copy picture files into iphoto or not?

What's your suggestion about copying files into iphoto (as opposed to just pointing iphoto to where the files are)? Yes or no? Pros and cons of each?

Does it make any difference when editing photos? Consider, for example, a case where you edit a photo in iphoto. Does iphoto keep the original where it is and store a modified version of it in the iphoto package (in a sense importing the modified version into iphoto regardless of whether you told it to keep the originals outside of iphoto)? If so, then even if you choose not to copy files into iphoto, it still copies modified versions of them into iphoto? So, if you want to give a copy of your modified picture to a friend, you'll still have to go through iphoto's export process rather than just copying the folder in Finder?

jleonard said:

What's your suggestion about copying files into iphoto (as opposed to just pointing iphoto to where the files are)?

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If you're going to use iPhoto, it's best to let it copy the photos into its photo library. Weird things happen if you try to use iPhoto without doing this, and for whatever reason the pics it expects to find aren't where you put them.

Does it make any difference when editing photos?

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No.

So, if you want to give a copy of your modified picture to a friend, you'll still have to go through iphoto's export process rather than just copying the folder in Finder?

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No. To make a copy of a modified picture, just drag it out of iPhoto onto the desktop. Boom, instant full-rez copy.