Ask Tim Grey

Today’s Question: Would you explain the best way to utilize a “watched folder” in Lightroom Classic and where you find it?

Tim’s Quick Answer: I recommend using a watched folder for situations where you will be creating image files outside the context of a camera, such as when you’ll be scanning slides. Using this automatic import feature helps ensure you remember to import all of these types of photos.

More Detail: Lightroom Classic enables you to define an automatic import using a “watched folder”. What that means is that any image you save into the watched folder will be imported to your catalog automatically, based on specific settings you have established.

First you need to configure the automatic import. To get started, go to the menu bar and choose File > Auto Import > Auto Import Settings. Click the Choose button to the right of the “Watched Folder” label and navigate to the folder that you want to have Lightroom Classic monitor for automatic import. You can create a new folder as part of this step if needed. Click the Choose button to apply the change.

In the Destination section click the Choose button to the right of the “Move To” label and navigate to the storage location where you want the newly imported photos to be moved to. For example, this might be an external hard drive you use for storing all your photos. You can then specify a subfolder name for the folder you want to use as the destination for the newly imported images. I generally prefer to use a folder name here that will ensure the folder stands out at the top of the Folders list on the left panel in the Library module, such as by putting an underscore (_) at the beginning of the folder name.

You can then adjust the other import settings as desired, such as to add the photos to a collection, apply a Develop module preset, or apply a metadata preset. If you’re ready to have the automatic import enabled, turn on the “Enable Auto Import” checkbox at the top of the Auto Import Settings dialog and click the OK button.

You can turn automatic import on or off at any time by choosing File > Auto Import > Enable Auto Import from the menu. When this feature is turned on, if any photos are added to the watched folder they will be automatically imported based on the settings you established in the Auto Import Settings dialog, and moved to the folder location you specified.

So, for example, each time you save a scanned image into the watched folder, it will be automatically imported into your Lightroom Classic folder. And because these images are moved to a different storage location as part of that automatic import process, there won’t be any confusion about whether the images have actually been imported into your catalog, since the images are moved out of the watched folder as part of the automatic import.

Today’s Question: In Camera Raw [or Lightroom Classic in the Develop module], under Detail, sharpening is set to 40. Is it better to apply more sharpening there, or leave it as is at the default of 40, and use the Smart Sharpen filter [or output sharpening in Lightroom Classic], or a combination of both?

Tim’s Quick Answer: I recommend keeping sharpening settings at modest levels for the original raw capture (in Camera Raw in Photoshop or the Develop module in Lightroom Classic). You can then apply final output sharpening when you will print or otherwise share the image, specific to the type and size of output you’ll be producing.

More Detail: The sharpening available as part of the adjustments for processing raw captures is often referred to as “capture sharpening” or “input sharpening”. This sharpening is intended for compensating for issues that reduced overall sharpness in the initial capture. That includes, for example, slight softness introduced by the lens and from the conversion from an analog signal (light) to a digital image.

Because this initial sharpening is compensating for the initial capture, it doesn’t generally need to be very strong, and you can generally use relatively consistent settings. I typically set the Radius value to around 1.0 or a little lower, and set the Amount to somewhere between 40 and 80 depending on the image. If an image needs a bit stronger sharpening than is typical, then I might also refine the Detail and Masking controls, which help determine the extent to which fine detail versus smooth areas of the image are affected by sharpening.

Beyond that, the Texture, Clarity, and Dehaze adjustments also provide an effect that is somewhat similar in concept to sharpening, just affecting the image at a different scale.

Finally, when it comes time to share the image, I recommend applying sharpening that is tailored to both the actual output size as well as the method of output. For example, you generally need very little additional sharpening if the image will be shared digitally, such as online or in a digital slideshow. More sharpening is needed for images that will be printed, especially if the image will be printed to an uncoated matte paper.

Today’s Question: If you delete the original image, does Lightroom Classic also delete the virtual copy?

Tim’s Quick Answer: Yes, removing an original photo from your Lightroom Classic catalog will cause any virtual copies created from that original photo to also be removed.

More Detail: Virtual copies represent an additional interpretation of a source photo. When you create a virtual copy in Lightroom Classic you aren’t making a copy of the source photo, but rather simply creating an additional set of metadata based on the original. You could then have different metadata and different adjustments in the Develop module for the virtual copy versus the source photo.

You can also create multiple virtual copies of a single source image, so that you have a variety of interpretations of the source photo. This can be helpful for a variety of situations, such as when you’re trying to decide how to interpret a photo in terms of various adjustments, or you need different versions of a photo for different purposes.

A virtual copy is directly tied to the source photo it was based upon. If you move a source photo to a different folder, for example, any virtual copies based on that photo will be moved along with the original into the new folder location. Similarly, if you delete a source photo (or even just remove it from your catalog) any virtual copies created from that photo will also be removed from Lightroom Classic.

So, you can think of virtual copies as being permanently connected to the source photo. While you can have different metadata or Develop adjustments for a source photo compared to a virtual copy, moving or deleting a source photo will also remove the virtual copies based on that source photo.

Today’s Question: I have imported a number of older folders from a hard drive into the new catalog as collections. I would like to convert these collections back into folders in my catalog. Is there a way to do this without having to remove the collections from Lightroom and re-import them as folders?

Tim’s Quick Answer: Actually, even though you added photos to collections at import, they are still reflected in your catalog with folders based on the folder structure on your hard drive. You can use the collections as needed to determine which folder the photos are actually in.

More Detail: When you import photos into a Lightroom Classic catalog the images are always included within the Folders section on the left panel in the Library module based on the hard drive and folder location of the source images. The Folders section in Lightroom Classic is a direct reflection of the storage structure of your photos.

Collections can be thought of as being like a “virtual folder”. A given photo that has been imported into your Lightroom Classic catalog will always be listed in the Folders section of the left panel in the Library module. A photo can also be included in the Collections section, but only if you have actually added the photo to a collection.

I think of collections as something of a saved search result, or as an album that groups together related photos. Adding a photo to a collection does not move the photo out of a folder. The source photo is still in the folder, and a reference to the source photo is added to the collection.

If you’re not sure which folder the photos in a given collection are stored in, you can right-click on a photo within a collection and choose “Go to Folder in Library” from the popup menu that appears. This will take you automatically to the source photo in the applicable folder in the Folders section.

If all of the photos in a given collection are stored in a single folder, then of course you only need to use the “Go to Folder in Library” command for a single reference photo. But if the photos had been taken from a variety of different folders, you can use this command on various photos to determine where they are located in your folder structure.

Today’s Question: Can you explain what’s the difference between building a Smart Preview versus a Standard Preview when importing photos into Lightroom Classic?

Tim’s Quick Answer: A Smart Preview in Lightroom Classic is a high-resolution DNG preview of your source capture, enabling greater flexibility in your workflow. A Standard preview is a JPEG preview at approximately the resolution of your display. There is also a 1:1 preview option, which is a JPEG preview but at the full resolution of the source image.

More Detail: Lightroom Classic uses previews of your photos for various purposes, primarily as a cache to improve overall display performance and to enable you to view your photos even when the source files are not available (such as when an external hard drive containing your photos is not connected to your computer).

JPEG previews are used primarily in the Library module to enable you to browse your images more quickly (since the source raw capture does not need to be rendered, for example) and to enable you to browse your photos even when the source files aren’t available (since the previews are stored alongside your catalog).

The JPEG previews can be rendered at various sizes, with the primary options available being the Standard versus 1:1 previews. The 1:1 previews are obviously at the full resolution of your source photos, and enable you to zoom in with good quality even when only the preview is available. The Standard previews are sized based on the size (and quality) settings established on the File Handing tab of the Catalog Settings dialog, but are aimed at being approximately the resolution of your display so you can view the full image.

A Smart Preview is a relatively high-resolution preview (though not full resolution) in the DNG format rather than JPEG. This enables greater flexibility and improved preview quality.

Normally you aren’t able to work with your photos in the Develop module if the source image file is not currently available. However, if you have rendered Smart Previews of your photos you can still work in the Develop module even if the source file isn’t available. You can even export copies of your photos based on Smart Previews without needing to have the source files available.

There is also an option to use Smart Previews to improve performance in the Develop module by favoring Smart Previews over the source image file.

Personally, I don’t generate Smart Previews of my photos because I typically have the source images available and I’m not too concerned about improving performance somewhat modestly in the Develop module. Also, the Smart Previews are by their nature somewhat large in size, consuming quite a bit of hard drive space.

I also generate Standard previews rather than the 1:1 previews because I don’t tend to zoom in on my photos beyond full screen very often in the context of the Library module. In the Develop module the source image is being rendered, so the normal previews aren’t employed. Of course, as noted above you do have the option to use Smart Previews in the Develop module.

Of course, every photographer has different priorities in their workflow, so you may prefer to take a different approach than I do. The key is to understand the options available so you can make the best decision based on your own needs.

Today’s Question: Instead of buying an expensive super telephoto zoom lens, I would rather buy an extender for my 70-200 zoom lens. Canon charges the same price for its 1.4x (https://bhpho.to/3oaT4Tm) and 2x (https://bhpho.to/3bnaxQv) extenders. Are there any downsides picking the 2x extender over the 1.4x extender?

Tim’s Quick Answer: The key difference between these two extenders is that the 2x will cause you to lose one additional stop of light. This obviously affects potential shutter speeds in addition to degrading autofocus performance.

More Detail: An extender is effectively a magnifier for your lens. These extenders are often available in a 1.4x and 2x strength for different lens mounts for different camera makes. With a 1.4x extender you will lose one stop of light, and with a 2x extender you will lose two stops of light.

With less light available when using the 2x extender, you would obviously need to compensate with exposure settings. That can lead to a slower shutter speed, which can be problematic depending on the specific circumstances. In addition, that loss of light will reduce autofocus performance, which can be a real hindrance.

Of course, there is also the additional magnification to consider. With a 70-200mm lens, for example, the 200mm focal length would translate to an effective 280mm focal length with the 1.4x extender, but a 400mm effective focal length with the 2x.

Therefore, when considering an extender my view is that the 2x option makes the most sense, as long as you can manage the loss of an additional stop of light.

In a general sense it is also important to confirm compatibility with the specific lens you intend to use with the extender. Many extenders only support prime lenses, plus a handful of zoom lenses (as is the case with the Canon extenders). With some configurations you may lose autofocus altogether, or you may be limited as to which focus points are available.

Today’s Question: Often the “Select Subject” command in Photoshop works well, but can I add to the selected subject?

Tim’s Quick Answer: Yes, you can absolutely mix-and-match different selection tools in Photoshop to refine your selection, including in conjunction with the Select Subject command.

More Detail: The Select Subject command in Photoshop does an impressive job of identifying and selecting the key subject in a photo, especially when that key subject stands out reasonably well from the background. However, this command (and the similar Select Sky command) doesn’t always do a perfect job.

Fortunately, whenever an initial selection isn’t quite perfect, you don’t have to abandon that selection and start over with a different tool or technique. Instead, you can mix-and-match among various selection tools and commands.

For example, you could use the Select Subject (or Select Sky) command to create a quick and automatic selection. For areas of that initial selection that don’t match the subject or area you were trying to select, you can add to or subtract from that selection.

I often use the Quick Selection tool, for example, to supplement other selection tools. You can hold the Shift key on the keyboard while painting with the Quick Selection tool to add areas to a selection. You can also hold the Alt key on Windows or the Option key on Macintosh while painting to subtract areas from the selection.

Another helpful tool for this type of selection refinement is the Lasso tool, which you can use to trace along areas of the selection you need to modify. The same keyboard commands for adding to or subtracting from a selection work with this and other selection tools.

And, of course, there are a variety of other tools and commands you can use in Photoshop to further modify a selection. The key thing to keep in mind is that you can use multiple of the various tools and commands to fine-tune a selection, rather than having to use just a single tool to try to do all work to create a perfect selection.

Today’s Question: When I photograph sporting events, I always have two or three camera bodies being used. The problem I have is when I import all the photos into Lightroom Classic there are always duplicated numbers because with each card the file number starts with the number 0001 as per my import preset. The only way I am able to get around this is to rename all the photos after import so there will be no duplicate filenames. I am hoping that there is a way upon import that this process can be simplified to save me valuable time.

Tim’s Quick Answer: You can solve this issue by altering your file renaming template, such as by adding the camera serial number to the filenames or by altering your approach to using the Start Number value for the sequence number for the filenames.

More Detail: Whether or not you’re actually renaming photos during import into Lightroom Classic, it is possible that you’ll have issues with potential duplicate filenames. If there are duplicate filenames in the folder you’re importing to Lightroom Classic will automatically add a parenthetical number at the end of the filename, but this certainly isn’t an ideal solution.

Instead, I recommend one of two types of changes to how you approach renaming photos during import.

The first example in this case would be to add an element to the filename that is unique for each camera. An obvious choice would be the serial number of the camera. You could therefore modify the file renaming template to include a value such as the camera serial number. This would help ensure that you have unique filenames that make sense in your overall workflow.

Another approach would be to change how you define the start number for the sequence number included in your file renaming template. When including a sequence number in a file renaming template you can choose to have up to five digits in that sequence number. You could then use an approach where you assign a single digit number to each camera body, and then use that number as the first digit of the sequence number.

That would mean that on the first import from the first camera for a given event you would set the sequence number to 10001, and for the second camera you would use 20001. For subsequent imports you would simply need to update the sequence number to the next value, so that if you had for example imported 500 images on the first import the sequence number for the second import could be set to 10501.

Today’s Question: When exporting from Lightroom Classic, regarding resolution, what is the standard number that should be for the pixels per inch value, and what happens when the number is changed?

Tim’s Quick Answer: The pixels per inch (or pixels per centimeter) resolution value only really applies for images you intend to print. In that case the resolution should be set based on the intended output, which typically means around 360 pixels per inch for photo inkjet prints and generally 300 pixels per inch for other types of printing.

More Detail: For images that will only be presented digitally, such as on a computer monitor or with a digital projector, the pixel per inch value in metadata is not applicable. You simply need to be sure that the image contains enough pixels to be displayed at the intended size.

For printed images a pixel per inch value can be used (though isn’t technically required) to establish the overall pixel dimensions and output size for the image. The basic idea is that it can be easier to describe the pixel dimensions based on the output size rather than the actual number of pixels.

For example, many photographers find it easier to describe (or determine) the overall pixel dimensions by saying “eight inches by ten inches at 360 pixels per inch” rather than as “2,880 pixels by 3,600 pixels”.

Using a specific value for pixels per inch when exporting an image will only have an actual impact on the pixel dimensions of the image if you are not otherwise specifying the image dimensions in pixels. If you specify the output dimensions in pixels rather than inches, for example, the image will have the dimensions that match the pixel value(s) you entered regardless of the pixel per inch resolution value.

If you use inches or centimeters to specify the output dimensions, on the other hand, then the pixel per inch resolution value is used to calculate the pixel dimensions for the image being exported.

If the pixel per inch resolution value is changed in metadata, there isn’t really a significant impact, since changing that value won’t change the number of pixels in the image. You can specify the output size when producing printed output, for example, and the image will be printed at that size. If the overall pixel dimensions aren’t adequate for the actual print size, the image will simply be interpolated as part of the printing process.