P: Ability to batch process Photo Merge (HDR and panorama)

[ColinMcD]

Now that we have HDR inside Lightroom, with virtually no user input, the next step is surely a batch facility for a folder full of bracketed images.
Please!!!!

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

i really need this option. would indeed save lotsssss of time

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

exactly the same situation here 😉

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

I don't think I could do my job without batch processing. I use PTGui Pro for HDR business panoramas but the one thing it lacks is a good quick ghost removal. The tests I have done with LR HDR really produce a superior final image, but without the batch HDR processing 200+ images each shoot would have me losing hours out of my day.
It's a huge feature to have. It would surely make Adobe more sales for those who make HDR photos their living.
+1 for batch processing.
 

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

It's working with Keyboard Maestro! Wooohhhuuuhhhh

Pause times depend on computer speed. Such a time saver! This test batch with 40 HDRs went through without any problems.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Yes..... pls we need batch processing

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Yes, pls add batch processing HDRs

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Adobe please hear our cries for HDR batch processing! We need it!

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

I can do nothing but concur - LR doing everything in parallel is total stupidity, do Adobe really expect people to sit in front of the computer to wait for an op to finish, then manually start the next? We need a batch-queue mode that appends operations and processes them one after the other ... not limited to hdr/pano, but for export, too.

[betebete87]

I know right. There is so much I could rather do while Lightroom is batch processing my HDR files. 20-60 HDR files a day takes alot of effort infront of Lightroom ATM.

PLEASE. Hear our pleads!! Save hours of mindless junk work.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

The irony of this is that creating a queue to sequentially process these couldn't be easier.  It's something programmers do all the time.  Yes, there are things to worry about such as the files could be deleted before they are processed, but that's unlikely and all you have to do is queue up error messages (like it does for export, with the error messages about files not accessible at the end.

There are so many awesome, hard to implement features in Lightroom, take a break and do the easy one!  Give us a HDR processing queue.  It's also a matter of performance!

[betebete87]

Well said.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Give Lr the ability to batch-process
multiple 'bracketed image stacks' simultaneously with 'Merge to HDR'. (eg. useful for
Real-Estate photography)

[johnrellis]

See this post for how to merge stacks faster: https://feedback.photoshop.com/photoshop_family/topics/batch-hdr?topic-reply-list%5Bsettings%5D%5Bfi...

[ItsChrisHickman]

This is not the answer we are looking for as it still bottlenecks.  Additionally, some of us use ACR.  The batch feature in PTGui is a good example of what Adobe should offer.

[johnrellis]

As I wrote, it is a partial workaround that helps many people work faster.  I agree that it is not a complete solution for what many want.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Either batch process or que my manual input. How anyone uses this feature professionally is beyond me.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Probably no one does, for batch use it's inevitable to use a 3rd party tool like AutoPano which has superior stitching anyway.

Still, it's embarrassing that after so many versions LR is still unable to queue operations but insists on doing everything you start in parallel - this applies to exporting and tagging, too.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Please add some sort of batch processing to the HDR feature. I currently use stack but still going through and having to HDR each stack is time consuming. I love the look we get from LR HDR vs other 3rd party software. Like many others though I find myself having to go back to these other programs just for the simple batch process. While the results are not ideal the workflow is simpler and depending on what you are doing and the amount of work involved sometimes the pay is not there for the extra time. 

[manageDC8]

yup the parallel instead of sequential is very dumb
i can only get 3 lots of tasks going before my pc stops working.
why you cant choose sequential is beyond me.

[ssprengel]

Sequential would require some sort of queuing mechanism, the ability to view and add and delete things from the queue.   Right now you get a few little progress bars under the identity plate and if you add too many your machine stops working so there isn't much need to limit the display.  

With a queue there would be an unlimited (or large limit) to how many "jobs" could be queued up and there'd need to be a different UI and some way to understand what each job is and some sort of locking that keeps you from removing or moving or otherwise changing the photos that are part of a job that has yet to run. 

I think queuing would be great, too, but it is an added complication. 

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Any software engineer with a skillset of a schoolkid can write a queue manager before lunchtime. I'd venture to say that a global enterprise like Adobe could pull it off without adding too much complication or the need for a complete code refactoring 😮

What the lack of some sane queuing  does show is the same as their doomed new import dialog: new LR customers are estimated to be casual users that certainly won't process more than one hdr or pano at a given time ... but want to online sync their baby photo collection or edit snaps on a smartphone. The "official" solution to this thread "just skip the dialog" says as much.

[ssprengel]

Someone who can spell queue would probably be ok in figuring out what to do with whatever clumsy UI.   Someone should be able to use it without knowing what a queue is, though, so it's probably more an issue of design philosophy not coding, although I'd guess LR code is a mess by now to adding queueing wouldn't be trivial. 

It seems like the simplest thing would be to limit the number of simultaneous batches and let the others wait.  Unfortunately if it's like everything else, the limit would probably be something hardcoded and hidden, or calculated by LR based on memory or CPU cores and hidden, not something the user could specify in Preferences.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Indeed the current UI could work as a queue if users would be able to limit the processed items in parallel - like down to 1.  These are the simple changes that make one dream of open source ... the effect that LR freezes if you start too many tasks isn't just stupid, it's a bug that needs fixing.

[emelgee68]

I'm with Alex! I primarily do Real estate and interiors as well and HDR batch processing would allow me to get in 1 or two extra shoots a day. A money maker and time saver!

[emelgee68]

Hi Eric!! LR's HDR is excellent and would be even more so if batch processing was available. Shooting Real estate and Interiors, I need it daily and any extra free time slots in my workflow are welcome, especially if I can get in another shoot because of it. Thanks for your consideration!