Overview
The instructions provided below will allow you to extract your managed images files from a Capture One Catalog without using Capture One.
You may want to do this in order to move the files to a different location (which will break the links in your Catalog if done outside of Capture One), to find a single image or to determine its path, or to use the images in other software.
Note the adjustments will not be carried over as they are tied to the Catalog database.
- Managed vs. Referenced Images
- Extracting Images from a Catalog in Finder (macOS) or File Explorer (Windows)
- FAQ
Managed vs. Referenced Images
See What is the difference between a referenced and a managed Catalog?
Managed images are files reside inside the Catalog, while referenced images are located outside the Catalog database (.cocatalogdb – the filename that describes the catalog database) in their own location such as a folder, or collection of folders. The location of these folders (and the images contained) are simply used as a reference and will appear as folders in the Library tool, and they can be easily accessed via Finder (macOS) or Explorer (Windows).
When images are imported into a catalog, there are three options:
- Copy to Catalog: This makes the image managed (stored inside the catalog)
- Add to Catalog: This makes the image referenced (stored in their original location, outside of the catalog database)
- Choose Folder: This also makes the image referenced, but copies the files to a location you specify.
If you have access to Capture One, you can see which images are managed and which are referenced. "In Catalog" in the Library Tool shows managed images, and system folders show where referenced images are located on your drives.
Extracting Images from a Catalog in Finder (macOS) or File Explorer (Windows)
1. Find your Catalog folder in Finder (macOS) or File Explorer (Windows)
By default, the Catalog is created in the user's Pictures (macOS) or Images (Windows) folder.
If you can't find your Catalog, use the OS search function and look for the ".cocatalogdb" file. Capture One Express users will only have one catalog and it will in most instances be called "Capture One Catalog" unless it has been renamed.
On macOS, if you have access to Capture One, you can find your Catalog by right-clicking the Catalog name in the title bar and selecting the folder from the drop-down menu.
2. Copy the Originals folder
A Catalog in Windows is a folder with all related files. On macOS, it’s a .cocatalog package, which looks like a single file but is actually a folder. To view its contents, right-click the Catalog file and choose Show Package Contents.
The catalog package will then expand as shown below.
The Originals folder has all your images, organized into sub-folder by year, month, and day. You can find specific images in these folders and copy or move them as needed.
It is not recommended to move the images in a Catalog that you use in Capture One as this will break the links.
FAQ
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If you want to extract your images from a Session, it's just a folder structure that you can easily access to find your image files using Finder or File Explorer. See Adopting a Session workflow.