Can Lightroom export filenames use an image’s position in a collection?

Question

In Lightroom, I’ve manually arranged photos in a collection into a custom order that doesn’t match their original filenames or capture sequence. When I export the whole collection using a filename template like `{Custom Text}_{Sequence # (01)}`, Lightroom names them correctly in that custom order (for example, `some_name_01`, `some_name_02`, etc.).

The problem happens when I export only part of the collection or a single image. Lightroom starts the sequence at `01` again, so exporting just the 8th image produces `some_name_01` instead of `some_name_08`.

Is there any way in Lightroom to make exported filenames use the photo’s position within the collection, so the numbering stays consistent whether I export the whole collection or only selected images?

user28155 · Accepted Answer

I think the answer is no.

You can change the starting number when you export, but it still assumes you're exporting a contiguous sequence of images. In your case, I get the feeling you might export the 5th, 7th and 10th to 15th images, in which case, even if you pick 5 as the starting number you'll get 5, 6, 7, ....

I don't think 'position in a collection' is available as a number (which is what you really want, not actually sequence number).

If you only ever export contiguous sets of images, but sometimes don't start at the 1st one, then you can do it, by simply going to the export template each time, and changing the starting number in the dialog to match the starting image number.

Can Lightroom export filenames use an image’s position in a collection?

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