images or the catalog folder?

Some folders I dropped are there but many are missing.

Where are the folder? Have you take a look into the trash?

What happened if you try to open Lightroom? Are all images are shown in the library? Does they have a exclamation mark in the upper right corner?

Which operating system do you have install?

Do you have a recent backup from your appropriate Lightroom files and images?