Did you know there’s a quicker way to transition between recently used Lightroom catalogs?
When I first began using Lightroom I put everything (yes, everything!) into one catalog.
I didn’t even realize having multiple catalogs was an option until I had 3 years worth of photos in a single catalog and it was running extremely slow.
A quick decision to break up my catalogs into yearly catalogs was made, and from there, I started sorting out client work into their own catalogs as well.
These days I am routinely switching between my personal yearly catalogs and the catalogs I am editing for clients. I may not finish an entire client catalog in one day and that evening I may want to quickly edit the a cute photo of my boys.
Instead of navigating through folders, which takes a bit of time no matter how organized you are, I made this setting tweak to Lightroom so that I can easily close up my personal photos and pick back up with those client edits.
Make This Settings Adjustment
Open the Preferences menu
Select ‘Prompt me when starting Lightroom‘ as your new option for ‘Default Catalog’.
From now on, Lightroom will ask you which catalog you’d like to view and edit from every time you open the program up.
For my personal use, typically this means I will be choosing between which yearly catalog I want to open.
As a photographer or photo editor, you can easily select which client/wedding catalog you would like to edit.
If you enjoyed this Lightroom trick on catalog organization or have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out!
