# Two monitor option options



## mikecox (Jun 9, 2020)

I operate with 2 monitors, doing my editing on the larger one, my laptop is my second monitor.

I would like to compare images in two different folders, in order to find duplicate images that might be present.  When i click the monitor icon containing the "2", in the lower-left I can see images in the open folder on "1" in Survey and Compare but there doesn't appear to be a way to select a different folder, with one on #1 and the other on #2.   So I'm guessing there is no way to do this.

I haven't tried this because I don't know it's possible, or safe but I wonder if it's possible to open 2 Lr programs and put one on each monitor, being careful not the make changes on the laptop copy.

Or could there be another way to do this?


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## Gnits (Jun 9, 2020)

I have not got a Pc handy, but would using Bridge be an option or Bridge and Lightroom.


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## Conrad Chavez (Jun 9, 2020)

Bridge would be a good solution indeed. But the default state of Bridge does not solve the problem, because like Lightroom Classic, the single window can be focused on only a single source (e.g. folder) at a time.

The key to the solution is using one thing Bridge can do that Lightroom can’t: In Bridge, choose File > New Window, to create a second Bridge browser window. You can now put those two browser windows side by side, and point them to different folders. In each window, select a photo thumbnail in the Content panel, which will display larger in  the Preview panel — so you probably want to make the Content panel smaller and the Preview panel larger in each Bridge window.


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## clee01l (Jun 9, 2020)

In Lightroom Bring up the 1st image in loupe view on the second monitor. Choose “Lock”  on the top right where you previously set the second monitor to Loupe  pn the top left

Back in the 1st monitor navigate to the second images and choose loupe view where it was grid view before.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## Linwood Ferguson (Jun 10, 2020)

The other thing you can do with one monitor is to combine folders (i.e. select both so they collectively appear in the grid and thus on the filmstrip), and then use the side-by-side display.  You can then use the filmstrip to select the two images, and the left/right arrows will cycle through the "candidate" site leavingint the 'select' image unchanged.  This would let you compare a bunch of images to one pretty easily, and you just swap, advance, and swap back to advance the selected image to the next one.

A little bit awkward but the best I've found for doing comparison in LR among disparate folders.

Bridge is an interesting idea I had not considered.  You might want to save-metadata first so it has the develop settings and the image looks the same in bridge as in lightroom.  I may try that next time I need to do these sorts of comparison.

PS. I actually didn't know about LOCK (or had forgotten), thanks Cletus.  The only problem with that is you can't advance it if you are trying to step through two folders.  I really don't see why they do not allow two completely independent loupes.


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## Samoreen (Jun 10, 2020)

mikecox said:


> I would like to compare images in two different folders, in order to find duplicate images that might be present.



Michael,

Don't do that manually. There are tools allowing you to do that quickly and easily. For comparing images in different folders, I would suggest using Beyond Compare, a very handy tool that I'm using since years for many different tasks. It has a specialized viewer for comparing images.

Duplicate Cleaner Pro could be useful too. In your case, it should be used in image mode.


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## Gnits (Jun 10, 2020)

I recommend Beyond Compare..... small price, worth it.... worth becoming familiar with it, because there are lots of reasons to use it, not just checking images. .... You can select two different folders, which appear in different windows... Single click to show only differences... Very easy to show orphans on left or right panes (new or modified on one side but not in the other). 

I use it to copy New and Modified files from my production image store to my backup drive as one of my backup options. I have a default configuration.... Only slight drawback is that it is not trivial to automate scheduling.  On the other hand Good Synch has a less friendly user interface, but has a good scheduling tool.


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## Philippe Coudé du Foresto (Jun 10, 2020)

You can also use the free LR plugin Teekesselchen. Very efficient to find duplicates.


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## mikecox (Jun 12, 2020)

Philippe Coudé du Foresto said:


> You can also use the free LR plugin Teekesselchen. Very efficient to find duplicates.


Thanks, I'll definitely add that plugin but I doubt it will help because the duplicated images have different filenames.


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## mikecox (Jun 12, 2020)

Gnits said:


> I recommend Beyond Compare.....


Thanks!  I've dl's it and will see how it works.  Appears to be the simplest, stand along,  option at this point


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## Philippe Coudé du Foresto (Jun 12, 2020)

> I doubt it will help because the duplicated images have different filenames


You can set it to not compare the file names.


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## mikecox (Jun 12, 2020)

Samoreen said:


> Michael,
> 
> Don't do that manually. There are tools allowing you to do that quickly and easily. For comparing images in different folders, I would suggest using Beyond Compare, a very handy tool that I'm using since years for many different tasks. It has a specialized viewer for comparing images.
> 
> Duplicate Cleaner Pro could be useful too. In your case, it should be used in image mode.


Thanks, I've installed Compare. That app has bee recommended twice in this thread, so sounds encouraging.


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## mikecox (Jun 12, 2020)

Ferguson said:


> The other thing you can do with one monitor is to combine folders (i.e. select both so they collectively appear in the grid and thus on the filmstrip), and then use the side-by-side display.  You can then use the filmstrip to select the two images, and the left/right arrows will cycle through the "candidate" site leavingint the 'select' image unchanged.  This would let you compare a bunch of images to one pretty easily, and you just swap, advance, and swap back to advance the selected image to the next one.
> 
> A little bit awkward but the best I've found for doing comparison in LR among disparate folders.
> 
> ...


Bridge sounds like a good idea but I stopped using it when I discovered Lr so I'm not inclined to go back to it


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## Linwood Ferguson (Jun 13, 2020)

Does anyone know of a tool that does image recognition to try to find duplicates? 

For example, I'd like to know if I accidentally both imaged a negative and a print of the same image (I know I did many times, and found many, but are there others?).


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## PhilBurton (Jun 13, 2020)

mikecox said:


> Thanks!  I've dl's it and will see how it works.  Appears to be the simplest, stand along,  option at this point


Mike,
I could not manage my desktop + my laptop with all my different directories without Beyond Compare.  +1, no, +2.  Well worth the money.  Far better interface than similar directory compare programs.

Phil Burton


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## Samoreen (Jun 13, 2020)

mikecox said:


> I doubt it will help because the duplicated images have different filenames.



FYI.
Duplicate finders are not necessarily/only using filenames for duplicate detection. Very often, they compute a hashcode based on the file contents. Files having identical hashcodes are identical with an extremely high probability. So, the filename is not relevant.


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## mikecox (Jun 13, 2020)

Samoreen said:


> FYI.
> Duplicate finders are not necessarily/only using filenames for duplicate detection. Very often, they compute a hashcode based on the file contents. Files having identical hashcodes are identical with an extremely high probability. So, the filename is not relevant.


Interesteresting. I didn't know that.


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## Linwood Ferguson (Jun 13, 2020)

I think you'll find most though (also) pay attention to metadata.  For most people it's unlikely (as an example) that two different photos are taken at precisely the same time (if I recall the metadata can store it up to hundredths of a second, though many cameras may not). 

The problem is none of this helps with scanned in photos (you somehow scan the same one twice), or with photos you might strip metadata from (e.g. you exported without).  Often we are our own worst enemies in terms of our photo organization. 

In Coronavirus time I'm spending a lot of effort cleaning up past messes.


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## Samoreen (Jun 13, 2020)

mikecox said:


> Interesteresting. I didn't know that.



That's what Duplicate Finder Pro does.


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## PhilBurton (Jun 13, 2020)

Samoreen said:


> That's what Duplicate Finder Pro does.


What he said.  There is a free version of this utility but the paid version is more powerful, and well worth the US $30.  Purchase Duplicate Cleaner Pro

Phil


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## Samoreen (Jun 13, 2020)

Samoreen said:


> That's what Duplicate Finder Pro does.



Ooooops, I meant Duplicate Cleaner Pro.


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## mikecox (Jun 13, 2020)

Ferguson said:


> I think you'll find most though (also) pay attention to metadata.  For most people it's unlikely (as an example) that two different photos are taken at precisely the same time (if I recall the metadata can store it up to hundredths of a second, though many cameras may not).
> 
> The problem is none of this helps with scanned in photos (you somehow scan the same one twice), or with photos you might strip metadata from (e.g. you exported without).  Often we are our own worst enemies in terms of our photo organization.
> 
> In Coronavirus time I'm spending a lot of effort cleaning up past messes.


I expect that's also true for V copies.


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