Duplicate Photos

[thwelc]

I have Photoshop Elements 2020 and recently I noticed that many of my saved photos have duplicates. Is there a command that would do a mass delete of duplicate photos?

[Greg_S.]

Are they exact duplicates?  If so, it would be best to figure out how they became a part of the catalog.  In theory, there should be no import of an exact duplicate file.  So, if I were you, I would investigate where the duplicate files are stored on your computer.  Take a look at the location of each duplicate photo.  (You can do so by selecting a photo and looking at the Location link in the Info Panel on the right of the Organizer window.)  Hopefully, this will give you some clues. 

Duplicates are frequently found when backup files are imported into the catalog.  Since they may have different names and properties, they can be imported unintentionally.  If the duplicates are not true copies of a file, e.g. a similar photo shot in burst mode, our suggestions for you may be different.

[thwelc]

Greg_S, - Thank you!

The pictures are exact duplicates. When comparing the folders the duplicates are in newer folders from the original photos. In most cases, the duplicates all reference the same folder but when you go to that folder there is only one photo in the folder. Since there is no mass delete program for duplicates, I have started to perform the deletes manually

[Greg_S.]

ONLY delete files using the Organizer.  You can select multiple thumbnails in the grid (using Shift-Click, Ctrl-Click and/or Shift+Ctrl-Click) and press the Delete key .  You will then be given the option to also delete the duplicate files from your hard drive.

You still haven't told us how these duplicates may have been generated, so there's not much else I can suggest.  And since you still don't know the answer to that question, more duplicates may be generated in the future.

[arina28630140zmc3]

Software that can scan your photo library and help you delete duplicates. Try one of these Duplicate Photos Fixer Pro, VisiPics, and Duplicate Photo Cleaner

[Camila x3449083863rt]

Being a professional, I will never suggest you use a command to delete mass duplicate photos. I would rather suggest you use duplicate photo finder software like the ones used by experts like Duplicate Photos Fixer Pro or PictureEcho.

[arina28630140zmc3 · Accepted solution]

you can other third-party software like Duplicate Photos Fixer Pro, dupeGuru

[MichelBParis]

I agree with Greg. If you don't find why you are creating duplicates, it's useless to use external tools, you'll continue to produce them.

The included tools in PSE may not be the best for finding and eliminating duplicates, but the huge strength of PSE and asset management program based on relational databases is that they are built to prevent duplicating. 

So, you have to find out what special workflow lets you import (record) the imported files again in the catalog.

There is no magical tool to tell you what is wrong in your workflow. What you must know is that the organizer does not consider duplicates by the file names. The main criteria are date_taken and file size in kilobytes. The contents are different.

Suppose you have found a list of suspected duplicates. For instance, I have received identical family photos from various family members. They have not been given the same file name, they don't have any date_taken and they have been scanned in different sizes. Visual similaity can find them. But what to do to "delete" duplicates?  You'll probably have to select the best copy manually. The organizer lets you stack the candidates together. Then you can decide to keep the best one "on top" of the stack (lossless editing) and to remove the duplicates from the catalog or/and the disk.

External tools can't do that.

https://johnrellis.com/psedbtool/photoshop-elements-faq.htm#_Find_and_delete