How to Transfer Edited Photos/Collections to New Hard Drive

[Deku_Studios]

Hello!

I am new here, so hopefully I'm not asking a common question that I just couldn't find.

I upgraded to a 4TB HD with the intent to transfer my whole library form my past hard drive. In Lightroom, I edit the photos and add them to specified collection folders of the event, as I'm sure most do. When trying to transfer the photos to the new hard drive, it seems only the originals transfer and NOT the edited photos! For future use and reference, I obviously want the edited photos and not just the originals. Am I missing something? I can't seem to find anyone with the same problem.

Thank you so much!

Steve

[JP Hess · Accepted solution]

There are no "edited photos". All of your changes, all of your collections, everything that you have done in Lightroom is stored in the catalog. All of your images are still unchanged, in their same pristine state, in the same condition they were in when they were downloaded from the camera. That is how Lightroom works. If you want those images moved to the new hard drive here is the way I would recommend that you do it. Hopefully, you have your images organized so that they are all within one master image folder. Assuming that is how you have organized your images here is what to do:

1. With Lightroom closed, use your operating system to COPY that folder from your computer to the new hard drive.

2. Now start Lightroom and go to the library module and right-click on that master folder and choose to update the folder location.

3. In the dialog that appears, point Lightroom to the master folder on the new hard drive.

4. After you have done this Lightroom will now be synchronized to see all of the same images, but on the new hard drive.

From now on, all of your collections and all of the adjustments you have made and all of the work you have done will have reference to the images on the new hard drive. The images on your computer hard drive that you have been using in the past can now be deleted because Lightroom is not looking at them anymore.

If your images are not organized within one master folder  then you will have two copies each folder to the new hard drive and update the folder location for each individual folder. It'll take a little longer that way, but it isn't really that difficult.

[Deku_Studios]

Awesome, I'll give it a try! Thank you.

[Deku_Studios]

That was an unbelievable easy fix, and now I feel like an idiot...Thanks so much, Jim!

[Deku_Studios]

Here's an example of what's showing up in my Library (showing non-edited photo) and collection (showing edited photo, but says can't be found).