Is there a way to import or copy your user presets, metadata and watermarking info when your create new catalogs?

Originally Posted by QuadRacer041 Is there a way to import or copy your user presets, metadata and watermarking info when your create new catalogs?

As I understand it, the catalog only contains links to the original files, the preview files, and information for your edits & exports. User presets are created and stored in LR, and not in the catalog, and I beleive they are retained when you upgrade to a newer version. As far as the metadata for each photo, that is read from the photo. If you are embedding your watermark into the metadata, you should have created a preset for that, and that is stored in LR the same as a user preset. The external watermark info is also stored in LR. So everything you are asking about is stored in LR and not the catalog. The only way you would lose this, is if you had to uninstall and reinstall LR. Hope this answers your question.

GaryB

Originally Posted by BroPhoto As I understand it, the catalog only contains links to the original files, the preview files, and information for your edits & exports. User presets are created and stored in LR, and not in the catalog, and I beleive they are retained when you upgrade to a newer version. As far as the metadata for each photo, that is read from the photo. If you are embedding your watermark into the metadata, you should have created a preset for that, and that is stored in LR the same as a user preset. The external watermark info is also stored in LR. So everything you are asking about is stored in LR and not the catalog. The only way you would lose this, is if you had to uninstall and reinstall LR. Hope this answers your question. GaryB

There is an option in LR that controls this behavior. The default, I believe, is that all presets are available with all catalogs. Check out:
http://www.lightroomforums.net/showt...og-quot-option

Perfect, thank u!

Export to Catalog ONE image. Import as new catalog, you have everything! Delete the one image if you wish.

Export to what catalog? When you say import as new catalog do you mean just create a new catalog and then import one image? Not sure I get what your saying.

Originally Posted by QuadRacer041 Export to what catalog? When you say import as new catalog do you mean just create a new catalog and then import one image? Not sure I get what your saying.

Export to Catalog builds a new catalog with whatever images you initially select. If the idea is you want a clean, virgin catalog with all your original catalog settings, you do this by only selecting 1 image (which you can then delete). Or if you wish to update an existing catalog, you could import as catalog again, this one image export and get the same results (all your keywords, presets etc).

Im sorry but your losing me when you say export and import to a catalog. When I click import or export I don't see an option to do it to a catalog. I want to bring all my presets to an existing catalog, so what steps would I take?

Originally Posted by QuadRacer041 Export to what catalog? When you say import as new catalog do you mean just create a new catalog and then import one image? Not sure I get what your saying.

Originally Posted by QuadRacer041 Im sorry but your losing me when you say export and import to a catalog. When I click import or export I don't see an option to do it to a catalog. I want to bring all my presets to an existing catalog, so what steps would I take?

Uhhhh, what catalog do i need to start in to do this? I have all the presets and metadata already in one catalog, call it catalog A. I have already created a catalog B but what to bring all catalog A's presets and metadata to catalog B. Do i start in A or B? Again sorry for my stupidity.

Originally Posted by QuadRacer041 Uhhhh, what catalog do i need to start in to do this?

The catalog that has all the stuff in it you want to clone. Catalog A. Select one image, Export as Catalog. This is Catalog B. It has everything Catalog A had and only one image. Delete image, start working with Catalog B.

Ok I understand, but when I export, as I said catalog b already exists so do I just choose catalog b because it is asking me where to export the image to?

All Export does is build a new catalog with all the legacy settings and any number of images you wish to export into that NEW catalog. The idea is this: You have a catalog with all kinds of saved stuff you built (keywords, presets, templates). You want a new catalog (I’m not sure why, I believe in a single catalog but that is besides the point). IF you just make a New catalog, it has no such settings. If instead you use the Export as Catalog, you can build a new catalog with all the older settings you built. You don’t have to start from scratch. Maybe you want to (you want to start all new keywords). But if the need is to create a new catalog with all the older user settings, the Export as Catalog with 1 image does that.

Just tried it and it didn't work, no user presets came over

You have to set your preferences for preset (with catalog). Otherwise they are stored deep in a folder within the system (not useful when moving multiple catalogs from machine to machine). Set Store Presets with Catalog.

Yes that is how it was set.
I have catalog A open, in library module i select one image, click file, export as catalog,asking me where I want to put the new catalog and what to save it as, I choose my external drive (same location as the image folders), save as B, and click export catalog. For some reason it exports all the images in the folder I have open instead of one image but that is no big deal. I click file open catalog, go to the portable drive and select B. It opens catalog B, but when I go to edit watermarks, metadata presets or in the develop mod user presets, nothing is there.

Originally Posted by QuadRacer041 Yes that is how it was set. I have catalog A open, in library module i select one image, click file, export as catalog,asking me where I want to put the new catalog and what to save it as, I choose my external drive (same location as the image folders), save as B, and click export catalog. For some reason it exports all the images in the folder I have open instead of one image but that is no big deal. I click file open catalog, go to the portable drive and select B. It opens catalog B, but when I go to edit watermarks, metadata presets or in the develop mod user presets, nothing is there.

You have to select an image or images that you want exported (or just put one in a collection and use Export Collection as catalog or Export Folder as Catalog using the contexual menu). Or just delete the images you don’t want.

You have to set the presets to be visible in Catalog A before you even consider using the Export process. But if you have them showing up in Catalog A, the exported catalog (B) should have access to all those presets.

It is bringing the images into the new catalog, they are there. No presets are though. What do you mean I have to set the presets to be visible in catalog A?

Actually LR 4 has what I’d consider a bug in terms of where the presets live prior to the Export as Catalog. Export as Catalog ignores "Save Presets with Catalog" preference

When exporting as catalog, the process ignores the area where presets are saved, it always uses or attempts to export presets saved in (on the Mac), Application Support>Adobe>Lightroom.

However, I have my Preferences set to Save Presets with Catalog. The Export as Catalog ignores this preference setting. The result is, if I want to spin off a catalog, I expect my user presets and so forth to carry over but this doesn’t happen. Instead I get zero saved presets (there are none in the Application Support>Adobe>Lightroom folder.

So you need to have your presets NOT saved with Catalog (or both, not a problem and useful for transporting catalogs on drives), but have the presets in the ‘normal’ location depending on OS prior to using the Export as Catalog technique. Adobe should fix this. When you ask to Export as Catalog, it should examine it’s own preferences and use that. It doesn’t.

Im not using LR 4 I'm using 3.6