How many of you accept both laptop & desktop computers? Me! I practice! I know a lot of you practice also, because then many people have asked me how they can share Lightroom files between their computers.

Here's the deal. Lightroom is not designed to exist networked. This means that information technology works on one computer and 1 computer merely. It can't be shared between computers because of its catalog – Lightroom'due south itemize is a lowly fiddling file. It can't deal with changes existence fabricated to it from more one place.

Information technology's a very important file, however. It contains the addresses to all of your photos.

For instance, Lightroom knows that Sally's birthday photos live on my hard bulldoze in the Photos/2017/September/Birthday Party folder. What happens if I open this aforementioned catalog on a different estimator? It's going to look for the same address (Photos/2017/September/Altogether Political party) but information technology won't detect that folder on the other reckoner'due south hard bulldoze.

This is, of course, a huge oversimplification. The point is that Lightroom'southward catalog just tin't manage files on more than ane computer.

Luckily, there is a workaround!

I do a lot of photo editing on my laptop. Specially when I travel. Before we left on our five-week road trip this summer, I worked out a process to share photos betwixt Lightroom on my laptop and Lightroom on my desktop using Dropbox.

Dropbox and Lightroom: Start Hither

Here's what you need to know.

  • When you lot use Dropbox and Lightroom together, you aren't sharing a catalog. You lot have 2 separate Lightroom installations. (Adobe's licenses mostly allow yous to install Lightroom on 2 different machines.)
  • This technique is best for ane time transfers. Work on a serial of photos on your laptop and transfer them to your desktop for permanent storage. Recollect of one car (normally the laptop) every bit temporary storage and the other as permanent storage.
  • This process is not the same as storing photos on an external hard drive. Lightroom can easily manage photos across internal and external hard drives.

I used this process all summer. During our holiday, I used Lightroom to import my photos to my laptop. I sorted, culled, keyworded and edited. When we returned home at the end of the summer, I transferred all of these photos to the Lightroom itemize on my desktop using Dropbox.

How to Use Dropbox and Lightroom to Transfer Photos Between Computers

Watch this video to larn how I use Dropbox and Lightroom together. And if y'all aren't into video, keep scrolling. Read the tutorial below.

  1. Import your files using Lightroom on the temporary estimator. Store them in the Dropbox folder on this computer.
  2. Sort, rank & cull as normal. Delete any rejected (blackness flag) photos.
  3. Edit your photos every bit normal.
  4. Keyword your photos for itemize dependent settings. For me, I more often than not but need to keyword my Picks (the white flags). If you use the star ranking organization or the color labels, you would need to set up keywords for each one. For instance, you might need five keywords (one star, 2 star, 3 star, 4 star and 5 star would each be keywords).
  5. Subfolders practise not transfer using this method. If you want to use the same subfolder structure, you volition demand to keyword the proper name for each subfolder also.
  6. When you are ready to transfer these photos to your permanent estimator, select them all (blazon command/control A from inside a folder). Go to the Metadata carte du jour and select Salvage Metadata to File.dropbox and lightroom
  7. Lightroom stores this metadata direct in JPGs. For Raw files, however, your metadata will be stored in a separate "sidecar" file called an XMP. XMPs look like this:
  8. That's it. You are fix to transfer. Motility to your permanent calculator and make sure your Dropbox is synchronized and has the new files on it.
  9. Go to the File bill of fare in Lightroom and select Import Photos and Video. On the left side of the Import window, navigate to the folder in your Dropbox where the photos that you want to movement are. On the right side, in the Destination console, tell Lightroom to save these photos wherever you'd like them to live permanently.dropbox and lightroom
  10. Import the photos and confirm that your edits transferred.
  11. Use the Text search on the Library filter bar to search for catalog-specific keywords. For each filter you create, select all of the photos by typing command/command A. Next, utilize the advisable setting to all of the photos at one time. Below, you tin can see my filter for White Flags. With all the filters photos selected, I typed the letter P to utilise the flag to all photos at the same time.
  12. You are finished! Give yourself a pat on the back – you deserve information technology.

There are a few other ways to employ Lightroom and Dropbox together, merely none are as directly and efficient. How you constitute a adept mode to utilize them together? Share your method in the comments below!

Practice yous want to know more about using Lightroom? Check out my online workshop. You'll receive answers to all your questions plus detailed feedback on your homework.