Skip to main content
W
winbiz
New Participant
November 11, 2019
Answered

Impossible to specify export order

  • November 11, 2019
  • 3 replies
  • 3674 views

It's nice to finally be able to modify export settings in Lightroom CC but as I export them, the photos are always suddenly sorted in a very strange order (not by name, date or anything obvious).

It'd be nice to be able to export them in the same order as the one used to edit them or even be able to choose in which order to export them !

Correct answer Jim Wilde

I'm using Lightroom (cloud version). I am renaming the pictures to include a sequence number but that apparently doesn't change anything since the pictures are already in a strange order before I do that. Same thing for the app I'm using to visualize the exported pictures... it doesn't matter since the reordering of the files happens within Lightroom when I go from the edit module to the export module. Thanks again for your help. 


OK, I've done some further testing and I think you've come across a bug in Lightroom, which I'll report.

 

There are basically 4 ways to implement the Export process in Lightroom: Using File menu>Export, Using keyboard shortcut Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+E, using the Share Icon at the top right of the window, or using the right-click>Export option. The first 3 work correctly, but the last one does indeed seem to mix-up the images in the Filmstrip into a random order.

 

So try one of the other options to initiate the export to see if that works for you.

3 replies

Jim Wilde
Jim Wilde
Inspiring
November 23, 2019

Can you explain a bit more about this? Files don't exist on your hard drive in any natural "order", they are scattered at random by the file system. As such, we are dependant upon whichever app we are using to display or list those files in a specific order, and a more robust app will allow them to be displayed/listed in various different ways. The most common way would be in file-name order, but there are plenty of other different tokens which are available to be used, but again that depends on the capabilities of the app.

 

So, what app are you using to list/display the exported files? And if you use the operating systems default file manager (Finder or File Explorer), and ensure that you are using filename as the primary sort field, does that not correct things?

 

I understand that if you have the files in Lightroom sorted in a custom order, those files will not (cannot) be listed by the file system in that same custom order unless you ensure that you rename the images during export to preserve the custom order, e.g. by using the "Custom Name" option with a sequence number, so that the default filename display order corresponds with the custom order set in Lightroom.

W
winbizAuthor
New Participant
November 26, 2019

Thanks for the reply.

I will try to be as precise as possible.

As I edit my pictures in Lightroom CC, I sort them by "Capture Date" (because I use different cameras).

When I'm done editing them, I need to export them in the same order there were sorted.

So I select all the pictures, then right click and export.

As the Export window opens (still in Lightroom), the photos are suddenly sorted in a random order (not by name, size, date or anything).

And once you're in the Export window, it's impossible to sort them.

So when I'm done exporting my pictures, they are sorted in this very messy way.

I've tried it both with a Mac and a PC and the problem remains the same, although the pictures' order is different from one machine to another, which is also very strange and makes me believe that the order Lightroom has put the pictures in is completely random.

Kijin Keum
Kijin Keum
New Participant
March 14, 2023

OK, I've done some further testing and I think you've come across a bug in Lightroom, which I'll report.

 

There are basically 4 ways to implement the Export process in Lightroom: Using File menu>Export, Using keyboard shortcut Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+E, using the Share Icon at the top right of the window, or using the right-click>Export option. The first 3 work correctly, but the last one does indeed seem to mix-up the images in the Filmstrip into a random order.

 

So try one of the other options to initiate the export to see if that works for you.


Hello

 

I am not sure if there is more recent thread about the issue I am describing, but it's the same issue as this one you are responding so let me illutrate here.

 

I am using Lightroom app on my android phone. So this is not a PC nor Mac. That means there is no File option or anything similar.

 

When the edited files are exported, they are indeed in messy random order like the original person reported.

I "believe" it's because the export process is multi-threaded and just spit out whatever file that's completed first. So the exported file creation time is now all random and independent from the capture time. (I could be wrong about this theory but the end result is still wrong no matter how.)

 

Here, what's important is that the exported files don't need to be sorted by the photo capture time. The exported files just have to be "created" in the same order as the original order(photo capture time). 

 

All the typical photo viewers sort by file creation time. Lightroom just needs to export files in the same order.

 

I wish Lightroom team look into this issue. More and more people use phones or tablets editing photos nowdays. Onordered output files is just unuseable.

 

Thanks

    99jon
    99jon
    Braniac
    November 23, 2019

    I’m not seeing this problem. When I go to the named folder I saved the exports to I can use all the operating system tools e.g. to sort by: name, date, file type, tags, rating etc. Admittedly it’s easier on Windows than Mac.

    W
    winbizAuthor
    New Participant
    November 26, 2019

    Thanks for the reply.

    I will try to be as precise as possible.

    As I edit my pictures in Lightroom CC, I sort them by "Capture Date" (because I use different cameras).

    When I'm done editing them, I need to export them in the same order there were sorted.

    So I select all the pictures, then right click and export.

    As the Export window opens (still in Lightroom), the photos are suddenly sorted in a random order (not by name, size, date or anything).

    And once you're in the Export window, it's impossible to sort them.

    So when I'm done exporting my pictures, they are sorted in this very messy way.

    I've tried it both with a Mac and a PC and the problem remains the same, although the pictures' order is different from one machine to another, which is also very strange and makes me believe that the order Lightroom has put the pictures in is completely random.

      K
      kylem78372290
      New Participant
      November 22, 2019

      I'm having the exact same issue today.  Except it's only with one gallery.  My galleries, in the past, have always exported in the order that I have them displayed in the edit module.  

      Terms & ConditionsAccessibility statement
      Using the community Terms of use Privacy Cookie preferences Do not sell or share my personal information ad choicesAdChoices