Question

Masking and Preference Issues

Forum|Forum|5 months ago
December 15, 2025
5 replies
3544 views

I have been having this issue for months now in Lightroom Classic. Every once in a while, I will try to create a mask and it simply just doesn't register. I click to create one and it won't create one, and it doesn't matter what kind of mask. I have shared remote access with multiple adobe agents, who will reset my preferences, and then assure me my problem is fixed. It is usually fixed for a little while, but then will pop up again. It came to a point where I had to beg for the phone number over chat just to talk to someone over the phone. Even then, it took me six tries calling the number before I reached anyone. And then that person was being difficult when I kindly asked to speak to a supervisor just to get a second set of eyes on the issue over the phone. There's more I could complain about with adobe support.

Anywho, I'm having the issue again and following the same steps the last agent did. I go to preferences in finder and change the CC7. plist file to CC7.old.plist. Then I quit lightroom and try again. Still nothing. I optimize my catalog, to no avail.

Now it's at the point I will follow the instructions, the masks will work for one photo, and then not the next. I'm so tired of this problem and not being connected to support that actually will help me or seem like they know what they're doing. Help!!! I'm attaching a screen recording of my issue. I'm a wedding photographer with seven large galleries to edit and I just don't have the time or patience anymore to be dealing with this problem and the lack of true support from Adobe.

My version of Lightroom: 15.0.1

iMac Info: Tahoe 26.1

I have plenty of storage on my disk and hard drives. My iMac is less than a year old with 32 GB memory. I'm not a computer wiz by any means but something has to be off. Someone please help!

Masking_Issue.zip

macOS

C

Chinoy Gupta

Adobe Employee

Hi @Lada Jensen , Can you also share the lrc_console.log present in "~/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Lightroom". It might have more information.

L

Lada JensenAuthor

Yes, here's a link to that:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ePucHGawUw_-Eb0PHu9KyCnGDqiLegG3/view?usp=share_link

D

drtonyb

Legend

@Lada Jensen

If a proper Preferences reset does fix the issue, albeit for only a short time, it seems that there is something going wrong as you work. Are you adding any of the 3rd-party plugins back to LrC? I see Aperture/iPhoto Importer Plug-in and Narrative in your System Info.

In your video, you demonstrate the issue clearly, but each Mask you try to create is an AI Mask; Subject, Sky, Background. Are you able to create other non-AI Masks such as Linear or Radial Gradient Masks?

johnrellis

Legend

"Are you able to create other non-AI Masks such as Linear or Radial Gradient Masks?"

The screen recording shows (at 0:08) a brush mask being created and disappearing.

D

drtonyb

Legend

@Lada Jensen wrote

"I'm having the issue again and following the same steps the last agent did. I go to preferences in finder and change the CC7. plist file to CC7.old.plist. Then I quit lightroom and try again. Still nothing."

Is this actually what the agent told you to do and what you actualy did and have been doing?

If it is, it is wrong. I seriously doubt these steps will reset your Preferences.

Don't rename the CC7. plist file while LrC is running; if you do, when you quit, the cached Preferences will be written as they were.

Quit LrC first, then rename the CC7. plist file, then start LrC; doing it in this order will reset the Preferences.

L

Lada JensenAuthor

Thank you for the reply! I have tried it both ways. While running and after quitting. I watched the agent do it while it was running, and have seen other agents quit first. My issue with resetting preferences is that is does not last for long before my issues start again. So I am constantly resetting preferences for a temporary fix.

johnrellis

Legend

Thanks for the System Info and screen recording -- that level of detail helps.

The System Info looks normal, no clues there. I don't recall reading other reports with the symptoms shown in your screen recording.

1. Are you using a tablet/stylus? I don't see any indication of that in the System Info. Infrequently, a misbehaving pointing device can do really strange things. It seems unlikely to cause your symptoms, but it's simple enough to try a different device, e.g. a different mouse.

2. I'm assuming you create a new catalog for each new project, and that the catalog shown in System Info was created recently for that wedding?

3. Is /Volumes/T7 Photo 3 locally attached (via cable) or a network volume?

4. Try creating a new catalog on the local Macintosh HD disk rather than an external disk. If that works, then we can investigate permissions, hardware, or network issues with the external disk. Creating a new catalog would be a little better than moving the existing catalog folder, since it's remotely plausible that disk issues have corrupted the current catalog.

* * *

Adobe customer support is good for solving very routine, common issues, but not so good with problems like yours.

L

Lada JensenAuthor

Thanks for responding! To answer your questions:

1. No, I am editing on an iMac. I've used another mouse and had the same issue. The adobe agents who I've shared my screen with had the same problem.

2. I do create a new catalog for every wedding. But I've had this issue across multiple catalogs.

3. T7 Photo 3 is locally attached via cable.

4. I'll try creating a test catalog on the Macintosh HD disk, but I would prefer to store my work on my external disks.

Thank you for your help I'll reply with an update shortly!

L

Lada JensenAuthor

Update: I created a test catalog on the Macintosh HD disk. It was fine for a little bit but is now not working. Same issue as in the video.

johnrellis

Legend

Please do the LR menu command Help > System Info and copy/paste the entire contents here so we can see exactly which versions of hardware and software LR thinks you're running and important LR options that are set.

L

Lada JensenAuthor

Lightroom Classic version: 15.0.1 [ 202511041508-dddee541 ]
License: Creative Cloud
Language setting: en-US
Operating system: Mac OS 26
Version: 26.1.0 [25B78]
Application architecture: arm64
Logical processor count: 10
Processor speed: NA
SqLite Version: 3.36.0
Adobe GSDK Version: 1.4.0.171

Built-in memory: 32,768.0 MB
Dedicated GPU memory used by Lightroom: 7,425.8MB / 25,559.0MB (29%)
Real memory available to Lightroom: 32,768.0 MB
Real memory used by Lightroom: 4,284.7 MB (13.0%)
Virtual memory used by Lightroom: 432,605.6 MB
Memory cache size: 1,716.3MB
Internal Camera Raw version: 18.0 [ 2389 ]
Maximum thread count used by Camera Raw: 5
Camera Raw SIMD optimization: SSE2
Camera Raw virtual memory: 625MB / 16383MB (3%)
Camera Raw real memory: 722MB / 32768MB (2%)

Cache1:
Final1- RAM:629.0MB, VRAM:4,312.0MB, GM3A1273.CR3
NT- RAM:629.0MB, VRAM:4,312.0MB, Combined:4,941.0MB

Cache2:
m:1,716.3MB, n:352.3MB

U-main: 84.0MB

Standard Preview Size: 4480 pixels
Displays: 1) 4480x2520

Graphics Processor Info:
Metal: Apple M4
Init State: GPU for Export supported by default
User Preference: GPU for Export enabled
Enable HDR in Library: OFF
GPU for Preview Generation: On (S5_24)

Application folder: /Applications/Adobe Lightroom Classic
Library Path: /Volumes/T7 Photo 3/Lightroom Catalogs/Zapata Wedding Full/Zapata Wedding Full - HE.lrcat
Settings Folder: /Users/ladadoukhnai/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Lightroom

Installed Plugins:
1) AdobeStock
2) Aperture/iPhoto Importer Plug-in
3) Flickr
4) Narrative

Config.lua flags:

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