When I open smart objects from Lr into Ps, and then edit those raw file layers in ACR...the edits don't get applied in Lr's Develop Module. Is this a setting that I am missing? Or not possible? I'd like to keep the layer's edits in sync with Lr's copy of the raw file. I suppose I can manually edit the image in Develop but I thought that a smart object should be smart enough to do this for me. Any ideas?
Posted 2 years ago
Victoria Bampton - Lightroom Queen, Champion
Rikk Flohr, Official Rep
Rikk Flohr, Official Rep
eartho, Champion
eartho, Champion
and i just wanted to point out... the reason why so few people use or even know of this workflow is that neither the Br or Lr team has added an easy and obvious way to access it. I've been trying since linked SOs were first released to get the Br team to add Place as Linked SO's to the menu and contextuals, but the request has always fallen on deaf ears. Same goes for Lr... there needs to finally be a Place as Linked in Ps added to the Edit In contextual. Please?
More people would use it if they knew it was possible...
More people would use it if they knew it was possible...
Ah, thank you . I knew it must be possible if the edits are written to the xmp file. Do you have this posted as a request the we can vote on?
eartho, Champion
The requests were made on a non-public forum, but i'll make one here too.
As ertho point out- you can use Lightroom to edit a Smart Object layer in Photoshop, but it involves a work-around method.
1. You need to save LR edits to the raw file as xmp (Ctrl+S)
2. You need to "Place" the image into a Photoshop document by Menu: {File>Place Linked}. (So you need a background layer to be able to 'Place' - preferably the same pixel dimensions, and navigate folders to 'find' the image. )
3. You can then double-click the 'Placed' layer to edit in ACR.
4. Back in Lightroom you can then Menu: {Photo>Read Metadata from file} to update the LR view.
5. Further editing in Lightroom requires a "Save metadata" again to update the linked layer in PShop.
+1 "for Lr... there needs to finally be a Place as Linked in Ps added to the Edit In contextual. Please?"
1. You need to save LR edits to the raw file as xmp (Ctrl+S)
2. You need to "Place" the image into a Photoshop document by Menu: {File>Place Linked}. (So you need a background layer to be able to 'Place' - preferably the same pixel dimensions, and navigate folders to 'find' the image. )
3. You can then double-click the 'Placed' layer to edit in ACR.
4. Back in Lightroom you can then Menu: {Photo>Read Metadata from file} to update the LR view.
5. Further editing in Lightroom requires a "Save metadata" again to update the linked layer in PShop.
+1 "for Lr... there needs to finally be a Place as Linked in Ps added to the Edit In contextual. Please?"
Thanks for the step-by-step, Robert!
I do not know if you (Steve) are Windows or Mac, but Mac owners have an extra feature to load multiple files to one Photoshop document as Smart Objects. But I am not a Mac user and do not know if the PS layers are 'Placed-linked' to the images in LR.
Summary of steps- (for Mac only)
1) From Lightroom, open one of your files as a smart object in Ps.
2) Return to Lightroom and select the additional files you want to layer /
composite
3) Drag and drop the selected files from Lightroom on to the document in
Photoshop.
4) Make adjustments in ACR (if necessary).
Click OK.
5) Hit Enter / Return to place the file in the document as a smart object
Steps 4 & 5 will automatically be repeated for each file you selected in
Lightroom.
Thanks, Robert, I do use Mac. This looks like it shortens the procedure a bit.
eartho, Champion
And if you hold down option and drag from Bridge, you'll get linked SO's... a hidden feature! Don't think there's any way to do this from Lightroom tho.
Thankyou Eartho..Very helpful. Now I have a multiple SO method for Windows.
I just tried this "hidden feature" with Windows and it works great.
Yes, [Alt+drag] multiple photos to a Ps document from Bridge, then edit with ACR, the changes can be updated in Lr by "Read metadata from file". Changes in Lr and saved to metadata will automatically be updated in the Ps document.
Easily 'Find' the images from Lightroom grid view by : Right-Click> Open in Explorer, then Right-Click>Open in Bridge.
I just tried this "hidden feature" with Windows and it works great.
Yes, [Alt+drag] multiple photos to a Ps document from Bridge, then edit with ACR, the changes can be updated in Lr by "Read metadata from file". Changes in Lr and saved to metadata will automatically be updated in the Ps document.
Easily 'Find' the images from Lightroom grid view by : Right-Click> Open in Explorer, then Right-Click>Open in Bridge.
(Edited)
I have found some weird behavior of Linked Smart Objects in Photoshop CC 2018:
When I change some settings and save them in Lightroom, Linked Smart Object (LSO) in Photoshop updates with default "zero" settings (in other words as if I reset all settings). If I double click LSO then in Adobe Camera RAW window I see all settings as they should be and after closing ACR window LSO updates with proper settings. If I continue to adjust image in Lightroom after that and save new settings again, then most of the time (if file is still opened in Photoshop) it updates properly. I keep "Auto update opened document" option turned on, Photoshop 19.1.1, Adobe Camera RAW 10.2.0.894, Lightroom Classic 7.2, Mac OS 10.11.6
Before that everything worked fine (I've created PS droplet with only one command "Update All modified content" and was able to update PS files without switching to Photoshop just by using "Edit In..." -> "My Droplet's name" and it worked as expected. Now it still work, but I get images with default settings instead of saved settings.
It's not just annoying issue for me, it potentially may create troubles because I'm working with big batches and may not notice sometimes that my image was updated with wrong settings and all my retouching layers over LSO are mismatching the background.
Any ideas how to solve that issue?
When I change some settings and save them in Lightroom, Linked Smart Object (LSO) in Photoshop updates with default "zero" settings (in other words as if I reset all settings). If I double click LSO then in Adobe Camera RAW window I see all settings as they should be and after closing ACR window LSO updates with proper settings. If I continue to adjust image in Lightroom after that and save new settings again, then most of the time (if file is still opened in Photoshop) it updates properly. I keep "Auto update opened document" option turned on, Photoshop 19.1.1, Adobe Camera RAW 10.2.0.894, Lightroom Classic 7.2, Mac OS 10.11.6
Before that everything worked fine (I've created PS droplet with only one command "Update All modified content" and was able to update PS files without switching to Photoshop just by using "Edit In..." -> "My Droplet's name" and it worked as expected. Now it still work, but I get images with default settings instead of saved settings.
It's not just annoying issue for me, it potentially may create troubles because I'm working with big batches and may not notice sometimes that my image was updated with wrong settings and all my retouching layers over LSO are mismatching the background.
Any ideas how to solve that issue?
Jeffrey Tranberry, Sr. Product Manager, Digital Imaging
I'm not seeing that behavior. If I make edits in Lightroom and save the metadata to file, the linked smart object updates in Photoshop (I have the file currently open in Photoshop) and it reflects the changes I made in Lightroom.
I might be doing things differently than you. It might help if we could see a screen recording of all your steps.
I might be doing things differently than you. It might help if we could see a screen recording of all your steps.
Jeffrey Tranberry, Sr. Product Manager, Digital Imaging
Separate issue from the topic it was posted in
Please reference the new conversation here: Photoshop/Lightroom: Edits to Linked Smart object in Lightroom zero out settings ...
Please reference the new conversation here: Photoshop/Lightroom: Edits to Linked Smart object in Lightroom zero out settings ...
Jeffrey Tranberry, Sr. Product Manager, Digital Imaging
