# Catalog folder structure is to extensive



## radiohead3 (Sep 1, 2018)

Hi everyone,

I got a problem with my lightroom. 

Since a few days I have so many parent folders visible that I cannot read the name of the main folders anymore.





And my external Folder is also in this structure included:




Before it was like this: 
I only saw (Macintosh HD and then Data - 2018 and so on...)
And then I had a seperate Box with my external volume:
Volume - lightroom - 2010, 2011 and so on...

Has anyone an idea, why this could have changed and how I can bring it back to normal again?

Thanks
Radiohead3


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## LouieSherwin (Sep 1, 2018)

Hi,

Not sure how this happened but you can hide the unneeded top folders by Right-Click (Ctl-Click) on the top level and select "Hide this Parent". I think that you may have to do one at a time top to bottom until you only show the folders that you want.

-louie


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## radiohead3 (Sep 1, 2018)

I tried this now one more time. I can hide the parent folders for the folders on my macintosh HD.
But why are the folders, which are actually on external drives also in the "Macintosh HD" part?


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## radiohead3 (Sep 1, 2018)

If I click on "hide parent folders" on this folder. 



The total folder vanishes...
I then have to click on "+" /  "Add Folder" again. But then it will import them and I fear that I lose all the changes then, that I have applied to the pictures...
You know what I mean?


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## Jim Wilde (Sep 2, 2018)

See this Adobe Help article about this particular issue: Volumes and drives display as folders in Lightoom


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## radiohead3 (Sep 2, 2018)

Jim Wilde said:


> See this Adobe Help article about this particular issue: Volumes and drives display as folders in Lightoom


Thank you very much! This looked like it would help, as the problem is similar. But the important difference to this example is, that I don't see the Volumes folder twice. I ONLY have it within the "/" folder.
It is like this:

While in the example the folder "jump drive" is double:


So if I do Step 4 the whole folder Volumes is gone with all its subfolders and I don't see them in the catalog at all...


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## Johan Elzenga (Sep 2, 2018)

The '/' folder is not really a folder, so it should not show in Lightroom. Volumes should also not show in Lightroom, because it is a hidden folder that contains the paths to your real disks. Use 'Hide this parent' on the '/' folder and on the 'Volumes' folder, and then restart Lightroom.


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## radiohead3 (Sep 2, 2018)

JohanElzenga said:


> The '/' folder is not really a folder, so it should not show in Lightroom. Volumes should also not show in Lightroom, because it is a hidden folder that contains the paths to your real disks. Use 'Hide this parent' on the '/' folder and on the 'Volumes' folder, and then restart Lightroom.



Wow! It really worked.
But as you can imagine it takes a lot of Backing-Up and courage, to just hide this parent folder (which makes it dissapear) and then just closing the programm and trusting, that the pictures in your Catalog and all the changes you applied are not gone!

But in the end it worked just fine! Thanks!

1) Hide parent folder "Volumes"  --> It appears
2) Close Lightroom
3) Restart it and Ta-Daaaa! They are all back where they should be!


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## Hoggy (Sep 3, 2018)

radiohead3 said:


> then just closing the programm and trusting, that the pictures in your Catalog and all the changes you applied are not gone!



Glad you got things sorted out.  But this is why as an extra measure of safety, I always recommend that people regularly do a 'save metadata to files'.  For proprietary [non-DNG] raw files, this will write changes to a separate '.xmp' file - for others, it will embed your changes into the original file itself.  It will save all xmp/exif/iptc/etc data, as well as all develop changes - including all snapshots.  Some people think it to be silly or extraneous or not what it was  meant for, but I don't.  It just helps one feel more secure that all the hard (or not) work they put into their images will not all reside in one place.

You could either have LR automatically write those changes, or preferably IMO set up a smart collection and go to it after every session and do a batch save of all your changed photos.


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## radiohead3 (Sep 3, 2018)

Very interesting. 
I have a few more questions to that: 
1) Are these changes still non-destructive?
2) I work with DNG files. And if I want LR to automatically save the metadata on the file do I have to tick "automatically write changes into XMP" eventhough it won't create an XMP, as I use DNG?
3) Is there any disadvantage of saving the metadata to the file?

Thank you for your input


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## Hoggy (Sep 3, 2018)

radiohead3 said:


> 1) Are these changes still non-destructive?



Yep, everything in LR is non-destructive - unless you consider writing to the original files as 'destructive'.  Don't forget though, about the checksum verification that is put into DNG's created from LR (native DNG's won't - you have to 'reconvert' them to get that in there).  And also don't forget that LR's inbuilt backup is for the catalog only - you must backup the actual images separately with another tool.



> 2) I work with DNG files. And if I want LR to automatically save the metadata on the file do I have to tick "automatically write changes into XMP" eventhough it won't create an XMP, as I use DNG?



Yep.  That preference is worded rather ambiguously IMO.  It will write XMP the same way that doing it manually would, except that changes are written after every change you make (possibly hurting performance as a result).



> 3) Is there any disadvantage of saving the metadata to the file?



I personally don't think there is, but some people may have qualms about altering the original file in any way (for native-dng/jpg/tiff).  I did too, at first, but then as I got to know more about the checksum hash, my fears became allayed - and even saved several dng-converted jpg files from possibly disappearing into never-never land as they propagated through many of my backups.  I now always do a 'verify DNG' before backing up any images.


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## Jim Wilde (Sep 3, 2018)

The only disadvantage which is often quoted (in the DNG vs Raw debate) is that, where an automated backup utility is used, any change to the metadata of the DNG (or jpeg, tif, psd) file - no matter how small - will result in the full image file being backed up again. Whereas with a proprietary raw file, only the tiny XMP sidecar file would need to be backed up.


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## BYUGRL (Sep 3, 2018)

Just upgraded to LR Classic and got first Macbook Laptop at same time-used windows desktop and laptop before many yrs. I am confused as to where Image imports on Macbook SHOULD  be stored. It seems the 2 images I imported have gone to DOWNLOAD folder. I don’t want the MESS of folders OP showed. I would like to organize folder structure on IOS sytem similar to the way I did on PC hardrives-mainly using  date hierrarchy. Can I tell MAC Sierra IOS what folder to import images in to from card reader or EXT drive for LR Classic—if so what is best folder??? I see DATA—PICTURES—DOWNLOADS etc... just doesn’t seem as easy to move files around on MAC IOS—MACBOOK will be mainly for travel imports-desktop system at home for entire LRCAT file—thanks!


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## Jim Wilde (Sep 4, 2018)

Importing using MacOS (not iOS, that's the mobile device operating system) isn't any different than importing using Windows. Basically the user instructs Lightroom where to put imported images by using the Destination Panel in the import dialog. So decide where you want them to be put, then setup the Destination panel accordingly. If you are using a date hierarchy, then you select that option and then in the folders list below you highlight the "parent" folder under which the date-based folders are to be placed. Typically with a single hard-drive laptop, people would likely create a "My LR Photos" in the user's "Pictures" folder, so then the highlighted folder in the Import Dialog would need to be the "My LR Photos" folder.


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## BYUGRL (Sep 4, 2018)

Jim Wilde said:


> Importing using MacOS (not iOS, that's the mobile device operating system) isn't any different than importing using Windows. Basically the user instructs Lightroom where to put imported images by using the Destination Panel in the import dialog. So decide where you want them to be put, then setup the Destination panel accordingly. If you are using a date hierarchy, then you select that option and then in the folders list below you highlight the "parent" folder under which the date-based folders are to be placed. Typically with a single hard-drive laptop, people would likely create a "My LR Photos" in the user's "Pictures" folder, so then the highlighted folder in the Import Dialog would need to be the "My LR Photos" folder.



Thanks-I have only imported 2 images to MacBOOK-(my mistake writing IOS-meant OS).  From a thumb drive. I did not diredtly import from LR for those 2 images-just let Macbook import them-I guess that is why they automatically went into Download folder. I am glad to know that if I have card reader w 500 images -MB won’t immediately  send to download folder. Just got worried-I was so used to Windows and importing all my images on to large hard drives within PC case. Now  w single 4 TB HD-I can’t just import every image  I want to or HD will fill up quick! Just new to working on images that are not on the internal HD and very new to Apple Macbook file system—NO bad-just different..
I was hoping to setup a separate file for LR Imports on Macbook in PICTURE folder—how do other people look at and rate images without importing all images into LR Classic. Do they just import all images each day-work on them-rate them etc... then put them on external HD and then delete from Macbook. I had many more HD’s on Dell Laptop-separate 2TB drive for LR imports on trips. Then when at home I would download all those images to external portable HD to move to my desktop PC system.
Just worried w only 1 drive -be it 4TB-it will have all OS programs on it plus images plus filters plus who knows-It could fill up fast. I usually take multiple exposures of same images for possible exp blending-esp any landcape images-could be 5 images identical except for bracketed exp. 
Sooo- w D810 body it eats up HD space quickly—thank u for any help-Donna


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