XMP files hidden in Windows 7?

[stoweaway]

Has anyone had the issue of their camera raw sidecar xmp files being hidden with Windows 7? The NEF files are there and the metadata is there, Lightroom 3 picks it up but for archiving purposes I cannot see the xmp files in windows explorer. I've tried going to the folder and search options and checked all the appropriate boxes to allow hidden files to be viewed...still nothing! Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

Jenny

[WesternGuy]

Hi Jenny, and welcome to the forum. I am not completely sure why what you see is, or isn't, happening. I just looked at some of my recent Lightroom folders using Windows Explorer and noticed that only a few of the RAW files (.cr2) have an xmp file associated with them and it is unclear why some do and some don't. I do know that Lightroom will not automatically create xmp files, but I am not sure where it keeps the metadata and the "develop" data in the interim. I will try and find out, because now you have me curious. Unless someone comes along with an explanation in the meantime, I will definitely get back to you with what I find out.

Cheers,

WesternGuy

[WesternGuy]

Hi Jenny, well here is what I found out...

For the most part, Lightroom (LR) keeps all the edits and metadata in its catalog, which is why it is suggested to back up the catalog each day and why, when it backs up the catalog, it does not back up the individual images as well (it leaves that up to you to do on your own). Personally, I back up my image folders once a week, or when I have added a significant number of images to LR.

If you need to pass the original image together with its edit data and metadata to another application, then you can explicitly write an .xmp file by selecting the image and hitting CTRL-S (Command - S on a Mac) and if you then close LR and go to the folder using Windows Explorer, you should see a corresponding .xmp file, e.g., if your original was AB123.nef, then you should also see one that is AB123.xmp as well. You would need to pass both files to another application if it needed to know about the LR edits and metadata.

Alternatively, if you go to the Menu in the Library module and select "EDIT" and scroll down until you find "Preferences", click on that you will get a panel that comes up with about 4 tabs on the top of it. In the "General" panel, near the bottom, you will find a button that says "Go To Catalog Settings" - click on that button and you will get a new panel that says "Catalog Settings" with three tabs at the top. Click on "Metadata" and you are presented with a panel that has two parts to it - "Editing" and "EXIF". On the "Editing" part, there are three check boxes - the last one says "Automatically write changes into XMP". If you wish to create an .xmp file for each of your raw files that contains all the metadata and the edit information, then you should check this one off. Also, if you convert your raw to DNG, then you must check this setting to get the .xmp file as well.

So I guess it comes down to whether or not you want to have an .xmp file associated with each one of your raw files. Depending on the situation, this means that not only will LR write the edit data to its catalog every time you do an edit or an edit update, but it will also write the information to the .xmp file as well. Some people don't do this because it takes time. Personally, now that I know what happens with all this stuff, I will not explicitly create .xmp files unless I need them, because it will just take more time to process during editing and it will take more disk space for my main image storage and for my backup when I do it. In my opinion, now that I know, I do not wish to store redundant data on my hard drive when I know I can get it anytime I need it through a simple set of key strokes. The ultimate choice, of course, is yours.

Jenny, I hope this helps, I know chasing down the answers has really helped me and I would like to thank you for stirring up my curiosity. Glad to see another Canadian on the forum and let me say you live in a very beautiful city - I do get there on occassion and particularly like to visit the Butchart Gardens when I can - great place for flower photography. As well, the park with the Great Blue Heron rookery, Beacon Hill, I believe, is an experience in itself, together with the opportunity for bird photography along the shoreline - excellent!

Regards,

WesternGuy

[stoweaway]

Hi WesternGuy,

Thanks so much for the info! It's a big help. It's funny you mention bird photography...it's one of my favourite things!

Happy shooting!

Jenny

[WesternGuy]

Jenny, you are very welcome - glad I could help. On the subject of bird photography, I spent two weeks in Florida back in November and just about went crazy with bird photography - herons, egrets, ibises, grebes, coots, raptors, vultures, cormorants, shore birds (waders) the list goes on, quite a few I had never seen before or even heard of...and of course the proverbial alligators. I am going back, maybe not next year, but in the next 3 or 4 and maybe later in the year - Dec/Jan/Feb time frame.

So the next time I come to the Island, where are some of the good places to go - someone told me about the Esquimalt bird sanctuary, but there must be others.

Cheers,

WesternGuy

[freygr]

Windows 7 is thinking the .xmp files are system files and is hiding them. Go to the tools tab and select folder options, under the view tab check the box show system files. Also uncheck the box that says hide known file extensions as you could be try to veiw an jpg but it's an .exe vuris/trogen dropper.