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- LRD doesn't have edit history, but is it hidden in xmp files that can be seen by LRC later?
No, it's not hidden anywhere - it doesn't exist.
- If I create Collections with the travel LRC cataglog on the laptop, when it comes time to export my new travel photos, will the Collections be exported together with the new photos?
- Is it easier to retain the Collections made on the road with LRC or with LRD?
Yes, if you use File > Import from Another Catalog on the desktop, after doing a File > Export as Catalog on the laptop. Try it - it's quite obvious, and this LrC-only workflow retains everything that you do in LrC.
If you wish to use LrD on the road, Collections will simply sync into your LrC catalog. So that can be less work. But then you're really going to need to use LrD, you'd not have any editing history and smart collections, and you'd have to see if you can get your head around using one app on the laptop, a different one on the desktop.
My answers are from my experience. Others may have different advice. And it gets complicated if you are talking about the new 'Local' feature in LrD. Ignore 'Local' for now.
By @Rob_Cullen
@Rob_Cullena big thank you for your point-by-point response style that addressed all my concerns in one fell swoop!
Based on everything you said, it is clear to me that, LrC is the way to go, for my purposes of retaining Edit History and Collections upon import when returning home.
However, there is one aspect unclear in this workflow.
When I am on the road and using LrC on the laptop to create Collections (synced to cloud for purposes of sharing and further curating etc using iPhone/iPad on the go), I am aware that these Collections will be "removed from the Cloud" if I delete these files and folders on the laptop (after importing to home LrC catalog).
Is there a way to stop this "Cloud Removal" process? Perhaps by:
- before importing/merging the travel catalog with home LrC catalog at home, I would stop sync on the laptop first
- after importing, remove these source files and folder from laptop
- somehow point these "Collections" to the new location of source files and laptops on the home computer?
My objectives are to allow the existing links of these Collections shared from the travel laptop to remain active, and also ensuring that future edits to the source files on the home catalog will be reflected in the existing Collections already linked to Cloud. But I am not sure if LrC or LrD are designed to work this way. Maybe there is even a superior (but more complicated) way to acheive what I am trying to do?
PS. Could the new "local" function of LrD help in any way to achieve the above?
LRD doesn't have edit history, but is it hidden in xmp files that can be seen by LRC later?
By @TopAdobeFan
First, even for Lightroom Classic, edit history is not stored in XMP metadata. It is stored in the Lightroom Classic catalog database. Which desktop cloud Lightroom does not read. So, edit history has never been stored in XMP, which means it was never going to be an option for this, even with the new Local option in cloud desktop Lightroom.
Cloud desktop Lightroom has Versions, simliar to Snapshots in Lightroom Classic. The closest thing cloud Lightroom has to History is the Auto Version, but it does not show every single editing step like Lightroom Classic History does, just the state at the end of each session. And, cloud Versions are stored in the cloud database, and cannot be transferred to any catalog. So there is no possibility of transferring that info.
The only way to preserve a full step-by-step edit History panel across computers is to run Lightroom Classic on both, and merge catalogs using File > Import From Another Catalog.
If I create Collections with the travel LRC cataglog on the laptop, when it comes time to export my new travel photos, will the Collections be exported together with the new photos?
By @TopAdobeFan
Yes, if you open your primary catalog, choose File > Import From Another Catalog, and then import the travel catalog from the travel computer. Import From Another Catalog imports everything — history, collection membership, and many other things you will never find stored in an XMP file because that data is stored at the catalog level, not the file level.
Cloud desktop Lightroom only has a partial solution here. In cloud Lightroom you can create Albums, which are the same as the Collections in Lightroom Classic, and any Albums you create will sync down to the Classic catalog that is synced to the cloud. But…cloud Lightroom also lets you create Folders to organize Albums, and those Folders are not converted to Collection Sets in Classic, and are not the same thing as to the file-system-based Folders in Lightroom Classic.
Is it easier to retain the Collections made on the road with LRC or with LRD?
By @TopAdobeFan
In a Lightroom travel catalog, if you create collections, collection sets, Smart Collections, and other collection-based projects in Lightroom Classic such as slide shows and print layouts, when you get home if you use File > Import From Another Catalog to merge the travel catalog with your primary catalog, all of that gets transferred to your primary catalog.
In cloud Lightroom, as mentioned in the previous answer, only Albums sync back to Lightroom Classic, as Collections. Other cloud Lightroom organizational tools do not sync back, such as Folders.
So, the more you use the full power of collections in Lightroom Classic, the less cloud Lightroom is useful here, and the more you want to travel with Lightroom Classic.
Why hasn't Adobe come up with something more automated so far? Or do LrC users in general don't care about sharing?
By @TopAdobeFan
You don't need to have LrD to share photos while away. For example, you might have LrC on the laptop and share selected photos using LrWeb. At the end of the trip, select all the trip's photos, do an Export as Catalog on the laptop and Import from Another Catalog on the desktop (no need for your step 3). You'll get all your edit history, keywords and other metadata that Adobe decided not to sync. A lot less dragging and dropping, and you'll be doing metadata etc a little at a time while you're away, rather than in one big task when you return home.
You don't need to have LrD to share photos while away. For example, you might have LrC on the laptop and share selected photos using LrWeb. At the end of the trip, select all the trip's photos, do an Export as Catalog on the laptop and Import from Another Catalog on the desktop (no need for your step 3). You'll get all your edit history, keywords and other metadata that Adobe decided not to sync. A lot less dragging and dropping, and you'll be doing metadata etc a little at a time while you're away, rather than in one big task when you return home.
By @john beardsworth
I wasn't aware of LrWeb's capabilities until you prompted me to look into it, so thanks for pointing this option out!
Upon a quick review, it seems LrW has all the sharing capabilities of LrD so this is absolutely a viable solution which allows me to stay on LrC even while on the road.
The only downside of LrW is the photos don't seem to be color-managed properly by browsers, as I am noticing different color rendering in different browsers (eg. Firefox and Chrome, maybe Safari will be better?)
Regardless, LrW's convenience provides another convenient option when only small albums or quick shares are needed, so thanks for your reminder!
The only downside of LrW is the photos don't seem to be color-managed properly by browsers, as I am noticing different color rendering in different browsers (eg. Firefox and Chrome, maybe Safari will be better?)
Regardless, LrW's convenience provides another convenient option when only small albums or quick shares are needed, so thanks for your reminder!
By @TopAdobeFan
Safari should be color-managed, at least on Mac, and Firefox has a config setting which you should be able to switch (Google about:config). Of course, while you might be able to set up color management for yourself, you never know what browser your visitor may be using, or if they have a calibrated environment, and I'm not sure if iPads and iPhones are color managed.
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