chuckla Loc: Kennesaw, GA USA

I just came back from GSMNP, where I used Lightroom on my laptop to create a new catalog, and imported and processed my files, putting both the images and the catalog in the same folder. Back home I moved the entire folder to my desktop machine in the appropriate place with other image folders, and was about to use "Import from Another Catalog" to put the processed files into my master catalog, when I realized that the new catalog contained a lot of file numbers that were already in the master catalog. The camera the had hit 10,000 images, and apparently started over with numbers that would match numbers already in the master catalog. I used a rename app to change DSD to DSO in all the files in Finder.

I thought I could then use the "Can't locate, do you want to find" function to simply match up the first DSD file with the first DSO file, and let LR match them all up, like when you search for files in a folder that has been moved in Finder.

It doesn't work that way. Looks like I'll have to match up each image individually. There has to be an easier way.

Can any of you LR gurus out there help me?

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

LR does not care what the file is named. It only cares about the combination of file name and path.

If you have duplicate file names, it's OK as long as they are in different folders.

Create a new folder, then use LR to open your secondary catalog and move the images to that folder. Then open your primary catalog and import everything from the secondary catalog. No file renaming required.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

First, duplicate file names mean nothing to LR as the unique location (folder) makes each image / file unique to LR. So, IMG_0001.jpg is 'unique' in FolderA from image IMG_0001.jpg in FolderB. As long as you use some sort of folder organization such as YYYYMMDD for shooting date, you should not have any collisions.

I've read your post a few times and I don't understand the problem nor requested solution.

Beyond doing nothing, some options might be:

1. As long as you still have the 'travel-LRCAT', you can go into the 'home-LRCAT' and select and remove the recently imported images. Then, you can 'fix' the images in 'travel-LRCAT' and import again into 'home-LRCAT'. You want to remove the images from the home-LRCAT catalog, and not delete the actual image files.

2. Begin to use your date sorting options, not file names. The IMG_0001.jpg image from 14-Jun-2019 won't be anywhere near IMG_0001.jpg from 21-Oct-2021 when sorted by Capture time.

3. Begin to use your Metadata filters. Here too you can isolate your images by a year, or year-month, or year-month-day, including multi-selection of the individual shooting dates.

4. Begin to use your Text attribute filters and keywords. If you select all the images from GSMNP, either in the home or travel LRCAT, and apply the keyword = GSMNP, you can then filter your entire LRCAT to just the images with this keyword. You can combine this text / keyword filter with the Metadata of the shooting date.

5. Begin to use your Collections. If you create a collection GSMNP and add all the images into this collection, you have a 'virtual' folder inside LR that you can access, even if all the GSMNP images were further subdivided in to physical folders on disk by the YYYYMMDD shooting date. The collection 'holds' all the images add into the collection, from any folder / file type already within the LRCAT.

There's probably 2 or more other ideas where LR can support your isolation of these images using their as-is file names from disk.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

The easier way is to import from a catalog. You should have (may have?) used a thumbdrive, wardrive or similar to move your travel catalog and photos from the travel computer. Plug that into your primary computer and use "Import From Another Catalog" from the File menu. Along with adding the photos to your primary catalog, you will be given a choice to bring the image files with it.

You may have a conflict if you put all your image files in one folder. In most cases that is a bad practice. Better is some sort of folder structure where you can put the GSNP images in a unique folder or set of folder.

You should end up with one master catalog and your images in a variety of organized folders. Even if your folders are not organized, the master catalog will know where everything is.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

So I read this again. Are you saying you renamed the files on disk outside of LR? Changing say IMG_1234 to XYZ_1234? And now, you have all your "IMG" images 'missing' in the LR catalog?

Well first, change the file names back and undo that destructive change. Or, copy the original files from your laptop (or back-up) and put them were needed by the LRCAT. Confirm LR is satisfied the images are no longer missing.

Then, it looks like this problem occurred before importing the travel-LRCAT into your home-LRCAT? As explained in a few comments above, duplicate filenames are not a problem to LR as their folder location makes them unique.

LR knows the IMG_1234 is unique, not just from the folder, but also all the embedded EXIF. But even if IMG_1234 was a file-copy of the same image into different folders, LR will import both as the LR 'duplicate check' does nothing to stop this (unless Adobe has changed this function from LR6).

tcthome Loc: NJ

If your folder structure is like mine, The name starts with the date. I went over 10,000 recently & have no problem. You can rename a folder by right clicking on the folder name & choosing rename from the drop down. In the Library Module you can click on Library from the top left options & choose Rename Photo from the drop down.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

I avoid this sort of thing by importing the files from the card and renaming on import - I add a field for session number sequence, the camera model and serial number and date from the metadata. There is no chance that with even multiple bodies there will ever be a repeated number or a duplicate of an already imported file - every filename is 99.44% unique.

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

I used to use a number sequence. But then I started using multiple bodies and the number sequences could be changed for different bodies but then the sequences were no longer chronologically ordered. I switched from the number sequence to date and time. Now all the names are unique and chronological. I can only use one body at a time so the times will all be different. Using Downloader Pro I can use the time down to 0.01 second. That takes care of burst shots with subsecond timing.

JimT9620

Years ago I overwrote several hundred pix when the camera passed 9999.
Now my first action after downloading is to use LR to rename the files to the Date-OriginalFile, e.g. change IMG_0001 to 20211107-IMG_0001.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

Hopefully, you can see the logic of just date-stamping your folder names and skip the file renaming exercise.

SuperflyTNT Loc: Manassas VA

It sounds to me like you just copied the folders the images are in. Did you export the catalog? That’s the only way you’ll get the edits done on the laptop into your desktop catalog.

chuckla Loc: Kennesaw, GA USA

Thanks for all the replies, guys. I guess the old saying about what happens when you assume holds true here. I simply assumed that a file name was unique in the system, and it’s obvious from your comments that that’s not the case. I will just copy the whole folder from the laptop where the file names have not been changed and “Import from another catalog” as planned.

SuperflyTNT Loc: Manassas VA

You can’t just copy the folder and import. You need to export the catalog.

chuckla Loc: Kennesaw, GA USA

The catalog is in the folder. I always create a new catalog on my laptop in a folder which also includes all the images. I can then simply transfer that entire folder to the pictures folder on my desktop machine, use the “import from another catalog” from my master catalog to import the transfered catalog info leaving the images in place, then erase the old catalog.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

No, you can also import directly from another source LRCAT. There's multiple ways to transfer from one catalog to another.

Our OP does need to assure the images get into the proper target folder for his permanent foldering structure. He may need to move them after the import where LR may consider the current location during the import as the 'final' location.