What is Easiest Way to Transfer Pics from HD in LR?

[Michael Pancier]

I have some images on an external HD which are synced into lightroom. What is the easiest way to transfer those images to another drive and yet keep the LR catalog intact?

I'm thinking I create a new folder on the new drive then move it over within lr.

Am I on the right track?

[Bob Ettinger]

Yes and then you have to re-import them into LR from the new location

[Alfred Forns]

You can use in LR Export as Catalog and all will be included.... has to be the new 2.0

Mike you might try for a few converting to DNG then move and import !!! Have been going to DNG lately !!!

[Dave Taylor]

In LR 2.2, you need to make sure both drives are attached and recognized by LR (they should both be available within your "Folders" section (below "Catalog"). Then, just drag the folder from the external drive you want to move from into the new hard drive - do ALL of this within Lightroom. The status bar in the upper left corner should read something like "moving folders/images/etc." Hope this helps.
dt

[Alfred Forns]

Thanks Dave I guess the most important point and glad you made it, any changes have to be done inside LR !!!!

.... Dave have you done much converting to DNG? Sometimes I wish all the cameras would use that format !!!

[Michael Pancier]

Thanks Dave I guess the most important point and glad you made it, any changes have to be done inside LR !!!!

.... Dave have you done much converting to DNG? Sometimes I wish all the cameras would use that format !!!

Al, are you converting everything to DNG and discarding the raw files? or simply making a DNG backup of the raw files?

do you convert the images during the import?

[William Malacarne]

.... Dave have you done much converting to DNG? Sometimes I wish all the cameras would use that format !!!

Alfred

Which cameras are you wishing for as to DNG conversion. I believe the list that they can convert now is something over 200 cameras.

Bill

[Dave Taylor]

Sure thing Alfred, as long as you do the transfer within Lightroom, the only thing that changes is the RAW files location, the catalog stays intact. This wasn't the case before LR2.0, so this was a much needed change.
Simply because DNG has not been widely adopted yet (by camera makers - Adobe has definitely done their job), I do not make the conversion within LR. I still use the proprietary format of the original file (in my case Canon's RAW formats) - I think that Canon's formats (as well as Nikon's, Pentax's, and Sony's) will be around and accepted for a long time. I too wish DNG would be the standard format across the board, rather than each camera company developing their own proprietary formats, it would be much simpler to have a standardized system.

My backup workflow for import is this (and you can do this all within LR, I just like to do it manually):
1) Copy RAW files from CF Card reader to 2 separate ext. hard drives. (Master HD and RAW Archive HD)
2) Import new RAW files from Master HD into Lightroom.
3) Do rough initial edit and rate (I use the stars for rating - too each their own)
4) Immediately export all 3 star and above images to encrypted 16 GB flash thumb drive, this stays with me at all times and always holds my 3 & 4 star images + Portfolio images and a copy of the current lrcat file. They're cheap little drives, and I love to be able to know that I always have a copy of my best images on me at all times.
5) When I get home I attach my Master HD again and do a DNG export within LR to another external hard drive labeled DNG Archive.
6) As time allows I also back up my > or = 3 star images to my online archive at Photo Shelter.
7) Any work that I do within LR is done off of my Master HD (Ext.)
8) Whenever LR prompts me to backup my catalog, I also duplicate the current Catalog file to my thumb drive, DNG Archive, and RAW Archive.

It sounds like a lot, but I like the system that I have, and I've never (this is where I knock on wood) had a failure.
I have considered a RAID system, buy I like having the flexibility my system offers. It's small (portable), verifiable, and relatively convenient (hey, it's an image backup system - it's not supposed to be fun:)

Let me know if you have any questions.