I believe this is possible in iMovie. How can you do this in Aperture? There is no right-click option as in iMovie. You can only find referenced files.
I want to be able to quickly locate original files, so that I don't have to "export" them, which takes forever and clogs up memory and chokes my computer.
Any idea?
MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.7.2), 15"
Right click the Aperture Library your masters are stored in and select "Show Package Contents". You can then navigate through the library to find the Masters folder.
To be honest I would try and find a better way of doing this, I don't think poking around in the library is a good idea. Also the file structure in the library doesn't make it that easy to find the pictures you want, IIRC each master is in a seperate folder. It would be better to try and find an acceptable way fof exporting from your library, that is really what Aperture is for after all.
This is ridiculous - I am perfectly capable of "poking around" in my library in order to copy or send files that I need to do so quickly. Otherwise, as I mentioned, I am tied up with a bogged down computer while trying to export a huge video file, for example. This is simply not necessary. I'm not an idiot, and I would like direct access to my original files without going through all the silly export hoops. There is no acceptable way of exporting a large file or library when it takes forever and you need it immediately.
Shuttleworth is right, and being mad at Aperture and yelling at the folks who are tying to help isn't going to make things better.
Aperture is a program to contain and manage your photos and movies. By default, Aperture will put everything you import into the library. The library is a database that uses XML files and directory structures to store its data. Like any database, its internal structure is not intended for direct use by any user.
If you want direct access to the masters of your photos and movies, you should use referenced masters. That is, you should tell Aperture where to store them, instead of letting Aperture put them in its database. You can do this at import, or at any other time by right-clicking and "relocate masters".
Then, your masters will be visible in a directory structure chosen by you, and you can have right-click access to find them (through Finder) from Aperture.
Just remember, you will only get masters, not versions. Versions are not stored until exported.
nathan
jessewarren wrote:
This is ridiculous - I am perfectly capable of "poking around" in my library in order to copy or send files that I need to do so quickly. Otherwise, as I mentioned, I am tied up with a bogged down computer while trying to export a huge video file, for example. This is simply not necessary. I'm not an idiot, and I would like direct access to my original files without going through all the silly export hoops. There is no acceptable way of exporting a large file or library when it takes forever and you need it immediately.
Don't blame me, I didn't write Aperture and I know nothing of your abilities😉.
Most people don't complain of the problem you are having, as I have said there may be a better way of getting Aperture to do what you need, one way is described above by Nathan. I'd recommend perhaps asking questions to get Aperture working faster, plenty of people on here could help you with that. Even if it doesn't solve this particular problem it would be worth doing
If you still want to keep a managed file structure you could look at importing masters to a backup location at the same time asa you import to the library, which is an option available in the import window. You can then have a second set of masters completely seperate from your library, and that is ignored by Aperture, you can do whatever you want with these images, they will be available in the Finder in whatever folder structure you require.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not blaming you, and I do appreciate your help. But yes I guess I am frustrated at a few of Aperture's decisions.
It seems like referenced files is the way to go if I want quick and easy access from the Finder. However, I do like the advantages that a managed library gives me. Backup location would require too much extra storage space which I don't have.
Is there any easy way to convert my library to referenced while keeping in tact all my versions, etc? And would you happen to know whether a referenced library would be faster than a managed one?
My library is just generally slow, and freezes up all the time. Not sure if this is more than ideal, but it has over 70,000 photos...
Converting to referenced won't affect your versions at all. To convert use File>Relocate Masters, then define the folder structure you want to use, you can do just a few to start to see how it works, it's not an all-or-nothing deal, you can have a mixed managed and referened library.
Once converted you shouldn't notice any difference to Aperture. Remember, a version is just a set of instructions that is applied to the master when needed to generate the modified image, it is in the library and takes up very little space. The previews and thumbnails do take up space which is why referenced libraries aren't as small as people expect.
People generally see performance improvements when converting to referenced, though it would be better if the referenced images were on a different drive to your library.
Other things will also really help performance, make sure your hard drive isn't too full <70% ideally, max out your RAM (Aperture is heavy on RAM) If it's an old MBP try running in 32-bit mode. On my old iMAc I use an app that frees up unused memory and this also helps.
Have a look through this forum, the topic is covered a lot. You aren't alone with slow Aperture, I do feel you are more lonely needing to access the master images.
HTH
How can I reveal master images in Finder?
