Lightroom CC & Classic workflow (desktop to iPad, iPad to desktop)

[KRSTF]

Hello,

I am a long time user of Lightroom (before CC option) and everything was fine and straight forward till today.

Recently I have purchased iPad Pro 2018 and would like to take an advantage of it, but TBH I am little lost.

I would be super grateful if you could answer couple of my question and direct me towards further knowledge.

1) Workflow (desktop to iPad)

Basically I have everything within LR Classic. I use multiple catalogs... for each year I create a new one. Sometimes (not very often) I have a catalog for specific job, which is by default robust. I am not sure what my workflow should be if I want to work on my pictures on iPad?

What I want to do is sync pictures from LR classic to my iPad.

Now I have already synced my pictures (4000 of them) from 2018 catalog on which I need to work.

Do I need to delete those pictures through LR CC desktop before I will swap to 2019 catalog as otherwise they would copy there?

There is no way on working on both?

In other words do I need to close one year before I start another?

2) Workflow (iPad to desktop)

Often I work out of my home town and cover multiple jobs which I need to deliver before I get back to my studio.

I used to have laptop and it was no problem.

Now I have iMac and iPad. What would be the workflow there?

I have apple usb-c to SDcard. So I guess I can get the RAW files to my iPad, edit them there and then deliver.

But how do I get those back to my Lightroom CC and catalog them properly?

3) CLOUD STORAGE

I have just synced 4 190 pictures (smart previews).

On iPad my Available Cloud Storage says I still have 19,99 GB of 20GB.

Lightroom Classic on desktop says that it has indeed synced all 4 190 pictures and that it was 8,47MB.

That can't be right? Is it?

4) Premium Features

What are Premium Features?

I mean, they are listed on iPad in Settings what I will get, but there is no option to purchase them or how to unlock them.

There is no more info other then what I will get.

Am I not entitled to those with my Photography Plan?

5) Deleting pictures from LR

When deleting pictures from LR CC on iPad, they still stay in LR classic on desktop, right?

What if I imported my pictures from card through USBC-SD directly to LR CC, worked on them there and then delete them in LR CC. Will they be on desktop, or I should not delete them till I have them on desktop?

6) Deleting pictures from iPad

If I import pictures directly to iPad from SD card and then import them to LR CC, can I delete them from Camera Roll?

And how would you do that since it could be easily 2000 pictures from one shoot?

I am sorry for so much text. I am little bit lost here!

Thanks so much for your time!

All the best and greetings from Prague!

Kryštof

[JP Hess]

I will only attempt to answer a couple of your questions because I am only a casual user of Lightroom CC.

Collections that are synchronized from Lightroom Classic CC to Lightroom CC are smart previews only, and do not impact the cloud storage allotment that you have. In other words, you have unlimited capacity for storing collections from Lightroom Classic CC. The only images that impact your cloud storage allotment are the ones that you import directly to Lightroom CC.

It is only possible to synchronize a single catalog with Lightroom CC. Since you are using multiple catalogs, it will be necessary for you to consider using a single catalog in order to have all of your images shared on Lightroom CC.

As far as the rest of your questions are concerned, someone else will hopefully provide the answers you need.

[KRSTF]

Thank you, mr Hess!

I will probably need to rethink my workflow as it will be quite a pain at the end of each year with overlaping projects...

Thank again!

Greetings from Prague

All the best!

[Jim Wilde · Accepted solution]

1. Multiple Classic catalogs are usually a bad idea, made even worse when you introduce syncing to LRCC. To make it work you'd need to clear out the cloud at the end of each year, before starting the new year's catalog and enabling that to sync.

2. Workflow from iPad.....import the Raw files using the SD connector, which puts the files into the Camera Roll. From there they are then imported into the LRCC iOS app (either automatically or manually). From there they will automatically start syncing to the cloud (and at 2000 a time that'll obviously take quite a while), though you can start to work on them on the iPad while the sync upload is happening. The next time you open the synced Classic catalog, those new images will gradually start to download into the catalog (stored either in the default location or in a separate location which you can set in the Classic Preferences>Lightroom Sync tab). If you are intending to work from Classic on your desktop, there's probably no need to also install and use the LRCC desktop app on that same Classic system.

3. Cloud Storage: here's a problem, as you only appear to have the default 20gb cloud space, which will be woefully inadequate if you're importing 2000 images at a time. Classic uploads Smart Previews, which don't count against the allowance, but all of the LRCC apps upload originals, which of course DO count against the allowance. So either you'll need to pay extra for 1TB, or you need to rethink the workflow. The 8.27MB will likely be either an original file you've imported into LRCC, or perhaps a file you've placed in the Creative Cloud folder on your desktop,

4.Premium features are those things that you get when you subscribe, i.e. you've already got them! Remember that the LRCC app on mobile devices can be used without any subscription, but none of the "Premium Features" would then be available.

5. If you delete images from any LRCC app, they will be deleted from the cloud, thus will disappear from all other LRCC apps. However, they are NOT deleted from Classic if they have already been downloaded (they are removed from the All Synced Photographs collection in Classic, however). So you are correct in thinking that you should not delete them from LRCC until you have verified that they have "landed" in Classic. In fact, the safer option is to do the deletion of the synced images from Classic by removing them from the All Synced Photographs collection....the images then stay in Classic, i.e. on the desktop, but are removed from the cloud.

6. For insurance purposes, you might want to wait until the images have uploaded to the cloud before deleting them from the Camera Roll.

[KRSTF]

Hello Jim,

First of all Thank You So Much for a complete and understandable answer!

This actually helped a lot!

1) understood. However I am worried I do need multiple catalogs as photography is my main income and since reportage was my main type of job, my catalogs used to get huge and slow LR down. I'll see how it will work now when I do less and less of reportage...

But understood... just 3 options here

a) one catalog

b) multiple (yearly) catalogs and clearing LRCC at the end of each year.
c) another workflow. Perhaps catalog just for LRCC and moving things in and out as I need?

2)

a) cool so the raw files will actually get to my catalog through cloud. so I don't need to duble import or anything. cool.

b) unfortunately I still need LRCC on desktop as I believe there is no "select all" feature on iPad to either erase them all at the end of the year or to do other things..

3) Thank so much! That all make sense now! Thank you. And yes I need one 1TB

4) Here I am still little lost. I am subscribed to my photography plan and therefore, as you write, I have "premium features". The first listed premium feature is having 1TB of cloud. Yet I still have only 20GB. Does it mean I still need to pay something on top of what I am already paying? And where do I subscribe to that? There is nothing of that sort on my "manage account" page.

5) & 6) understood! Thank you!

Thank you so much, Jim! Greetings from Prague!

[Jim Wilde]

KRSTF  wrote

b) unfortunately I still need LRCC on desktop as I believe there is no "select all" feature on iPad to either erase them all at the end of the year or to do other things..

You can erase them all at the year end using either LR Classic (simply select All Synced Photographs in the currently synced catalog, select all, right-click and select "Remove from All Synced Photographs").....that way the images are retained in the Classic catalog but are deleted from the cloud (and thus all LRCC devices/applications). Then start syncing the next years catalog.

Alternatively login to the LRCC Web app at lightroom.adobe.com, click the LR icon top left, go to Account Info>Delete Lightroom Library, which will clear out the cloud and the LRCC apps.

KRSTF  wrote

4) Here I am still little lost. I am subscribed to my photography plan and therefore, as you write, I have "premium features". The first listed premium feature is having 1TB of cloud. Yet I still have only 20GB. Does it mean I still need to pay something on top of what I am already paying? And where do I subscribe to that? There is nothing of that sort on my "manage account" page.

There are two variations of the Photography Plan....one which includes Classic, LRCC, Photoshop and 20GB cloud space (the cloud space can be increased in 1TB amounts, around $10 per month I believe on top of the basic subscription cost). The other includes LRCC only, but 1TB of cloud space (which again can be upgraded). You obviously need the first plan (which you currently have) but you'll need to upgrade it to at least 1TB. I would have thought you could do that by logging into your account at the Adobe web-site, alternatively I believe you can do it via the LRCC desktop app (click on the cloud icon top right and click on the Upgrade button, though I suspect that'll simply take you to the same account page at the Adobe web-site).

[KRSTF]

I see.

I'll check the adobe account landing page once again. I haven't found it on my first attempt. Thanks!

Yeah... you are also right that on my desktop I might need LR Classic only from now on.

I got little confused and hasty writing the response.. The thing is (was) that I've tried LR mobile when it first came out. And now, couple years later, I logged into LRCC and it was targeting old catalog, which I no longer had access to.

So I had to download LRCC Desktop to select and erase all the images. Then I was able to connect new catalog.

Anyway... that is unlikely to be the problem again in a near future..

Thanks again for everything

All the best

[NixonPhotography]

I am also interested in Point 2) Ipad to Desktop workflow.

I was recently away and imported photos directly to my ipad from my camera and into lightroom.   From what I can see, my ipad photos are in the cloud.

How can I get these photos to appear in Lightroom on the Desktop.  Everything I read says to move photos in the desktop version to synched photos and then you can work on them on the Ipad.  I still don't understand how to actually view an album in lightroom classic desktop that I have created on the Ipad.  I'd really appreciate help! 🙂