Today’s Question: I tried the multi-image editing method you described [in Tuesday’s answer] in Lightroom Classic. It did not work until I clicked the Sync button. Does Lightroom Classic need the extra step?
Tim’s Quick Answer: Sort of. You can enable automatic synchronization in the Develop module to apply adjustments in batch to multiple selected images. When you do so there’s no need to click the Synch button after applying adjustments.
More Detail: In Tuesday’s answer I explained how you can batch process multiple images in Camera Raw by opening the images and selecting them all on the filmstrip within the Camera Raw interface. It is similarly possible to batch adjust multiple images in the Develop module in Lightroom Classic, though it does require one minor additional step.
After selecting multiple images in Lightroom Classic, at the bottom of the right panel in the Develop module you can click the toggle switch on the left side of the Sync button. This will turn on automatic synchronization, which is reflected by the fact that the button will then be labeled “Auto Sync”.
While Auto Sync is enabled, all adjustments you apply in the Develop module will affect all images that are selected on the filmstrip. This includes advanced adjustments such as targeted adjustments using masks. For example, if you use the masking feature to create a mask for the sky for multiple selected images, each image will have a unique mask based on the sky that was detected individually.
Once you’re finished applying batch adjustments using the Auto Sync feature, if you leave the option enabled it will automatically activate again anytime you select more than one image. If you think you might have a situation where you have selected multiple images but only want to adjust one, I suggest turning off the Auto Sync feature to avoid accidentally affecting multiple images. In that case you could simply turn Auto Sync back on when you want to apply adjustments to multiple selected images.
