Keywords: Specific or General?

[Mike Guilbault]

I'm starting to keyword my library in LR.  Do you typically try to include every possible keyword or do you keyword in a more 'general' category?

[johnbeardy]

Mike

I tell people to describe the picture to someone over the telephone, so you include all its contents, and then try to go abstract - "sadness", "speed". What is it about. Add as many keywords as your anticipated search needs can justify.

the more efficiently you do it, the more you can justify. So make extensive use of LR's synonyms - add to them later and they apply to already-keyworded images. Also remember the keyword stamp.

John

[Mike Guilbault]

Thanks John.  I guess I'm concerned about building up too many 'one of' keywords (ie. keywords that will apply to only one image), but, if that's the word that describes that image, I guess it's better to include it rather than not.  Or, would you use that 'keyword' in the Caption field (to keep the keywords more managable) and use the Find function to locate that image?

I havn't quite figured out the Keyword Stamp yet.   Is there anything that explains how to use this feature?

[johnbeardy]

Mike

If the keyword list's long, that's too bad - you'll take that on the chin. You can use a hierarchy to help keep it manageable.

Alt/Opt Ctrl/Cmd K to enable Stamp, or make it visible in the Grid's Toolbar (T). Right click a keyword and select Use as Keyword Shortcut, or type the keyword directly into the box beside the Stamp in the Toolbar. Then go round stamping. The Stamp turns into an Eraser when it's over an image which already has that keyword.

Synonyms are applied, so edit your keywords and add as many synonyms as you can. If you stamp with a keyword which is not top level in the hierarchy, it applies the parents too.

And also create plenty of keyword sets. I like to edit these in a text editor too.

John

[Mike Guilbault]

thanks John... that helped alot.