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You can move your Lightroom Classic photos into darktable and keep the files on local storage, but darktable does not import a Lightroom .lrcat catalog intact. The practical route is to preserve the catalog and original files, export supported metadata and edits through XMP sidecars, then import and verify the images in darktable.
What moves—and what does not
A Lightroom Classic catalog is a database of photo records, not the photos themselves. It tracks where each image file is stored, along with metadata and nondestructive processing instructions. The original camera files remain separate from the catalog, and Lightroom can show previews even when the drive holding those files is disconnected. Adobe explains the catalog and its relationship to image files.
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darktable’s documented route is to import image files and read supported XMP sidecars. It is not documented as an importer for the Lightroom .lrcat database itself. Keep the catalog, image files, and sidecars conceptually separate: moving or importing the images does not automatically carry across every organizational detail or edit instruction in the database.
What Lightroom information darktable can read
When darktable imports an image, it checks for sidecars, including Lightroom’s <basename>.xmp naming pattern. Supported information includes tags (including hierarchical tags), color labels, ratings, GPS information, and selected editing operations. The documented edit mappings include crop and rotation, black level, exposure, vignette, clarity, tone curve, HSL, split-toning, grain, and spot removal. See the darktable manual’s Lightroom sidecar compatibility notes.
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This is a partial transfer, not a conversion into equivalent darktable edits. Some corresponding darktable modules are deprecated, and the two applications use different processing engines. The manual warns: “It is important to understand that the import process will never give identical results to other software.” Expect to inspect edited images and adjust them in darktable; do not assume every edit, feature, or organizational element will survive.
A cautious local migration workflow
- Back up before changing anything. Make a separate copy of the Lightroom catalog and original photo files. Keep the originals and catalog untouched until you have checked the darktable import.
- Make the needed information portable. Use the available workflow in your installed Lightroom version to write or export relevant metadata and edits to XMP sidecars. The exact Lightroom steps vary by version and are not specified in Adobe’s cited migration guidance.
- Test a representative subset. Include images with ratings, keywords, GPS data, and a range of edits. In darktable, choose add to library to add the existing files without copying or moving them, or choose copy & import to create copies in a selected location. darktable documents both behaviors in its image import guide.
- Verify before expanding the move. Check that files open, ratings and tags appear as expected, and important edits are usable. Compare the results against Lightroom and redo edits where needed.
- Proceed only after the test meets your needs. Keep the original catalog and backup while you migrate the rest of the collection; do not treat a successful import of a few files as proof that every catalog feature transferred.
How this differs from Adobe’s catalog migration
Adobe’s documented Migrate From > Lightroom Classic Catalog workflow moves a catalog into cloud Lightroom and uploads full-resolution images. It is not a local darktable import. Adobe lists items that do not become available after migration, including snapshots, custom metadata, books, slideshows, print and web creations, web shares, map-saved locations, folder hierarchy, smart collections, and develop history; color labels migrate as keywords. Adobe also says migration creates image copies and recommends an external hard drive if internal storage is insufficient. Details are in Adobe’s Lightroom migration guidance.
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Plan local storage and backups separately
darktable’s add-to-library option can leave images in their existing local locations, while copy-and-import can place copies elsewhere. An external drive may be useful when the computer lacks space or when you need another copy of a large collection; Adobe’s catalog documentation recognizes external disks as photo locations. But moving a library to a drive is not, by itself, a backup plan. Keep a separate backup of both the originals and the catalog, and verify it before deleting or repurposing any source storage.
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The result is a local-file workflow in which darktable manages imported images and reads supported sidecar information. It is not a perfect Lightroom catalog conversion: some metadata and edits can carry over, while other catalog features or processing results may not. If avoiding cloud upload is the goal, use darktable’s local import options rather than Adobe’s cloud migration route, and verify the specific information you rely on before committing the full library.
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