I'm new to Mac and confused as to what iPhoto does when you put a photo into it. I've got tons of photos in my "Photos" folder that I keep in sync with a NAS (that also syncs with another computer in my house). Yesterday, I opened one of the photos in iPhoto in order to print it, and, all of a sudden, I had an "iPhoto library." But it didn't seem to disturb my original photo (i.e., on my next sync to the NAS, that file didn't appear to be changed).
Did it just duplicate my original photo into another directory (similar to what happens in itunes if you import music into your library from a non-default location with the "copy to itunes folder" option checked)?
Did it simply create an index pointer to the original file (which I suppose is what happens in itunes if you import music into the library without the "copy to itunes folder" option checked)?
Are there any circumstances where iPhoto will "move" the original file out of its original location in my "Photos" folder? I've got plenty of HDD space for duplicates, if that's what it takes; I just don't want to lose the integrity of the original directory structure because of syncing. (I'd love to consolidate to one directory if possible, but I'm not sure how I'd sync the iPhoto library to the NAS, as there only seemed to be one file created. I need to have a copy of the photos on the NAS because that is how my parents get to see pictures of my son on demand!)
Thanks in advance for your help!
Did it just duplicate my original photo into another directory (similar to what happens in itunes if you import music into your library from a non-default location with the "copy to itunes folder" option checked)?
Did it simply create an index pointer to the original file (which I suppose is what happens in itunes if you import music into the library without the "copy to itunes folder" option checked)?
Are there any circumstances where iPhoto will "move" the original file out of its original location in my "Photos" folder? I've got plenty of HDD space for duplicates, if that's what it takes; I just don't want to lose the integrity of the original directory structure because of syncing. (I'd love to consolidate to one directory if possible, but I'm not sure how I'd sync the iPhoto library to the NAS, as there only seemed to be one file created. I need to have a copy of the photos on the NAS because that is how my parents get to see pictures of my son on demand!)
Thanks in advance for your help!