User Guide Cancel

Search and organize photos in Lightroom for mobile (Android)

  1. Adobe Lightroom User Guide
  2. Introduction
    1. What's new in Lightroom
    2. Lightroom system requirements
    3. Lightroom | Common questions
    4. Lightroom tutorials
    5. Work with Adobe Photoshop Lightroom for mobile
    6. Set preferences
  3. In-app learning
    1. In-app learning and inspiration
    2. In-app learning and inspiration | Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    3. In-app learning and inspiration | Lightroom for mobile (Android)
  4. Add, import, and capture photos
    1. Add photos
    2. Capture photos with Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    3. Capture photos with Lightroom for mobile (Android)
    4. Import photos in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    5. Import photos and videos in Lightroom for mobile (Android)
  5. Organize photos
    1. Organize photos
    2. Find and organize photos of people in the People View
    3. Search and organize photos in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    4. Search and organize photos in Lightroom for mobile (Android)
  6. Edit photos
    1. Edit photos
    2. Edit photos in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    3. Edit photos in Lightroom for mobile (Android)
    4. Quickly edit photos with Quick Action in Lightroom on mobile (Android)
    5. Quickly edit photos with Quick Action in Lightroom on mobile (iOS)
    6. Presets in Lightroom
    7. Presets in Lightroom for mobile (Android)
    8. Crop, Rotate, & Geometry tool in Lightroom
    9. Remove tool in Lightroom
    10. Remove tool in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    11. Remove tool in Lightroom for mobile (Android)
    12. Edit panel in Lightroom
    13. Masking in Lightroom
    14. Lens Blur in Lightroom
    15. Merge photos to create HDRs, panoramas, and HDR panoramas
    16. Edit HDR photos
    17. Edit HDR photos in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    18. Edit HDR photos in Lightroom for mobile (Android
    19. Easily enhance image quality in Lightroom
    20. Edit photos in other apps
    21. Learn about Content Credentials
    22. Add Content Credentials in Lightroom on mobile (Android)
    23. Add Content Credentials in Lightroom on mobile (iOS)
  7. Edit videos
    1. Edit videos 
    2. Edit videos in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    3. Edit videos in Lightroom for mobile (Android)
  8. Save, share, and export
    1. Export or share your photos
    2. Export and share photos in Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    3. Save, share, and export photos with Lightroom for mobile (Android)
  9. Lightroom for mobile, TV and the web
    1. Get started with Lightroom for mobile (iOS)
    2. Get started with Lightroom for mobile (Android)
    3. Adobe Photoshop Lightroom on the web
    4. Set up Lightroom for Apple TV app
    5. Use keyboard shortcuts in Lightroom for mobile (iOS and Android)
    6. Adobe Photoshop Lightroom for mobile and Apple TV | FAQ
    7. View Lightroom photos and videos on your TV
    8. How to Add Presets/Sync Presets with mobile
  10. Migrate photos
    1. Migrate Apple Photos Library to Lightroom
    2. Migrate photos and videos from Lightroom Classic to Lightroom
    3. Migrate photos from Photoshop Elements to Lightroom
  11. Troubleshooting 
    1. Fixed Issues 
    2. Known Issues

 

Create albums. Organize albums into folders. Arrange photos in order using filter by options. Search photos using metadata, keywords, and facets.

Create an album and add photos

Albums help you organize photographs, grouping and sorting them according to your preferences and requirements. You can create albums and import specific photos of your choice from the Gallery tab or by selecting photos using the + Add photos icon.

  1. Create an album

    In the Album selection view, select the '+ Create new' button.

  2. From the Create New menu that appears, choose Album.

  3. In the Create Album dialog, type a name for the new album, and tap OK.

  4. Album options

    (Optional) Tap icon next to the album name to set up your album.

    • Add Photos: This allows you to pick and choose photos from your device's Camera Roll or Gallery.
    • Auto add from device: Sets up the album to import any picture from the Camera Roll/Gallery automatically. This option is available only if you've enabled Auto Add New Photos in the app settings in the Sidebar.
    • Store Locally: Downloads the album photos locally on your device. Enabling this option allows you to edit photos in the album even when your phone isn't connected to the Internet. Edited photos are automatically synced to the cloud whenever you're next connected to the Internet. Later, to clear the offline content of a locally stored album and free up space on your device, go to Device Info & Storage > Manage Storage option in the sidebar.    
    • Share & Invite: Share your album with friends and family and invite them exclusively to view or add photos to your shared album.
    • Move To: This allows you to move the Album into an existing folder or a new folder.
    • Rename: Opens a dialog that lets you provide a new name for the album.
    • Delete: Deletes the album only. Your album photos remain untouched and are not deleted from the device.
    • SlideshowPlay the contents of the album as a slideshow. 
  5. Add photos from your device or the All Photos album

    Select the album name to navigate inside the album. Then, select the add photos icon in the lower-right corner.

    Add photos to a new album
    Add photos to a new album

    A. Add photos from your device, Lightroom or from the files B. Capture a photo and add to the album 

    Note:

    You can also tap to the camera icon to capture a photo using the Lightroom's in-app camera and add it to your album.

    From the Add Photos From menu, select GalleryLightroom, or Files.  

  6. In the next screen, you can now select the photos and add them to the album.    

    Note:

    Did you add photos to the album? Take it out for a spin! Tap the album name to view all the photos in the album. Tap one of the thumbnails to open and edit the photo.

Select the best photos in an album

  1. From the Albums panel, open the album from which you want to select your best photos.

  2. Select the icon and select Choose Best Photos.

  3. Lightroom analyzes your album and picks the best photos. The analysis is based on photo quality and faces in the photos. The top photos that are picked are displayed in the Chosen section and the rest are shown in the Others section.

  4. Use the Quality Threshold slider to increase or decrease the number of selected images. Higher values of the Quality Threshold will select fewer photos and vice versa.

  5. You can choose to lock a photo in the Keep in chose or Move to other section. To do so, long-press a photo to select it, tap the three-dot icon from the upper-right corner, and select the first option from the pop-up menu. You can move the selected photo to the other section using this menu as well. Once a photo is locked, it's not impacted by the movement of the Quality Threshold slider. You can also unlock a locked photo.

    Note:
    • Videos are not considered for Best Photos.
    • Best Photos will only work if an album has a minimum of 10 photos and a maximum of 2000.
  6. Once you're happy with the photos Lightroom has chosen for you, tap the three-dot icon in the upper-right corner to share and export the Chosen photos, add them to an album, or flag them as picked. You can also remove the Other photos from the current album or flag them as rejected.

    Best photos menu options
    Best photos menu options

Add or move photos between albums

You can add or move photos between albums you created. Do one of the following, depending on which screen you're on:

Multiple photos

  1. In the Grid view (viewing photos in an album), long-press on any photo to select it and bring up the multi-selection view. Select all the photos that you want to copy or move and then select Organize icon..

    Note:

    Select  icon, then select Select All or Select None to select photos to add or move photos between albums.

  2. In the next screen, select Add to album or Move to album, followed by Your albums or Albums shared with you, and then select the album you want to add or move your photos to. 

Single photo

  1. In the Loupe view (viewing a single photo), select icon, and then select Organize.

  2. In the next screen, select Add to or Move to, followed by Your albums or Albums shared with you, and then select the album you want to add or move your photos to. 

Remove photos from albums

You can remove photos from an album when they are no longer required. Note that any photo removed from an album will continue to be available in the Lightroom app.  

Multiple Photos

  1. In the Grid view (viewing photographs in an album), long-press on any photo to select it and bring up the multi-selection view. Select all the photos that you want to remove from the album.
  2. Once you've selected the photos, select   icon.
  3. In the dialog that appears, choose one of the following:
    1. Remove From Album: Removes photos from the album but continues to be available in the Lightroom app.
    2. Delete: Removes photos from All Photos view and any corresponding album.

Single Photo

  1. While editing the individual photo, select  icon.
  2. Select Organize > Remove From Album.
  3. In the dialog that appears, choose one of the following:
    1. Remove From Album: Removes photo from the album but remains available in the Lightroom app.
    2. Delete: Removes photo from All Photos view and any corresponding album.

Organize albums into folders

  1. Create new folder

    In the All photos view, select the '+ Create new' button at the bottom-center of the screen.

  2. From the Create New menu that appears, choose Folder.

  3. In the Create Folder dialog, type a name for the new folder, and select OK.

  4. Folder options

    (Optional) Select icon next to the folder name to set up your folder.

    • Create Album: Lets you create a new album inside the folder.
    • Create Folder: Lets you create a nested folder inside the parent folder.
    • Move To: Allows you to move the folder into an existing folder or a new folder.
    • Rename: Opens a dialog that lets you provide a new name for the folder.
    • Delete: Deletes the folder and the albums in the folder. The photos in the albums are not deleted from the app.

You can now create subfolders or add albums into the folder as necessary.

View photos as a slideshow

You can view the photographs in your album as a slideshow. To start a slideshow, do one of the following:

  • In the Albums view, select icon on any album to bring up the options menu and choose Slideshow.
  • In the Grid view (viewing photos in an album), select icon and then select Slideshow.
  • In the Loupe view (viewing individual photos), select icon and then select Start Slideshow

Slideshow options

During a slideshow, select anywhere on the screen to bring up the controls to pause/play and access slideshow options. Then, do any of the following:

  • To pause a slideshow, select the pause   icon.
  • To play the slideshow again, select the play   icon. 
  • To change slideshow transition and duration, select the icon and modify the settings as required in the Slideshow Options menu.

Search photos

Find photos using the intelligent online search
Find photos using the intelligent online search

Sorting and segmentation

You can apply segmentation and sorting options to the photos from your search results. Select icon in the Grid view. From the context menu that appears, you can apply the following options:

  • Select: Use this option to enter multi-select mode, that is, select multiple photos from the grid. Upon selection of photos, you can either Add to, Paste edits, Info, Share, or Delete photos.
  • Invite & get a link: Share your photos with people to edit.
  • Grid Segmentation: Turn on this to allow the segmentation of photos in the search results.
  • Segment by: When you enable Grid Segmentation, Lightroom for mobile (Android) segments the grid photos By Year (default). You can also choose more segmentation options—By Year, By Month, By Day, By Hour.
  • Slideshow: Select this option to view photos as a slideshow. To learn more about slideshow options, view View photos as a slideshow.
  • Choose Best Photos: This option selects the best photos in an album. To learn more about choosing the best photos, view Select the best photos in an album. (Not available for a pre-existing album such as My edits, Imports, and Deleted)
  • Add Photos: From the menu that appears, select Gallery, Lightroom, or Files to add photos.

Find photos within an album or All Photos view using the Search bar at the top. Aside from searching photos by metadata and keywords, Lightroom for mobile (Android) can also find and show photos based on the objects in them, or facets associated with the photo.

You can type an object name in the search bar to search all photos and show relevant results. For example, you can type kids in the Search bar to quickly search for all photos that have kids in them. To search your photos using facets, type a facet name followed by a colon ':'. For example, you can type camera: to display a list of camera models used. View the list of supported facets below:

  • keyword:
  • camera:
  • lens:
  • location:
  • rating:
  • flag:
  • flash:
  • depth map:
  • orientation:
  •  iso:
  •  type:
  • f-stop:
  • ss:
  • edited:
  • media:
  • contributors:

You can explore your photo gallery further with auto-complete that displays intuitive suggestions as soon as you type something in the search bar. The terms used in search bar are not case-sensitive.

You can add multiple tokens for search in the Search bar based on objects, facets, or auto-complete suggestions to narrow down your result. 

Intelligent Online Search
Sorting, segmentation, and other options for your search results in Lightroom for mobile (Android)

In the Google Assistant search bar, type or tap the mic and say:

Search <your search keyword> in Lightroom

For example, you can quickly search for all photos within Lightroom for mobile (Android) that have mountains in them by typing or speaking - Search mountains in Lightroom.  

Note:

Searching photos within Lightroom for mobile (Android) using Google Assistant requires an active Internet connection. This capability is currently supported in English language only.  

Search Lightroom photos using Google Assistant
Search Lightroom photos using Google Assistant

Search result
Search result

Flag and rate photos

Using the Info and Rating panel

The Info and Rating panel in the Loupe view allows you to quickly flag and rate your photos on your Android mobile devices using the swipe gesture. The Filmstrip at the bottom allows you to cycle through the album photos.

Flick upward or downward to flag the photo
Flagging a photo

flick upward or downward to rate a photo
Rating a photo

Rate a photo

To quickly rate a photo in the Info and rating panel, flick upward or downward in left half of the screen. A rating overlay appears, showing you the current rating as you flick. 

Flag a photo

To quickly flag a photo as picked, rejected, or unflagged in the Info and rating panel, flick upward or downward in right half of the screen. A flag overlay appears, showing you the current selection as you flick.   

Alternatively, tap the Flag graphic (just above the Filmstrip) to bring up the flag overlay and then flag the photo as pick, rejected, or unflagged.  

Using the Info panel

The Info panel in the Loupe view allows you to easily add a TitleCaption, and Copyright to your photo. You can also provide a star rating, flag photos, and assign keywords to your photos in this panel. Additionally, the Info panel displays the metadata associated with your photo and a list of all people clusters your photo is a part of, under the People section.

Assign keywords to photos

Use the Keywords section at the bottom of the Info panel to assign keywords to your photos. 

  • To assign multiple keywords, type the keywords separated by a comma.
  • To remove any assigned keyword, tap cross 'x' next to that keyword.  

Filter photos

Filter photos
Photo filtering options (available to subscribed and active trial users only)

Select the   icon to bring up the Filter by panel and quickly filter photos.

Star Ratings: Tap the star icon to filter your photos based on their star ratings. Select the comparator icon to toggle between photos rated higher, lower, or equal to a certain star rating. For example, you can view photos rated three stars or higher.

Flags: Tap flag icons, Picked, Unflagged, or Rejected, to filter photos based on their flag status.

You can also filter photos based on certain facets defined under the Filter by panel:

Type: Image or Panorama photos
Camera: Camera make and model options.
People: People clusters that are detected in the People View
Location: Locations picked from the metadata of all photos.
Keyword: Keywords picked from the metadata of all photos.
Edited: Edited or not edited.

Note:
  • If your trial has expired or if you are a free user, only the Star rating and Flag filters are available in the Filter By menu. Also, the user interface is different from the one shown in the image above.
Note:

To learn how to search and organize photos in Lightroom on your iPad, iPhone, or desktop, see Search and Organize photos in Lightroom for mobile (iOS) and Organize photos in Lightroom (desktop).  

 Adobe

Get help faster and easier

New user?