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Best workflow for Mac Mini M1 and external SSD

Luís Filipe da Cunha

Dear friends,

After many years using a Mac Pro, now dead, I looking for the best workflow for a new Mac Mini M1 and an external SSD.

Usually I had my raw files on internal HDDs. Now my HDDs will be on a DAS unit via USB 3.2.

I plan to edit from there and export to the same HDD as usual. Since I will have now Thunderbolt 4 connection with my Mac Mini I thought about using an SSD or an Nvme, M.2 drive connected via TB4, to edit my files.

How should I manage my files?

Raw files stay on the DAS?

Copy of the raw files to the SDD and edit from there?

My C1 catalogue will be linked to the SSD; not the DAS?

After editing, export tiff+jpg to the SSD and copy those to the DAS?

Delete the raw copies from my SSD?

Repete the process for more files?

Thanks a lot for your help.

Regards.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Comments

8 comments

Date Votes
  • Damien Maillet

    I have Catalogues & RAW on external SSD connected via USB, works fine for me

    hard to say if I see any differences vs internal drive whatever you can read of

    will work don't worry

    no need to hassle copying to internal for editing

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  • Luís Filipe da Cunha

    I Damien, thanks for your message.

    In fact I will reformulate my workflow since I will start with an internal 1TB disk on the Mac Mini.

    From the SD card I will upload simultaneously my raw files to a NAS and to my MM disk that will work as my scratch disk. That is where I usually keep my C1 catalogue.

    After all the editing and export I will copy the result to my NAS and delete it from the scratch disk or it will be full after some projects. If I need to reedit the project again or just some images should I copy the entire folder with the raw files to the MM and reconnect the files again with C1? This is valid for a internal or external SSD disk as a scratch disk I guess? Thanks.

     

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  • LVS

    I use Sessions on an external SSD connected by USB-C, edit from the SSD.

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  • Luís Filipe da Cunha

    And you delete the work from your scratch SSD if you have a copy elsewhere and a backup?

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  • LVS

    I don't have a scratch SSD, after a year I delete and old photos that I do not like to keep the space free. I backup some of the best photos to a separate SSD (Time Machine)

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  • Luís Filipe da Cunha

    Ok. Thanks again.

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  • Permanently deleted user

    Hi Luis,

    I have a MacBook Pro (512 GB) which is enough for my applications and system, AND the Capture One catalogue, that I keep on my internal SSD as it is reputed to be better to have the catalogue on the same disk as the C1 application.

    Capture One doesn't need to access your RAW files, except when you zoom at 100% or output/export jpeg or TIFF images. So, I upload my RAW images on an external SSD (2TB), and I scratch RAW files that look really bad to me (i.e. about 50%). All the proxies (previews), on which C1 proceeds for basic adjustments are in the catalogue. 

    Of course, I make copies of my catalogue and my RAW files on backup disks (HDD) using Carbon Copy Cloner and Time Machine.

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  • Luís Filipe da Cunha

    Thank you very much Robert for your description. I too use CCC for my backups 🙂

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