Store photos outside of iPhoto’s library

Despite its powerful cataloging tools and easy-to-use editing features, many users are still nervous about committing their photo library to iPhoto. The program’s approach to storing images feels a little like the photography version of Hotel California: your pictures check-in, but they can never leave. That may be fine if you don’t often venture beyond iPhoto’s borders; but what if you want to take advantage of the advanced image-adjustment tools in programs such as Aperture or Lightrooom?

The good news is you can enjoy the benefits of iPhoto and have some flexibility, too. The secret is to create a referenced library. This means that instead of importing all of your master images into iPhoto, you simply “point” iPhoto to where those originals live—whether on your Mac or on a separate hard drive.

The beauty of the referenced-library approach is that you can also point other applications to these same images. You don’t have to bother with first extracting the photos from iPhoto. This approach works particularly well with programs that use a non-destructive workflow, such as Aperture, Lightroom, or Adobe Bridge and Camera Raw. [read]