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CocoTafoya
Participating Frequently
October 7, 2019
Question

Need to remove all images from Lightroom CC without deleting them

  • October 7, 2019
  • 3 replies
  • 357 views

I would like to remove ALL images from my Lightroom CC (And Lightroom Classic) libraries, but not delete them from my computer. I need tobe able to import specific albums that I create  - but since the photos are already in the library (somewhere) I'm not allowed to.  This is a HUGE flaw, and completely prevents me from using Lightroom, which I pay monthly for. From what I've read, this isn't even possible - I'm hoping that's not really the case. Thank you!

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    3 replies

    Theresa J
    Community Expert
    Theresa JCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    October 8, 2019

    Lightroom does not require you to put all of your photos there. You just import what you want to import. Are you using Lightroom on a computer to import photos, or a mobile device? What steps have you used to import photos? I'm not understanding how every photo you have ever taken has ended up in Lightroom, or maybe I am misunderstanding what you are saying.

    Lightroom uploads photos to the cloud when you import them. There is no option in Lightroom to keep some photos on a drive and others in the cloud. It's all or nothing. If you want to have some images synced to the cloud but not all, you should use Lightroom Classic.

    Theresa J
    Community Expert
    Theresa JCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    October 8, 2019

    If the images are already in Lightroom, then there should be no reason to upload them again. There is no option to selectively sync images to the cloud with Lightroom. You have to use Lightroom Classic for that. My guess is that Classic will do everything you want it to do if you understand how it works.

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    CocoTafoyaAuthor
    Participating Frequently
    October 8, 2019
    I only want specific photos in Lightroom, not every photo I have ever taken, which is the case right now. It's overwhelming and I only want specific albums that I manually upload in Lightroom. That seems to be the hardest thing for anyone to understand: I don't want all of my photos in Lightroom .It prevents me from doing what I need to do, it's messy and overwhelming. I will try using Lightroom Classic for this, but it does seem strange to me that is not an option not to have ALL of your photos in the cloud load into Lightroom.
    Theresa J
    Community Expert
    Theresa JCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    October 8, 2019

    Lightroom stores images in the cloud. You can not remove images without deleting them. It is designed to work that way. However, Lightroom Classic stores images on a local hard drive. You can remove images from a Classic catalog without deleting them. You can also delete images in Lightroom's cloud without losing them, IF you have synced your Classic catalog with Lightroom.

    It's not clear if you understand the differences between the two applications and how they work together. It's also not clear what exactly you are trying to do. Are you importing to Lightroom or Lightroom Classic? Do you know how to sync collections from Classic? Maybe this is a better workflow for you. If you can provide a better outline of what you are trying to do, someone here can probably help.

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      CocoTafoyaAuthor
      Participating Frequently
      October 8, 2019
      Thank you Theresa. what I am basically trying to do is unsync all my photos from Lightroom CC so that I can import only the ones I want. I would like the option to do this for both Lightroom Classic and CC, but mainly CC. I want the ability to upload photos as needed, and not be prevented from doing so because the photos are already there. Hopefully this is makes more sense - thank you. 😉
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