If you don't want to ship your photos to your editing software straight away, you can move or copy them to another folder or drive from Narrative. Narrative moves or copies each photo's XMP file too (the small sidecar file that holds its ratings), so your ratings go with your photos.
What's the difference between moving and copying photos?
Move works like cut and paste. The photos are moved to the new folder and are no longer in the original one.
Copy works like copy and paste. The photos stay where they are, and a copy goes to the new folder.
Moving or copying doesn't edit or export your photos. To export finished JPEGs, use your editing software.
How do I move photos in Narrative?
You can move your selected photos in three ways. Each one opens a folder picker where you choose the destination.
Right-click: select your photos, right-click the selection and choose Move File(s).
File menu: select your photos and go to File → Move Files in the menu bar.
Drag and drop: drag your selected photos to a folder.
Narrative moves the photos and their XMP files to the folder you chose.
How do I copy photos in Narrative?
You can copy your selected photos in two ways. Each one opens a folder picker where you choose the destination.
Right-click: select your photos, right-click the selection and choose Copy File(s).
File menu: select your photos and go to File → Copy Files in the menu bar.
Narrative copies the photos and their XMP files to the folder you chose.
How do I move or copy photos from the shipping window?
Open SHIP + EDIT.
Turn on Move or Copy Files.
Choose Move or Copy.
Click BROWSE and choose or create the destination folder.
Check which photos are included, then continue.
When it's finished, click Open in Finder on Mac or Open in Explorer on Windows to see your files. From there, you can import them straight into Lightroom or your other editing software.
When you use Move or Copy Files in the shipping window, you can also apply an AI Preset by turning it on and choosing a preset.
Note: Keep your RAW files and their XMP files together in the same folder, so your ratings stay with your photos.
What should I do if moving or copying isn't working?
If Narrative can't move or copy your photos, it's usually a permissions or drive issue. Check that:
The destination drive is connected and has enough free space.
You can save files to the destination drive.
On Mac, Narrative has access to your files. Go to System Settings → Privacy & Security → Files and Folders, find Narrative and turn on all its options.
If it still doesn't work, contact Support through the chat bubble or at [email protected]. Tell us what kind of drive you're moving or copying to, and send the error message if you see one.
Important: Don't delete your original photos until you've checked that the copies are all there.