Importing and erasing

Quote from a PM:

garyc74660117

There is no good reason to delete images from the LR catalog file just because you are done editing and exporting them.

You can move those images to an external drive from inside of LR or using the File manager for the OS you are using and still leave them in the LR Catalog file so in the future if you need to access them you can without having to re-import them.

If you use the OS File Manager then you will need to Reconnect them in LR. And if you need to access them you will need to have that external drive connected to your computer at the time you want to re-edit, export them.

I think you really need to get a book or view some of the very good LR tutorials on what LR is, how LR works and the proper way to work with LR.

You seem to have some misconceptions about the program.

Please keep all discussions in this thread.

garyc74660117  wrote Trying to make this a fast question. If I am shooting between 100-300 photos and editing them down to like 30+ for a magazine what is  the best way to import them and be able if I need to re edit one or two do that. I tried it and it shades some out that I already edited.

Don't import the photo again. Just go to the Library Module, find the photo, and continue editing.

The second part is I want to be able to save the finished and RAW files to an external hard drive and remove everything completely fro Lightroom. What would be the best way to do that? Just want the best way to import the photos and put them in a catalog or somewhere else then send them t a drive then delete everything from my computer and again, be able to go back in and edit previously edited photos.

The best way? Don't delete the photos from LR in the first place. Leave them in LR if you want to go back in an edit more. I know that's not what you asked for, but what you asked for (delete the photos from LR) is a very poor practice, and you should not do this.

Since LR never actually changes the RAW file you really can't move and remove the RAW file from LR and expect your edits to be included. you can export an edited copy of the file in TIFF format that will include all the edits. That new file, the TIFF, will have the edits Burned into it. you can't go back it that TIFF and remove or change those original edit.

There is an option in LR to auto write changes to XMP. Which is a sidecar file that holds all the edits you have done. But those edits are only readable by either LR or Adobe Camera RAW. No other RAW editor can read them and or apply those edits to the RAW file.

As for paring down 100-300 images to 30 that is something you have to do manually.

I would import all the image. Us the key board shortcut key, "x", to set the Reject flag on the one you don't want or the "p" keyboard shortcut to set the Picked/Flagged icon the one you do want.

If you use the x key you can then use Control + the backspace key to Delete the rejected images.

If you use the p key to you can use the Filter bar to see only the Un-Flagged images then delete those so you are left with only the picked/flagged images.