Impose import Filename Change Initially

[dommerpw]

Request: When Importing photos and a name change is configured apply the name change to import photos and then check for duplicates.

Case: I keep photos on my iPhone and import them perodically to Lightroom and change their name from IMG_xxxx to iph7-xxxx. This works fine for me by preventing name collision in the Library but renders the duplicate file check during Import useless. Since the filenames are different in the Library Lightroom doesn't see them as duplicates. Applying the name change before importing would solve this.

Please make this change!

[GoldingD]

You may need to give LRC a bit more time to determine that the original file names were imported. Say give it 3 minutes for say 200 photos.

Unless you accomplish some additional metadata changes to the files they should have a bit of metadata containing the as shott file name. 

[dommerpw]

"You may need to give LRC a bit more time to determine that the original file names were imported. Say give it 3 minutes for say 200 photos."

Maybe I wasn't clear enough. The files in the import have their original file name from the source. When I initially import them I have LRC change the filename during the import so they're in my Library with a new name. When I run the import against that source in the future the same files are there with their original name but now LRC knows those files by a different name. But, I configure LRC with the same name change values so LRC should then see that those files do exists in the Library and won't mark them for import.

I don't see that LRC behaves that way, are you saying it does and I don't wait long enough for LRC to apply the name change to the files before I hit the Import button?

[Lauca · Accepted solution]

I also rename during import. On my system, this has never prevented LR to detect duplicates. If a file is already in the catalog with ts new name, on the next import, the source file with the old name is correctly detected as already in the catalog.

BTW, LR doesn't use the file name only to detect duplicates on import. It also checks matching of some metadata.

[dommerpw]

Lauca, thanks. I was wondering if it was working that way for anyone. It has never worked that way for me and I've run many tests trying to figure it out. I understand other metadata is checked with the filename but I can't imagine what would be changing. I'm not making any changes to the file on the phone or in LR other than doing the rename. I'll keep looking for an answer now that I know how it works for you.