All Photos Disappear from Photoshop Elements 2025!!

[bethf3699]

Just installed ( and reinstalled) PSE 2025.  It would not accept the backup catalogue from our 2020 PSE, so we imported the photo's from the catalogue.  They all came in ( twice). We waited until the system had csccanned all the faces ( 13,000 itmes) and when I tried to access a photo. all the photo's disappeared exept a video that came in from our camera recently. Not sure how it got there. 

So--two installations, two complete losss of all photos!!!  VERY disappointing!! We even bought a newer computer to handle the higher level OS --15.1)  See specs below.  PSE does not crash. It stays open. Just the photo's disappear! 

We have used PSE for multiple years and multiple versions. Never had this problem.  We have PSE 2020 on this computer and it still works. I have never seen that happen in any photo program. 

We have 300 GB free on the SSD. 

Elements Organizer 25.0.0.0
Core Version: 25.0 (20240913.EO.de524712)
Language Version: 25.0 (20240913.EO.de524712)

Current Catalog:
Catalog Name: My Catalog
Catalog Location: /Users/Beth/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Elements Organizer/Catalogs/My Catalog/
Catalog Size: 79.90MB
Catalog Cache Size: 1.00GB

System:
Operating System Name: macOS
Operating System Version: 15.1
System Architecture: Intel CPU Family:6 Model:158 Stepping:12 with MMX, SSE Integer, SSE FP, SSE2
Built-in Memory: 32.00GB
Free Memory: 2.00GB

3.6 GHz 8-Core Intel Core i9

Radeon Pro 580X 8 GB

Thanks for any help you can give. We want this version to work.

Blessings,

Bob & Beth

[Greg_S.]

Elements 2025 missing photos issue:

There is a new button in the Organizer that allows you to filter out photo/video/audio/project files.  I suspect you have pressed it by mistake.  If you click on the button again, I'm sure your photos will return.  (Alternatively, you can press Ctrl+1  or select the Photos toggle under the View>Media Types sub-menu which were the old methods of removing photos from the grid.

Catalogue Conversion/Backup Problem

@bethf3699 said:  Just installed ( and reinstalled) PSE 2025. It would not accept the backup catalogue from our 2020 PSE, so we imported the photo's from the catalogue.

Please explain in more detail what happened.  When you install a new Elements version for the first time on a machine that has an earlier version's catalogue, you are prompted to convert the old catalogue to the new version.  I suspect that you did not accept that option.  Installing Elements 2025 a second time will not give you the prompt because a new catalogue will be generated for use. 

I assume that you then tried to restore a backup of your PSE 2020 catalogue.  If you used PSE 2025, this should have worked, but depending on the options you chose, you may have ended up with a copy of your photos restored to your computer.  If this is what happened, I can see why your Import of files could have resulted in duplicate files being placed in your new Catalogue.

If I am correct in my assumptions about what you have done, the best way out of this mess, it to use Elements 2025 to convert the Elements 2020 catalogue.  Once you give me more details and/or confirm my suspicions, I will give you more complete instructions on how to proceed.