A question on organizing my photos on Lightroom

[West Coast Birder]

OK, LR peeps, here's a nice "problem" that I seek your inputs on.

I currently split my time between my home town of Portland, Oregon and Santa Barbara, California where I spend part of the year. I have one Windows desktop computer in Portland (let's call it PDX) and one desktop Windows computer in Santa Barbara (let's call it SBA) that each has about half of my photos and a dedicated Lightroom catalog on each. The Lightroom catalog resides on the C drive on each computer and the data is on a different internal drive on each computer. So essentially, all my photographs are split between two separate non-interacting Lightroom setups a 1000 miles apart.

My goal is to merge the two into a single catalog that I can use to access all my photos in either location. Added to this is the possibility of me doing the same thing but with a third computer - a laptop as well.

So, what is the best scheme? Have the catalog on an external SSD and all the photos on an external HDD that I can take with me? Any ideas would be welcome.

 

[Nature's Spectrum]

There is more than one way to skin this particular cat, and in my opinion the method will change once you have all your computers operating on the same data.

1. You can certainly store everything (including raw files) on an external drive, but that will necessitate always carrying that drive(s) with you and disaster recovery would concern me a little bit.

2. You can also set up a NAS at each location and use something like Goodsync, or even ShareSync from Synology to keep the NAS drives at each location up to date and equal. This would primarily be for the raw image files, previews, etc. That same NAS can be the storage for each computer for those files. However, does not address the catalog, which as you already do I suggest keeping on the operating system drive preferably. I think what I would do is the same thing with the catalog files (settings, plugins, etc.) but sync to a different folder on the NAS units. You can utilize a tool called Synology Drive to sync those files to the appropriate location on your operating system drive (or other). While there would be some investment to set this up (the NAS units) it would be a relatively hassle free way of keeping everything synced. This also gives you some data redundancy.

3. Everytime you leave one location/computer you can export the catalog and associated raw files and import it to the new location/computer. This will not keep your settings, and it's a bit of a pain to do so it would be my last option.

If you are interested in pursuing option 2 and would like some help on what to get etc. I would be happy to assist.

 

[paddler4]

Timely post for me. I have been trying to solve a similar problem.

The problem is of course the catalog and related files, not just the image data, which can be quite a lot if you have either a lot of photos or a good number of edited PSD or TIF files.

John, I don't understand how you would sync the two NAS setups. Are you suggesting pulling the drives from one and carrying them to the other location? If so, what's the advantage over just having everything on an external drive?

I have a powerful desktop at once location but just a much slower laptop at the other. On the main computer, I have the software on an internal SSD and the photos on an internal HDD, which is mirrored to an external HDD and then backed up to the cloud using Backblaze.

What I've been leaning toward--please tell me if you see a problem with this--is continuing to work on the internal drives on the large computer but begin mirroring both the data and the catalog to something like a SanDisk Desk Drive. Then, at the second location, I would work entirely from the Desk Drive. On returning to the large computer, I would synch everything back to the internal drives. This way, Lightroom will automatically open the local catalog on the big computer and the external copy when using the laptop.

B&H is having a black friday sale on the desk drive, so I may pull the plug soon.

 

[Archibald]

Hmm, I just use Lightroom's catalog export/import functions for merging catalogs.

When travelling, I create a new LrC catalog on the laptop so I can review the day's shoots and do culling. Then at home, I merge the catalogs doing export and import. Then I create a backup, and usually an additional backup, before deleting the laptop files. The backups are straight copies on external drives.

I don't back up LrC's preview files. They can be a nuisance because they are so numerous, and that can cause errors and very long syncing times.

These days when I travel, I take one of those backup drives along. That's in case I might need some info on there. It rarely gets used, but in a case like yours, you could use it to update the file set on the other computer. The computers would be synced but then run out of sync until you repeat the procedure at the other location. That would be OK for me.

 

[Nature's Spectrum]

Synology has a utility called share sync that syncs data between multiple NAS's. I use it myself.

 

[Archibald]

I use FreeFileSync. https://freefilesync.org/

 

[paddler4]

When travelling, I create a new LrC catalog on the laptop so I can review the day's shoots and do culling.

I do that now, but it means I don't have access to my main catalog while away. If one is away a long time, this is not ideal.

Synology has a utility called share sync that syncs data between multiple NAS's

I just checked, and it does sync with remote NAS's. Does this require that both NAS's be operating at the same time, or can you sync to their server and then sync to the second local NAS later? In my situation and I assume the OP's, the second computer is not running.

I use FreeFileSync. https://freefilesync.org/

If I'm not mystaken, free file sync only syncs between local drives (like the software I use, Directory Opus), so it wouldn't solve the problem without carrying a drive from one location to the other.

 

[Nature's Spectrum]

I just checked, and it does sync with remote NAS's. Does this require that both NAS's be operating at the same time, or can you sync to their server and then sync to the second local NAS later? In my situation and I assume the OP's, the second computer is not running

Both Nas's need to be running. The computer attached to the NAS doesn't have to be. Synology NAS's has its own operating system on board.

 

[paddler4]

Both Nas's need to be running. The computer attached to the NAS doesn't have to be. Synology NAS's has its own operating system on board.

Thanks. I don't know about the OP, but for me, that's a deal-breaker. I think I'm going to end up with the more primitive solution I noted above, with a mirror to an external drive that I have to shlep with me to the location with only a laptop.

 

[ShipleyNW]

I've got a fairly low-tech, nearly sneakernet kind of solution that involves an intermediate portable drive.

Early in my LRC career, I thought it would be handy to have a portable 'travel drive' that I could use on the road. It turned out that I hate editing on a laptop, so the travel part if it never really materialized. Still, I keep that portable drive current, as much for backup purposes as anything else.

When I finish editing a session on my main computer/drive/catalog, I close that catalog and open the catalog on the portable drive, then use the 'Import from another catalog' utility in LRC (in the File menu on a PC) to sync the catalogs and copy the new image files to the portable drive. (The utility only looks for changes.) Once that's done, I basically have 2 working copies of everything.

For your purposes, you could increase that to 3 copies. You could sync your PDX catalog + image files to the portable drive, then either use the portable drive in SBA or do the reverse and import the portable catalog and image files to the SBA catalog using the same LRC import utility. When you get back, do the same thing to get SBA work on the PDX machine.

My main catalog is fairly lean -- only images that made a first cull -- so I can get everything on a 1TB portable SSD. YMMV.

 

[Archibald]

I do that now, but it means I don't have access to my main catalog while away. If one is away a long time, this is not ideal.

You can have access to your main catalog while away if you want. Take all the necessary files along on an external drive. As I mentioned, I do take them all. However, I never go into the old photos when travelling.

 

[paddler4]

You can have access to your main catalog while away if you want. Take all the necessary files along on an external drive. As I mentioned, I do take them all. However, I never go into the old photos when travelling.

Right, that's what I'm suggesting. However, one would also need to carry the catalog files on the external drive. LR makes this a bit more complex because of you open the catalog from the base internal drive to the external drive, when opened, it will of course look for the base internal HD. However, it should be easy to tell LR on the second computer where to find the data files. So I think that's what I'm going to do. I keep all of my photos mirrored to an external drive anyway as one of my two backups. (The other is a true backup on the cloud.) So all I have to do is copy the catalog files to the external drive before leaving and tell LR on the second computer to open the catalog on the external drive and where to find the data files.

 

[ShipleyNW]

LRC needs 3 types of directory trees to work, and all of those directories can go anywhere as long as the OS can see all of them.

1. EXE directory
This is what gets installed when you install LRC, includes the Lightroom.exe file, and there's only one of these per computer. In theory, you can install this anywhere, but I usually put it in the 'C:\Program Files' directory with the rest of my applications. Much less headache that way; that's where the OS expects to find it. This is the directory that's limited by Adobe to installation on 2 different computers.

2. Catalog Directory
As long as they have unique names, you can have as many of these as you want, but each individual one should have its own directory tree. To open the catalog, you open the .lrcat file in that directory and that calls the Lightroom.exe file to get everything started. Only one catalog can be open at a time.

3. Image Files
These can literally go anywhere the OS can see them. You tell the catalog where they live during the Import process.

While in theory the catalog directory and image files can go anywhere, I find it best to keep the catalog directory and an image file directory on the same drive. I keep 2 catalogs and their image files in sync on 2 different drives; a MAIN catalog on an internal drive, and a MOBILE catalog on an external drive. I can move the mobile drive onto any computer with the Lightroom executable installed. I just plug the drive into a USB port, open the .lrcat file, and I'm ready to edit. When I get back home I just sync new image files and edits back to the main catalog.



My main catalog and its image files (and not much else) live on the internal E: drive. I keep a synced copy with a different catalog name, and duplicate copies of the image files, on the external G: drive.

 

[paddler4]

Ken,

Yes. What's under discussion in this thread is #2 and #3. #3 is simple because the directory with image files can simply be mirrored and copied anywhere else you want. Part of the discussion in this thread was whether there is a good way to copy the image files without shlepping an external drive. I'm going to carry an external drive.

The more complicated part is #2, which together is "the catalog". You can place that wherever you want, as long as LR knows where it is. The complication arises if:

• You don't keep #2 and #3 on the same external drive, and
• You want to copy both to a second computer.

In that case, when you copy #2 and open it on the second computer, the catalog will look for the image files where they were on the first computer. If they have a different drive label or directory label on the second computer, you have to point the catalog to them. Alternatively, keep #2 on the external drive as well.

My preference is to keep everything on internal drives for speed when I'm on the main computer. I routinely mirror #3 to an external drive as part of my backup system. All I will do differently in the future is that when I need to work on the second computer, I'll mirror #2 as well and then redirect the catalog to the correct location when I open it. I think that should work OK.

If I understand what you are doing, you don't have access to the files from the main computer when you are on the second computer. To do that, which is what I used to do, you don't have to bring a copy of #2 to the second computer. Just use LR on that computer as a stand-alone, and when you are ready to move back, select the new images you want to bring back to your main computer and export them as a catalog. Put that on the mobile drive and import it when you get back to the main computer and have your main catalog open.

Dan

 

[Nature's Spectrum]

LRC needs 3 types of directory trees to work, and all of those directories can go anywhere as long as the OS can see all of them.

1. EXE directory
This is what gets installed when you install LRC, includes the Lightroom.exe file, and there's only one of these per computer. In theory, you can install this anywhere, but I usually put it in the 'C:\Program Files' directory with the rest of my applications. Much less headache that way; that's where the OS expects to find it. This is the directory that's limited by Adobe to installation on 2 different computers.

2. Catalog Directory
As long as they have unique names, you can have as many of these as you want, but each individual one should have its own directory tree. To open the catalog, you open the .lrcat file in that directory and that calls the Lightroom.exe file to get everything started. Only one catalog can be open at a time.

3. Image Files
These can literally go anywhere the OS can see them. You tell the catalog where they live during the Import process.

While in theory the catalog directory and image files can go anywhere, I find it best to keep the catalog directory and an image file directory on the same drive. I keep 2 catalogs and their image files in sync on 2 different drives; a MAIN catalog on an internal drive, and a MOBILE catalog on an external drive. I can move the mobile drive onto any computer with the Lightroom executable installed. I just plug the drive into a USB port, open the .lrcat file, and I'm ready to edit. When I get back home I just sync new image files and edits back to the main catalog.

View attachment 126991

My main catalog and its image files (and not much else) live on the internal E: drive. I keep a synced copy with a different catalog name, and duplicate copies of the image files, on the external G: drive.

I would add that if you want to keep all of your preferences, plugins, etc. working the same across multiple computers. This applies if you do a default install and do not store files with the catalog which is an option (that I don't use).

Files in the "users/username/AppData/Roaming/Adobe/Lightroom" and "users/username/AppData/Roaming/Adobe/CameraRaw" are need to keep all of your presets, plugins, etc. consistent across systems.

 

[paddler4]

I would add that if you want to keep all of your preferences, plugins, etc. working the same across multiple computers. This applies if you do a default install and do not store files with the catalog which is an option (that I don't use).

Files in the "users/username/AppData/Roaming/Adobe/Lightroom" and "users/username/AppData/Roaming/Adobe/CameraRaw" are need to keep all of your presets, plugins, etc. consistent across systems.

Thank you. A critically important point that I missed in what I posted. It was now several years ago that I set up LR on my second computer, but I think I gave up and reinstalled all of my plugins manually. If one copies those files, it's important to make sure that the second computer has the plugins in directories with the same name. I think that wasn't true in my case; I probably had picked some non-default location on one of the computers at one point.

 

[Nature's Spectrum]

Thank you. A critically important point that I missed in what I posted. It was now several years ago that I set up LR on my second computer, but I think I gave up and reinstalled all of my plugins manually. If one copies those files, it's important to make sure that the second computer has the plugins in directories with the same name. I think that wasn't true in my case; I probably had picked some non-default location on one of the computers at one point.

That's happened to me before. I store all plugins in the modules folder in appdata/Lightroom now, which is where Adobe puts their built in plugins