Mobile photo import

[aarice69]

I want to import 1,000 photos from my SD card using my iphone or ipad, not a computer.  I have the SD card connected to my mobile device, but importing into the Lightroom app gives an error message that the mobile device has insufficient storage.

I had the same error message when I tried to import directly into the web interface.

How can I import straight into the cloud rather than being constrained by my devices' storage limits?

Thanks!

[JohanElzenga · Accepted solution]

Can you select which photos to import? If so, select a smaller batch of photos, let Lightroom sync them up to the cloud, and then import the next batch. Make sure that in the Settings of Lightroom Mobile you have set to only download smart previews. You may also have to clear the cache between each batch of photos.

[aarice69]

Thanks.  But even importing just a couple photos at a time - even if it were practical - causes the same error.  What I really need is a direct-to-cloud import facility, without using the app on my phone.  I would have thought the Lightroom website would provide that functionality, but it didn't work either.

[JohanElzenga]

I assume that's a limitation of iOS. 

[Jao vdL]

This is a limitation of how Lightroom Cloudy works on all platforms including desktop operating systems. It first copies all the images to local storage and then uploads the images as the next step. This is true on iOS, Android, Mac OS and Windows, whether you go through the app or through a browser. So you need enough local space to hold your typical import. The reason is that the USB connection to your card reader or camera is orders of magnitude faster than your internet connection. It should be possible to directly upload to the cloud but Adobe does not provide a way to do that.