Alternatively you can use Rapid Photo downloader as mentioned earlier in this thread. I usually name them with a date like -description.ĭarktable probably will never support auto-cataloguing file management by default, as the developers have stated that this is a design choice. Put folder of pictures into this library folder. So, if you want a library folder, the workflow isĢ. The copying from camera onto your computer you have to do yourself. It would be a huge amount of expense and time and work for dubious benefits.Darktable doesn't organize files in the same way Lightroom does. I've come to my senses, and I laughed, and laughed, and I dismissed all foolish notions of switching from Mac to Linux. That's my complaint.Īlthough, I think it's moot now. I guess that must be 'Auto Import'.Īnd I haven't figured out how to make Darktable do that. Ever since then it has been copying imported files into that folder and organizing them with sub-folders. I think I may, at some time when I was setting up Lightroom, have told it where to keep its library folder on my computer. (not saying everything-and-the-kitchen-sink sofware like Darktable follows Unix philosophy but I take any small gifts in this direction gratefully) The advantage of multiple tools is that you can compose you own workflow the Unix way. The difference of accessing camera import from inside the raw software or from a separate app should be non existent. Darktable used to import but couldn't quite compete with external software.

The decision to never write raw files was conceptually clean and sensible. When accessing the files through Darktable i can tag and filter by all the metadata and bring up dynamic views of any selection of content irrespective of file layout. Using Rapid photo downloader and Darktable I can use my preferred YYYY/MMDD_keyword/IMGP0001.DNG structure or any other of my liking and have it automatically applied when importing. Sometimes this structure made no sense for normal file access using file managers or prevented having different jobs/subjects on different hard drives.

If Darktable doesn't do that, then it's not really a Lightroom alternative at all, and I guess I shouldn't even be looking at it.Raw development and photo organizing software used to have this terrible tendency of requiring a certain folder structure or a single 'repository' of images. Organizing the files is one of the basic functions of Aperture and Lightroom.

Darktable import from apple photos