Problems importing iPhoto Library to Aperture

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Level 1

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Problems importing iPhoto Library to Aperture

I'm trying to import my iPhoto Library into Aperture without copying the full library (to minimise the disk space). I see in online tutorials that I should choose File > Import > iPhoto Library and then select 'Store files in their current location'. But I don't see these options. After clicking on File > Import, I can chose only 'Library' not 'iPhoto Library'. Plus in the window that opens, I can select the iPhoto Library files, but I don't have the option to chose where to store the files. As a result my only possibility is to copy my full library into the Aperture Library and hence lose several GB of disk space. Why is that and what can I do? I'm using Aperture 3.4…5

Thank you

Aperture 3, Mac OS X (10.7.5)

Posted on May 9, 2014 1:56 PM

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Answer 1

Yer_Man

Level 10

162,314 points

May 10, 2014 12:39 AM in response to adrianabras

Check the versions that these tutorials were created for. With recent versions of iPhoto and Aperture you don't import the Library you just open it.

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Answer 2

léonie

Level 10

194,761 points

May 10, 2014 1:03 AM in response to adrianabras

A bit background reading to Terence Devlin's advice:

The updates Aperture 3.3 and iPhoto 9.3 brought considerable changes. There are no longer essential differences between iPhoto libraries and Aperture Libraries. Aperture can work with your iPhoto library and vice versa.

See: Aperture 3.3: Using a unified photo library with iPhoto and Aperture

Only, if you have too many small iPhoto libraries and want to consolidate them into one single library, you may want to import your iPhoto libraries into your Aperture library. The procedure is explained here:

Aperture 3.3: How to use Aperture to merge iPhoto libraries

I see in online tutorials that I should choose File > Import > iPhoto Library and then select 'Store files in their current location'.

I am concerned, that this outdated advice is still out there. It was dangerous already at the time it was posted. On no account use the option 'Store files in their current location', when importing to Aperture, until you are familiar with the way, Aperture is handling referenced images and know, how to protect and backup your original image files.

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Answer 3

adrianabras Author

Level 1

0 points

May 10, 2014 2:27 AM in response to adrianabras

Thanks. I do have several smaller iPhoto Libraries. I preferred to keep them separate to avoid having one large file of several hundreds GB that I could keep in my MacBook rather then on external drive. Merging the iPhoto Libraries in Aperture will create a huge file that I'll have to keep on an external drive. There is no way to work with the existing iPhoto Libraries simultaneously in Aperture without merging them into one huge file?

Thanks a lot

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Answer 4

léonie

Level 10

194,761 points

May 10, 2014 2:43 AM in response to adrianabras

Where are your small iPhoto libraries now? On an external drive?

You can open each iPhoto library as an Aperture Library, just like you did in iPhoto and switch between libraries.

Or back up the smaller libraries and merge the libraries into one library, and create a larger library instead of all the smaller libraries. Then delete the smaller libraries after testing that they imported well.

You can distribute your Aperture library between the internal drive and the external drive by using referenced images - keep the Aperture library and the original image files of the currently used projects on your internal drive, but relocate the older original image files to an external drive. That will reduce the size of the library. You will only have to connect the external drive, when editing or exporting the older images.

But I would not go this way, until you have familiarized your self with Aperture. The procedure is explained on this manual page: Aperture 3 User Manual: Working with Referenced Images

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Answer 5

adrianabras Author

Level 1

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May 10, 2014 7:37 AM in response to adrianabras

Thanks a lot.

Adriana

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