Need Help Figuring Out iPhoto/Pictures/Folders

[drgrafix]

I just got my wife a digital frame as one of her Christmas presents and had high hopes of uploading a load of pictures via USB today. The software included with the frame (from Brookstone) has both PC and Mac apps. If I go into my users/*name*/Pictures folder, I don't see all the photos I would normally see in iPhoto'11.

And weird... I go to start iPhoto from the application icon tray and I'm told the disk is locked and do I want to repair it? I click yes and then I get another popup telling me that I don't have permission??? What is this poop? I installed iLife'11 about a month or so ago right from the DVD, and I think there was an update a few days ago... and now I thought I couldn't "see" the pictures because it's "locked" and yet if I use Finder and just open it up in sequence... iPhoto'11 opens but I don't know if its a library file or the real iPhoto. I can't believe Apple is making this transition to updated apps so difficult and risky. Google this and it sounds like my thousands of family photos might be corrupted.

I am going to seriously look for another way to manage pictures on the iMac because iPhoto more or less wants you to only use pictures in the prescribed options they have. Sometimes all I want to do is drag and drop a picture into an email without making a production of it.

So... are my files corrupted?

 

[Tumbleweed666]

When you go to upload a picture, on the left hand side of the dialogue box you'll see Media and under that 'Photos'. Go that way and not via /user name/pictures.

FWIW in my case I export the photos I want to a new folder first, resizing them as well, as there is no need to be putting (say) 4k x 3k pictures on a device that likely is much smaller, (say) 800 x 600.

Re the corruption, it doesn't sound good, I presume you can restore from a backup?

 

[drgrafix]

When you go to upload a picture, on the left hand side of the dialogue box you'll see Media and under that 'Photos'. Go that way and not via /user name/pictures.

FWIW in my case I export the photos I want to a new folder first, resizing them as well, as there is no need to be putting (say) 4k x 3k pictures on a device that likely is much smaller, (say) 800 x 600.

Re the corruption, it doesn't sound good, I presume you can restore from a backup?

This may sound dumb... I know I've seen a folder named "MEDIA" but where the heck is it located... on the Mac HDD, in my personal Folder, or what?

Actually... I had a feeling that a new folder with properly oriented, resized, and cropped photos would make more sense. And yes... the device uses a 800 X 600 format, so I guess I'm going to spend a bit of time resizing/cropping/saving-as LOL!

 

[Tumbleweed666]

This may sound dumb... I know I've seen a folder named "MEDIA" but where the heck is it located... on the Mac HDD, in my personal Folder, or what?

yes that can be annoying as it seems to come and go

In fact, if you just open up a finder window, its not there.

However, if you go throgh a upload dialogue, lets say attaching a picture (or any file) to an email for example, then you'll see it in the box that looks like a finder window, but isn't. Its at the bottom on the left and once in pictures you can navigate through your iPhoto events.

 

[drgrafix]

The good news is that after hours of trying things, I finally figured out a way to get resized (800 X600) pictures into the Brookstone Frame. Not even using the software that they included because its pretty worthless. As a last gasp I tried drag & drop 125 images and it worked. Nothing about that in the manual and as someone who was involved in editorial services... I would love to rewrite that booklet so people can understand it.

Now I have to figure out whats going on with my iPhoto. Does anyone have a better way to store and catalog pictures... another utility or program?

 

[Tumbleweed666]

I recommend you look at Picasa (free) and Photoshop Elements 9 (about $100 I think)

Both leave the files in folders like you seem to expect or want.

Picasa (from Google) has similar reasonable but limited photo editing capabilities as iPhoto. PSE has as much editing as most folks are ever likely to need, plus more.

The reason I specify PSE 9 is that is the version that uses your folders to organize, PSE8 the previous version had a different crappy program as an organizer for Macs.

I've had a Mac for about 2 years, if I was starting again now I'd probably go for PSE9.