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Migrate photos from Photoshop Elements to Lightroom

  1. Adobe Lightroom User Guide
  2. Introduction
    1. What's new in Lightroom
    2. Lightroom system requirements
    3. Lightroom | Common questions
    4. Lightroom tutorials
    5. Work with Adobe Photoshop Lightroom for mobile
    6. Set preferences
  3. In-app learning
    1. In-app learning and inspiration
    2. In-app learning and inspiration | Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    3. In-app learning and inspiration | Lightroom for mobile (Android)
  4. Add, import, and capture photos
    1. Add photos
    2. Capture photos with Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    3. Capture photos with Lightroom for mobile (Android)
    4. Import photos in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    5. Import photos and videos in Lightroom for mobile (Android)
  5. Organize photos
    1. Organize photos
    2. Find and organize photos of people in the People View
    3. Search and organize photos in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    4. Search and organize photos in Lightroom for mobile (Android)
  6. Edit photos
    1. Presets in Lightroom
    2. Edit photos
    3. Crop, Rotate, & Geometry tool in Lightroom
    4. Remove tool in Lightroom
    5. Remove tool in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    6. Remove tool in Lightroom for mobile (Android)
    7. Masking in Lightroom
    8. Lens Blur in Lightroom
    9. Edit photos in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    10. Edit photos in Lightroom for mobile (Android)
    11. Merge photos to create HDRs, panoramas, and HDR panoramas
    12. Edit HDR photos
    13. Edit HDR photos in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    14. Edit HDR photos in Lightroom for mobile (Android)
    15. Easily enhance image quality in Lightroom
  7. Edit videos
    1. Edit videos 
    2. Edit videos in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    3. Edit videos in Lightroom for mobile (Android)
  8. Save, share, and export
    1. Export or share your photos
    2. Export and share photos in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    3. Save, share, and export photos with Lightroom for mobile (Android)
  9. Lightroom for mobile, TV and the web
    1. Get started with Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    2. Get started with Lightroom for mobile (Android)
    3. Adobe Photoshop Lightroom on the web
    4. Set up Lightroom for Apple TV app
    5. Use keyboard shortcuts in Lightroom for mobile (iOS and Android)
    6. Adobe Photoshop Lightroom for mobile and Apple TV | FAQ
    7. View Lightroom photos and videos on your TV
    8. How to Add Presets/Sync Presets with mobile
  10. Migrate photos
    1. Migrate Apple Photos Library to Lightroom
    2. Migrate photos and videos from Lightroom Classic to Lightroom
    3. Migrate photos from Photoshop Elements to Lightroom
  11. Troubleshooting 
    1. Fixed Issues 
    2. Known Issues

 

Learn how to easily migrate your catalog from Photoshop Elements 2019 or later to Lightroom desktop.

In case you're facing issues while migrating your catalog, see Possible errors | Catalog migration from Photoshop Elements to Lightroom.

Prepare for migration

Prepare your catalog in Elements Organizer

Follow these recommended steps in Elements Organizer:

  • Reconnect any missing files. See Reconnect missing files for details.
  • Optimize the catalog:
    1. Launch Elements Organizer and open the catalog which you want to migrate
    2. Select File > Manage Catalogs
    3. The Catalog Manager dialog box opens. Select the catalog to be migrated.
    4. Click Optimize.
Optimize catalog in Elements Organizer
Optimize catalog in Elements Organizer

Prepare Lightroom for migration

Follow these recommended steps in Lightroom:

  • Ensure that the Local Storage > Originals Are Currently Stored In A Custom Location preference points to the desired location. See Local storage preferences.
  • Ensure that there's enough disk space in that location to accommodate the original, full-sized images in the Elements catalog. The migration process creates a copy of your images. If you're running low on space on an internal drive on your computer, you can connect to an external hard-drive and specify a location on it as the custom location.
  • Close Elements Organizer and Photoshop Elements (Photo Editor app). These applications much be closed for the migration to be successful.

Migrate a Photoshop Elements catalog

In Lightroom, follow these steps:

  1. Launch Lightroom and select File > Migrate From > Photoshop Elements Catalog.

  2. In the information dialog that appears, click Continue.

    Migrate to Lightroom

  3. Review the information in the Before You Begin dialog box. Keep the following considerations in mind and then click Continue:

    • Migration is intended as a one-time event: Once a catalog has been migrated, doing so again can cause duplicate entries.
    • Quit Photoshop Elements and Elements Organizer: Photoshop Elements (Photo Editor) and Elements Organizer needs to be closed for migration to proceed.
    Review considerations before you begin the migration
    Review the considerations before you begin migration

  4. Select the catalog that you want to migrate and click Start Scan.

    Start scan

  5. Lightroom scans the catalog and launches the migrator, displaying a progress bar for you to monitor. This step may take a while to complete.

  6.  (Occasional) Review any exceptions that the migrator reports. For example, the migrator might report an exception if it is unable to locate some photos in your source catalog. In such a case, you may want to click Migrate Later and begin the process afresh after resolving the catalog issues in Elements Organizer.

    If you want to ignore the exceptions and continue migrating, click Continue Anyway.

  7. Review the information in the Catalog Ready for Migration dialog box. If necessary, click Open Log File to inspect details. When ready, click Start Migration.

    Lightroom begins the migration process and displays a progress bar. Depending on the catalog size and the resources on your computer, this step may take a while to complete.

    Catalog ready for migration

  8. When migration is complete, Lightroom displays a confirmation dialog. If there are exceptions, click Open Log File to review the details.

    Catalog migration complete with no exceptions.
    Catalog migration complete with no exceptions.

    Catalog migration completed with exceptions.
    Catalog migration completed with exceptions. You may see exceptions if you clicked 'Continue Anyway' in step 6.

That's it! Congratulations! You can now edit, organize, and share your photos using Lightroom.

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