How can I share a RAW file with my Lightroom edit settings?
Asked 5/28/2013
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2 answers
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I want to send someone a Canon .CR2 RAW file along with the Lightroom adjustments I’ve made, so they can open it in Lightroom, see my current development settings, make additional edits, and send it back for me to review and continue working on. What’s the best way to share both the RAW file and the Lightroom edit settings?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
13y ago
2 Answers
5
All changes are saved in xml "sidecar" file. Raw file is never touched.*
So you send him both files and then you can exchange only the small xml file that holds all changes.
[*] Unless you use DNG format and you set "do not use sidecar file, modify DNG file instead" option.
Originally by user9321. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user9321
13y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes—Lightroom edits are usually not written into the original .CR2 file. Instead, the adjustments are stored separately, typically in a small XML sidecar (.xmp) file. To share your edit, send both the RAW file and its sidecar file. The other person can open the RAW in Lightroom and see the applied settings, then send back the updated sidecar after making changes.
Another option is to convert/export the file as DNG. A DNG can store the edit metadata with the file itself, so it may be easier to share as one file. In some setups, DNG can also embed the original RAW.
If your goal is just to share the adjustment recipe, you can save the Lightroom development settings as a preset and export that preset for the other person to import and apply to the same RAW file.
So the main choices are:
- RAW + sidecar (.xmp)
- DNG with metadata
- Exported Lightroom preset
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AI13y ago
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