Ask Tim Grey

Today’s Question: I recently moved my photo folders from the “D” drive to a new folder on the “C” drive, while maintaining the same folder structure. It did not go so well in Lightroom Classic! I am wondering how I should have handled this.

Tim’s Quick Answer: In this scenario you can copy the photos to the new drive, disconnect the old drive, and then use the “Find Missing Folder” command to reconnect the top-level folder in Lightroom Classic.

More Detail: When you want to migrate your storage for photos being managed by Lightroom Classic, there are two basic ways you can go about this. You can move the photos from within Lightroom Classic, or you can copy the photos outside of Lightroom Classic and then reconnect the missing folder structure.

While moving within Lightroom Classic is preferred at least in general concept, there can be some challenges involved when you’re moving a large number of photos. Therefore, it is often easier to copy the photos and then update the folder location in Lightroom Classic.

Let’s assume you are moving photos from a folder structure on an external hard drive to a dedicated location (the Pictures folder) on an internal hard drive. The first step would be to copy the full folder structure exactly as it is from the external hard drive to the Pictures folder.

Next, you want to make sure that the photos in their original location are not available. If the photos are on an external hard drive, you can simply disconnect that drive from the computer. If the photos are on an internal hard drive, you can rename the top-level folder outside of Lightroom Classic so the folders and photos will appear as missing.

You can then reconnect the top-level folder that Lightroom Classic is expecting with the new top-level folder. In this case, for example, you could right-click on one of the top-level folders in the Folders list in Lightroom Classic and choose “Show Parent Folder” so the parent folder is revealed, which in my example means revealing the external hard drive as though it were a folder at the top of the Folders list. Right-click on that folder and choose “Find Missing Folder”. In the dialog that appears, navigate to the updated location, such as the Pictures folder in this example. Click the Choose button once you’ve opened that folder, and Lightroom Classic will reconnect the source folders and photos. In this case that means that instead of looking for the folders on the external hard drive, Lightroom Classic would be looking for the same folder structure in the Pictures folder of the internal hard drive.

Note that you can learn more about resolving various issues and problems in Lightroom Classic in my recently updated video course “Cleaning Up Your Mess in Lightroom Classic”, which you can find on the GreyLearning website here:

https://www.greylearning.com/courses/cleaning-up-your-mess-in-lightroom-classic-2025

Today’s Question: If you delete a photo [in Lightroom Classic] while not having an external hard drive connected, when you reconnect the drive will the file be deleted? In other words, can you cull images when the drive is not connected or do you need to just reject and delete later?

Tim’s Quick Answer: You can only delete photos when the source files are available. If you try to delete when an external drive is disconnected, for example, your only option will be to remove the photo from the catalog, and it won’t be deleted from the hard drive even when the drive is reconnected.

More Detail: One of the advantages of the catalog used by Lightroom Classic to manage photos is that as long as you’ve generated previews for photos you can browse them even when the source files aren’t available. For example, you can review photos and update metadata even when an external hard drive containing those photos is not connected to the computer.

However, you can’t delete photos from an external hard drive that isn’t connected. In fact, if you attempt to delete a photo that isn’t available by using the Remove Photo command, your only option is to remove the photo, not delete it from the hard drive.

If you remove a photo from Lightroom Classic without deleting the source file, that file will still be on your hard drive taking up space, even though the image won’t be included in your Lightroom Classic catalog.

This issue is among several reasons I recommend assigning a Reject flag to photos you want to delete, rather than deleting them directly. You can then review the rejected photos, and then delete them when you’re sure you want to permanently remove them and that the source files are available. So, in the context of today’s, I would assign a Reject flag when reviewing the photos to identify those I want to delete. Then, when the external hard drive is connected and I’m sure I want to permanently delete the photos, the Delete Rejected Photos command (found on the Photo menu) can be used to delete only the rejected photos in the current folder location. Note that you then want to click the “Delete from Disk” button in the confirmation dialog so the source files are deleted and the images are removed from the Lightroom Classic catalog.

Today’s Question: I tried opening an image of someone spending money in Photoshop but was unable to open the image. Instead, I was met with a message that Photoshop was unable to print banknote images, directing me to a website that doesn’t seem to exist. How can I work around this limitation?

Tim’s Quick Answer: The key issue here is that there are limitations on printing copies of US currency, and Photoshop (among many other software applications, printers, and copiers) have similar limitations.

More Detail: The issue with creating images that feature US currency (with similar issues related to other currencies around the world) primarily relates to printing. Some time ago there were updates introducing restrictions in Photoshop, but you’ll find similar challenges in other software, or when trying to print or copy currency.

Interestingly enough, while Adobe Photoshop prevents you from opening images that include currency (even when, as in the case of the image shared by the photographer who posed today’s question, only a very small portion of the currency is shown), other applications such as Lightroom Classic enable you to open, edit, and print such images.

Perhaps even more interesting is that you can find numerous images of currency (including US currency) on the Adobe Stock website, including images that feature complete bills that aren’t cut off at all. But if you download one of those images, you won’t be able to open them in Photoshop. To my knowledge, there is no workaround for this issue in terms of being able to open such an image directly in Photoshop.

What I also find amusing is that from what I can find most of the restrictions on reproducing images of US currency relate specifically to printing images, not sharing them digitally. For example, when printing images of currency, that currency must appear at 75% or less of the original size or 125% or greater than the original size.

While there isn’t an easy solution for using Photoshop for such images, there are other applications that can be used. But if you’d like to learn more about some of the limitations that led to the inability to work with images of currency with the flexibility you have with other images, you can find a brief summary here:

https://www.uscurrency.gov/media/currency-image-use

Today’s Question: I was hoping you could provide an updated recommendation for an SSD drive you would recommend for storing photos while on a photo trip. I’m looking for something small and convenient, and preferably fast.

Tim’s Quick Answer: I have been very happy with the SanDisk Extreme (https://bhpho.to/4cEivUh) SSD drives, which are portable, convenient, and fast.

More Detail: When I’m traveling (and even when I’m not) I prefer to use bus-powered drives, so I don’t need to carry a power cord in addition to the data cable for a drive. I prefer to use SSD drives rather than traditional hard drives for greater speed and reliability. I’ve somewhat recently started using the SanDisk Extreme drives for much of my primary storage.

While I had previously preferred drives that are ruggedized for better peace of mind when traveling, I’ve more recently found the SanDisk Extreme drives to be a good replacement. I haven’t replaced all my rugged drives yet, but I do plan to over time. The SanDisk Extreme drives are small and light, and use flash-based media, so they are easy to travel with and relatively rugged.

I’ve primarily been using the “standard” SanDisk Extreme drives, mostly in 4TB capacity, which you can find here:

https://bhpho.to/4cEivUh

There is also a PRO model, which provides a bit higher speed than the standard drive above, which you can find here:

https://bhpho.to/409Kbwy

In addition, there is a newer and faster (though also more expensive) USB4 model you can find here:

https://bhpho.to/3V6Wgyz

Today’s Question: I very much enjoyed your webinar presentation about folders and collections and learned many helpful tips. I was wondering if you could comment on the creation of collections for workflow purposes in Lightroom Classic. I’ve seen other photographers create collections for all photos from a trip, and another for favorites from a trip, and others beyond that. Do you recommend this sort of approach to using collections?

Tim’s Quick Answer: No, I don’t consider collections to generally be helpful as part of an image-review workflow in Lightroom Classic. That’s especially true if the collections are creating clutter that could be avoided with a different workflow approach.

More Detail: I have also seen photographers recommend creating collections for very broad purposes in an organizational workflow in Lightroom Classic, such as for grouping photos during the process of identifying favorites versus outtakes. In most cases I don’t recommend using collections for this type of purpose.

For example, in my view creating a collection that includes all photos from a folder is in most cases not helpful, because if you need to access all those photos you could just go to the folder. Furthermore, I don’t find it helpful to create a collection that includes all favorite photos from a collection, because you could simply filter the source folder based on star ratings, for example. Beyond the fact that this type of collection isn’t particularly helpful, they can cause a bit of unnecessary clutter in the Collections section.

I therefore recommend organizing photos in Lightroom Classic primarily using a folder structure and metadata attributes such as star ratings and keywords. In my view collections are best used for situations where you want to organize photos in ways that go beyond the folder structure. For example, you might want to create a collection featuring the images you want to include in a photo slideshow presentation, such as when you’ll share favorite images from a variety of different trips.

Another exception to some of what I’ve outlined above relates to synchronizing photos to the cloud. For example, if you wanted to review photos on a mobile device during your flight home from a trip, you might want to create a collection that includes all photos from a folder so you can synchronize that collection and review them from another device with ease.

Today’s Question: You suggested it was possible to add location information to photos manually in Lightroom Classic. How can this be done? Does it require me to figure out what the GPS coordinates are for a photo first?

Tim’s Quick Answer: Yes! You can very easily add GPS coordinates to a photo in Lightroom Classic by dragging the photo to the applicable location in the Map module, among other options.

More Detail: It is obviously very convenient to have a camera with a built-in or accessory GPS receiver, so that location information can be embedded in metadata right from the time of capture. However, there are other easy ways to add that information after the capture as well.

One of the simplest options is to simply drag photos to the map in the Map module. With the applicable photos on the filmstrip, you can switch to the Map module and navigate to the specific location on the map where the photos were captured. Note that you can use the search field at the top-right of the map to quickly navigate to a specific location. Also, switching among map views on the toolbar, such as to use the Satellite or Hybrid view options, can make it easier to locate a particular landmark on the map.

Once you have navigated to the correct location on the map, you can select one or more photos on the filmstrip and then drag-and-drop the selected images to the location on the map. The metadata for the images will then be updated to include the GPS coordinates based on the map location.

You could also copy and paste GPS coordinates, such as from the GPS field in metadata from one photo to another, or from another mapping application, for example. You could also record a tracklog on a smartphone or GPS navigator, and then synchronize the tracklog with the applicable photos. But for situations where you didn’t record location information with the camera or another GPS-enabled device, you can easily add photos to the map with a simple drag-and-drop to add GPS coordinates to metadata.

Today’s Question: Is it possible to view only photos that have GPS coordinates for a specific area of the map in Lightroom Classic? Sometimes I know a photo was captured in a particular area, but I find it cumbersome to try to locate the actual image.

Tim’s Quick Answer: Yes, you can filter images based on the currently visible area of the map in the Map module in Lightroom Classic by selecting the “Visible On Map” option from the Location Filter bar above the map.

More Detail: If the location where photos were captured is meaningful, such as for travel photography, the Map module in Lightroom Classic can be quite valuable. Whether you’re using a camera with a GPS receiver so location information can be added automatically, or you’re manually adding location information, you can set a filter so you’re only seeing images in the current map area.

The first step is to make sure you’re browsing the photos you’re looking for, such as by selecting a particular folder or collection. This could even include selecting the All Photographs collection in the Catalog section on the left panel in the Library module.

Then go to the Map module and pan and zoom as needed on the map so that the only area of the map that is visible is the area where the photos you’re looking for were captured. If the Location Filter bar is not visible at the top of the map you can press the backslash key (\) on the keyboard or go to the menu and choose View > Show Filter Bar. Click on the “Visible On Map” option on this filter bar, and the images will be filtered based on only those that contain GPS coordinates in metadata that correspond to the currently visible map are.

You can then switch to the Library module if you want to be able to take advantage of the view options there, such as to switch between the grid and loupe views. If you lock the filter criteria on the Library Filter bar above the grid view (using the padlock icon at the top-right of the bar) you can also switch to a different folder or collection while keeping the filter criteria locked, so that you’re only viewing photos from the current map area even if you browse a different set of photos.

Today’s Question: I’m trying to export copies of all photos in my Lightroom Classic catalog. So I go to All Photographs, set the filter to None, and choose Edit > Select All from the menu. But on the filmstrip the number of photos shown as selected is smaller than the total number of photos. How can that be if I’ve selected all with no filter set?

Tim’s Quick Answer: Based on your description the most likely cause of not all photos being selected is that you have stacks of photos that are collapsed.

More Detail: When images have been stacked in Lightroom Classic, and a stack is collapsed, that stack only counts as a single photo. As a result, if you select all photos when there are stacks collapsed, the photos “hidden” by the stack will not be included in the selection. So, for example, if there is a stack of ten photos and it is collapsed, nine of those photos won’t be selected when you use the Select All command.

To resolve this issue, you simply need to unstack all stacks before selecting the photos. So, for example, you could navigate to the All Photographs collection in the Catalog section of the left panel in the Library module (or any folder or collection). Choose “None” from the Library Filter bar at the top of the grid view so no images are excluded based on a filter. Then go to the Photo menu and choose Stacking > Expand All Stacks. You can then choose Edit > Select All, and you will truly be selecting all the images.

Note that when you aren’t seeing all photos, such as when there are collapsed stacks, there will be an indication of this on the filmstrip. For example, you might see something like “3264 of 3548 photos / 3264 selected”. This tells you that while there are a total of 3,548 photos in the current location, you’re only seeing 3,264 of them, and all those 3,264 images are selected. But by expanding all stacks you’ll see that you are browsing all photos, without excluding those that were hidden by being collapsed in a stack.

Today’s Question: Every now and then in Lightroom Classic the left and right panels (but not the top and bottom panels) will disappear. I have to click on the left and right edges of the screen to get them back. Is this a glitch, or am I doing something to cause this issue?

Tim’s Quick Answer: The most likely explanation here is that you are inadvertently pressing the Tab key, which will hide (or reveal) the left and right panels in Lightroom Classic.

More Detail: Keyboard shortcuts in software can be incredibly convenient, unless you accidentally press a key resulting in some change you weren’t intending or anticipating. In this case, it sounds like you’re accidentally pressing the Tab key, which hides or reveals the left and right panels.

The Tab key enables you to cycle through text fields, and so for example in Lightroom Classic you might press Tab to switch between the editable fields in the Metadata section of the right panel in the Library module. But if a text field isn’t active, pressing Tab will instead hide the left and right panels. If that happens, you can simply press Tab again to reveal the panels, so you don’t need to click on the edge of the screen to bring the panels back.

Note that you can also hide or reveal all four panels by holding the Shift key while pressing the Tab key.

Whenever you have a situation where something changes in Lightroom Classic where you believe an accidental keyboard shortcut may have caused the issue, there are a couple of ways to figure it out. You can scan the menus in Lightroom Classic, where keyboard shortcuts are found to the right of applicable commands. You can also review (and search) the list of keyboard shortcuts for Lightroom Classic on the Adobe website here:

https://helpx.adobe.com/lightroom-classic/help/keyboard-shortcuts.html

Today’s Question: When I look at the History section for an image in Lightroom Classic, I often notice the Snapshots section, which I never use. Is there any reason I should be using snapshots?

Tim’s Quick Answer: Probably not. In my view, in most cases when you might put snapshots to use in Lightroom Classic a virtual copy would likely provide a better solution.

More Detail: Snapshots in Lightroom Classic enable you to record the current state of all adjustments in the Develop module. In effect, you’re taking a snapshot of what the image looks like at that moment. When you create a snapshot (by clicking the plus icon to the right of the Snapshots heading) you can enter a meaningful name for the snapshot. The snapshot will then appear under the Snapshots heading, and you can click on a snapshot to quickly return to the saved appearance for the image.

Based on their behavior, to me the scenario where it makes sense to potentially use snapshots for an image is when you want to settle on a single version of an image, but you’re not sure which version to go with. For example, you might be debating on a color versus black and white version of an image. In that case you could create a snapshot when you’ve achieved a final color interpretation, then apply adjustments for a black and white version and create a snapshot for that. You could then alternate between the snapshots as you decide which version will represent your final interpretation.

When you want to keep more one version of an image, I recommend using a virtual copy. For example, you could finalize the color version of the image, then create a virtual copy (by right-clicking and choosing Create Virtual Copy from the popup menu). You could then apply adjustments to the virtual copy for a black and white version, so that you effectively have two images (based on the same source file) for the two interpretations.

Personally, I prefer to use virtual copies even for situations where snapshots might make sense. If you use virtual copies and then decide you don’t want one of the versions, you can simply remove the virtual copy. To me virtual copies provide greater flexibility and a more streamlined workflow compared to the use of snapshots.