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aiur4
Known Participant
March 19, 2017
Answered

PSB file in LR

  • March 19, 2017
  • 6 replies
  • 1958 views

Why PSB files are not supported in LR? I have tons of PSB files to organize with LR and I still dont understand Adobe not to support PSB files for LR. So why not supporting PSB files for?

    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer Per Berntsen

    The PSB format (large document format) was designed to be able to save images larger than 4 GB.

    Ligthroom is designed to handle raw files from digital cameras, and even a 100 megapixel sensor will only produce files in the 100 - 160 MB range. So if your PSB files are below 4 GB, you could save them as Tiffs, and import them in Lightroom, which has a file size limit of 65,000 pixels on the long side, or a total of 512 megapixels.

    6 replies

    RichardChung
    RichardChung
    Participant
    December 1, 2017

    It is a disaster saving TIFF and open it in LR.

    After opening the file in LR then export to PS.... I lost all the layers. .... no return....

    Per Berntsen
    Community Expert
    Per BerntsenCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    December 1, 2017

    Your layers are not lost, they are still in the original file.

    When using Edit in Photoshop, choose Edit Original, which will open the original with layers in PS.

    Edits you have done in LR will not be visible, but edits you do in PS will be visible when you save the file and return to LR.

    Since Lightroom cannot work with layers, it has to be this way.

      RichardChung
      RichardChung
      Participant
      December 1, 2017

      Thank you for the help.

      I just figured that last night.

      johnrellis
      johnrellis
      Legend
      March 20, 2017

      Please add your me-too vote and constructive details about why you want PSB supported to this popular feature request in the official Adobe feedback forum: Lightroom: Support cataloging PSB files (files larger than 2 GB PSDs and 4 GB TIFFs) | Photoshop Family Customer Communi… . (This forum is primarily a user-to-user forum in which Adobe product developers rarely participate.)

      Todd Shaner
      Todd Shaner
      Legend
      March 19, 2017

      My guess is that Adobe has chosen not to support PSB files because of potential performance issues with LR's non-destructive editing tools. PSD file size is limited to 30,000 x 30,000 pixels (900 Megapixels) or 2 GB and TIFF files are limited to 4 GB. PSB files are normally only needed when exceeding these limits, which would most likely cause LR to run very slow. Probably for this very reason Adobe has also limited the image size to 512 Megapixels maximum regardless of the file size in Gigabytes. Heck, we see performance complaints from people who are using image files less than 1/10th that size.

      Supported file formats in Lightroom

      johnrellis
      johnrellis
      Legend
      March 20, 2017

      Note that it's not at all unusual for a Photoshop image to exceed 4 GB, even though the compatibility layer (the layer read by LR) doesn't cause performance problems for LR.

      The total size is often driven more by the number of layers than the number of pixels. I've had customers at agencies send me example PSBs larger than 4 GB that are 50 megapixels, 16-bit, and 20 layers (e.g. a product photo of a sneaker painstakingly adjusted for a picky art director). The compatibility layer isn't that large -- 300 MB uncompressed -- and is comfortably handled by LR.

      Or consider a 3 x 2 interior panorama that's about 200 megapixels, 16-bit.  The PSB can exceed 4 GB after only 4 layers or so. LR can handle a 200 megapixel compatibility layer just fine.

      Todd Shaner
      Todd Shaner
      Legend
      March 20, 2017

      John, thanks for pointing that out–I've added my vote to the Photoshop Family request.

      Ian Lyons
      Community Expert
      Ian LyonsCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      March 19, 2017

      The largest file size supported by Lightroom is 65,000 pixels per side or 512 Mega pixels whereas PSB files can be up to 300,000 pixels. This is why Adobe refer to PSB files as 'Large Document Format' in Photoshop Save and Save As dialogs, and only recommend it's use for large documents.

      More info on supported file formats can be found at -  Supported file formats in Lightroom

      Per Berntsen
      Community Expert
      Per BerntsenCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
      Community Expert
      March 19, 2017

      The PSB format (large document format) was designed to be able to save images larger than 4 GB.

      Ligthroom is designed to handle raw files from digital cameras, and even a 100 megapixel sensor will only produce files in the 100 - 160 MB range. So if your PSB files are below 4 GB, you could save them as Tiffs, and import them in Lightroom, which has a file size limit of 65,000 pixels on the long side, or a total of 512 megapixels.

      dj_paige
      dj_paige
      Legend
      March 19, 2017

      Why? Because that's the decision Adobe made. As I don't work for Adobe, I can't give further details. Perhaps you should contact Adobe to ask this question instead of asking in a user-to-user forum.

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