Hello all.

I'm considering putting several years and TBs of files into an Aperture library format. Up to now I have had 2 main folders of Raw files, and Job files (Worked on Tifs and jpegs) on an xserve raid system.
I'll need to be tidying it up over the next week or two and was thinking (or maybe responding to marketing hype) that it would be a good idea to manage them all with a raw converter programme such as Aperture. I do like the workflow interface and like the idea of working consistantly with the Raw files. Up to now I've been using my own folder/subfolder system with image/client/date codes which has been great. My problems are mainly with Bridge which is fickle especially on labeling ... I might give a file a green label from one workstation but it wouldn't come up as such on another workstation. Part of my problems are due to the fact that I'm always working on files through the LAN I know ... but my main question is... If I create a new library with Aperture, am I duplicating all of my thousands of files? And how long would it take for ... let's see ... 3 TB?

And is that me stuck with Aperture for the rest of my days .... is it hard to easily access the files through the normal OS Finder? ... Is it a real pain as in iphoto?... Also can InDesign files be included in the library?

Anyone else done anything like this recently .... (Also was wondering about extensis portfolio)

Thanks to anyone who takes the time to answer!!!

Ros

I'm afraid I don't know the answer, but I do have the same problem.....
Considering options, as well!

Cheers,
Hugh

If I had that many files I'd use a reference library, and just import them in place.

Imatch from www.photools.com works quite nice with a big database, but it's Windows only.
The user forum is here: http://ptforum.photoolsweb.com/

I'm using LR to manage about 50,000 from the past two years. I re-associated them when LR2 came out and I swapped main drives. It was relatively painless and should be the same for Aperture. You don't want to copy the files just leave them in place and import them as is.

I don't see how this is relevant at all.

Aperture can handle a library with many, many terabytes of images. It's just that a managed (where all the images are copied into the library folder itself) can be a problem, because it's very difficult to locate a single "multi-terabyte" directory on one physical disk.

Maybe stick to something besides shilling for Windows products next time?

Hi, Question is if the 3 TB´s are all single instance of an image or do you have several versions of the images?
I ask this because, like you I hit the 1TB+ Mark in images for my DB. I use alot of reference material (Artistic creation) and technical documentational stuff (boring). What did happen was that I attempted to move my DB off to reference files and I asked to create instances of each version and I surpassed the 2TB mark in storage... it never finished because I ran out of disk space.

How I am working not is that I created several flowders. Some are consolidated reference images other are consolidated in the DDBB. All this would not be an issue should some day Apple allowed for cross DDBB support to make the app snappier.

How do I select what stays on the DDBB and what get´s referenced? Well for all those reference files that I look up, open once and create several version of but final output gets consolidated in a final image, then these are all reference in DDBB. Shots, that are photo in nature (minimal post processing) usually stay referenced in the DDBB. All stuff that get opened and saved in PSx gets saved in referenced folders.
Works really well.

My suggestion based on my personal workflow and needs is to load them in referenced..... then as you add new images get them in the DDBB... you can then work along the same lines as I have.

Hope this helps,

JM

I have a 4TB library and 2 4TB vaults. One vault off-site. I imported all of my images to Aperture and have no regrets.

I also export finished edited projects to separate drives and store offsite.

The convenience and "inspiration" of having access to my entire collection is very satisfying. Hard drives get larger, cheaper and cheaper and eSata enclosures also get cheaper and cheaper.

ANd, Ross - BTW - just waiting a cab to the airport and off to Dublin. B