Thanks for the reply. Sorry for the frustrating software naming convention - I hate Adobe's continued confusion. I'm trying to use their new convention: LrC= Lightroom Classic (the 15 year old desktop version with a local catalog); Lr=Lightroom (their name for the newer cloud version). Both apps are running on my desktop.

The additional information you asked for: I am using a Mac and the latest software - OS 14.1.2; the new external drive has the same name and file structure as the old one; LrC (Lightroom Classic) sees the files on the new drive perfectly (no "?" on any of the folders.)

When the old drive is attached, both LrC and Lr show the files are synced and Lr shows they are present both in the cloud and locally. When the new drive is attached LrC shows they are synced and can find them on the external drive, Lr shows they are in the could at full resolution but the locally they are shown as "Pending".

I'd like for Lr to know where the local versions are so when I edit using Lr the edits show up in LrC on my destop computer as well as in the locally stored versions. I create a backup from these.

My goal is to have LrC and Lr synced for the most important collections w/o having to export my whole LrC catalog (129,000 photos and > 4TB), purging the less important photos or creating a new catalogue with only the photos I want on the cloud and having to manage two separate systems.

I've been unable to find an answer to my problem. I use both LR and LrC and have only a portion of my photos synced between the two. I've put full resolution photos into the cloud of those that have been synced from LrC; the local versions are stored on an external drive along with the LrC catalog and all of my photos. I needed to change the external drive. Now in LR it shows a "Pending" label for the local photo designation along with a full resolution for the cloud. When the old drive is attached, it properly shows both at full resolution. Anyone know how to get LR to recognize the new drive? I've searched the internet w/o finding an answer

I followed your suggestions - thanks. The results: test pattern looks good; picture with Preview looks ok (a little dark but that may be because the monitor is too bright); printed with Photoshop & printer manages color is about the same as Preview. Both Lightroom and Photoshop with with Epson profile and application managing the color are off noticeably - too much magenta in the blues and whites of clouds. Any additional suggestions?

Thanks, George

Thanks for great response. I’ll check them out. I’m hoping the Epson utility works ok

I have an Epson Stylus Photo R2880 and a 27" iMac with a display calibrated with a colormunki, and Lightroom Classic. I use a printer profile for the R2880 and the particular Epson paper I'm using. Recently the printed photos have been very dull. I'm used to having to increase the brightness to match what's on my screen by not much else. I can get closer to the original display rendition by way over saturating the colors - but never faithfully reproduce the picture. I've looked a exported jpegs on other computers and they look like the orginal. Other than buying a new printer, any suggestions?

Nekon,

Thanks for the long, detailed and helpful reply. I think I understood everything except the first point:

"1.Set your Focus icons - detach lens, (so you are adjusting focus on focus point, not image) - adjust dioptre (next to viewfinder) so focus points are sharply in focus. (easier against a white, or light background) Re-attach lens"

I'm not familiar with the term "Focus icons". What are they and where do I find them?

Thanks Again.

Thanks everyone. Lots of good information and tips. The information on testing the focus of the camera and lenses I'm sure will help isolate the problem - hopefully to my technique.

I must admit that my photos do not meet my desires/expectations for sharpness. I’ve been using a Nikon D800 for about a year and a D7000 before that. The lenses and equipment are all pretty good stuff FX: f2.8 24-70, f2.8 70-200, f .4 50, f 4 16-35 and I shoot from a tripod with a cable release – mostly landscapes, architecture and people. The landscapes frequently seem to have a softness to them. I try to stay away from the extremes of the f-stops, try to shoot at the lowest ISO consistent with a reasonable shutter speed and shoot in RAW format. Are there any tests I can do to see what’s up with my technique? I doubt if it’s the camera or lenses but are there things/settings I should check?