Is this a reasonable way to combine Photo Mechanic and Lightroom

[mikemyers]

From what I've learned so far about PM, I'm wondering if the following is a good working procedure.
If not, what am I missing.....

I have a folder structure for LR, which is where my photos will eventually go.
Suppose I use PM to create a folder that is within the existing structure, which literally might be:
    _LR_   /   USA   /   2019   /   Miami   /   folder-name

.......but instead of "folder-name" I name that folder using the PM tools for a more useful folder name.

Then I import my photos into that folder, using the PM tools I've been learning about, all photos named via PM.

When my selection process is finished, I delete all the images I do not want, so the junk photos are gone.

Finally, I use LR to import the new folder, with the images remaining inside of it, into my LR catalog, using the ADD selection in LR.


Is this reasonable?  Any reasons not to do it? 
From then on, it will be life as normal, using LR as I have been doing, but with better folder and file names.
From what I've learned, all the new metadata, keywords, etc., will already be there.

I still get all the benefits of PM, being faster, and saving time, and I don't need to move photos around when importing.

[Kirk Baker]

Mike,

Yes, that's pretty much how everyone does their initial workflow from PM to Lightroom.

-Kirk

[mikemyers]

Thanks, Kirk.  That greatly simplifies things for me. 

I've "sort of" been doing something like that, copying the photos from a card into a folder, deleting what I don't like, then importing the images into LR.  Now I'll be doing the initial work with PM, and the renamed photos and folder will be right where they belong, ready to be imported into Lightroom.

I think it was about ten years ago, when the SportsShooters Forum was still going well, that so many people suggested PM.  I see advantages now that I never imagined at the time. 

Curious, is there a switch someplace to turn off the 'colors', so I only see the stars, which I find more intuitive? 


In one of your other replies, you mentioned that when I add keywords to Lightroom, it only adds them to the catalog file, not to the images.  I'm hoping there is a tool, that will allow all those keywords only in my catalog, to be written onto the files, and if there are keywords in the files, perhaps from Photo Mechanic, to copy those back into the catalog file.  Until I read otherwise in another thread, I "assumed" it was already doing so.

[Kirk Baker]

Mike,

Curious, is there a switch someplace to turn off the 'colors', so I only see the stars, which I find more intuitive?

No.  But I suppose you could make all of the colors the same color, matching the color of the background of the thumbnails and they'd disappear for the most part.

Color Class labels are also transferable to Lightroom so you may find them useful.

In one of your other replies, you mentioned that when I add keywords to Lightroom, it only adds them to the catalog file, not to the images.  I'm hoping there is a tool, that will allow all those keywords only in my catalog, to be written onto the files, and if there are keywords in the files, perhaps from Photo Mechanic, to copy those back into the catalog file.  Until I read otherwise in another thread, I "assumed" it was already doing so.

You can do this from within Lightroom.  No other tool necessary.  I'm no Lightroom expert so maybe one of our more knowledgeable users will inform you as to the exact steps required.

-Kirk