Readying image file archive for Light Room 3.

[schrodingerscat]

Have been watching the "Where's My #@##* Pictures" vid and getting ready to move from PS/Bridge to LR3 for future work.

Before making the transition though, I want to go over my image files to clean them up so LR accesses them at max efficiency. After ten years of sloppiness, it looks like a good idea to do a bit of editing and arranging beforehand, so LR only needs to import the essentials. From what I gather, LR doesn't need all those camera added jpgs, and thumbs and sidecars that have been created over the years by Br. Is it OK to just trash those files? As well as the Br cache, etc.? Anything else that can be eliminated?

I want the image folders to contain just what's necessary for LR. All image files(old and new) will be maintained on a separate drive.

Any insight and advice appreciated.

[john beardsworth]

Simply put, you're looking at things the wrong way round. Get everything into Lightroom so your existing archive and new work is under control, and then use it at your leisure to tidy up the inconsistencies of previous years.

John

[schrodingerscat]

Thanks, that seemed to be what was recommended in the tutorial. So this means I can use LR to get rid of all those thumbs, XMP files, and other detritus collected over time? They didn't go into much detail on working with an existing file archive, that I could see, and I don't want to create problems by removing things I shouldn't.

If I went through the folders beforehand, I could just chop out the obvious offenders in large chunks, based on the file type. Once I make the transition to LR, there's little reason for me to use PS(especially once they get softproofing added).

Not trying to be difficult, just trying to understand the most efficient way to go about this. Not much leisure time these days, and want to be ahead of the curve when I start using LR seriously.

[john beardsworth]

It's pretty common that tutorials don't talk much about the archive, not least because most of their authors are photographers first and so think of Lightroom as a tool for image processing rather than approaching it from a digital asset management (DAM) perspective and then going deeper into its organisational aspects.

As an overall strategy I suggest you start off by getting all that archive into Lightroom and simply leaving it "as is" for some time. Meanwhile import new work and focus your efforts on those images.

I say this because I'm not a great believer in putting off getting going because the size of the overall task seems daunting, and that is where I suspect you now are. The advantage of this new-first strategy is that as you work on these new images, adding metadata and processing them, you'll gain plenty of experience which you can then apply to the archive. For example, processing new work will get you into keywording, or you'll begin grouping related images with smart and dumb collections. Then one day you'll decide to apply the same organisational methods to some of the older work - it'll come when you have a particular need to spend time tidying those images rather than out of a generalised housekeeping urge. So deal with the archive ad hoc, rather than as a big bang.

In a way I'm also saying leave the "detritus" to look after itself. It's not doing any real harm - what does it really matter if there are a few xmp files lying around - and you won't accidentally delete anything of value (but it is all backed up, isn't it?). Most of all, a cataloguing system like Lightroom makes it easier to manage because, for instance, you're seeing all those duplicate copies in one view rather than hiding them in lots of subfolders.

John

[NikoJorj]

So this means I can use LR to get rid of all those thumbs, XMP files, and other detritus collected over time?

Those detritus are likely to contain much of your processing work (XMP mainly)... so better to let LR read them first and then edit.
And those small sidecar files are not the ones who will choke your disk.

What you may or may not include in LR are jpg rendered files.

[john beardsworth]

What you may or may not include in LR are jpg rendered files.

Once they're in the catalogue they'll be a lot easier to identify and perhaps delete. Best to bring everything under control first - a lot of errors happen when people try to get clever picking and choosing what to import.

John

[JRSmit]

From my own experience with migrating to LR as well as my professional experience on data/file migration, my advice is to import it all into LR first. It gives you a very visual clue of what you have, what belongs together for some reason etc. Just as John says, you can then do something about it, more based on needs than going trough the whole bunch which is probably very time consuming without bringing much value. Also consider a plan how to go about with new images added to LR. These two, your legacy versus your new, can be managed separately in LR.
If you decide, as part of weeding the legacy, that you want to move images to a new folder, please do that from within Lightroom, makes life sooo much easier. An additional nicety when moving images to other folders from within LR, it moves along those xmp sidecars that are of value, and any JPG that is considered to be linked to the raw image. When all images in such a way are moved out of the legacy folder what remains is then up to you to do with it. A much easier task i reckon.

[NikoJorj]

Once they're in the catalogue they'll be a lot easier to identify and perhaps delete.

Good point.

[schrodingerscat]

Thanks all, you've given me food for thought.

As I don't use 90% of PS's capabilities, so once I get up to speed in LR it will be my main post app for both new and revisited images. Not real happy with a lot of previous pics now. This seems to indicate I will have no further use for XMPs from old images worked in PS, unless LR accesses them as well. And as LR creates it's own thumbs, prolly don't need the old ones as well. Correct me if I'm wrong please.

I've got three backups of everything, including ones in a safe deposit box, so will experiment a bit and see how it goes.

Had planned on a more in depth response, but the dang thing keeps timing out on me.

[dchew]

Yes, LR creates its own thumbnails.  Also its own previews. You can tell it how big you want those previews to be and how long you want LR to keep them in Preferences.  Like everyone else I urge you to just jump in and start using it.  I think it is rare that someone using this for the first time would predict precisely how he/she wants everything set up.  Experimenting with new images will give you that insight before you mess around with the archive. 

Had planned on a more in depth response, but the dang thing keeps timing out on me.

If you mean the forum, when you log in using the menu link on the left you can check the little box that keeps you signed in all the time (or adjust the time).

Dave

[frugal]

As I don't use 90% of PS's capabilities, so once I get up to speed in LR it will be my main post app for both new and revisited images. Not real happy with a lot of previous pics now. This seems to indicate I will have no further use for XMPs from old images worked in PS, unless LR accesses them as well.

Yes, LR will read the XMPs from PS, and will process them with the same settings. If you throw out the XMPs then your raw files will come in with no processing settings.

[schrodingerscat]

If you mean the forum, when you log in using the menu link on the left you can check the little box that keeps you signed in all the time (or adjust the time).

Dave

I've got the time set to 60 minutes, and still get logged out after half an hour or so. Do I have to check the 'keep me logged in' thing each session?

[schrodingerscat]

Thanks everyone, lots of useful information.