About keyword tags

Keyword tags are text metadata that describe the important contents of a photo. They help you identify, search for, and find photos in the catalog. Like other metadata, keyword tags are stored either in the photo file or (in the case of proprietary camera raw files) stored in XMP sidecar files. Once applied to photos, keywords can be read by Adobe applications such as Adobe Bridge, Photoshop, or Photoshop Elements, or other applications that support XMP metadata.

Lightroom provides several ways to apply keyword tags to photos. You can type or select them in the Keywording panel, or drag photos to specific keyword tags in the Keyword List panel.

In the Grid view, photos with keyword tags display a thumbnail badge . All keyword tags in the catalog are viewed in the Keyword List panel. You can add, edit, rename, or delete keyword tags at any time. When creating or editing keywords, you can specify synonyms and export options. Synonyms are related terms for keyword tags. When you select photos that contain keyword tags with synonyms, the synonyms appear in the Keywording panel when Keyword Tags > Will Export is selected.

Keyword tags can contain other, nested keyword tags. For example, the keyword tag animals might contain the keyword tags dogs and cats. The keyword tag dogs, in turn, might contain Australian Shepherd, Border Collie, and so on.

Keyword tags can also be organized into groups called keyword sets. By choosing a specific keyword set, relevant keyword tags are more accessible. This is especially useful as you add more keyword tags to the catalog.

For a video about using collections and keywords to organize your photos, watch Lightroom 2 basics: collections and keywords.