LR basics in an extremely short text.
read them, try understand them, if you need to know more, simply ask about a bullet.
1 LR does not touch your originals, never.
2 LR is a database that keep track of where your imported files are.
3 When you import to LR, what you REALLY do is showing LR where the file are. LR keep a link to your original file.
4 Because of 2 & 3 you never move/rename/delete a file outside of LR. All changes shall be handled from within LR.
5 If you still have moved or renamed a file outside of LR you will have to relink to that file.
If you moved a whole top folder, relink the top folder and the rest is given automaticly.
6 At import LR creates at preview, a LR-copy, that is hidden in the catalogs preview file. Previews will be rebuilt when watching a file if they where removed.
6,5 Catalogs is your file with extension lrcat.
7 You do not SAVE in LR. Every change you do is saved automaticly by LR in your catalogs.
You can also save changes in an XMP-file.
XMP has 2 advantages:
a Your changes to a picture is also saved in this sidecar file and the XMP is readable to other programs(read not Adobe).
b If, and god forbid, your lrcat is damaged on the disc you will still have your changes saved in the XMP.
c If you use DNG, LR will save xmp information inside the DNG file wich means no extra xmp file.
Disadvantage is:
More files which take more space and time to backup.
8 Virtual copies is never saved in XMP, only in catalogs.
8,5 Snapshots from a Virtual Copy will be saved in the XMP.
9 A lot of people with laptops has files on External Hard Drives, EHD.
If you save your lrcat on your internal disc you are always able to make changes to your picture when using smart previews which came with LR5.
Even if your EHD is connected or not.
What you really do see is the smart preview, the LR-copy.
All your changes will be stored in the lrcat.
After reconnecting your EHD, you are then able to make exports.
10 You CAN have multiple catalogs.
The normal reason is that you want to separate private pictures from work or one client from another or keeping discs data separately.
The normal user use ONLY 1 catalog. More than one is going to complicate your work.
11 LR does NOT backup your original files. That is done by YOU no one else.
12 LR does backup catalogs. Where to is controled by YOU. It is smart to use another drive for backup of catalogs.
13 A good way to organize your files is one top library per disc.
I use years below to simplify my backup routines.
Picture
Picture/2015
And normally one named folder for each import with named files. And I keep LR normal datefolder inside.
Easy to find what pictures that is on which disc and keep keywords down.
Picture/2015/2015-12-24-christmas/2015-12-24 (files renamed to 2015-12-24-christmas_0001....)
14 LR never remembers exported files. An Exported file is a copy. Normally your original+edits you have done. You CAN export the original file and that is the same as making a copy outside of LR.
If you want to keep them or not does not LR care about. You can always export a new one.
15 LR remembers published Pictures.
