Accessing iPhoto 08 library from other applications
Sun, 19 August 2007
With introduction of packaged iPhoto Library in iLife 08, there are some situations where you will run into trouble trying to access the original files from other applications.
Take Apple Mail for an example. You are replying to someone’s email and now you need to attach an image, but you don’t want to have iPhoto open. You click on the Attach icon, but all you can see in the Pictures folder is the iPhoto Library as one packaged file, and you can’t access the Originals folder.
So what do you do?
If iPhoto, Mail, or whichever application you are using is not able to help, your good old friend Mac OSX comes to the rescue. You need to create an alias.
Open Finder, navigate to iPhoto library (~/Photos /iPhoto Library), right-click the package and select Show Package Contents. Then right-click on the Originals folder and select Make Alias.
Once the alias for this folder has been created, move it somewhere, I suggest to the Pictures folder. Remember - you must move it out of the packaged library, otherwise you will still be unable to access it. You can also rename it to anything you want.
Now you can access your original photos from any application simply by selecting ~/Pictures/Originals Alias (or whatever you called it).
Warning: Do not add any photos to the iPhoto Library by using this alias, do it only through iPhoto itself. Otherwise … oh, where do I start … well, look … just don’t.
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Richard Siek said: Mon, 31 December 2007 at 02:15
Hello,
Your idea of using an alias, or a symbolic link, doesn’t seem to work under Leopard. When you select the alias, at first you see the contents of the folder, but only for a second or less. After that brief flash, the contents of the folder are replaced by the standard Preview pane as if the folder was not a container object.
If you have discovered any tricks that work under Leopard I would appreciate hearing about them.
Richard said: Mon, 31 December 2007 at 13:54
Also interesting to me. This does work on what I have, latest update before leopard basically. This has made me second guess whether to get leopard! Well. Plus the 130.00 price.