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Sep 19, 2019 08:24:39   #
Theresa Thompson
 
I’m not really new, but have kept in the shadows. I now find I’m not sure where to look for help, so here I am. I have a MacBook Pro Mojave and current Lightroom. Is there a step by step for downloading pics from an sd card to the Mac? I took a local intro class ( to LR) and it made sense then. But apparently not now. There was no discussion of Catalogs in the class.
I would ultimately like to store photos and edits, in folders, on the desktop, at least for a bit.


I have so many question and so few ideas as to where to look for answers.
Thanks, Theresa

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Sep 19, 2019 08:34:35   #
CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City
 
Try Adobe's site for training videos. Or utube. There's tons of free and excellent training available that you can watch at your leisure. Just google: "utube lightroom getting started" or "lightroom training adobe video" or "utube lightroom import"

In words to your question:

1) Create a target folder where you want to keep your images on your computer.
2) Insert your SD card / connect the camera and copy the image files into that target folder.
3) Start LR.
4) Assure you're in the Library module and press the <Import> button and navigate to the folder in step 1. Select all the image files. Assure you have the "Add" option selected and press the "Import" button

On u-tube, try Anthony Morganti. Add his last name to your search to try to limit the results to his videos. The direct link to Adobe's support is: https://helpx.adobe.com/lightroom-cc/tutorials.html

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Sep 19, 2019 08:41:54   #
BebuLamar
 
I have great sympathy to the OP. I use computers all the time but I found the catalog function of LR lost me. I ended up don't use LR although I have the subscription.

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Sep 19, 2019 08:42:48   #
Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington
 
Look at the website lynda.com

There is a 30-day free trial, but check with your local library to see if they offer free unlimited access through their e-resources program. It's a great site with tons of training videos. You can watch at your leisure and return however often you need to. I also liked that there was accompanying text to copy/paste to a document and print for notes.

YouTube's home page for topic searches:
https://www.youtube.com/

.

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Sep 19, 2019 08:45:16   #
CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City
 
BebuLamar wrote:
I have great sympathy to the OP. I use computers all the time but I found the catalog function of LR lost me. I ended up don't use LR although I have the subscription.


See the training ideas above. Of course you're not obligated to use it, even if paying for it. The only person you're hurting by not learning to use the software is you, particularly when the available training is free and from many and varied sources.

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Sep 19, 2019 09:04:42   #
burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC
 
Theresa Thompson wrote:
I’m not really new, but have kept in the shadows. I now find I’m not sure where to look for help, so here I am. I have a MacBook Pro Mojave and current Lightroom. Is there a step by step for downloading pics from an sd card to the Mac? I took a local intro class ( to LR) and it made sense then. But apparently not now. There was no discussion of Catalogs in the class.
I would ultimately like to store photos and edits, in folders, on the desktop, at least for a bit.


I have so many question and so few ideas as to where to look for answers.
Thanks, Theresa
I’m not really new, but have kept in the shadows. ... (show quote)


http://www.jkost.com — Try Julieanne Kost’s site. She works for Adobe, but actually makes sense!

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Sep 19, 2019 09:13:20   #
gvarner Loc: Central Oregon Coast
 
In simplest terms, the Catalogue is a data base that keeps track of where your photos are and the edits done to them. And you absolutely must take a class to learn how your operating system handles the folders and files stored on its various drives. Without that skill you will constantly be challenged with where your photos are located and how to get to them. Additionally, after you’ve Imported photos into the LR Catalogue, you must never move or delete them without using the LR routines because the data base will know know where their new location is.

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Sep 19, 2019 09:35:33   #
lamiaceae Loc: San Luis Obispo County, CA
 
BebuLamar wrote:
I have great sympathy to the OP. I use computers all the time but I found the catalog function of LR lost me. I ended up don't use LR although I have the subscription.


Same here as far as Lr. I had learned Photoshop CS5 first so trying Lr later I found it too fussy. I could not master the Library/Catalog. I am a fairly advanced Windows user for someone not in a computer field, but Biology. Up to editing Windows Registry keys at times - up thru Win Vista anyway. I am used to creating folders where I want and moving and copying files and folders as I see fit. I'd bet Lr is easier for Mac users to learn. It is very un-Windows like. Oddly Windows 10 is more Mac-like than Win 7 and earlier were.

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Sep 19, 2019 10:54:37   #
BebuLamar
 
lamiaceae wrote:
Same here as far as Lr. I had learned Photoshop CS5 first so trying Lr later I found it too fussy. I could not master the Library/Catalog. I am a fairly advanced Windows user for someone not in a computer field, but Biology. Up to editing Windows Registry keys at times - up thru Win Vista anyway. I am used to creating folders where I want and moving and copying files and folders as I see fit. I'd bet Lr is easier for Mac users to learn. It is very un-Windows like. Oddly Windows 10 is more Mac-like than Win 7 and earlier were.
Same here as far as Lr. I had learned Photoshop C... (show quote)


I subscribe to use Photoshop and it came with LR in the package. I only use PS.

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Sep 19, 2019 11:40:06   #
burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC
 
lamiaceae wrote:
Same here as far as Lr. I had learned Photoshop CS5 first so trying Lr later I found it too fussy. I could not master the Library/Catalog. I am a fairly advanced Windows user for someone not in a computer field, but Biology. Up to editing Windows Registry keys at times - up thru Win Vista anyway. I am used to creating folders where I want and moving and copying files and folders as I see fit. I'd bet Lr is easier for Mac users to learn. It is very un-Windows like. Oddly Windows 10 is more Mac-like than Win 7 and earlier were.
Same here as far as Lr. I had learned Photoshop C... (show quote)


The thing users don't understand about Lightroom Classic (I don't use the new Lightroom CC) is that it is first and foremost, a database-based tool. It is a big collection of metadata, or data about data. You don't just open an image, adjust it, print it, and save it, as with Photoshop or other traditional editors.

The Library is a set of pointers to your images. You can put them where you want them and tell Lightroom where to find them, OR, let Lightroom organize them and locate them for you. Either way, your images are not IN Lightroom. They are on disk, separately accessible. Just don't move them without using Lightroom's tools to re-link them to the LR catalog!

Lightroom stores FILE LOCATIONS, not images. It also creates "proxies" of all your files — small JPEG copies of images with all your development changes applied — so you can see what you're doing on the monitor.

As you edit, LR stores all your changes as changeable CODE, either in the catalog or in a separate sidecar .xmp file. You can edit the Develop module changes you make as often as you like. Nothing is "saved over" the original files. You have to Export, lay out a Book, Print, or Upload, to actually apply changes, and then just to a COPY of the original file.

Unlike Photoshop and other bitmap editors, Lightroom is a PARAMETRIC editor. It is best for making global changes to an image such as exposure, contrast, sharpness, clarity, noise reduction... It does allow cropping, limited bitmap editing for spotting, red-eye correction, graduated filtering and radial filtering and such, but if you really want to edit pixels, Photoshop is the tool.

Photoshop is a black hole time sucker. Lightroom is a WORKFLOW tool that can do 80% of what most professional and advanced photographers need:

Cull Edit an event, session, or job, etc.
Rate selected images for priority attention
Organize images and apply your own plain language metadata

Develop raw files to bitmap images with easy control over image qualities, cropping, etc.
Work COMPLETELY non-destructively, even with JPEGs
Change your mind as many times as you like
Make as many virtual copies as you like and treat each one differently
Export developed images in many different formats, bit depths, color spaces
Resize pixel dimensions on export, for virtually any need

Map your images, based on GPS data in the EXIF metadata

Lay out simple photo book files for print

Create simple slide shows

Print to any size or combination of prints you want to print, either to a locally connected printer, or to a file for a lab

Upload your images to a website for printing, sharing, etc.

In addition to all that, LR can connect seamlessly to external apps such as Photoshop, the NIK collection of plug-ins, and other image editing applications such as On1 Resize, Affinity Photo, etc., so you can use additional tools.

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Sep 19, 2019 11:40:45   #
via the lens Loc: Northern California, near Yosemite NP
 
Lightroom consists of two parts, a "catalog" and an application. When you open the application you also open the catalog interface. All of your folders/files are kept on your hard drive where you have put them. All you do upon an LR import is to link the existing folders/files to the application. The catalog part of LR is the database that allows you to quickly find images and metadata as needed. The application part of LR is where you do processing and other image functions. If you take the time to read the LR Help Manual online that Adobe puts out, specifically read the part or parts on the Library Module, you will begin to understand how the application works. Martin Evening also puts out a good book on the subject, which is available as an ebook, too. You can also go to my website and see if that helps you, viathelens.net.

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Sep 19, 2019 13:39:53   #
mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey
 
Theresa Thompson wrote:
I’m not really new, but have kept in the shadows. I now find I’m not sure where to look for help, so here I am. I have a MacBook Pro Mojave and current Lightroom. Is there a step by step for downloading pics from an sd card to the Mac? I took a local intro class ( to LR) and it made sense then. But apparently not now. There was no discussion of Catalogs in the class.
I would ultimately like to store photos and edits, in folders, on the desktop, at least for a bit.


I have so many question and so few ideas as to where to look for answers.
Thanks, Theresa
I’m not really new, but have kept in the shadows. ... (show quote)


The catalog is integral to Lightroom. Any class which didn't mention it's existence was probably not a very good one

Reply
Sep 19, 2019 13:57:53   #
Theresa Thompson
 
CHG_CANON wrote:
Try Adobe's site for training videos. Or utube. There's tons of free and excellent training available that you can watch at your leisure. Just google: "utube lightroom getting started" or "lightroom training adobe video" or "utube lightroom import"

In words to your question:

1) Create a target folder where you want to keep your images on your computer.
2) Insert your SD card / connect the camera and copy the image files into that target folder.
3) Start LR.
4) Assure you're in the Library module and press the <Import> button and navigate to the folder in step 1. Select all the image files. Assure you have the "Add" option selected and press the "Import" button

On u-tube, try Anthony Morganti. Add his last name to your search to try to limit the results to his videos. The direct link to Adobe's support is: https://helpx.adobe.com/lightroom-cc/tutorials.html
Try Adobe's site for training videos. Or utube. Th... (show quote)


Thank you CHG_CANON

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Sep 19, 2019 14:01:37   #
Theresa Thompson
 
Thank you, I will!

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Sep 19, 2019 14:06:00   #
Theresa Thompson
 
Thank you everyone. I knew there was information out there just wasn't sure where to look. As far as the class not discussing the Catalog, what do I know. I am trying to learn Mac and Lr and my camera.....Mac and the Lr are giving me gray hair:)

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