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Level 10

207,661 points

Editing in External Editor Has Changed

Editing with an external editor in iPhoto has changed. If, when using an external editor like Photoshop. Pixelmator or Acorn, a second copy is immediately created in the Versions folder (formally Modified) of iPhoto and is used for the editing ending up with two copies of the photo, the original and edited.

If the edit creates layers, like adding text with PS or Pixelmator, the file must be flattened before saving. Otherwise the Save To navigation window appears with the Master/Originals folder as the default location. If saved there the copy that was first created remains just that, a copy of the original and the layered file is lost to iPhoto in the Masters folder. Bottom line, flatten the image before saving if the editor presents a Save to window.

Click to view full size

Additional edits by the external editor do not create another copy but are applied to the first edited copy. Therefore, any edit with an external will result in the two copies being displayed in iPhoto side by side.

Previously, flattening the image and saving as a jpg would have the modified version replace the original as the displayed version. just like when edited by iPhoto. No longer true with iPhoto 11.

OT

3Ghz iMac, 4G RAM, 1TB HD; MBP 2.16 Ghz 2G RAM; 1.5TB/160GB HDs;, Mac OS X (10.6.4), Canon:i850/8600F, Epson R280; 4G Nano, 30G Video iPod; iPad 3G

Posted on Oct 21, 2010 5:14 PM

44 replies

Nov 5, 2010 4:08 PM in response to Old Toad

Just some simple tought, if everyone is complaining the change is bad...
Going deeper I've done some test looking also at the library:

JPG --> I import a photo, i fix it in iPhoto and, as before I get 1 photo in master (a) and 1 photo in previews (b). Now if I do the external edit i get 2 copy of b one in master folder and the other one in previews (so I have one copy of a and 3 of b if I don't save from ps). Then if I save a jpg from ps the last copy of b in previews is modified (c) (so I have 1 copy of a 2 of b and 1 of c). Now if I edit in ps after having done a edit in iPhoto in 99% of cases is becouse I'm not satisfied of iPhoto edit: why I've to jeep 2 copy of that edit!?!? And why 2!!

RAW --> I import a raw photo (a), automatically a (b) preview is saved in previews. Then i do the external edit (with the option to pass the raw) another copy of a is saved in master and another preview is saved in previews so another b... Now if I don't save the ps edit I just get 2 a and 2 b. If I save if even worse, I cannot save back on raw and I have to import a new photo in the library (c) so I get 2 a and 1 c in masters and 2 b in previews

That is absolutely crazy!!!!! I cannot see even Microsoft doing something so bad!!!!

At the end I can see the reason, if you want to edit photos in an external editor maybe you can be an Aperture potential customer... Why not to encourage you with a crazy management of external editing!!!!

Nov 21, 2010 12:27 PM in response to kahlua021997

Even if it is intentional, it still doesn't work right. If you open a photo in the external editor, the photo is immediately duplicated in iPhoto, even if you don't edit or save the photo from the external editor. That makes no sense. I think this whole issue is one big bug since this whole process worked fine before '11.

Yer_Man

Level 10

162,396 points

Nov 21, 2010 12:37 PM in response to William Murray

I think this whole issue is one big bug since this whole process worked fine before '11

iPhoto menu -> Provide iPhoto Feedback

The more people who complain the better the chance it will be addressed.

Regards

TD

Dec 16, 2010 4:36 PM in response to Old Toad

I haven't seen any new posts here lately and I still am having the double photos when editing outside of iPhoto. I have sent the problem to Apple multiple times and every day I look for an iPhoto update to correct the problem but find none. Is anyone else still having the problem?

Yer_Man

Level 10

162,396 points

Dec 16, 2010 10:54 PM in response to pawolverine

Yes, there are multiple threads.

Regards

TD

quietly

Level 1

0 points

Dec 18, 2010 7:45 PM in response to Barbara Brundage

You're a genius! This fixed the problem I was having. Hope others see this and follow your instructions. It doesn't solve the duplication issue but at least it allows transfer of IPhoto photos to PSE9. Thanks much!!

Dec 29, 2010 10:21 AM in response to Old Toad

Worked a little with the latest iPhoto update. Still have the double photo when editing outside of iPhoto. One fix, I don't need to click on the edited photo and "revert to original" to make the edited photo display correctly when enlarged. I sure wish they would do something about the double display pictures though.

Jan 17, 2011 3:05 PM in response to pawolverine

I have always used Photoshop as an external editor, and never had a problem. As discussed, with iPhoto '11, clicking edit first duplicates the file (never did before, and i don't want that). The edit seems to go fine, and when I save the file in photoshop, iPhoto makes a new thumbnail, and the photo is done and fine. *Until I quit iPhoto and return. Then all the edited photos are lost.* Thumbnail is still there. You don't even know the photo is gone because until you try to look at the photo full size, or try to email it or share it. This happens every time I edit.

Here is the awesome part: Because I didn't want a duplicate, I threw those files away. And I only edit my best photos, so I've lost my best photos for the past several months!

Jan 20, 2011 7:31 PM in response to Bradley Rex

All is not lost. I had the same problem. Goto a picture that fails when you double click on it. Get the info window and find the filename. Now use spotlight to find the file. Like p100124.jpg
I just skipped the .jpg part. Anyway - spotlight will find several files. Select the correct one using preview & get info. Drag it into the iPhoto icon in the dock and it will be imported. Now re-waste your time defining faces & places & putting it back into the proper event. What a mess. Hope this helps. Please excuse errors this is my poor typing from my iPhone.

Respectfully,
Kay Fisher

Jan 25, 2011 6:30 PM in response to Kay Fisher

Thanks, but the lost files are named "untitled". This is the name given by iphoto when it duplicted the file. The original file which i tossed, had the original name. Obviously I won't do that anymore. Even searching for "untitled" does not find those files.

LPfromLV

Level 1

7 points

Feb 4, 2011 9:03 AM in response to Old Toad

Some of the photoshop edited photos were showing up in full screen, and some were not. I also had issues with iweb recognizing my PS edited photos. Again, this went along with whether or not they were viewable in iphoto full screen

So, here is what I've found when trying to locate my Photoshop CS4 edited images. I took a couple of screen shots and posted them here: http://www.lorrainepasquali.com/LorraineM._Pasquali_-Photographs/screenshots.html

In the top picture the highlighted image file is the photoshop edited image. It is in an oddly named folder nested within the master. This file is viewable in iphoto full screen and viewable in iweb.

In the lower picture, the highlighted image file is also a photoshop edited image, but notice it does not have its own oddly named folder. This file is not viewable in iphoto full screen and will not show up on an iweb page. When I drag the image onto the page I get a bounding box and the image file name but no image.

Anybody else find this and know what it all means?

Mar 8, 2011 4:49 PM in response to Old Toad

Thanks, Old Toad, for this solution. I haven't had a chance to use iPhoto 11 much in the past couple of months, and I was getting frustrated about getting "!" messages or pixelated pictures after editing in PSE9. In addition, iWeb could not find the edited images. But doing a "Revert to Original" solved the problem.

The only reason I can see for the change in way that outside edited photos are handled is that Apple wants to discourage the use of PSE and other editors. I like iPhoto 11 for many of its sharing and organizing features, but it lacks the editing capabilities of PSE.

Mar 14, 2011 6:35 AM in response to Old Toad

I've experienced the same problems here. All of them! >:( Also the thumbnails aren't being updated after editing them and saving them with PS CS5 for some reason. I'll send a bug report as suggested. Hopefully everybody will do so.

PTH14

Level 1

4 points

Jun 3, 2011 7:06 PM in response to Old Toad

Old Toad, in your Nov 5, 2010 response to RTS-UK, in the Note section where you talk about using both iPhoto & PS, I didn't know what you meant by "reset the Preferences back to "Open in main window"". Therefore I didn't do anything except selecting Photoshop as my editor of choice in iPhoto's General Preference Section. However, I do notice that when I "right click" on a thumbnail, I see both "Edit in iPhoto" & "Edit in External Editor".

Thanks for all your help!!!

Editing in External Editor Has Changed