Seeking PS Action to flatten 200+MB .psd files throughout entire hard drive

[PeterJB]

I have hundreds of large work .psd files I wish to flatten. To reclaim HD space.

• they're throughout my entire file structure, I decided I no longer need to keep layered .psd images

• I can search and find all of them in all their individual locations using a search app

• the search app creates a list of them, but Photoshop doesn’t recognize that list

• what are currently .psd files are to be saved as jpegs, then delete the .psd files

• the flattened files, now jpegs, must remain in their source folder after flattening and saving

• I created an Action and tested it on a half dozen images, I’m unsure how to set it up to run unattended on image files throughout my hard drive

• I’m stumped how to get PS Batch or Image Processor to perform the way I wish

Thank you!

[Nancy OShea]

I could never part with my layered files.  That's like cutting off your thumbs to save space on your hand.    Flattened layers can never be re-claimed.  Instead, I would buy an external dirve for my PSDs.  

https://www.amazon.com/External-Hard-Drives-Storage

[PeterJB]

Nancy––nice of you to share your thoughts on layered Photoshop files, but it doesn't answer my query or help my task. Best of luck to you.

[D Fosse]

This goes against every instinct of everyone here. I'm afraid this is what you'll hear from everyone.

Not just flattening, but jpeg too. Ouch. You do know that every resave to jpeg destroys the file a little bit more?

[PeterJB]

Yes, I can see that. It wasn’t unexpected. I’m aware that I am not ‘everyone’, and it’s not something of which I’m ‘afraid’. As far as jpegs destroying themselves with every save, I suggest test it out for yourself using PS, as I did to the eighth gen, then I stopped. Open original jpeg and 8th generation, Select All (the 8th gen), Shift-Command-drag to precisely align it with the original, set the new layer to ‘Difference’, and see what it reveals. It’s an old wives tale, and it keeps getting passed along…

[jane-e]

Hi Peter.

Nancy and Dag are giving you sound advice. If you came into to a doctor's office with a hangnail and wanted your foot amputated, he/she would say, no.

Please, please let Step 1 be to back up your files on an external hard drive. Storage is cheap. Destroying files is a horrible, no good, bad idea.

I haven't tried this and can't vouch for it, but in Bridge:

• Right-click your hard drive and select Show Item from Subfolders. Wait a few minutes.
  
• Filter to Photoshop document (mine is still running; it will take a while)
  
• Run your action with Tools > Photoshop Batch and set the source to Bridge. Test it on a small subset first.
  

But really, think about it overnight. And then don't do it.

~ Jane

[PeterJB]

To the extent your advice addresses my question, thank you very much. Between yours and JJMack’s I think I’ll get it.

[JJMack]

You may be able to do that from the Bridge.

Create a new Collection of all the Photoshop Documents (PSD) in your Picture library. This may take some time if all are not indexed.

Once your collection is complete Select all the psd thumbnails.

Then use menu Tools>Photoshop>Image Processor in the Image processor dialog  Processes files from Bridge, Save in Same Location,  Save only Jpeg file at some image quality not resized to Fit.

Once all the Jpeg Files have been saved.  In the Bridge delete all the PSD file in the collection

Empty the Trash

I would never do that. When an external USB 3 4TB drive is $100

[PeterJB]

Wow!––thank you for the detailed description. That’s something that I can act on and looks as if it fulfills the task I asked to the forum. I’ll do a small test group first. I appreciate your help very much! Stay well.––Peter

[Brandon Loshe]

Everyone's jokes about comparing this to amputations is too much. For the record, I agree with them, though. However, another option you can perform this self-mutilation easily is with Media Encoder. Here you can drag and drop many files all at once, and Media Encoder should save the new jpegs next to the current document (assuming you want them in the same place as the .psd file). You can drag and drop presets onto each or adjust the presets yourself.

[PeterJB]

Thank you for the Media Encoder suggestion. I looked at its user guide, overview, and file formats supported. I’ll go the route of PS and Bridge as my first choice and see how that goes.