How do I either export my iPhoto library into Aperture or import it from iPhoto. I suspect I have to export it to a folder on my desktop. Maybe someone knows a one-step process?
intel iMac, Mac OS X (10.5.1)
Upgrade to iPhoto 9.3 and Aperture 3.3 and they will use the exact same library. No import necessary.
Upgrade to iPhoto 9.3 and Aperture 3.3 and they will use the exact same library. No import necessary.
Yes, William, my current iPhoto is only 7.1.5 even though Apt. is 3.3. I've never upgraded iPhoto because I do not "use" it. I only want to keep its pictures by moving them into Apt. You say if I upgrade they will automatically be in Apt? I'm having a horrid time trying to export all my iPhoto pictures to a folder on the desktop so that I can import them from there into Apt. My ultimate goal is to put half my Apt. library into a second Apt. Library to free up working space on my computer, but I'm suspicious that this won't ultimately help. What would you, personally, if you had 15 K iPhotos and 45 K Apt. photos? And even if I ultimately get them all in one library, 60 K is way toooooo many to be working with in one library on this computer, so I've been told that if I put them into 2 different libraries, I'll be helped.
Rick,
if you are using Aperture 3.3, then your MacOS version is 10.7.4, right? Your signature says 10.5.1.
Make sure your Aperture version has been upgraded to 3.3.1, before you do anything with your libraries - 3.3.1 contains an important bug fix for upgrading libraries.
I only want to keep its pictures by moving them into Apt. You say if I upgrade they will automatically be in Apt?
Upgrading iPhoto to version 9.3. is really worth it, i.e. if you are running out of disk space. Up to iPhoto version 9.1 you had to import two images for each edited iPhoto image, when you imported from iPhoto to Aperture. Now you will only import the original image file plus the description how to create the version from the original master and thus save a lot of space.
iPhoto 9.3 and Aperture 3.3.1 use a unified library format; each application can open and edit each others libraries. To use an iPhoto library in Aperture you will not necessarily have to import it as William Lloyd pointed out. Open each of the iPhoto Libraries in iPhoto 9.3 once and convert it to the new format - iPhoto will prompt you before starting the upgrade, when you open the library.
After that Aperture can open the iPhoto Library. If you are happy with the old libraries being readable by Aperture, you could just leave it at that - that is William Lloyd's recommendation, if I got him right.
I understand, that you want to combine your older iPhoto Libraries into one single Library, that you can maintain with Aperture.
If your older libraries have related contents and you will profit from having them in one library I'd do the following:
But where to create this joined library?
I have seen in your other thread that you want to use your Time Machine volume to store your images.
If you could afford to buy a separate drive for this library, it would be much better. Simply adding the Aperture Library to the Time Machine volume may have Time Machine and Aperture fighting for space, because Time Machine will continue to add backups, until the drive is full.
If you do not want to invest into a second disk drive, I'd consider to partition your Time Machine volume - one partition for the backup and one partition for Aperture. This way your drive will look like a drive with two separate disks. Can your son guide you, on how to do this? It will be a bit tricky to explain the procedure from afar, since you are not that experienced with maintaining macs.
Regards
Léonie
Leonie, it's taken me forever to get the iPhoto 9.3 program, but I'm almost successful. It's still attempting, unsuccessfully, to "Move MobileMe Albums." It took several days to complete that task with the new Apt. program. Anyway, once it finishes, you say I can open the new libraries in iPhoto and iPhoto will prompt me as to how to get them into Apt.? I tried it when I had a few seconds before iPhoto started moving albums but didn't see those prompts.
...okay, Leonie, iPhoto is finally finished. I'm a little confused exactly what is what. I used to have 45 K pictures in Apt and I still do but the number of pictures in iPhoto has gone from 15 K up to 25 K. I believe that I see iPhoto's pictures in Apt now but the thumbnails are black until I hit the prompt to "generate thumbnails." I've not had the time yet to see that all the original 15 K iPhoto pictures are actually in Apt, maybe you could tell me? 🙂
Thanks,
Rick
Great to see that you got your libraries combined! 😎
but the number of pictures in iPhoto has gone from 15 K up to 25 K
Maybe the number increased because of your recent MobileMe downloads? Do you have that many pics on MobileMe?
I believe that I see iPhoto's pictures in Apt now but the thumbnails are black until I hit the prompt to "generate thumbnails." I've not had the time yet to see that all the original 15 K iPhoto pictures are actually in Apt, maybe you could tell me?
You may wish to run the generation of thumbnails over night for a larger selection of images at once.
How to check, if all images are in Aperture? First, compare the size of the Aperture Library after your recent import to the previous size - did the file size of the Aperture library increase considerably?
Then look inside thee Aperture Library package - but only look, don't touch:
maybe you could tell me?
This will be difficult 😀, you'll have to look for yourself, since I cannot remotely log into your computer - and I do not have a magic crystal ball either, maybe you can send me one?
Cheers, Léonie
Hey, you know there really is a "magic crystal ball" to see each other's computers -- it's iChat's screensharing. My son uses it all the time to clean up troubles for me 🙂
Anyway, talk about running the thumbnail generation over night, I've been running it for 36 hours and have 28/45 still to go! It's quite ridiculous that each time I restart Apt it does it again!
I can see pictures from iPhoto in my Apt library now and was asking you if they were all there because the order seems to be messed up (even though they are programed "ascending date" order). And the grand total number of pictures in Apt did not increase -- it's still around 45 K. The number did increase in iPhoto because of the added MobileMe albums.
By the way when I look at Apt in my finder and click to "show contents" I only get a "Contents" folder and when I click it I get 11 other folders, "codesignature, frameworks, library, macos, etc..." So cannot see the "Masters" folder.
Thanks,
Rick
Good morning, Rick,
Hey, you know there really is a "magic crystal ball" to see each other's computers -- it's iChat's screensharing. My son uses it all the time to clean up troubles for me 🙂
Cheers to your son! 😎
(even though they are programed "ascending date" order)
Do you see the same dates in Aperture and iPhoto for the same images?
By the way when I look at Apt in my finder and click to "show contents" I only get a "Contents" folder and when I click it I get 11 other folders, "codesignature, frameworks, library, macos, etc..." So cannot see the "Masters" folder.
I meant to look at the package contents of your Aperture library, not the Aperture application (in the Applications folder).
Your Aperture library probably is in your Pictures folder and called someting like "aperture library.aplib", if you did select a different location for it.
Léonie
Leonie, this is the best I can figure out in what you mean by looking for the "Show contents...Masters folder," but there's no Masters folder here that I see?
Let me ask a "simple" question, only slightly related: I'm still attempting to create new libraries for my external hard drive so I can delete them from the computer's hard drive. But I'm still scared and unsure about it! I created a library with 20 pictures and then intended to trash them from the original Apt library just as a test. Well, even though there are only 20 pictures in the "trash" folder, and I see 20, when I hover my cursor over that folder, it says there are 25 versions!!! What in the world is going on, why would it say 25 when there are only 20? That's why I worried about the whole process. I can just imagine emptying my trash and having the pictures disappear from ALL the libraries!
I know you couldn't read that last post so will try again:
I know you could read that earlier post so will try again:
You're going 'Show Package Contents' on the Aperture application whereas you should be doing that on the Aperture Library
Rick,
thank you for the Screenshots. You are looking into you your Aperture Application - not into your own Aperture library that contains the pictures and their master image files.
You need to select your Aperture Library package to see the size of your Aperture Library, not the Aperture Application.
Your Aperture library probably is inside your "Pictures" folder and should look like this - the icon is a fan of colourful pictures:
Look at the size there, to see if it is big enough to contain all your images. Only an Aperture Library package contains the image files you are looking for.
As for your other question, Rick:
Well, even though there are only 20 pictures in the "trash" folder, and I see 20, when I hover my cursor over that folder, it says there are 25 versions!!!
That is perfectly o.k., if you edited some of the images. Aperture only sends the original (master) image files to the trash bin on your desktop, the edited versions will be deleted immediatly and not appear in the trash. Because an adjusted image version shares the original file with the unedited original version, you usually see less images in the trash on your Desktop than the number of image version you deleted in Aperture.
Regards
Léonie
Thanks, Leonie, I believe I'm all set. In finally finding the Masters Folder, it confirmed that no iPhoto pictures were in Aperture itself, but when I change Libraries I see that iPhoto is one of the Apt "libraries" that I can use. I had been expecting them to become physically united.
And so that means that in the past couple days I've been successful in moving about an eighth of my current Apt library into my external HD. So, now my internal HD has almost a third free space and my activity monitor shows the same free ram. You never know it when I work in Apt today, though, because for the past six hours as soon as I try to look at any photo full size, Apt does "not respond" and I have to force-quit it. I've done that innumerable times to no avail. Aperture sure doesn't like me today 😟 Or can you think of some specific thing that might be wrong?
Thanks,
Rick
because for the past six hours as soon as I try to look at any photo full size, Apt does "not respond" and I have to force-quit it. I've done that innumerable times to no avail. Aperture sure doesn't like me today 😟 Or can you think of some specific thing that might be wrong?
Rick, that does not look good. Do you have the Activity Viewer turned on, when you are working with Aperture? What does show, before Aperture is freezing? (To show the Activity viewer use "Windows > Show Activity)
And have you checked, if Aperture can find your relocated original image files? Simply select one of the images and ctrl-click (or right click), then select "Show in Finder"
Regards
Léonie
iPhoto to Aperture
