John Howard Loc: SW Florida and Blue Ridge Mountains of NC.

I agree with most of the responses but can add my 2 cents. 1) think about where you want your LRcat file to be, on your external or computer hard drive. Make sure it is backing up. 2) when importing to LR since you are starting with a file structure with a top file(good) which has folders below it, on your first import you may need to check the box to include sub folders.

DGStinner Loc: New Jersey

The 4GB limit only applies to FAT32 formatted drives. NTFS has a file size limit of at least 16TB.

veezee Loc: CT

Mark,

If I understood your question correctly, it sounds like you are importing the same images onto an internal drive and an external drive using different folder configurations and then creating a separate catalog for each of the drives. Thus you have two catalogues with the same images? If so...

I humbly ask to be corrected by others if I am wrong or made this too complicated as I would not call myself a LR expert.

I believe you should have one catalog with a single copy of all your images. LR does not change your images, but saves a record of your edits that are only permanently applied to exported images when you export. So you do not need backup copies of your images to revert to the original images.

What you do need backup copies for is replacing your images should you active files become corrupt or lost. You also need to make backup copies of your catalog. Your images are not backed up with the catalog because they are not stored in the catalog, and backing up your images does not back up you catalog. Remember that your catalog only stores a record of your changes and meta data, among other things.

The backup images should be on an external or cloud drive, and several topics on UHH have been discussed on how, where and how often so I will not attempt to address that here.

I am sure you will get many opinions, but I think the best way to organize you backup files is to use the exact same file structure as you use for your active files and catalog. That way, if folders are lost, you can copy them right back to your hard drive organized the same way your catalog expects to see them. That will make it a lot easier for LR to rediscover the replaced images.

When you make changes in your catalog on your hard drive, those changes will not be applied to the separate catalog you made on your external drive. You would have to make the changes in both places, and that would not make sense. And you would not be able to use a of copy the catalog from your hard drive on your external because the file structures are different and LR would not know where to find the image files, so it would take a Herculean effort to associate the images to the LR data.

You can use a single catalog on your hard drive and reference images on both internal and external drives. But the images should not be duplicates (why waste drive space), and then backup both drives and the catalog for emergencies.

For better and more complete information:

There is a really good course on Udemy.com https://www.udemy.com/master-adobe-photoshop-lightroom-cc-from-beginner-to-advan/learn/v4/overview

And a very comprehensive book:

https://craftandvision.com/collections/all-resources/products/lightroom-6-cc-unmasked

Good Luck!

jgunkler

Whether you initially import using LR or not (but why not?), any moving of files MUST be done in LR. It's at least as easy as any other method and LR will know automatically where your files are.

chasgroh Loc: Buena Park, CA

I keep my LRcat file on my C-drive. It's a speed thing. Doing large numbers of photos (8000+ sometimes) precludes me putting it anywhere else. This does get, er, interesting when I have to do housekeeping and make some room on that drive, but everything's findable...kinda. ;0)

rgrenaderphoto Loc: Hollywood, CA

Why add the extra step of importing via File Explorer then importing into LR? LR will copy the card's contents to whatever directory you have designated, place them into folders you indicate and allow you to arrange/move/etc to your heart's content. If you want to have a backup of your photographs, do so, but the original File Explorer directory, if I understand your methodology, will not have any edits, etc that you make in LR. I used to do this as a fall back until I realized that with LR's non destructive editing, you can create a virtual copy and leave your original alone, or hit reset and go back to square 1.

See Adobe Forum article re max catalog size: http://forums.adobe.com/thread/1895479

lsimpkins Loc: SE Pennsylvania

Mark, getting back to your original question, yes the two separate catalogs should be completely valid UNLESS you move any of the image files via some tool or process outside of LR. It should make no difference how you initially get the image files onto the hard drives, except that as others have noted it does add an additional step if you do so via File Explorer. Once on the HD(s), the Import function with the Add option will get the files into the desired catalog. But, if you want them in two different places with separate Catalogs for each, then I think you will need to Import twice, once for each Catalog.

jackpinoh Loc: Kettering, OH 45419

My photos are organized by year with subfolders for each event or location.

My import and backup process:

1. On my backup drive, create an event or location subfolder within the current year folder.
2. Copy photos from my camera card to the new event or location subfolder on my backup drive.
3. Copy the new event or location subfolder from my backup drive to the current year folder on my primary drive.
4. Import the photos into my Lightroom Catalog from the primary drive event or location subfolder using the Add option (Not Copy).

Sometimes I use an event name (i.e., Mike's Wedding); sometimes I use a location name (i.e., Niagara Falls). If it is a location name, I put photos from multiple dates that year into the same folder. Having a mixture of event and location names is never a problem.

The Lightroom Catalog does not ever, under any circumstances, contain your photos. It is a database that contains the location of each image file (photo), a JPEG preview of the photo, metadata that you add and that the camera embedded within the digital image file, and the sequence of adjustments that you make within Lightroom. When you make adjustments within Lightroom and when you exit the Lightroom Catalog, no change is made to your image file.

I don't use a date in the file structure or image file name because the date the image was captured is already in the metadata.

SusanFromVermont Loc: Southwest corner of Vermont

Hi Mark. Lots of dinosaurs around, so you have lots of company! It does not make a difference where you upload your pictures first, and then import them into LR. From what you describe, it adds a couple of steps, though. If it makes you feel like it keeps your pictures safe, there is no harm in doing it. Lots of others do it that way. A system that works is the only true objective.

The fact that you are asking about it suggests you may be open to trying another way. The more direct way is what I use. When I want to copy images from my SD card, I go into LR and hit the "Import" button. This puts the pictures into two places in the "Catalog" module: One is "All Photographs", which has no file structure, just your photos in an order you dictate [under "View"] which is a permanent file. The other is a temporary file also in the "Catalog" module called "Previous Import".

In the "Folders" module are listed the places where you store your images. Using my folders as an example, I have two internal HDs, one is "C" the other is "D". Because I choose to store primarily programs, not images, on "C" it does not have permanent image files, but it can be used as a temporary place to put them when first imported. I have done it both ways. So "D" is where my organized LR Catalog is located. It has a name LR Photographs, and under it I have arranged the photos using a system that allows me to find what I am looking for fairly easily. Major topics with sub-topics which can also be sub-divided [for instance by year]. Other people use different systems such as dates or photo shoot names. LR doesn't care.

From the temporary file I highlight the images that should go into a particular folder where it belongs, and drag and drop them. This means I can have photos in that import that go into different folders, just have to highlight them in different groups. If it is a new topic, you can create a folder where you want it to reside before dragging and dropping, OR you can go to the folder within which you want a new one, right-click, and choose "Create folder within "....".

There are undoubtedly similarities to what you are already doing, but it is a shorter process in the long run. Every time you put a photo into your Catalog, it is also put into the LR Photographs folder on your HD. When you create a new folder in LR it is also created on your HD. I also have given the HD folder the same name as the one in LR.

The LR folder therefore has the same name and the same structure as the HD folder. When you want to move pictures around, you MUST do it within LR, not within the HD folder or LR will not know where they are.

It sounds to me like you have two folders, one on an internal drive, the other on an external drive, with each arranged using a different structure. I can understand wanting to do it this way, but have you considered how much easier it would be if you combined the two systems? I put photos into folders by year taken, but they are within the topic folder. However, if you have other reasons for wanting to keep the two arrangements, you could have them both in the same LR Catalog, with each one under a different major topic folder OR you could have a second Catalog [with a different name]. In the "Import" dialogue, on the right-hand side, you would check the box for sending a second copy to a different location.

LR is a great organizational tool, but it also has some good editing capabilities. There are plenty of people who don't even go to PS. Regardless of whether you use LR for more than organizing your images, the two programs work together extremely well. If you go to "Photo" and under "Edit" choose "Open as smart object in Photoshop", then any changes you made can be brought directly back into LR in a new format [.tiff is the one I prefer - it keeps the editing structure as well as all the information in the image] and this will also show up in your HD LR folder. [Opening as a smart object makes it lossless - protects the original. But there are some functions that make that original invisible, so I like to work on a copy.] Another thing that I love about the LR/PS interface is that if I have to stop before finishing an edit, I choose "Save as", choose the format and location, and it goes back to LR as well as to your HD folder. AND when you go back to working on that image, instead of opening as a smart object, you choose the first option - "Edit in Adobe Photoshop CC 2017". Also, any time you make more changes and want to save them, this time you just hit "Save" and it changes that image in LR. [You can choose "edit original" if you want to keep working on it, or you can choose "edit a copy" if you want to make a new version.]

Hope this helps. I just hope I correctly interpreted what you were asking for!

Susan

Bunkershot Loc: Central Florida

As long as you are importing from two different folders into two separate LR catalogs, go matter where those folders are located, what you see in the LR Library view will reflect the contents of the folders that you imported to LR. If you then add photos to either folder on your external or internal drives, the LR library will no longer reflect the latest contents of those folders until you do another import to LR.

Your life would be simplified if you were to import into LR directly from your card. One of the best features of LR is that you can define a new folder/sub-folder name within the LR catalog before you import from your card and that folder/sub-folder will be created on your storage device automatically by LR. By importing directly from card to LR in this matter, the LR catalog will always match the folder contents on your storage device.

Mark, I sincerely hope that I've addressed your original question. Message me if I can help you through this process.

Kmgw9v Loc: Miami, Florida