Using Adobe Lightroom with OSX Photos

See what I mean:

there is no way to sensibly use the two apps together,

Terence Devlin wrote:

See what I mean:

there is no way to sensibly use the two apps together,

Yes, from the Photos + Lightroom together perpsective.

But taking it back to the root, what is the best way to have the same benefits offered by photos (tight integration between iOS and LR)? If Adobe weren't so stingy with their cloud storage, it would be a lot simpler answer because you'd just stick the their storage and product suite.

How can someone who takes a fair # of photos on iOS get those seamlessly to LR and conversely have access to their photo catalogues on iOS when they want to show them? I think the answer may be CC Photography + Smugmug but there are pitfalls to the smugmug iOS client (does not background sync, nowhere near as good as Photos, does not integrate with other apps where you may want to use the photos collection).

Rather beyond the scope of the forum so I'd point you to the Adobe ones. But I seem to recall that they have an iOS app now that integrates with LR.

https://helpx.adobe.com/lightroom/how-to/setup-computer-mobile-devices.html

Regarding the ability to link Adobe Lightroom with OSX Photos, this is a feature that all users should request from both Apple and Adobe. So far, nothing seems to be available.

Given the disappointing move to discontinue Aperture, I made the decision to adopt the new version of Lightroom (Lightroom CC 6.0). I simply exported all the pictures from the Photo library to an external hard drive, and them fired Lightroom to use them in a new catalog. I further installed the LR plugin "Photo Upload," which allows me to upload the pictures directly to SmugMug. So far, this workflow seems to function smoothly and, obviously, this was impossible with Photo. From now on, I will import new pictures directly into Lightroom and completely bypass Photo. We will see how it works, since I only started this yesterday...

I don't have an iOS device and therefore don't care so much about iCloud for pictures but I thought I would share this story with other users frustrated by Photo.

Best wishes!

Regarding the ability to link Adobe Lightroom with OSX Photos, this is a feature that all users should request from both Apple and Adobe.

This won't happen, nor should it. Photos and Lightroom do the same job in the same way. There is no sensible way to negotiate which is the master between the two apps. Confusion will ensue and that's the mother of dataloss. It certainly should happen with apps like Photoshop.

It was also possible to upload to SmugMug directly from iPhoto with a plug, and is also currently possible with iPhoto and Photos via the media browser.

Hello webjames,

At last someone with the same problem!!! :-)

I was asking me the same question.. and next week I'm programming a trip to the Apple Store to ask the customer service about this process.

My problem is about the same as yours.. I don't want RAW (heavy) files to upload to the new iCloud Library. I shoot a lot of photos and I want have all of it in JPG, in that great service call iCloud Photo Library and shared across all my device.

I want to modify it in Lightroom because is the only Pro solution available in market that can compete with Aperture. Hope that Apple made a Plugin or a workflow that work in the correct way.

There is also a secondary problem I discover.. the EXIF of the images exported from Lightroom are not compatible to the organization of the iCloud Photo Library.

Thanks if anyone find a solution!

Efrem Spataro

There used to be a nice, third-party iPhoto export plugin for Lightroom but that obviously no longer works. What I'm doing with my latest shoot is to export them as iPad-quality JPEGs, import them as an album into Photo and sync that with my iOS devices. I'm also trying a Lightroom Mobile sync of the same collection to see how it works out. I'm still hoping that somebody will come up with a Lightroom-->Photo plug-in so I can go back to my easy workflow for showing of photos on my mobile devices.

Hi Everybody,

Maybe I can bring you some piece of solution.

I always used LR as primary catalog and editing tool (the best one IMO) but preferred to use iPhoto to "show" pictures, do limited slideshows, have my library well integrated into OS X and iOS, syncing to iOS devices, etc...

Here is my usual workflow :

1) I always (regulary) export my photos (my LR 3/4/5 stars pictures) from LR to Finder folders as jpg with the help of Jeffrey Friedl's collection / folder publisher. It's really doing a great job, customization option are amazing if well defined:

http://regex.info/blog/lightroom-goodies/collection-publisher

2) With the help of Jacques Rioux, we created (he mostly did 99%...) a specific applescript to import / sync those jpg's into iPhoto by automatically creating albums, replacing new pictures (based on last modification date), etc....

iPhoto - Automator Import Script Improvements

3) Continue to use LR for new import / new or re-editing / use iPhoto to "show" / sync to iOs, etc...

Feel free to use it and comment. Please be aware that my applescript skills are closed to 0, I just had the idea / need....

The next improvement I would like to implement (but as previously told... no skills in applescript...) :

- Automatically launch the applescript when LR export is finished - it's possible with Jeffrey's LR plugin but I didn't manage to write well in LUA..

- Modify the script written by Jacques for new OS X Photos instead of iPhoto....

I hope it could help you... and I also hope someone would be interested by improving it.

Regards

I have Lightroom 3 (old, I know) and have been using it happily , uploading from memory cards or my iPhone. Now, i've upgraded to iPhone 6 - and suddenly my Lightroom import window will not see my iPhone when it's connected via USB to my iMac.

anyone know why?

I can't even get iPhoto to see it.

??

K.

I use both, Lightroom and Photos, the latter to just share captures with my friends who mostly use Apple product. I create Collection and sync it with Lightroom Mobile. From Mobile on iPad or iPhone I select Share and then select 5 images (only five! there is a restriction). Then press the mark in the right upper cornet and choose save to iCloud. Now your images are in iCloud library and can be used inside Photos. Repeat as many times as needed. Then share it with your friends. Alternatively, you can share from Lightroom Mobile and send link to lightroom.adobe.com gallery to your friends.

Same problem .... No Plug-in in LR ?

olivev wrote:

Same problem .... No Plug-in in LR ?

and there will not be one

This won't happen, nor should it. Photos and Lightroom do the same job in the same way. There is no sensible way to negotiate which is the master between the two apps. Confusion will ensue and that's the mother of dataloss. It certainly should happen with apps like Photoshop.

LN

Ok.. so my workflow now is a bit different but easy and quick.

1 - Import from SD to Lightroom. Adjust all the setting and add the Location.

2 - Export the set of photos as JPG in a folder with all the EXIF.

3 - Open Photos on Mac and copied them inside.

The imported photos in "Photos for Mac" take the correct date, position and other stuff.

LarryHN wrote:

olivev wrote:

Same problem .... No Plug-in in LR ?

and there will not be one

This won't happen, nor should it. Photos and Lightroom do the same job in the same way. There is no sensible way to negotiate which is the master between the two apps. Confusion will ensue and that's the mother of dataloss. It certainly should happen with apps like Photoshop.

LN

Yes and no...

The wrong question is being asked. It's not an LR plug-in for the Photos app that is required. It's a plug-in for iCloud Photos. The workflow should be:

1. Import into LR

2. Edit/tag in LR

3. Export to iCloud through a plug-in in the same way that you would to Facebook, Flickr, etc. (i.e. the export process should be contained within LR)

4. All iCloud clients, including the Photos app, can then automatically download the new images.

The LR copy is still the master. The copy in iCloud is simply a copy in the same that the copy in Facebook, Flickr, etc. is. Any changes you make in Photos to the iCloud copy is not transferred back to the LR master, just as it isn't if you make changes in Facebook, Flickr, etc.

And there are genuine reasons for doing this:

1. The main one is that iCloud for Photos can be used to share photos. Yes, you can use other tools to share. But, why should you given that we've all got iCloud accounts? Particularly given that Apple are trying to make iCloud your single cloud solution and Apple themselves pointed "advanced" Aperture users in the direction of Lightroom. Surely those two points combined say that Apple should be ensuring that an LR->iCloud plug-in exists, regardless of whether it is by encouraging Adobe to create it or developing it as a third-party one themselves?

2. Even if you don't want to share photos with others, you can only install LR onto two desktops. So, only two desktops can view your images through a DAM interface. For my photography I have a laptop and a desktop that use my LR licenses. But, I also have a further desktop at the day job's office, plus a laptop for that job. I also have an Apple TV. I also have an iPhone and iPad, and LR Mobile is only available for CC customers and LR6 licenses (and, even then, I'd argue that LR Mobile isn't the simple image viewer that most people are asking for on their iOS platform). iCloud is the best and correct place to be linking all of those together.

3. Images taken on my iOS device automatically go into iCloud. An iCloud plug-in for LR should be bi-directional to allow new photos in iCloud (i.e. ones put there by my iOS device, not those put there by the LR plug-in) to be imported into my LR library (at which point, the copy in the LR library becomes master).

FWIW, my current workflow is:

1. Import into LR

2. Edit/tag in LR

3. Export those I want in Photos to a folder using Jeff Friedl's Folder Publisher plug-in

4. Import from that folder into Photos

5. Delete the export images (because I have Photos set up to manage, not reference images)

The benefit to using his plug-in is that it recognises when images have been updated in LR (e.g. re-developed, new keywords added) and flags them as needing to be re-exported. I don't need to do the manual status monitoring myself as I would if I was just doing a standard LR file export. But, the point is that steps 3 and 4 shouldn't have to go outside of LR and iCloud and step 4 should not be a manual process.

Graham.

Tell Adobe as that would be their product - of course that would work just fine

LN