Among the many features found in both Lightroom Classic (LrC) and Lightroom (Lr) for Macintosh (Mac) or Windows (Win) is the option of assigning a particular collection, or album, as the Target collection. Here’s how you can set them up and use them in both applications.
LrC – Target Collection
Using LrC, a special collection is configured as a Target collection. This is the Quick collection found in the Catalog panel.
Note the + symbol next to the Quick Collection. This indicates that it is currently configured as the Target Collection. You can add a photo anywhere in your catalog using the following methods:
- Press the B key after selecting a photo
- Click the round button that appears when you move the cursor over the photo in Grid view
- Drag and drop a photo into the Quick Collection
- Select the photo and press the B key
- In Grid view, select the photo and click the round button
- Press the Delete button after selecting the photo
Setting a Target Collection
Additionally, you may designate any regular collection (not a smart collection or collection set) as the Target Collection. However, you can only have one Target collection at a time. This can be very useful when you are first creating a collection and you want to add photos easily.
Targeting a collection can be done in two ways.
- Within the Create Collection dialog box, you have the option of creating the collection right away. Simply check the box labeled Set as target collection.
- You can choose Set as Target Collection if you’ve already created the collection by right-clicking it in the Collections panel and selecting the Set as Target Collection option. As soon as the collection is set, you’ll see a + sign next to it.
If you wish to prevent a collection from being set as the Target, either set a different collection as the Target or right-click the existing Target collection and uncheck the Set as Target Collection option in the contextual menu.
Lr – Target Album
Lr doesn’t have a Quick Album as there is in LrC, so by default, there isn’t an album available for receiving photos in this way.
Lr albums are functionally the same as collections in that they can hold photos, as opposed to a folder that can hold other albums or folders for organizational purposes.
Using LrC, a special collection is configured as a Target collection. This is the Quick collection found in the Catalog panel.
Note the + symbol next to the Quick Collection. This indicates that it is currently configured as the Target Collection. You can add a photo anywhere in your catalog using the following methods:
- Press the B key after selecting a photo
- Click the round button that appears when you move the cursor over the photo in Grid view
- Drag and drop a photo into the Quick Collection
In a similar fashion, here are a few ways to remove photos from your Target Collection:
- Select the photo and press the B key
- In Grid view, select the photo and click the round button
- Press the Delete button after selecting the photo
Setting a Target Collection
Additionally, you may designate any regular collection (not a smart collection or collection set) as the Target Collection. However, you can only have one Target collection at a time. This can be very useful when you are first creating a collection and you want to add photos easily.
Targeting a collection can be done in two ways.
- Within the Create Collection dialog box, you have the option of creating the collection right away. Simply check the box labeled Set as target collection.
- You can choose Set as Target Collection if you’ve already created the collection by right-clicking it in the Collections panel and selecting the Set as Target Collection option. As soon as the collection is set, you’ll see a + sign next to it.
Lr doesn’t have a Quick Album as there is in LrC, so by default, there isn’t an album available for receiving photos in this way.
Lr albums are functionally the same as collections in that they can hold photos, as opposed to a folder that can hold other albums or folders for organizational purposes.
If you wish to make an album your Target album, right-click the album and choose Set “[albumname]” as the Target Album. You will see a faint dark gray box around that album’s name.
Target album photos can be added by selecting the photo and pressing T, not B as in LrC, or by dragging and dropping the photo directly onto the album. Similarly, you can remove a photo from the Target album by selecting it and pressing T or deleting it.
Unfortunately, setting a collection within LrC as the Target does not change the corresponding Album within Lr into the Target.