This tip will mainly apply to people who have been using Lightroom since the early days. When Lightroom 3 came out we were given a new Process Version (which is the underlying secret sauce Lightroom uses to develop our photos). This was called Process Version 2010. Prior to this we had Process Version 2003. When Lightroom 4 came out we were given Process Version 2012, and we’ve been using that ever since.

All that said, if you have been using Lightroom since those early days, and have upgraded your catalog with each new version, then you may have some photos that are still using the original Process Version in use at the time they were imported. This is not a problem, it’s just the way things are. I’ve got over 4,000 photos still using an older Process Version.

It is important to know that you are not required to update to current process version. It is only if you need/want to update to use the latest process version and take advantage of the new features when processing those older photos in the latest version of Lightroom.

I say this because if you have previously processed photos with an older process version, they can still be exported as-is. Updating to the new process version can also potentially result in a slightly different appearance, so do this with caution.

Photos still using an older Process Version will display a lightning bolt icon in the Histogram panel of the Develop module, and if you hover your cursor over that icon you’ll see a tooltip appear.

 

To update the process version of one photo:

  1. – take the photo into Develop
  2. – click the lightning bolt icon that appears under the Histogram
  3. – in the resulting popup dialog choose Update
  4. – note there is the option to review before/after changes if you wish

 

To update all older process version to the latest, go to Library > Find Previous Process Photos

  1. – go into Develop
  2. – click the lightning bolt icon that appears under the Histogram
  3. – in the resulting popup dialog choose Update All Filmstrip Photos
  4. – note there is the option to review before/after changes if you wish

 

 

I suggest that you start by doing a single photo to see how it works before doing that for all photos.