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Capture One’s importer dialog allows you to import all the images from a memory card, connected camera, flash disk, or portable external drive, or you can import selected images instead.
Note that you can also import images from a connected camera if it supports the Mass storage protocol. Not all cameras support this feature, but some Nikon models do.
You can choose to store source images on your computer or, preferably, store them on a dedicated external drive. In any case, Capture One copies the images to the chosen destination folder and references them. If you want to move the source files at a later date, move the folder from the Library. Afterwards, the Library tool will update the references to the images in their new location.
- Open the importer by choosing one of the following options:
- In the main menu, choose File -> Import Images...
- Click on the Import icon in the Toolbar.
- Drag a volume or folder of images into the Capture One image browser.
- Click on the Import icon in the browser of a new Catalog.
- Connect your card reader to your computer.
- The Import Images dialog (i.e., the importer) opens. When a card reader is connected or when a folder is dragged into the Capture One image browser, the contents of that folder are displayed as thumbnails in the importer’s browser.
- If the importer’s browser does not display your images, go to the Import From tool, click on the Source fly-out menu, select Choose Folder..., and navigate to the relevant folder you want to import. Make sure that the Include Subfolders checkbox is selected in the Import From tool. This option is useful for locating all the images on a memory card.
- Starting from Capture One 21 (14.1.0), the Importer has the option of displaying images in an import Viewer as an addition to the standard thumbnail grid view. This can be enabled in one of the following ways:
a. Using keyboard shortcut G
b. Clicking on the Viewer icon at the top
c. Double-click on any image - Enable Exclude Duplicates to prevent duplication of images already imported by your current Catalog.
- Starting from Capture One 22 (15.0.0), the Pick All checkbox in the Importer is disabled by default, enabling a faster culling experience using the Import Viewer. If you want to import all the images, make sure that the Pick All checkbox is checkmarked and all the images are checkmarked as well. When you need to select specific images to import, you might want to uncheck the Pick All checkbox first. Then click on the particular image or hold Cmd/Ctrl to make a selection of images manually or Shift to select a range of images. Use keyboard shortcut S to checkmark all the selected images. The keyboard shortcut A will do the opposite - the selected collection of images will be unchecked (you might want to use this option when you need to import all but these particular images into a Catalog). Please use Spacebar for toggling between picked and unpicked.
Please note that the Import Viewer utilizes the built-in preview of RAW files. The resolution and colors of this preview are dependent on the individual camera model and settings and do not necessarily reflect how the file will look once imported.
- When using a multi-bay card reader with two or more cards inserted, each card appears at the top of the fly-out menu of the Import From panel. After downloading from the first card, select the next from the fly-out menu.
- In the Import To tool, make sure the Copy to folder option is chosen and navigate to an existing system folder or create and name a new folder as desired on the local computer or an external disk, and click Set as Import Folder. Note that the importer remembers the last selection and, therefore, the current setting may not be suitable for your intended storage location.
- In the optional Sub Folder field, add a folder or a series of sub-folders. Select this only if you want to segregate a group of images from an existing folder of images on import or adopt a multiple-folder structure.
- From the Sample Path field, verify the path is pointing to the chosen folder for import.
- Verify the Collection textbox is set to Recent Imports Only. If already set up, you can use the other settings to sort images into existing User Collections (i.e., existing albums, or albums based on templates).
- In the Space Left field, verify that there is enough space to store the new images on the drive.
- Select options for backup, naming images, copyright, and adjustments as desired.
- Press Import All or Import X Images for selected images if no further options are required.