Tips

(Updated from the original Feb 9 post, as reader John Crosby found the solution to the “unreliability” problem I was having. “In quotes”, because it turned out to be user error!) 

By now most of you have discovered that if you zoom into multiple images simultaneously in Aperture, then hold the shift key while dragging them around, the images stay aligned. This is a perfect way to compare the same area of different photos of the same thing—for example to pan around several shots of a group portrait looking for the one where the fewest people are blinking or making a funny face.

If you hover the mouse over any part of one of the images when you tap the Z key, Aperture will zoom into that point—but only for that image. If you are careful to have the mouse not pointing at any part of any image when you tap the Z key, then all images will zoom to the center. Great.

Aperture 3, four images selected, normal view, before zooming…

I’m so excited, the book is done and up for sale! Read all about it and be sure to download the free preview!

I run a tight ship on my Aperture Library. I keep all the photos referenced in the main Library on my iMac, but when I’m on the road using the MacBook Air, I import photos into an empty Library as Managed, then merge that (managed) Air Library with my (referenced) iMac Library when I return home.

That means that I have to get the Managed files out of this iMac Library that I just imported.

The Problem

It used to be easy—all I had to do was search for Managed Files, and Relocate them. There’s a Smart Album already set up (actually… hmm, maybe I built that… I actually don’t recall, it’s been this way for so long) under my Library that shows Managed files, like this:

(click to view larger)

However now that Aperture has these great sharing features to Flickr and Facebook, any images previously existing on those services that have been pulled down to Aperture now show up in the Managed search. They look like this: