What should I watch out for when upgrading from Lightroom 3 to Lightroom 4?
Asked 3/12/2012
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I'm considering upgrading from Lightroom 3 to Lightroom 4 and want to know what to expect with existing catalogs and edits. Will Lightroom 4 automatically migrate Lightroom 3 catalogs the first time I open them? Aside from making a backup first, are there any known issues or behavior changes that could affect existing images, collections, flags, or tone curve settings?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
14y ago
2 Answers
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There is a bug in Lightroom 4 that can cause you to lose your point tone curve settings in existing images, as detailed here. This is a serious bug, if you use point curves. There are other relatively minor issues detailed at that link as well.
The behavior of Pick/Reject flags changes in Lightroom 4. Now when you flag an image, the flag is global, instead of per-collection. This can be surprising if you depend on per-collection flags.
Otherwise, I don't think there are serious issues. As you say, make backups. Your images that you've already processed will still be PV2010 (the Lightroom 3 process version) in Lightroom 4. You have to specifically upgrade them to PV2012 if you want to try the new process, because there's usually some degree of fine-tuning required. If you don't upgrade the process, they should remain identical to they way they were in Lightroom 3.
Originally by user2138. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user2138
14y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes. Lightroom 4 will upgrade your existing Lightroom 3 catalog when you open it, and users generally report the process is straightforward. Backing up your catalog first is still the right precaution.
Main things to watch for:
- Existing edits should remain intact, and older images stay in the Lightroom 3 process version (PV2010) unless you explicitly update them to the newer LR4 process (PV2012).
- If you do update images to PV2012, expect to fine-tune some settings rather than assuming an exact match.
- There was a reported Lightroom 4 bug affecting existing point tone curve settings, so check older images carefully if you rely on point curves.
- Pick/Reject flag behavior changed in Lightroom 4: flags are global rather than per-collection, which may affect workflows that depended on collection-specific flags.
In short: the catalog migration itself is usually painless, but review older edits—especially tone curve work and any workflow that depends on flags—before fully committing.
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