How to Remove Photos from Lightroom Classic Collection?

To remove photos from a Lightroom Classic collection, you can either remove them only from the collection while keeping them in your catalog, or remove them from both the collection and the catalog.

Removing Photos from a Collection (Leaving in Catalog)

The most common way to remove a photo only from a collection is to simply select the photo(s) within that collection and press the Delete key on your keyboard.

Here's how:

1. Select the Collection: In the Library module, navigate to the "Collections" panel and click on the specific collection you want to modify.
2. Select the Photo(s): Find the photo(s) you wish to remove from the collection. You can select multiple photos by holding down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac) while clicking, or select a range by clicking the first photo, holding Shift, and clicking the last photo.
3. Press Delete: With the photo(s) selected, press the Delete key on your keyboard.
4. Confirm Action: Lightroom Classic will ask if you want to "Remove from Collection". Click Remove (or Remove from Collection) to confirm.

• Note: This action only removes the photos from that specific collection. They remain in your Lightroom Classic catalog and are still accessible from "All Photographs" or other folders/collections they might be in.

Removing Photos from Collection and Catalog

Sometimes, you may want to completely remove a photo from Lightroom Classic, including all collections it belongs to and your main catalog. The provided reference details a specific keyboard shortcut for this:

To remove a photo from a collection as well as from the catalog, select the photo and press Ctrl+Alt+Shift+Delete (Windows) or Command+Option+Shift+Delete (Mac OS).

This powerful shortcut performs the following actions:

• Removes the selected photo(s) from the current collection.
• Removes the selected photo(s) from all collections they belong to.
• Deletes the photo's entry from the Lightroom Classic catalog database.
• Crucially, this shortcut also prompts you if you want to delete the original file from your hard drive. Be very careful when using this command.

Here's a summary of the main methods:

Action	Keyboard Shortcut (Windows)	Keyboard Shortcut (Mac OS)	Effect
Remove from Collection Only	Delete	Delete	Removes from collection, stays in catalog.
Remove from Collection & Catalog	Ctrl + Alt + Shift + Delete	Command + Option + Shift + Delete	Removes from collection(s) and catalog, offers option to delete file.

Remember to always confirm the action in the dialog box that appears to ensure you are performing the intended removal.