The Narrative Lightroom Classic plugin connects Narrative to Lightroom Classic, so you can send your photos and AI Preset edits straight into your catalog. Narrative installs the plugin for you, so there's nothing to set up.
You don't need Lightroom to cull photos in Narrative. The plugin is only used when you ship your photos to Lightroom Classic.
How do I check the plugin is working?
To check the plugin is working, follow these steps.
Make sure Narrative is up to date. In Narrative, go to Narrative Select + Edit > Check for Updates in the menu bar on Mac, or App > Check for Updates on Windows.
In Lightroom Classic, go to File > Plug-in Manager.
Click Narrative in the list and check it says Enabled.
If you see an error message, note exactly what it says before you contact us.
If the plugin is enabled but isn't responding, go to Library > Plug-in Extras > Force Start in Lightroom Classic.
If Narrative isn't in the list, quit both Narrative and Lightroom Classic, then open Narrative again. If it still isn't there, contact us. Please don't download a plugin with a similar name from anywhere else.
How do I ship my photos to Lightroom Classic?
How you ship your photos depends on whether you're on Mac or Windows.
On Mac
In the Ship + Pre-edit window, choose Lightroom Classic and the catalog you want. If Lightroom Classic has a different catalog open, Narrative closes and reopens it with the right catalog for you, so you don't need to quit Lightroom Classic first. Wait for this to finish before you do anything else in Lightroom Classic.
For the full steps, see Getting your images from Narrative into Lightroom (Mac).
On Windows
Open the catalog you want in Lightroom Classic's Library module. When Narrative shows Ready to Ship, drag the whole folder icon into Lightroom Classic.
For the full steps, see Getting your images from Narrative into Lightroom (Windows).
How do I compare edits from more than one AI Preset?
If you ship your photos with more than one AI Preset, each preset's edit is added as a Snapshot. In Lightroom Classic, go to the Develop module and open Snapshots, then click a Narrative Snapshot to see that edit.
To learn more, see Batch switch between AI Presets in Lightroom.
How do I apply one Snapshot to lots of photos?
To apply a Narrative Snapshot to lots of photos, follow these steps.
In Lightroom Classic, select the photos. Click the photo that has the Snapshot you want last, so it's the active photo.
Go to File > Plug-in Extras > Sync Snapshots.
Choose the Narrative Snapshot you want to apply, then click Apply.
Lightroom Classic switches to the Develop module and applies the Snapshot to every selected photo. You need to select more than one photo to use Sync Snapshots.
Important: Sync Snapshots replaces any edits you've made to those photos since shipping. Save a Snapshot of any edits you want to keep, and try it on a few photos first.
What should I do if shipping doesn't work?
If shipping doesn't work, check these:
The Narrative plugin is Enabled in Lightroom Classic's Plug-in Manager.
Lightroom Classic isn't busy with another task.
Your original photos and their XMP files (small files that store your ratings and edits) are still where Narrative expects them.
You can ship more photos into the same catalog. Narrative skips photos that are already in it. To apply a different AI Preset to photos already in Lightroom Classic, see How do I ship my images with a new AI Preset?
Please don't delete photos you've already imported, or clear Narrative's database, to try to fix it. To learn how to move ratings between the two apps safely, see Syncing metadata between Lightroom Classic and Narrative.
Does the plugin work with Lightroom?
The plugin only works with Lightroom Classic. You can still use AI Preset edits with Lightroom (not Classic), but it doesn't have the Plug-in Manager or Snapshots.
How do I get help?
If you need help, contact us through the chat bubble or at [email protected]. Let us know:
Whether you're on Mac or Windows, and your Narrative and Lightroom Classic versions.
Whether the plugin shows as Enabled.
What you were doing when it stopped working (shipping, switching catalogs or applying a Snapshot).
You can also send us your logs from Help > Troubleshooting > Send Logs to Support in Narrative.