Reviews
SUMMARY
John Branch IV, a wedding photographer, recommends using a single yearly catalog in Lightroom Classic over per-session or per-type catalogs for efficient management of thousands of photos. This approach simplifies backups and allows for quick retrieval of images across multiple shoots within a year. He details a folder hierarchy on an external drive that mirrors the catalog structure and emphasizes the importance of a robust 3-2-1 backup strategy for both catalog files and raw images, especially given the increasing size of modern camera files.
TAKEAWAYS
A single yearly Lightroom Classic catalog simplifies photo management and backup.
Organize raw files on an external drive with a year > session type > client folder structure.
Implement a 3-2-1 backup strategy for catalog files and raw images.
Yearly catalogs allow for efficient filtering of images across multiple shoots.