Problem importing raw files on to new Mac

<p>I have upgraded from a MacBook Pro running OS X 10.8.5 to an iMac running OS X 10.11.3. On the old computer I had been using PS Elements 11, Adobe Bridge CS4 and Lightroom 3, along with Adobe DNG converter (v8.6) to convert raw files from my Panasonic Lumix DMC TZ60 to .dng, since neither Lightroom nor Bridge would read these. Raw NEF files from my Nikon D7000 were no problem since Lightroom 3 was able to render thumbnail images from the card and then convert to .dng during import.</p>

<p>When the new iMac arrived I installed PSE11, BridgeCS4 and LR3 from the original disks and transferred all the images to the new machine from a backup hard drive, and everything seemed to work. I also downloaded Adobe DNG convertor (v8.6, as before) from the Adobe website.</p>

<p>However, whilst I can see and edit all my old photos, I’m having difficulties importing new photos. LR3 will no longer show thumbnails of the NEF files from my Nikon, nor convert them to .dng files on import, whilst Bridge will no longer render images of the .dng files converted from raw in the Adobe convertor - all I get is a small dng icon for each image. I can open the .dng images in PSE and import them into Lightroom, but I need to be able to see them in Bridge, too. If I open one of the .dng images in PSE and save it as a .jpg file the image is scrambled in Bridge - only the top part of the image shows correctly and the rest of it is jumbled in a weird geometric pattern.</p>

<p>I can’t work out what’s going wrong and would be grateful for any suggestions. I’d rather not go down the route of subscribing to Adobe Creative Cloud.</p>

<p>I use Canon Utilities on my 5 year old iMac running IOS 10.9.5 with Canon images. Fine so far but I got a new Sony A6000. So how to download and process images? For me I created a folder for Sony A6000, insert my SD card in a card reader. Open it up and copy the file from the SD card to the Sony A6000 folder. Then I rename it to the date it was shot or downloaded. I use my Elements 13 raw converter to open, massage and convert the raw images to JPEGs. Easy peasy. If / when I feel better with Lightroom 5 I'll be using it instead of Elements. Good luck! </p>

<p>Lightroom has progressed significantly since Version 3. For $10 a month you get the latest LR, plus Photoshop. That's a tiny fraction of what your camera equipment and new Mac costs. And, you would most likely no longer have to hassle with getting your out-of-date software to work, and could spend much more time on your photography.</p>

<p>Ten bucks! A fraction of your mobile phone or cable bills. About what two beers cost!</p>

<p>As you can tell, I'm a big proponent of (1) keeping software up-to-date, and (2) paying software companies so they can continue to develop their software.</p>

 

Have you tried converting your raw files to dng using dng converter and then importing into LR? When you convert you will need to specify the correct version of acr that is used by LR3

<p>I didn't think that LR 3 would run on El Capitan. In the not so distant past, Adobe had published a warning about users upgrading to El Cap as even newer versions of LR had issues. So your getting even partial functionality is surprising to me.</p>

<p>I just spent $3K on a new iMac and the thought of using ancient photo software that is not 5K or retina aware seems to be counter productive.</p>

<p>Advice: Risk trying CC for the $10 during the next month and see if it meets your needs. The improvement from LR 3--to me--is exponential at least.<br>

<br />ME</p>

Yeh, spend more money & solve all your problems!

 

Even if Lawrence has to spend money to solve his problem, surely the cheapest route would be to just upgrade to an El Capitan compatible version of LR

Although reading his OP, I get the impression LR3 does work on el capitan not just as he'd expected.

I'm running "Yo smite" with LR 5 on a 2014 MacBook air and i have no problem converting to dng and then importing into Lightroom. I

use a sony rm100 mark1 and a ricoh gr mark 1. No problem.

<p>The issue is a firmware incompatibility with Nikon. I have the same problem. New firmware is out for Canon and Sony, but not Nikon yet. I copy the NEF files to a folder from a card reader (not the camera -- because the camera is not recognized in El Capitan). I then import from the folder into Lightroom. A bit of a work around. I'm assuming the firmware will catch up soon.</p>

<p>Thanks for your replies.<br>

I hear what you say about CC. I may have to overcome my misgivings about being dependent on a CC subscription forever. Yes, it’s only ‘a couple of beers’ each month, but as a pensioner on a fixed income I don’t get to drink much beer these days and I try not to replace either hardware or software until necessary. And what will the monthly subscription be in ten or twenty years time? Also, as far as I can see from posts on other forums (e.g. photoshop user community), there seem to be numerous issues around downloading raw files into Bridge on OS X 10.11, so I’m a bit wary about forking out for a solution that may not actually work. But I may sign up for a trial and see how I get on.<br>

Norman -converting raw files to dng using the convertor and then importing into LR works, but I can’t open the converted files in Bridge. I’ve also tried exporting the dngs from LR back into Bridge, but I can still only see the dng icons where there should be a thumbnail image.<br>

As a workaround I’ve found after some experimentation that if I import NEF files via a card reader (as opposed to the SD card slot on the computer) and using the Image Capture program which comes with OS X 10.11 to a temporary file, and then run adobe convertor on the imported raw files, Bridge can then see the resultant .dng thumbnails. (I also discovered by chance that if I delete .jpg files which won’t display properly in Bridge and then undo the deletion, the thumbnails and the full size images of the restored files will then display normally, which seems a bit weird but at least seems to be a solution).<br>

Again, thanks for the input - appreciated.</p>

<p>There is still a stand alone version of Lightroom if you don't wish to subscribe. Here is a link. http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=lightroom&N=0&InitialSearch=yes&sts=ma&Top+Nav-Search=</p>

<p>The problem is not Lightroom. I use Lightroom 3 and have the problem. The problem is the Apple OS.</p>

<p>El Cap works great with current version of LR. OP has a pretty old version of LR, and should think of updating. At a certain point older versions of things don't work on newest Apple operating systems. Has always been thus.</p>

<blockquote>

<p>The problem is the Apple OS.<br /><br /></p>

</blockquote>

<p>Careful, that's blasphemy here at Pn</p>

Hello, I use this RAW viewer on my Mac Sierra OS X 10.12.6 for a long time. Everything goes well. Hope it works.

Since DNG Converter is free, I presume you installed the latest version. DNG Convertor can output several versions of DNG files. You may have to select an earlier (or later) version to work with your other software. The preferences in DNG Converter may have changed when you installed it.