by
Guy T. Phillips
My much, much better half and I used to have a simple rule. When she came home from work, usually a bit after 6 pm, we would focus on each other. We would be “we,” not “me,” not “I.” We focused on each other. But when I’d listen to some of my photographer friends, they tell me tales of how they “had been up until 2 am working on their images” or “spent the weekend on their images.” I wasn’t sure if they were bragging or complaining. It appeared to be something of a work/life imbalance.
That observation led to the eventual creation of the Texas School program called “Unlock Lightroom and Upgrade Your Life!” During Texas School, we immersed ourselves in a myriad of ideas and helpful tips that can greatly improve your workflow, no matter what type of photography you capture.
Let’s take a closer look at one of the favorite topics we’ve shared. Here’s an example of the file name of an image captured by a Canon camera – IMG_001.CR3. The file name doesn’t tell you much about your subject, location, date, or time. Yes, you can customize these to a small extent, but there will still be very little information.
Here’s where Lightroom Classic can be “taught” to do more for you! You can quickly and easily build a preset that can lead to easier search and find options, help with your folder structure, and make life easier. And we will go step-by-step to show you how.
Step 1 – Using Lightroom Classic, go to the Library module, and select Import in the lower left corner of the screen.
Step 2 – This will open the Import dialogue screen. Let’s focus on the right-side panels and, most specifically, the panel File Renaming (shown in the center of Example #1).
Step 3 – From within the File Renaming panel, select the Rename Files checkbox, then select Edit from the Template drop-down menu (Note: this image may appear differently than as shown in Example #2).
Step 4 – Your screen may look different than this image (Example #3), but that’s okay! We’re going to create our own Import preset with values of our own.
Each of the drop-down menus (Image Name, Numbering, Additional and Custom) can give you an incredible variety of selections. We’ll be very specific in our choices, but here’s what you could select from.
Image name:
• Filename or Filename Suffix
Numbering:
• Import Number gives you the choice of using 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5-digit numbers.
• Image Number also gives you the choice of using 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5-digit numbers.
• Sequence Number provides two sets of 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5-digit numbers, with one set for Sequence and the other for Total.
Additional:
• Date lists 13 types of dates, with 9 variations on month, day and year, plus the Julian Day of the Year, and the Hour, Minute, and Second.
• Dimensions has 22 options, including Dimensions (file size) Cropped, Exposure, Focal Length, and a lot more.
Custom – Shoot Name provides Custom Text fields for the Shoot Name and or the Shoot Sequence. Custom Text can be used for any purpose
Now that you know a bit more about your options, let’s build our own Import preset. In our example:
• Select Sequence # (001) and select Insert and add an underscore
• Select Custom Text and select Insert and add an underscore
• Select Date (MM) and select Insert
• Select Date (DD) and select Insert
• Select Date (YYYY) and select Insert
• Using the dropdown menu for Preset (at the top of the dialogue box) select line, select Save Current Settings as New Preset in the box that opens, give your preset a name (I’ll use ‘Sequence, Custom Text, MMDDYYYY’, but you can name it anything you like!).
Note the preview of what your preset, next to Example, e.g.
001_untitled_08252025.RAW
• Select ‘Done’
Now that you have your next Import preset, let’s see how you can use it to improve your workflow. Just as before, go to the Library module, and select Import in the lower left corner of the screen.
Step 1 – Check the box next to Rename Files from within the File Renaming panel.
Step 2 – Select Sequence, Custom Text, MMDDYYYY from the Template drop-down menu (or whatever name you chose to save your preset in a previous step).
Step 3 – Add the name of your client, e.g. Arianna in this example.
Import and watch as Lightroom Classic improves the file name from your camera’s default of not-too-helpful alpha-numeric format!
Now you can find your images more quickly and easily using the name of the client, and that same use of the Custom Text field can be used during Export, too!
Note that the Custom Text field can be anything you choose. For example, if you travel and prefer to use the name of the city or you do product photography and prefer to use the product name or PCN, etc. It’s up to you!
This is just one of many time-saving ideas available with Lightroom for the purpose of keeping your unique workflow in mind as you Unlock Lightroom (and Upgrade Your Life!)
Guy T is a member of the Dallas PPA, a TPPA Fellow, 2025 TPPA Chairman of the Board, a PPA Craftsman, CPP, and Councilor. His enthusiasm for sharing his knowledge with others has made him a popular instructor on a variety of topics. He resides in Highland Village, Texas. Check his website: whatsthatguysname.com.
Check out his class at the Texas School of Professional Photography.
