Lightroom Classic and External Hard Drives

[lynnm18109681]

I'm at a loss here and cannot find an answer anywhere. I just bought an external hard drive for my photos. I've fairly new to lightroom and have been figuring things out as I go. I am stuck on the importing process, I cannot seem to get it down. I plug my memory card into my Mac and I copy/move photos to my external hard drive first. Just drag and drop. Then I open LRC, click import, choose my photos on my external hard drive and click "add" at the top and then import. They show up in LRC under my external hard drive, I create my collections and collection sets and organize how I like.

Where I get stuck is when I eject my external drive, LRC can no longer find the original files and gives me that little exclaimation point in the top right corner of the photos. I understand that it cannot find them because the external drive is no longer connected... but how do I go about this? I've tried googling this problem in all sorts of questions and I am so frustrated. How do photographers navigate using LRC and an external drive? I don't want to have to have my drive connected anytime I want to edit photos....

There's no way my photos have to be stored on my computer... what would be the point of the external drive then? I'm so confused here. I followed step by step on Scott Kelby's youtube video on Lightroom organization (specifically how he imports photos).  

Please simplify any solutions, I am very beginner here in Lightroom!

[D Fosse]

Well, if you disconnect the drive, the photos are obviously no longer available.

[F. McLion · Accepted solution]

If you don't want the drive connected for editing, you can create Smart Previews. These are stored with the catalog on your computer and mainly are lower resolution, compressed special previews which LrC can use for development instead of the original files.

However, for the final export, printing and what not, you'll always need the originals to be connected.

This shows old version, but still basically the same, otherwise use Google: https://helpx.adobe.com/lightroom-classic/help/lightroom-smart-previews.html

[GoldingD]

 I don't want to have to have my drive connected 

Why?

There's no way my photos have to be stored on my computer.

An external drive is part of your computer (at least when connected)

Now in theory the photos can be on the Cloud, but that often fails. Not advised.

[Sean McCormack]

Personally I have my catalog and images on an external.. Well two actually, one is an SSD with the catalog and recent years folders. The other is a 24TB drive with older photos, still in Lightroom. I simply couldn't fit them on an internal, so I have to use external drives. The catalog could be on my internal, but sometimes I'll take the SSD with me to work away from my desk.

Lightroom Classic catalogs the files you import, but they must be connected to do full work on. Yes, you can use Smart Previews as @F. McLion says and that will allow you to get basic edits done, but not at a detailed level. You simply have to keep the drive connected to work on the file properly. This would be true of most programs. You could use Lightroom, where the files are stored in the cloud, but that's charged in 1TB increments at $10 per month. If you never go over 1TB you're fine on the base subscription, but more means more outgoings. 

[barryd37372784]

Very intertesting strategy of some images  on an SSD & others on HDD. how does it work ? .it may be intertest to me as my images are on an  a 4tb external SSD but it wil eventually fill up .  Am I  correct to say just  put the approriate folders on each  drive and ensure both are connected to  have access to all your images. However if  one drive disconnected then  only the  connected drive is visible to LRC , in which case  you will see the previews for the  disconnected drive  but told image not available  if you wish to use develop module for those images.  Thanks in advance 

[dj_paige]

Very intertesting strategy of some images  on an SSD & others on HDD. how does it work?

Images can be on multiple drives, Lightroom Classic doesn't have a problem with this.

Am I  correct to say just  put the approriate folders on each  drive and ensure both are connected to  have access to all your images.

I don't understand. Please explain in more detail.

[barryd37372784]

to simplify my question:

Currently, all my images are on a single drive and my LRC catalog on a
separate drive .

Am I correct to split my images over two drives I do the following:

1. ensure both drives are connected and can be both seen by LRC, by adding
the new drive to LRC, if necessary
2.* Inside lightroom* , move the required folders to the new drive
location , to ensure LRC can keep track of the new location


thanks
Barry

[dj_paige]

That's one method, but I don't recommend it. Another method of moving some photos to a 2nd drive, which I do recommend, is here (see Part 2 — Updating Folder Location). But the easiest thing to do, in my opinion, is not move the photos at all; when disk 1 gets close to being full, just start importing newly captured photos to disk 2.

[Sean McCormack]

I'd go with @dj_paige's suggestion using Update Folder Location. 

Once the catalog drive is available, and previews are generated, you should be able to see files in Library even if the other drive is disconnected. You'll be limited in what you can do, but having Smart Previews generated would allow you to Develop. 

[Lumigraphics]

Leave the external hard drive plugged in. SImple.

[Lori R E]

That's exactly what I do:  I have all of my photos on an external hard drive AND I have my LRC catalog on the same hard drive, as well as the LR back ups.  I also have an additional hard drive to back up everything on the first hard drive.  I can use the first hard drive on two different computers - one desk top and the other a Mac Air when I travel.

[JeweledFern]

Hi Lori, 

I saw your reply and this is what I want to do.  I have a pc at home and I am getting a mac air m3 for studio tethering and editing in studio when i want to get away from home office editing.  I want my mac to have classic so i can tether and intitial edits and then  take the external use on pc with lrclassic to edit there with photoshop etc or vice versa on mac..... errrrr let would i upload or sync previews to cloud if i forget my extefnzl in one p,ace or theother then recoo ectand sync to external ... i cznt edit in photoshop or other apps like topaz etc without krig8 sls though right .. arghh jow im goung 8n circkes ... canyou clar8fy for me. Thznks so much 

[JeweledFern]

  Here the translation of my mumble above .. lol

would i upload or sync previews to cloud if i forget my external drive with originals .. i can not edit however in photoshop or other apps like topaz etc without the originals I don't think?! arghh now I'm going in circles lol.. canyou clarify for me. Thznks so much 

[GoldingD]

Where I get stuck is when I eject my external drive,

Very few of us actuality disconnect external hard drives at all , much less do so while using the computer. If the external hard drive has it's own power supply, we might turn that off after turning off the computer to save electricity, maybe??Or if the computer is a laptop and we are on a trip, then yes disconnect when packing up.

And the term Eject normally implies removable media like flash cards/sticks.

This makes me ask, what is the make/model of that external hard drive?

[zabi_7641]

If you're using Lightroom Classic with an external hard drive, make sure your photos are stored on the drive and that it's always connected when working in Lightroom. Lightroom stores the catalog (edits and metadata) separately, so it's best to keep the catalog on your internal drive for speed, and the photos on the external drive. Just don't change the drive letter (Windows) or volume name (Mac), or Lightroom will lose track of the files.