This is the era of mobile phones and DSLRs. We use these devices to click photos that often need editing.
Since Lightroom is one of the most popular photo editing platforms, it’s important to know how to import photos from your camera.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through the process.
Let’s get started:
Importing Photos to Lightroom
- Connect your SD card or device to your computer or laptop. Make sure your system detects the device/card. If not, check the connection and software requirements.
- Open the software (Lightroom) and on the bottom right click ‘Import’.
- If you’ve imported from the same device before, the software will show you previously copied photos. On the top right, uncheck ‘Don’t Import Suspected Duplicates’ unless you want to import the same files again.
Understanding the Import Window
On the top you will see three options:
- Copy: Used to copy images from the device to your destination
- Move: To move images from the original source to the destination – the original copy will get deleted
You can choose your destination by clicking the arrow next to this section. The destination can be any drive.
- Select ‘Build Smart Previews’ so that you can easily preview files when you get down to edit them.
- We’ve already explained the second option.
- Check the third option if you want to make two copies to be on the safe side.
- The forth ‘Add to Collection’ can be used if you organize your photos in collections. You can add a new selection option as well.
Renaming Files
Not everyone likes to rename files but since photos usually appear ‘DSCnumber.extension’, renaming may be a good idea.
You can select your required template and choose your desired extension from here.
If you do not like the available options then click Edit and create your own template.
Lightroom can mess up with your simulations. Fortunately, there’s an option to correct it. When you import, you can choose ‘presets’ according to your taste. Moreover, you can also choose metadata, which can be helpful when uploading photos.
Feed the information such as your name and contact details so that others can reach you if they ever need more information on the photo.
Lastly, review the destination and go through all the information and you’re done.
Tip: If you want to use these settings for future imports, you can save these as a preset by selecting the option at the bottom of the same page before you import.
Click Import and the process will begin. It can take a while depending on the number and size of the files.