downloading onto a mac: I have a Nikon 5200 with lots of pixels - downloading onto iphoto takes an eon. It's iphoto '08. Would it be faster with a more current iphoto??? I have Snow...

Libby Hillhouse Loc: Ryegate, Vermont

I have a Nikon 5200 with lots of pixels - downloading onto iphoto takes an eon. It's iphoto '08. Would it be faster with a more current iphoto??? I have Snow Leopard, switching to Mt. Lion today,hopefully. Thoughts??? Another program for photos, perhaps??? Thanks!!!

acutance Loc: New Hampshire

Are you taking the card out of the camera, and using a card reader to download?

martinfisherphoto Loc: Lake Placid Florida

Sounds like your are downloading from your camera and not a card reader. Or plug your memory card directly into the computer. From the camera is the slowest possible way. I use snow leopard as well but picked up aperture for the library feature to easily name a store my images. I down load 400 plus 16 mega pixel photos in minutes. Start viewing and editing in less than a minute.

romanticf16 Loc: Commerce Twp, MI

If you aren't using a card reader you are forced to use USB2 for a slow from camera transfer to your older? Mac. A Firewire card reader would be much faster. When posting it helps if you tell us the make, model and ports of the computer, OS, etc as well as the camera, otherwise we only have half the information

Libby Hillhouse Loc: Ryegate, Vermont

Wonderful, thank you....I will now get a card reader....so much to learn....Hedgehog is great.

Libby Hillhouse Loc: Ryegate, Vermont

I think I have it now....it's an OSX mac mini with only 1gb of memory which I'm upgrading to 4.....that should help - Mt. Lion needs at least 2 gb. The camera is Nikon 5200. I'm getting a firewire card reader.....do you have any other thoughts???

jethro779 Loc: Tucson, AZ

Libby Hillhouse wrote:

I think I have it now....it's an OSX mac mini with only 1gb of memory which I'm upgrading to 4.....that should help - Mt. Lion needs at least 2 gb. The camera is Nikon 5200. I'm getting a firewire card reader.....do you have any other thoughts???

Find the maximum memory size for the mac and upgrade to it. Makes everything run better.

Libby Hillhouse Loc: Ryegate, Vermont

Yes, good advice...I am grateful for all the input!!! Thanks, everyone...

Mason Jar Loc: Mason, OH

Libby Hillhouse wrote:

I think I have it now....it's an OSX mac mini with only 1gb of memory which I'm upgrading to 4.....that should help - Mt. Lion needs at least 2 gb. The camera is Nikon 5200. I'm getting a firewire card reader.....do you have any other thoughts???

I believe Mt. Lion will have iPhoto '11. Add RAM to at least 8 GB if you can and download with the FireWire and you should be in decent shape.

artBob Loc: Near Chicago

If you are going to do post processing, try Image Capture. Very fast if you read from your card.

jimmya Loc: Phoenix

Libby Hillhouse wrote:

I have a Nikon 5200 with lots of pixels - downloading onto iphoto takes an eon. It's iphoto '08. Would it be faster with a more current iphoto??? I have Snow Leopard, switching to Mt. Lion today,hopefully. Thoughts??? Another program for photos, perhaps??? Thanks!!!

I've been hearing lots of noise about mac computers and cameras lately, lots of it bad as in your case. My recommendation would be, as others have written, get an external usb card reader. I've been using mine for a decade with no glitches - of course I use a PC.

RMM Loc: Suburban New York

The Mac Mini is part of the problem. It's called a "Mini" for a reason, and not just because it's small. 1 GB of memory isn't going to give you high performance with photo editing. Until the 2010 model, the Mini didn't have an SD card slot, so if there's no card slot on your Mini, it's at least 4 years old. And, as noted, you haven't described how you're connecting your camera.

RMM Loc: Suburban New York

jimmya wrote:

I've been hearing lots of noise about mac computers and cameras lately, lots of it bad as in your case. My recommendation would be, as others have written, get an external usb card reader. I've been using mine for a decade with no glitches - of course I use a PC.

What is "lots of noise?" And from what sources? I'm not hearing this, and I make my living providing support to both Mac and PC users.

Graeme Loc: El Cerrito, California

romanticf16 wrote:

If you aren't using a card reader you are forced to use USB2 for a slow from camera transfer to your older? Mac. A Firewire card reader would be much faster. When posting it helps if you tell us the make, model and ports of the computer, OS, etc as well as the camera, otherwise we only have half the information

Does anyone have statistics that card readers are faster than the Mac's built-in SD reader?

hikercheryl Loc: Madison, NC

Libby Hillhouse wrote:

I have a Nikon 5200 with lots of pixels - downloading onto iphoto takes an eon. It's iphoto '08. Would it be faster with a more current iphoto??? I have Snow Leopard, switching to Mt. Lion today,hopefully. Thoughts??? Another program for photos, perhaps??? Thanks!!!

Libby,

I have a newer Mac with lots of memory and RAM, so sharing what I do, may or may not be applicable. I download using Lightroom and skip iPhoto. The downloading is fast and easy. I can insert my card into the laptop so that may make a difference too. My point is that Lightroom works well for me.

Having said that, your biggest problem is probably your RAM, more is just better. Do you store your photos on your computer or an external drive? If you use an external drive, the speed of the connection will impact the speed too. The speed of the cards can also hinder the download speed. There are so many factors to consider.

Cheryl