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No longer getting dialogue when I try to "edit in Photoshop"

Participant ,
May 15, 2021 May 15, 2021

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Hello

 

Until today I used to get the option to either  “Edit a Copy with Lightroom Adjustments,” “Edit a Copy” or “Edit Original” after editing an NEF file in lightroom. I have read quite a bit about the issue and do not see a solution. To be clear, I have been editing raw (NEF) files and editing them in Lightroom and then editing them in Photoshop. I have been doing this for months. I have done it many times and I always had the dialogue open. I have gone into preferences and reset warning dialogues and that didn't change anything.
Perhaps related. Since the dialogue no longer opens I noticed that when I edit an image in photoshop that was first edited in lightroom, when I try to save it I can only save it as a PSD, PDD, PSDT, PSB or Tiff. I can no longer save it as a PNG, JPG etc.
I don't understand what has changed. I did update Photoshop yesterday. I am using the latest versions of Lightroom Classic and PhotoShop. I am on Win 10.

Thanks in advance for any help.

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Participant ,
May 15, 2021 May 15, 2021

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One more note. When trying to save these files in photoshop I have to "save a copy" in order to save it as png or jpg. I only have to do this if I altered the image that was edited in lightroom. If I leave it as is I can save as many different file types. I have no idea why this is.  It only starting happening after I could no longer choose from the dialogue that opened when I would choose "Edit in Photoshop".

 

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Community Expert ,
May 15, 2021 May 15, 2021

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Hi Grace,

 

When you "Edit in Photoshop," the correct workflow is (once done in Photoshop) to close the file in Photoshop, answer "yes" to "Do you want to save..." and then the fully edited PSD is returned as a separate file to Lightroom. If you need a JPG or PNG, export it from Lightroom using the new file with the saved edits. 

If you break this workflow by saving copies, or trying to use Save As, Lightroom loses track of the file and the round trip edit feature will fail. 

 

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Community Expert ,
May 15, 2021 May 15, 2021

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Also, to be clear about your first question:

 

If you edit in Photoshop a raw file, Lightroom renders (by default) a PSD and passes it directly to Photoshop for editing without any dialog. 

If you choose to Edit in Photoshop on a non-raw file (JPG, TIFF or PSD) then and only then, Lightroom will ask for your choice of:

 

1. Editing a new copy with Lightroom adjustments (a copy is created, rendered with any develop module adjustments you may have added to the non-raw file). This creates a new file in your Library. 

 

2. Editing a copy (a copy is created of the original non-raw file, but no adjustments are applied). This creates a new file in your Library. 

3. Editing the original (no copy is made, instead the original non-raw file is passed directly to Photoshop). This does not create a new file, and any adjustments you may have made in Lightroom aren't visible in Photoshop, but remain visible and applied in Lightroom once you save your changes to the original and return to Lightroom. 

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Participant ,
May 15, 2021 May 15, 2021

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Thank you Michael for your detailed responses. I appreciate it.

I see that you are talking about non-raw files. But for the last few months when I opened a new raw file in lighroom, then edited it lightroom and then chose to "edit in photoshop" I would get the dialogue. I know for certain they were raw files as I only shoot raw on my camera. I have seen the dialogue hundreds of times when I chose to edit a NEF file in photoshop for lightroom. For the life of me I don't know what has changed.

 

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Community Expert ,
May 15, 2021 May 15, 2021

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Hi Grace,

 

Lightroom's behavior in editing raw files vs rendered pixel files hasn't changed since the beginning. There's no way to "edit original" on a raw file, for example. To pass a raw file to Photoshop, it has to be rendered as a pixel file, and so there are no options in that case.

 

The only way to pass a raw file to Photoshop is by using the "Open as Smart Object in Photoshop," which still always passes the adjustments as XMP data to be handled by camera raw in Lightroom. 

 

Other than "open as smart object..." there's only one path to PS, and it always involves making a copy with adjustments- that's why you'd never get that dialog with a raw file. I'm not saying you weren't getting that dialog, just that if you saw it, it was always a copy that had previously gone to Photoshop and been returned as a PSD. 

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Participant ,
May 15, 2021 May 15, 2021

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Hi Micheal
Again I appreciate the great info. But unless I am missing something obvious, I know I have opened raw files and edited them in lightroom.

I have attached photos that show a nef file that I just opened in lightroom.  I then did a quick edit it and open it in photoshop. Once opened in photoshop the tab still shows it as an nef file (see photo). I have always edited nsf files in photoshop and then saved them as psd, or png etc. I know you are suggesting not to do that. I get that. My point is that I have opened lots of raw files in lightroom (from my computer) and edited them in lightroom then sent them to photoshop and the dialogue would open. And once in photoshop, photoshop would show them as an NEF file which includes the edits from lightroom. And when I close the photo in photoshop it always asks me if I want to save changes to me NEF file. So what am I not understanding?

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Participant ,
May 15, 2021 May 15, 2021

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In case it isn't clear. I import a photo at a time. So when I say "open" I mean that I have right clicked a NEF file on my computer and imported  it into Lightroom.

 

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Participant ,
May 15, 2021 May 15, 2021

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I am now wondering if it is because when I right click on my NEF file in lightroom, it doesn't open as a tiff file it opens as an nef file in photoshop. I have checked my settings and see that my photos are set to open as tiffs in photoshop but they don't.

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Community Expert ,
May 15, 2021 May 15, 2021

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See my answer in the other thread-

https://community.adobe.com/t5/lightroom/missing-the-external-edit-in-photoshop-pop-up-menu-options-...

 

Regards. My System: Lightroom-Classic 13.2 Photoshop 25.5, ACR 16.2, Lightroom 7.2, Lr-iOS 9.0.1, Bridge 14.0.2, Windows-11.

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Community Expert ,
May 16, 2021 May 16, 2021

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It opens with the title of .NEF in the caption bar of Photoshop, but when you make changes and close the file, and it is returned to Lightroom, your second (edited) photo will be a PSD (or TIFF, if you've changed the options as I described in my video above). The original NEF file will still be in Lightroom, and next to it will be the edited file from Photoshop. Using Cmd-E on the edited (Photoshop) file will bring up the dialog with the three options. Using Cmd-E on the NEF will create ANOTHER (different) copy for Photoshop to edit, with no dialog. 

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Community Expert ,
May 16, 2021 May 16, 2021

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By the way, if you've edited in Photoshop and ended with "Save as" or "Save a copy," your edited copy does NOT come back into Lightroom, as I explained above. Especially if you then close Photoshop without saving. That's probably why your catalog is full of only NEF files, the edits are not properly round-tripped. Again, see my video above for a step by step explanation of the intended work flow. 

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Community Expert ,
May 16, 2021 May 16, 2021

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@GraceUnfolding wrote:

I am now wondering if it is because when I right click on my NEF file in lightroom, it doesn't open as a tiff file it opens as an nef file in photoshop. I have checked my settings and see that my photos are set to open as tiffs in photoshop but they don't.


 

If you send a raw file from Lightroom to Photoshop, you will never get that dialog. You simply do not remember that correctly. The fact that you see .NEF behind the file name in the Photoshop window is also completely normal. The reason is that Photoshop has not yet saved the file, and so the extension for the saved file has not been determined. Just choose 'Save' and you will see that the image is saved in the file type you chose in the external editor settings in Lightroom, so in your case that will be TIFF. This is how it has always been. Nothing has changed.

 

-- Johan W. Elzenga

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Participant ,
May 16, 2021 May 16, 2021

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Thank you Johan,

I am now starting to see how Lightroom and Photoshop work together in a much more clear way.

Cheers!

 

Warren

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Community Expert ,
May 15, 2021 May 15, 2021

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Hi Grace,

 

One last thought - I created a video to demonstrate all these concepts awhile back (2014). The versions are older but the process works the same way. I hope the video will be helpful in explaining better than I can here in this space:

 

https://youtu.be/sdywaVX3G8g

 

If you're new to Lightroom, the process of sending images to Photoshop for editing can be confusing. In this video, I review some of the ways of sharing files back and forth between Photoshop and Lightroom, pointing out some key considerations and some traps you'll want to avoid.

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Participant ,
May 16, 2021 May 16, 2021

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Thanks Michael,

 

I understand so much more now. I can see through your comments that I haven't been using Lightroom and Photoshop in the most usful way. I suppose it was because I was not yet commited to using them so I would just "save as" in photoshop. Now that photoshop has changed how "save as" works, I think it is time to start round-tripping my files.

Again, I appreciate your time and insight.

 

Warren (Grace is just part of my username)

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