Use DNG format to avoid file relocation problems
If you use Lightroom and you shoot in RAW you may have noticed that Lightroom saves an extra file alongside the RAW file. This is called a sidecar file and has the extension XMP. The sidecar file contains additional information, such as metadata, plus the detail of all the edits that you have applied from within Lightroom.
Normally you don’t even need to
know about the sidecar file as Lightroom takes care of all
the file handling. The problem comes if you copy your RAW
files to another location with an application other than
Lightroom. If the RAW file and its associated XMP file
become separated you will lose your Lightroom edits and
metadata.
Using DNG you will have only one file
If you convert your RAW files to Adobes’ DNG format on import you will avoid this problem. Not only will you have an open standard (DNG) but you also have a single file containing the original RAW data plus any Lightroom specific information.Now you can copy your files with the knowledge that the DNG file represents your original untouched RAW file along with any other Lightroom information. I now import all of my RAW files as DNG.
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