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Peter Weld
Peter Weld
Known Participant
February 28, 2022
Question

"Some import operations were not performed." Error code 52 with Nikon Z9

  • February 28, 2022
  • 3 replies
  • 1584 views

I bought a Nikon Z9 when they became available in late December, and I really like it, but I’m having a problem with the first batch of NEFs that I took with it. Some of the NEFs import into Lightroom Classic with no issues, but others get me an error message: “Some import operations were not performed. Could not move a file to the destination folder because it is not writable or there is not enough free space. (52)”. Then there’s a list of the NEFs which were not imported, but again it’s only some of them, not all (maybe 20% of them?).

 

Disk Utility says the hard disk of my MacBook Pro is only about half full, so “not enough free space” can’t be the real issue here. I’m running Catalina (10.15.7) and Lightroom Classic 11.1. The camera’s firmware is updated to the latest version though it wasn’t when I took those first photos. 

 

Can anybody offer an explanation as to why some of the NEFs won’t import while others will? And is there anything I can do to get those NEFs into Lightroom?

This topic has been closed for replies.

3 replies

KR Seals
Community Expert
KR SealsCommunity Expert
Community Expert
March 4, 2022

Wild guess here 🙂 Did you at any time update the Z9 firmware during this process of importing the .NEF files? I have not seen any mention of this issue in any of the Z forums I visit. Since I got my Z9 (latest firmware) a few weeks ago, I have imported several thousand .NEF files to both my Win 10 PC and M1 MBP Max without issue.

Ken Seals - Nikon Z 9, Z 8, 14mm-800mm. Computer Win 11 Pro, I7-14700K, 64GB, RTX3070TI. Travel machine: 2021 MacBook Pro M1 MAX 64GB. All Adobe apps.
Peter Weld
Peter WeldAuthor
Known Participant
March 4, 2022

I just updated the Z9 firmware last week, so I was using an older version when I took the January photos and when I initially tried to import them. After updating the firmware, I tried again to import the older NEFS but without success. Photos that I've taken since the firmware update seem to import just fine, but I don't want to throw away those January NEFs.

KR Seals
Community Expert
KR SealsCommunity Expert
Community Expert
March 7, 2022

That's interesting. I have not seen anywere in forums that the earlier firmware caused problems with files in regard to importing them into LrC. You could download the free Adobe DNG converter and use it on those problem files. See if that would work to create DNGs that LrC can import.

I'm pretty sure I updated the firmware in my Z9 prior to actually shooting any images. Updating the camera firmware won't have any effect on the files that were created in camera before the firmware update.

Ken Seals - Nikon Z 9, Z 8, 14mm-800mm. Computer Win 11 Pro, I7-14700K, 64GB, RTX3070TI. Travel machine: 2021 MacBook Pro M1 MAX 64GB. All Adobe apps.
Sameer K
Community Manager
Sameer KCommunity Manager
Community Manager
February 28, 2022

Hi Peter,

 

Thanks for reaching out. We are sorry for the trouble with Lightroom Classic. We are here to help!

 

Could you please confirm if you are importing images from the camera/SD card or stored on the internal drive? Are you using any compression modes in the camera? Do these specific images open or work in any other software? Where are to importing to (destination)? Is it an internal drive or an external drive?

 

Please update Lightroom Classic to 11.2 via the Creative Cloud desktop application and update the macOS.

You can also use the default setting on the camera and take sample images to check if they import as expected.

 

If you still get errors at import, please check the log and share the specific sample images here which failed at import.

Please let us know if this helps.
Regards,

Sameer K

Peter Weld
Peter WeldAuthor
Known Participant
March 1, 2022

Hi, Sameer,

 

Thanks for replying. The mystery has deepened. I upgraded Lightroom Classic to 11.2 and tried once again to import the NEFs that failed to import before. No luck. 

 

Then I took the Z9 out and fired off 72 NEFs in less than three seconds (the Z9 is fast!). All 72 of those NEFs imported properly to Lightroom, so I'm cautiously optimistic that future photos will load properly, but that still leaves me with 127 NEFs from early January which I can't get into Lightroom Classic.

 

Answers to your questions:

1) I'm importing the NEFs from a SanDisk CFExpress card, using a Sony card reader. I can import them to my computer, just not into Lightroom. I've tried putting them in a folder on my computer and then importing from there, but that approach gets me the same error message as before.

2) As far as I know, I'm not using any sort of compression in the camera. I'm saving raw files (NEFs) to one CFExpress card and fine JPEGs to the other card. Even if I were using compression, why would most files import correctly but some not at all?

3) I just tried loading one of those balky January NEFs into Photoshop, and to my amazement, it worked. Then I tried again to import it into Lightroom Classic without success. I've put that raw file on Dropbox, and I hope you'll be able to download it from here:

 

https://www.dropbox.com/s/qtz1c5qb22ldq47/_DSC0256.NEF?dl=0

 

4) I'm importing the photos to the MacBook Pro's internal drive, not to an external drive.

 

I've updated to version 11.2 of Lightroom, but I don't want to update the operating system because for everything else I do, Catalina works fine; I'm a firm believer in the adage, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

 

Can you give me any advice as to how I can get the NEFs from January into Lightroom Classic?

 

 

Sameer K
Community Manager
Sameer KCommunity Manager
Community Manager
March 2, 2022

Thanks for the detailed response and the sample image document.

 

I tried to import the shared RAW File, and it imported just fine. Could you please go to File> New Catalog in Lightroom Classic and generate an empty catalog as a test.

Import these files from January into that catalog and check if this works?
If it works without any errors, please go to File> Import from Another Catalog and merge the old catalog into the new test catalog. Older catalogs might have broken segments which could prevent this import. To learn more about merging catalogs, please check this video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FKjpXw8C_8 

and let us know the outcome.

Thanks,

Sameer K

dj_paige
dj_paige
Legend
February 28, 2022

Make sure your permissions are set properly on the Destination folder.

    Peter Weld
    Peter WeldAuthor
    Known Participant
    March 2, 2022

    Hi, dj_paige,

     

    Thanks for your response. How do I set permissions on the destination folder? And what constitutes being "set properly"? Why would most of the NEFs import properly thus far and only some get me an error message?

     

    I'd appreciate hearing any further advice you could give me.

     

     

    dj_paige
    dj_paige
    Legend
    March 3, 2022

    I don't know for a Mac. If you search these forums, there are plenty of places where the proper permissions are described, via a screen capture

     

    Also, your NEF imports fine into my Lightoom Classic 11.2 on Windows 11.

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