Using Lightroom and Photo Mechanic when photos are in Lightroom first

[chrissigmon@charter.net]

I am using version 5 of Photo Mechanic (try version) latest build on my Intel Based Macbook Pro running Yosemite. 10.10.  I discovered Photo Mechanic after I had already imported photos into Lightroom (Version 6 CC). I have gone into Photo Mechanic and opened the folder were lightroom has stored the files (.dng's) and culled 1800 or so down to 600.  When I try to drag and drop the 600 on to the lightroom icon, it fires the import screen but reports that all photos are there....  That makes sense, but what I need is for the metadata (containing the selections) to be overlaid on to the Lightroom catalog.  Is there any way to do this?  I prefer not to have to delete the pictures from the LR catalog and start again if possible.

Chris Sigmon
LifeSong Visual Arts, LLC,

PS.. I intend to purchase Photo Mechanic, and I will modify my workflow in the future to put PM at the first step.

[Kirk Baker]

Chris,

I am using version 5 of Photo Mechanic (try version) latest build on my Intel Based Macbook Pro running Yosemite. 10.10.  I discovered Photo Mechanic after I had already imported photos into Lightroom (Version 6 CC). I have gone into Photo Mechanic and opened the folder were lightroom has stored the files (.dng's) and culled 1800 or so down to 600.  When I try to drag and drop the 600 on to the lightroom icon, it fires the import screen but reports that all photos are there....  That makes sense, but what I need is for the metadata (containing the selections) to be overlaid on to the Lightroom catalog.  Is there any way to do this?  I prefer not to have to delete the pictures from the LR catalog and start again if possible.

There should be no need to drag the images from PM back onto LR.  If LR isn't automatically detecting that images have been removed, you may have to tell it to check for missing/delete images and it should correct its view of the remaining images.

As for images that you've changed the metadata and did not delete, you need to tell LR to re-read the metadata from the files so that it will update its catalog.  Use the "Read Metadata from Files" command on the "Metadata" menu.  (You'll have to select the images first.)

-Kirk

[chrissigmon@charter.net]

Thanks Kirk... this worked perfectly!  It is good to know that I can use Photo Mechanic to quickly rate photos that have already been ingested into Lightroom.  Just as you suggested, All I had to do was ask Lightroom to re-read the metadata!  Then I used the ratings in Lightroom to create the photos that I wanted to edit and categorize!  Thanks again!