JD750 Loc: SoCal

My destination folders are named "Year-Month Short Description". Example: "2017-8 Eclipse Vacation", "2017-3 Asian Warrior Princess", etc.

I import images from the card to the folder, then rename the files, and then import them into the LR catalog. YMMV.

Do what works for you not what works for me.

Country Boy Loc: Beckley, WV

Guess I am not too technical, I use the software month/date format and after they are down loaded I often rename them leaving the date and putting key words after it. That gives me all I need to find my photos as needed. I don't understand the elaborate system that rmalarz uses where he has 2 file systems, one for film and one for digital. I thought anything on the PC is digital!

JD750 Loc: SoCal

Dngallagher Loc: Wilmington De.

Pertaining to #4, you always have control of Lightroom and how it manages your images - it is always up to you. The key of course is to understand how the database works and how to control it to maintain what you want.

Bogin Bob Loc: Tampa Bay, Florida

Correct, Lr is not fully AI yet (and even with Auto Tonal, we still manage the sliders)

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

It really is "whatever works for you".

I use a date-centric system, much like other folks have mentioned. My files and my folders are named YYYY_MM_DD. Often I append a word or two to describe what's in the folder, so I can quickly identify it outside LR. It will then be YYYY_MM_DD_keyword(s). (Note: I still use underscores out of habit and maybe for consistency.... Some older systems and software I used required it, couldn't use dashes.)

That is my "main" folder for the day. Within that I'll often create sub-folders... especially when there are a lot of images. For example, I mostly shoot RAW and will have a YYYY_MM_DD_RAW sub-folder. I may or may not have other sub-folders such as PROOFS, JPEGS, etc. for processed images. When I'm working with a client I may also have SELECTS and FINISHED folders. Working a large event with multiple photographers assisting me, I'll have separate RAW folders for each of them. There's lots of flexibility. The vast majority of my shoots and events are one-day... but occasionally they're multi-day, in which case my primary folder will be the last day of the event and with it I may have two or more different date RAW folders, etc.

Folders I create outside Lightroom and I do my images downloads without LR's automation too. I simply drag and drop. Once everything has been downloaded, I got into LR and point it to that folder to import from there. During import, LR is set up to add copyright protection data... but do nothing else. After sorting a bit and possibly some deletions (not many), I sort by time shot (because I am often using multiple cameras) and then have LR rename everything YYYY_MM_DD. When I have multiple photographers I append each of our renamed files with our initials, to be able to combine the "selects" from everyone into galleries, but still be able to tell who show what quickly and easily.

I also often have a sub-folder for digitized copies of model releases, 2nd shooter contracts, client contracts, yada yada. As I said, this has been very flexible.

When it comes to Lightroom, I only use "collections" on an Ad Hoc basis. I make a collection when I need to choose a select group of images to proof out or send a potential client. Those collections are discarded once I'm done with them.

I make extensive use of keywords attached to my images, that allow me to quickly locate almost anything and narrow down a selection quickly to just a few images that meet a set of keyword requirements.

I make a new LR catalog each year. Once LR catalogs exceed 100,000 images, it can get sluggish and hard to work with. I shoot around 50,000 images a year on average, so it just works out well. I've now got catalogs starting 2003 (combining that year and all years earlier, when I only shot film), and for every year since (when I shot digital almost exclusively... and took a lot more shots than I ever did with film!) I've also got a catalog for "all years" in process that includes select, representative images from every folder in each of the annual catalogs. This I can use to search if I forget what year something was shot. That particular catalog will never be finished (I just hope I don't out-grow it!)

But with LR now going "cloud subscription only" (even though Adobe said they weren't going to do that, as recently as a year or so ago), I may be switching to something else anyway.

jcboy3

I create a folder with the format "date-description", where date is in "yymmdd" format and the description is the event or location. For example, I just shot the March For Our Lives DC demonstration, so the folder is named 180324-MarchForOurLivesDC. I create a sub-folder with that name, and I then copy the images from the card(s) into that sub-folder.

I them import the images into Lightroom and make a pass to delete images. Then, I use Lightroom to rename the files using the folder name and a sequence number.

If it is an event where I want to add names (I recently shot the Burton US Open Snowboard Championship, so I want rider bib number and name), I put that information into the caption metadata field. Then I rename the files to folder-caption-sequence number. I can then sort images by capture time (original order) or file name (which groups images of the same person).

I use a sub-folder because I then export various products to folders in the main folder. Facebook images go to a folder named "Facebook", web site images go to a folder with the folder name and "-WEB" appended. Commercial images go to a folder named for the client. And so on.

This approach avoids using Lightroom to copy files from memory cards, and keeps all images and products in the same main folder.

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

Not sure what you mean by "cloud subscription only". It is true that you get the programs from the cloud and some of the programs allow you to use the cloud but once you install the programs on your computer you can disconnect from the cloud as far as your photos are concerned (except for LRCC which is actually cloud based, and you do have to be connected to the internet occasionally to validate your subscription).

JD750 Loc: SoCal

The handwriting on the wall says LR Classic is going to wither on the vine. In the meantime LR CC, in which images are most efficiently stored in the “cloud”, will continue to evolve.

BudsOwl Loc: Upstate NY and New England

I use a hybrid system. Since we travel to a number of states, I usually put travel photos in sub folders under the state folders. For example, we go to Maine and then I have folders in my Maine folder entitled Ogunquit, York, Portland, etc. then within these I have further breakdowns such as Nubble Light, Marginal Way, Perkins Cove, etc. Then I also use a topic based system for such things as Curling, Ham Radio, Soccer. Most of my file names also include the date as the last item in the name. It works for me. So develop a system which works for you. Since my digital collection goes back to 2003 and I only started using LR about 3 years ago, I am not about to change.
Bud

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

I will readily agree with your second sentence.
However I don't believe your first sentence will come to pass in the immediate future. At my age I am not overly concerned with long term prognostications (although I still buy green bananas).

gvarner Loc: Central Oregon Coast

I use folders with labels "yyyy mo Brief text descriptor". Rarely use the day dd identifier after mo.

jgunkler

I'm sorry you felt you had to do that. I found that, as soon as I understood that I needed to all (and I mean ALL) of my file storing, moving, importing, and exporting from within LR (almost all of which is easier than using the computer's non-LR methods!), there was never a problem.

jgunkler

Bob, I see all the time the recommendation to organize photos by date. This makes sense to me only if you're a professional.

I don't remember exact dates very well, but I do remember events such as trips, vacations, visits by grandkids, holidays (all of which usually last longer than one day.) So, that's how I organize files - by events. Sometimes I nest those events under the key names of participants (e.g., I have a folder for each family of grandkids) or locations (our home and our vacation home - which get many visitors), under a "Travel" folder with folders nested for each separate trip, etc.

WHY not by date? I ask, "Why by date," when that information is readily available in metadata -- which is easily searchable within LR? But I also do type in the year in my keywords when I import photos.

Hope this helps. By the way, my catalog also runs in the 10's of thousands of photos. I have no trouble finding anything in it. But I do religiously keyword on import, and refine the keywords after.

John

bpulv Loc: Buena Park, CA

I have experimented with several filing schemes and I have concluded that a combination of the date and subject title works best. The format I use is the full year, followed by the month number, followed by the day number followed by a space and the title. The date is in that format so the Finder on my iMac can properly sort my files by date order. By also giving my files a title, I can also search by title. So, "20180615 Smith Event" translates to "June 15, 2018 Smith Event." I can also sort by "Smith", "Event" or "Smith Event."