Create virtual copies

You can have multiple versions of photos by applying different adjustment settings to virtual copies of the original (master) photos. Virtual copies don’t exist as actual photos or duplicates of photos. Virtual copies are metadata in the catalog that stores the different sets of adjustments.

You create a virtual copy of a photo and then apply adjustment settings to it. If you want another version of the master photo, you create another virtual copy and apply the new settings to it. You can create as many virtual copies of a master photo as you wish. You can even make one of the virtual copies a master, making the previous master a virtual copy.

Once created, virtual copies are automatically stacked with the master photo. In the Grid view or the Filmstrip, the master photo displays the number of images in the upper-left corner of the thumbnail. The virtual copies display page-turn icons on the left side of their thumbnails.

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Left: Original (master) photo
Middle and Right: Virtual copies indicated by page-turn icon

Virtual copies become actual photos when they are exported as a copy of the master photo or edited as a copy in an external editor.

When you create a virtual copy of a photo, “Copy 1” (or “Copy 2,” “Copy 3,” and so on) is added automatically to the Copy Name field in the Metadata panel.

In the Grid view in the Library or in the Filmstrip in any module, right-click (Windows) or Control-click (Mac OS) a photo and choose Create Virtual Copy from the context menu.
In the Grid view in the Library or in the Filmstrip in any module, right-click (Windows) or Control-click (Mac OS) to select multiple photos and choose Create Virtual Copies from the context menu.
If the copy does not appear in the Grid view, the photos may be part of a collapsed stack. Try choosing Photo > Stacking > Expand All Stacks. If that doesn’t work, the photos may be filtered. Try using a different display method, such as choosing All Photographs in the Catalog panel.
In the Library module, select a virtual copy of a photo in the Grid view or the Filmstrip and choose Photo > Set Copy As Master.
To delete or remove a virtual copy, expand the virtual copy stack in its folder in the Library module (press S). Then right-click (Windows) or Control-click (Mac OS) the virtual copy in the Grid view or the Filmstrip and choose Delete Photo.
Note: You cannot edit stacks when working with collections. You must view stacks in their folders to expand, collapse, and manage them.