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New to iPhoto - Converting from Windows 7

Hi all - firstly though let me say that I've tried locating my answer online but nothing I've found seems to fit my situation.



I've recently converted to a new 27" iMac from years of being tied a PC (latest version Win7). My primary reason being that I have many Apple products (iPhone, iPad, AppleTV, and iTunes account) and believed this was the last piece of the puzzle to fully convert me.



However, my problem now is that I have gig's of photos currently stored on an external harddrive (format FAT32) under a file structure like PHOTOS/YEAR/EVENT which has worked well for me on Win7 and either Windows Photo or Picasa, that I cannot seem to work how to integrate into iPhoto.



It appears to me that iPhoto will only let me import the photos into iPhoto - thus creating duplicates, and storing them what appears to be on my iMac internal harddrive. Is there a way to simply have iPhoto pointed/looking at my external harddrive without having duplicates, or loosing my current file structure?



When importing new photos from a camera, iphone, ipad etc I want to be able to define which photos are stored where, and in the past have been using Windows Explorer, or presumably Finder (under OSX). I also have Parallels installed, so not sure if I can utilise Windows Explorer to manage the import, but still use iPhoto as the hub to integrate into my other Apple devices.



Appreciate some guidance, or pointers to good (and recent - say within last 6-12 mths) discussions about how others may have resolved this similar conversion / integration issue.



Regards

Darran

iMac (27-inch, Late 2012), OS X Mavericks (10.9)

Posted on Nov 28, 2013 6:50 PM

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Question marked as Best reply

Posted on Nov 28, 2013 11:21 PM

Don't use iPhoto. It's not for everybody and, given your preferred usage, it's not for you.


Quick definitions:


A Managed Library, is the default setting, and iPhoto copies files into the iPhoto Library when Importing. The files are then stored in the Library package


A Referenced Library is when iPhoto is NOT copying the files into the iPhoto Library when importing because you made a change at iPhoto -> Preferences -> Advanced. (You unchecked the option to copy files into the Library on import) The files are then stored where ever you put them and not in the Library package. In this scenario you are responsible for the File Management.


Yes you can set iPhoto to reference the files in their current location. But iPhoto is not good with referenced libraries - they mean more work for you for exactly zero benefit - and if there is an issue, especially when the Library is on one volume and the photos stored on another, you could find yourself reattaching the individual files in the Library to your actual photos, one by one, for the entire collection.


See this for more: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3062728?tstart=0


It'll tell you how to do it and why you shouldn't. Some of the material is out of date now, but the argument is the same, essentially.


There are no such reservations about Aperture, iPhoto's bigger brother, which has the tools to comfortably manage referenced Libraries.


Yes, Windows Explorer is the the Finder on OS X.


You can import from a camera to a preferred location using the Finder or Image Capture (in the Applications Folder)


You can run a managed Library (the default setting) from an external disk very easily, but the disk needs to be formatted Mac OS Extended (Journaled).


As an FYI:


Is there a way to simply have iPhoto pointed/looking at my external harddrive without having duplicates, or loosing my current file structure?


The last element "or loosing my current file structure" pretty much indicates the conceptual difference between iPhoto and what you're used to. With iPhoto your current file structure is of little or no relevance. Why? Because you never access the photos that way. The point of iPhoto is that it replaces the Finder (Windows Explorer) for anything to do with your photos, It's the go-to app for everything.


Best analogy I can come up with: The Contacts app for your addresses and phone numbers. Here's an app that manages your contacts in one single location and makes them available to all the other apps on your computer for whatever reason you might need them.


Well iPhoto is an app that manages your photos in one single location and makes them available to all the other apps on your computer for whatever reason you might need them.


So, want to edit the photo, start with iPhoto. Edit it with iPhoto, or any editor you prefer:


You can set Photoshop (or any image editor) as an external editor in iPhoto. (Preferences -> General -> Edit Photo: Choose from the Drop Down Menu.) This way, when you double click a pic to edit in iPhoto it will open automatically in Photoshop or your Image Editor, and when you save it it's sent back to iPhoto automatically. This is the only way that edits made in another application will be displayed in iPhoto.


Want to email it? Use the Media Browser to get it into any email app or service you prefer... similarly to upload it to a website, to use it in a word processing document and so on. Any thing you need to do with your photos is done either with or via iPhoto.


So, if you're going to use iPhoto (or, indeed Aperture) you need to break a connection in your head. That Jpeg is not your photo. That Jpeg is a box, and inside the box is your photo. Your current file structure is an excellent one for boxes, for photos, not so much. It's inflexible and requires you to remember when you took the photo. A photo manager leverages the extra possibilities of the media - metadata, the fact that the data is visual etc - to produce a filing system that's infintely more flexible than date storage.


But if that's not what you want to do, then don't use iPhoto.


By all means post back if you have more queries.

15 replies
Question marked as Best reply

Nov 28, 2013 11:21 PM in response to Darran_NSW

Don't use iPhoto. It's not for everybody and, given your preferred usage, it's not for you.


Quick definitions:


A Managed Library, is the default setting, and iPhoto copies files into the iPhoto Library when Importing. The files are then stored in the Library package


A Referenced Library is when iPhoto is NOT copying the files into the iPhoto Library when importing because you made a change at iPhoto -> Preferences -> Advanced. (You unchecked the option to copy files into the Library on import) The files are then stored where ever you put them and not in the Library package. In this scenario you are responsible for the File Management.


Yes you can set iPhoto to reference the files in their current location. But iPhoto is not good with referenced libraries - they mean more work for you for exactly zero benefit - and if there is an issue, especially when the Library is on one volume and the photos stored on another, you could find yourself reattaching the individual files in the Library to your actual photos, one by one, for the entire collection.


See this for more: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3062728?tstart=0


It'll tell you how to do it and why you shouldn't. Some of the material is out of date now, but the argument is the same, essentially.


There are no such reservations about Aperture, iPhoto's bigger brother, which has the tools to comfortably manage referenced Libraries.


Yes, Windows Explorer is the the Finder on OS X.


You can import from a camera to a preferred location using the Finder or Image Capture (in the Applications Folder)


You can run a managed Library (the default setting) from an external disk very easily, but the disk needs to be formatted Mac OS Extended (Journaled).


As an FYI:


Is there a way to simply have iPhoto pointed/looking at my external harddrive without having duplicates, or loosing my current file structure?


The last element "or loosing my current file structure" pretty much indicates the conceptual difference between iPhoto and what you're used to. With iPhoto your current file structure is of little or no relevance. Why? Because you never access the photos that way. The point of iPhoto is that it replaces the Finder (Windows Explorer) for anything to do with your photos, It's the go-to app for everything.


Best analogy I can come up with: The Contacts app for your addresses and phone numbers. Here's an app that manages your contacts in one single location and makes them available to all the other apps on your computer for whatever reason you might need them.


Well iPhoto is an app that manages your photos in one single location and makes them available to all the other apps on your computer for whatever reason you might need them.


So, want to edit the photo, start with iPhoto. Edit it with iPhoto, or any editor you prefer:


You can set Photoshop (or any image editor) as an external editor in iPhoto. (Preferences -> General -> Edit Photo: Choose from the Drop Down Menu.) This way, when you double click a pic to edit in iPhoto it will open automatically in Photoshop or your Image Editor, and when you save it it's sent back to iPhoto automatically. This is the only way that edits made in another application will be displayed in iPhoto.


Want to email it? Use the Media Browser to get it into any email app or service you prefer... similarly to upload it to a website, to use it in a word processing document and so on. Any thing you need to do with your photos is done either with or via iPhoto.


So, if you're going to use iPhoto (or, indeed Aperture) you need to break a connection in your head. That Jpeg is not your photo. That Jpeg is a box, and inside the box is your photo. Your current file structure is an excellent one for boxes, for photos, not so much. It's inflexible and requires you to remember when you took the photo. A photo manager leverages the extra possibilities of the media - metadata, the fact that the data is visual etc - to produce a filing system that's infintely more flexible than date storage.


But if that's not what you want to do, then don't use iPhoto.


By all means post back if you have more queries.

Nov 29, 2013 10:43 AM in response to Yer_Man

Have been reading your very informative posts regarding how iPhoto manages photos and just wanted to say thanks for enlightening me. Not saying that I understand it all, but am now comfortable that I understand enough to start using the aplication to its full potential. One quick question - if I decided to upgrade to Aperture would this likely be a seamess process? Am running Mavericks.


Regards


Sue

Sep 8, 2014 2:17 PM in response to Yer_Man

Hi Terrence.

You seem like a good person to address my question. It may be a simple one, so I apologize if I haven't found an obvious answer yet anywhere. I am an Aperture user (3) and have lately been building a referenced library from an external disk. I need more space on my pretty tight computer to accommodate all the jpegs. I see that iphoto (which I never use) is importing all the referenced photos as well. Can I delete my entire iphoto app to create space on my computer without deleting my aperture library? I know they cannot be open at the same time, so I gather that means iphoto is not creating duplicate jpegs on my computer's hard drive. I don't need iphoto, I don't want iphoto. Can I make it disapppear?

Many thanks in advance, Clayton

Sep 8, 2014 2:23 PM in response to maxxxxxx

depends - if you actually have two libraries, one iPhoto library and one Aperture library and you do not need the iPhoto library then delete it. today it is more likely that both are sharing the same library in which case obviously you can not delete an iPhoto library that does not exist separate from the Aperture library


only you know what you have and how it is set up


LN

Sep 8, 2014 5:11 PM in response to Yer_Man

I'm sure it is the same library. The pictures are the same. I just don't know if I can gain space on my computer by safely deleting Iphoto and its library or whether aperture actually depends on iphoto. I'm guessing by your answer Terence that I if I indeed REQUIRE a functioning iphoto for my aperture to work (which I am still confused about) then I need to tell it not to import my external files into its library, even when I've only actively put them in Aperture?

Sep 8, 2014 5:29 PM in response to maxxxxxx

You are not getting it - Typically there is no iPhoto library and Aperture library - they share the exact same library so there is nothing to delete - you can delete the iPhoto Application but that will not buy you any space to speak of


and no - Aperture does not require iPhoto nor does iPhoto require Aperture - they are totally separate applications but they typically share the exact same library


Léonie's test will tell you if you have two different libraries or are sharing one library


You also could launch iPhoto while holding the option key down until the select library window appears to see how many libraries iPhoto sees


LN

Sep 9, 2014 6:35 AM in response to maxxxxxx

No


No copying - no mirroring


You are not getting it - Typically there is no iPhoto library and Aperture library - they share the exact same library so there is nothing to delete

One library single library which is used by both iPhoto and Aperture - you have a car - some days you drive it - some day your wife drives it but it is still just one car - there is just one library - you may use it from iPhoto or you may use it from Aperture - but it is just one single library


LN

New to iPhoto - Converting from Windows 7

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