Operation Manual

164
Managing catalogs and folders
Last updated 11/30/2015
More Help topics
Creating and using catalogs
Lightroom catalog FAQ
Manage photos
Create and manage catalogs
Create a catalog
When you create a catalog, you create a folder for it, too. The name of the folder is the same as the name of the catalog,
without the catalog suffix. For example, if you name the folder “Wedding Photos,” the catalog file will be “Wedding
Photos.lrcat”. When you add photos to the catalog, Lightroom creates a preview cache file (such as “Wedding Photos
Previews.lrdata”) and puts it in the folder with the catalog.
1 Choose File > New Catalog.
2 Specify the name and location of the new catalog folder, and then click Save (Windows) or Create (Mac OS).
Lightroom resets and displays an empty Library module, ready for you to import photos.
Open a catalog
When you open a different catalog, Lightroom closes the current catalog and relaunches.
1 Choose File > Open Catalog.
2 In the Open Catalog dialog box, specify the catalog file and then click Open.
You can also choose a catalog from the File > Open Recent menu.
3 If prompted, click Relaunch to close the current catalog and relaunch Lightroom.
You can also change general preferences to specify which catalog opens when Lightroom starts. See .
Upgrade a catalog from an earlier version of Lightroom
You can open, or import, a catalog from an earlier version of Lightroom, including a beta version, in a more recent
version of Lightroom. When you do, Lightroom upgrades it. The new, updated catalog contains all of the metadata
associated with the previous catalog and photos.
1 Do one of the following:
• Start Lightroom for the first time.
• If you’ve opened Lightroom previously, choose File > Open Catalog.
2 Navigate to the old catalog .lrcat file, and then click Open.
If you can't remember where the old catalog is located, search for “lrcat” in the Explorer (Windows) or Finder (Mac
OS).
3 If prompted, click Relaunch to close the current catalog and restart Lightroom.