Need help with LightRoom organizing folders.

[walter.sk]

I finally got LightRoom (1.4.1 on an XP Pro machine).  I've got several 500GB harddrives-full of image files.  They were organized into a consistent folder hierarchy that worked well for me.  Now, after poring over Kelby's LR book, which is quite instructive,  I realize that my fantasy of just having LR somehow ingest my folder structure and import the files won't work.  I need lots of help.  

I also have 3 fairly empty 500G hard drives: one for importing files from current shoots, one as a backkup for those, and a third for periodic backups of my internal drives.

My folder structure is as follows: X:\LatestDownloads\Date_Shootname.  

Sometimes I have subfolders, as in X:\LatestDownloads\Date_Shootname\MustPrint, or \BestOf, etc.

There are 3 500Gb drives with this folder structure, with Date_Shootname folders from 1999 through the current time.

I have no problem organizing my current and future imported files according to this structure, with files from the CF cards getting copied and renamed yymmdd_Shootname_0001.

What is the best way to get LR to deal with all my pre-LR folders?  Would I be best off creating 1 library or more than 1 library?  Once I have all my files in LR it would be easy for me to arrange catalogues, add keywords, etc.

I am so poor at organizing that I would really appreciate a step-by-step plan for setting up my LR system.

I wish that there were some way to point LR at the LatestDownloads folder on each HDD, and have it process the folders and subfolders.

[JDClements]

I realize that my fantasy of just having LR somehow ingest my folder structure and import the files won't work.

Why not? Use the Import function, and select "import at current location". All of your existing folders will be displayed, as is, in the Folder pane.

[walter.sk]

Why not? Use the Import function, and select "import at current location". All of your existing folders will be displayed, as is, in the Folder pane.
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Thanks.  I figured out what was hanging me up.  I did what you suggest, and selected my \LatestDownloads  folder.  However, as there were no actual image files in that folder, when I clicked OPEN, it simply opened the folder and took me down one level.  When I repeated the process, it finally took me to some image files, but when I hit IMPORT, the higher level folders did not get imported.

Finally, it occurred to me to *not* click on OPEN, but rather to click on the SELECTED button (duh!).  As I write this, LR is doing exactly what I wanted.

[wolfnowl]

Most popular question in the computer lab... "Why is it doing this?"  

Usual answer... "Because you told it to."

Mike.