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Posts Tagged ‘Workflow’

TourBox Review: A Controller to Revolutionize Your Creative Workflow?

07 Aug

The post TourBox Review: A Controller to Revolutionize Your Creative Workflow? appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Kav Dadfar.

Tourbox review feature image

What is the one thing that all photographers hate? Maybe selfie sticks take the top spot. But close to the top has to be editing.

It is the one part of my workflow that I least look forward to. Like most photographers, I would much rather be spending my time taking photos than sitting in front of a monitor.

For any given assignment, I may come back with between 4000-6000 photos to edit. The quicker I can get through these, the better. So, over the years, I have looked at many ways of speeding up my workflow efficiency. I try to get my pictures as close to the final version as possible in the field. But there will always be some editing needed.

So, when I first learned about the TourBox controller, I was extremely excited to test it out.

tourbox review

About TourBox

TourBox is a controller for digital creators, designed so you can use creative software such as Photoshop and Lightroom more efficiently. TourBox is compatible with Mac and Windows, and works by adding the shortcuts that you might use in your workflow to dials and buttons. This makes it quicker and easier to access software tools and features, which in turn speeds up your workflow.

The company behind TourBox was founded in 2016, and they spent two years developing this console. After a successful Kickstarter campaign, the first finished versions were shipped in July 2019 to 58 countries.

tourbox review

First impressions

The controller arrived in a stylishly-packaged box which would look at home on the shelf of a high-end department store. Inside the box was an instruction manual, a console, and a USB cable to connect the controller to a computer. There was no power cord, as the controller uses power directly from your computer.

tourbox review

One of the first things I noticed about the TourBox controller is how heavy it is. This is great, because it stops the controller sliding around on a desk. There are some grips underneath the console, but the weight helps. I also liked the slick, matte black finish, which is less slippery than gloss.

The controller is approximately 11 cm x 8 cm (and around 4 cm high to the top of the center knob).

tourbox review

Installation

TourBox is quick and easy to install. You simply to go to the TourBox website. Download the drivers and the software for the controller and follow the steps. In all, it took around four minutes for me to download and install everything needed for the console to work.

So, within a few minutes, you are ready to start using the product.

tourbox console

How does TourBox work?

In simple terms, the console replaces the shortcuts that you would type on a keyboard. By using the different dials and buttons, you can replace up to 42 different shortcuts. So, there are plenty of options (depending on how efficient you are with using keyboard shortcuts).

Selecting a shortcut is then a case of clicking different combinations on the controller. For example, in Lightroom, Command/Control+Alt+V is the shortcut for pasting settings from a previous photo to the one you are on. But you can achieve this with one button using the console if you wish.

tourbox settings

Perfect for Lightroom (and Photoshop)

One of the great things about this console is that it comes with functions for Lightroom and Photoshop already programmed in. You can literally open Lightroom and start using the console as soon as it is installed.

You might be asking: Aren’t there more than 42 shortcuts in Lightroom? What the people at TourBox have cleverly done is program shortcuts for the most commonly-used functions.

Things like temperature, tint, exposure, and contrast are controlled by pressing the relevant button. You can then turn the controller dial to adjust the slider. The other nine sliders in the Lightroom Basic panel are controlled by holding a button and clicking a direction on the Dpad.

So, as an example, if you wanted to adjust the saturation, you would hold the top button and tap the “right” arrow on the Dpad. This selects the saturation slider, which you can then adjust with the dial. Once you have selected the slider, it remains selected until you choose something else. So there’s no need to keep the buttons pressed down.

tourbox settings

But how will I remember all the combinations?

First, no need to worry. There is a handy Dpad guide that stays on the screen to show you the different functions. It will change to different combinations when you press any of the buttons on the console.

Even though the guide is on the screen, in reality, you will learn the combinations really quickly. Because let’s be honest: It is much easier to remember to click one or two buttons than four different ones.

Keep in mind that the vast majority of the editing you will do is in the basic panel. So you will be clicking these different combinations all the time. After around 15 minutes, I noticed that I began to use the console without needing the guide.

Lightroom

Customize TourBox to your needs

The console has plenty of space for your own shortcuts (i.e., settings that you might use often). So you can change any of the preset shortcuts to fit your most commonly used adjustments.

For me, one of the most used functions of Lightroom is copying the develop settings from the previous photo to the current one. I programmed this into the Tall button + C1. I have also programmed next photo and previous photo (normally the left and right arrow on a keyboard) as C1 and C2.

So I can use the console without even needing to take my hand off of it.

Tourbox settings

Faster and more efficient workflow

You may be thinking: What the point of all this is? After all, your mouse and keyboard can do all these things.

For me, the benefit of a console like this is three-fold. First, it makes it much easier and quicker to edit through photos. This is because you are not moving your hand from the mouse to the keyboard all the time, which cannot be avoided for shortcuts that need many keys to be pressed. Plus, the controller makes it easier to remember shortcuts; I struggle to remember any shortcuts which are more than two keys, so this is ideal.

The second benefit is that you have much more control when adjusting the sliders with the TourBox console (compared to the mouse). You can fine-tune the sliders in a way that’s difficult to do with a mouse.

The third benefit of TourBox is that you can use it in conjunction with a tablet (and pen) for editing. This makes using a tablet quicker, as you can switch between commands using the console.

Tourbox review
TourBox is designed for left-handed use but can also be used right-handed.

Other software

99% of my editing work happens inside Lightroom. But you can also use TourBox with other creative software such as Photoshop, Capture One, Final Cut, and more. You can create different presets for each of these programs, and TourBox automatically detects the software you are using and switches to the relevant settings. So switching your editing from Lightroom to Photoshop becomes seamless and happens without interruption.

tourbox review

Conclusion

I often get excited about new photography gadgets. But over the course of a few days and months that enthusiasm wanes, and I usually stop using the new gadget altogether. I always revert back to the old way of doing things.

But I must confess: Having had the TourBox controller for a few days now, it might become a permanent fixture in my workflow. I am finding that I am going through my editing much quicker than usual. Either I have become considerably quicker in a few days, or it is due to the TourBox console.

The post TourBox Review: A Controller to Revolutionize Your Creative Workflow? appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Kav Dadfar.


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ON1 announces ON1 360 cross-device workflow solution, new ON1 Photo Mobile app

30 Jun

ON1, the creators of the ON1 Photo RAW editing software, has announced ON1 360, an all-new photography workflow solution designed to allow photographers to capture, edit and sync images across multiple computers and mobile devices. Alongside the new ON1 360 workflow solution, ON1 has also announced updates to ON1 Photo RAW 2020 and released the new ON1 Photo Mobile application for iOS, iPadOS and Android.

Alongside today’s announcement, ON1 hosted a live stream showcasing the workflow possibilities available with ON1 360, which can be viewed below. ON1 360 connects ON1 Photo RAW 2020.5 on macOS and Windows computers with the new, free ON1 Photo Mobile app. Via this connection between devices, users can sync files, control storage methods and access new managing and editing capabilities.

Using ON1 360, users can choose to sync their original Raw files, or alternatively, utilize ON1’s new compressed-Raw file format in order to save space without a noticeable loss in image quality. This feature, called Editable Previews, allows photographers to view, edit and share compressed Raw files without needing to take up cloud storage space with larger original Raw files.

In the new ON1 Photo Mobile app, users can capture Raw images. The app includes a camera mode, which ON1 states works similarly to the built-in camera application on your device. In addition to capturing images, you can also edit using the app. ON1 Photo Mobile uses the same proprietary Raw processing engine as the desktop ON1 Photo RAW application. Mobile users can adjust parameters such as exposure, contrast, shadows, midtones, highlights, whites, blacks, white balance, noise and sharpening. The app also includes built-in filters. ON1 Photo Mobile is available to all users and is free.

ON1 Photo Mobile includes ON1’s Raw processing engine in addition to numerous image editing tools. The application also allows users to capture images and organize their existing photos. Image credit: ON1

For those unfamiliar with ON1 Photo RAW 2020, it is a photo organizer, Raw processor, layered image editor and effects application. ON1 Photo RAW 2020 is available as a standalone application and as a plug-in for Photoshop, Lightroom Classic and Apple Photos. In addition to offering powerful Raw editing tools and a layers-based workflow, ON1 Photo RAW also leverages artificial intelligence for various features, such as generating masks, matching in-camera looks and styles, and automatically editing your photos.

Subscriptions for ON1 Photo RAW 2020.5 plus ON1 360 start at $ 7.99 USD per month with 200GB of storage. Image credit: ON1

ON1 360 is available via a subscription plan. ON1 360 plans are available with storage and ON1 Photo RAW 2020.5 combined or as a service add-on for existing ON1 Photo RAW 2020 users. The former option starts at $ 7.99 USD per month or $ 89.99 per year and includes 200GB of storage. For existing ON1 Photo RAW 2020 owners, ON1 360 can be added for as little as $ 5.99 per month or $ 59.99 per year. ON1 Photo RAW 2020 will continue to be available as a perpetual license product separate from ON1 360 as well. For additional information on plan options and pricing, head on over to ON1’s website.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Nik Collection 3 by DxO announced: Includes new Perspective Efex, faster workflow & more

03 Jun

DxO has announced the Nik Collection 3, the latest version its popular plugin suite that brings multiple new features and an entirely new plugin, Perspective Efex.

The new Perspective Efex fixes geometric distortion in your images via automatic corrections or manually placed reference lines. Perspective Efex can correct distortions such as keystone distortion in architecture images and is able to address lens distortions such as barrel, pincushion and fisheye distortion.

The new Perspective Efex plugin allows users to fix distortion in their images and adjust perspective. This example shows before (left) and after (right) when using Perspective Efex to fix distortion. Distortion correction can be applied automatically by the software or manually by the user through the use of placed reference lines. Image credit: DxO

In addition to being used to fix issues with distortion, Perspective Efex also includes a Miniature Effect tool, which allows you to control shallow depth-of-field effects. This allows you to replicate the effect of using a tilt-shift lens just with only software.

Nik Collection 3 includes a revised Nik Selective Tool. This tool allows the user to quickly access the suite of plugins within Nik Collection 3 from inside Adobe Photoshop. The redesigned Selective Tool lets you select favorite filter presets or revisit a prior edit, which DxO promises will result in a faster and more efficient workflow.

Speaking of workflow improvements, Nik Collection 3 introduces a non-destructive workflow option when working with Adobe Lightroom Classic. After you have made edits to your raw image in Lightroom Classic, you can export images as TIFF files from LR Classic into Nik Collection 3 and adjust plugin edits indefinitely while maintaining a completely reversible editing process.

In total, Nik Collection 3 by DxO includes eight plugins: Color Efex Pro, Viveza, Silver Efex Pro, Dfine 2, Sharpener Pro, Analog Efex Pro, HDR Efex Pro and Perspective Efex. Between all the plugins, you can perform tasks such as preset application, localized editing, black and white conversions, noise reduction, sharpening, film emulation, HDR creation and perspective adjustments. The local editing tools in Nik Collection by DxO are particularly popular with users due to Nik’s famous U-Point editing technology, which was a primary reason for DxO purchasing Nik from Google in late 2017.

This screenshot shows Color Efex Pro in Nik Collection 3 by DxO. This popular plugin allows users to add and adjust various filters to their images. You can adjust the individual application of filters and their strengths through the Nik Collection’s U-Point technology. Image credit: DxO

Nik Collection 3 by DxO is sold as a lifetime license. For a limited time, users can purchase Nik Collection 3 for $ 100 USD. Existing Nik Collection by DxO owners can purchase Nik Collection 3 at a reduced price. A free trial is also available, which you can download here. Nik Collection is compatible with DxO PhotoLab, Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Lightroom Classic.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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The New Corona Photography Workflow- Shoot Privately but Share and Participate Publicly

27 May

The post The New Corona Photography Workflow- Shoot Privately but Share and Participate Publicly appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Herb Paynter.

dps-corona-photography-workflow

The bad medical virus

While the planet seeks a solution to the pandemic problem, may I suggest we use this opportunity to participate in an innovative photographic exercise? This might be just the spherical ray of light (corona) we photographers need in the midst of a dark and scary time. Fortunately, photography is a very personal process. We all use digital devices to capture interesting subjects and express emotions, but none of those devices are multi-person in function. So why not step up your personal photography and share your projects more openly online with a Corona photography workflow.

There are two obvious opportunities available to everybody that are both extremely safe while being very public. Why not join both the Facebook groups of your local photo club as well as the DPS Facebook group and (safely) start sharing more openly with thousands of your closest friends?

corona photography workflow - flower - purple flower

I’m appealing to the leadership of every photo and camera club to provide online assignments and challenges based on the subject of light. Publish each submission publicly and give recognition to all entries.

The assignments and challenges can be announced on club Facebook pages and posted (in larger sizes) on club websites. This will not only promote activity within the clubs but will share those talents with the rest of the world’s photo enthusiasts. This kind of effort will show the heart of the digital photo community and will widen the family circle and lift the spirits of millions.

Digital photography is a very dynamic and growing lifestyle, especially with the increased photographic capabilities of today’s camera phones. Photo clubs are comprised of all echelons of experience and all levels of equipment and now includes a growing number of phone photographers.

We’ve all seen some pretty amazing examples of great pictures captured by camera phones, with several clubs even featuring dedicated internal groups. The software features within these phones are both mind-boggling and beyond the capabilities of many very expensive dedicated digital cameras.

Add to this the ability of camera phones to immediately (and extensively) edit and post images to all forms of social media.

The good digital viral process

The New Corona Photography Workflow- Shoot Privately but Share and Participate Publicly

Lifestyle photography is widely accepted, and the sharing of images is commonplace in our world culture. Since we all travel with these mini-marvels, virtually everybody can participate in this Corona photography workflow project, and with little effort, it will go viral quickly. This kind of virus is good. This way, personal creativity can be unleashed and shared almost without limits in either subject matter or interpretation.

If well-coordinated, it can unite the minds and emotions of people and redirect emotions to a positive place while the medical world works diligently on an effective solution to the medical problem.

Social community should be a goal that is openly promoted and encouraged by local photo clubs sponsoring “socially distanced” group activities and photo opportunities. Photo challenges can be organized online through a number of social media. During a time of world crisis like we are currently facing, the nervous human psyche can either suffer fear-overload or be creatively redirected. This is one avenue that we can all travel safely.

corona photography workflow - flower

Shared activities need not stop; they simply need to be redefined as virtual group activities. This new sharing can become interpersonal and actually create stronger bonds between individuals who otherwise might not participate in typical meetings.

Social media has proven to provide a community sharing process that is even more inclusive than literal clubhouse meetings. This digital extension of the photo community clubhouse has a very real chance to involve persons from all aspects of society and age groups.

Keeping your distance

Digital cameras offer the ability to capture images from a distance and thus maintain and observe the six-foot protection rule. Even if you don’t have a telephoto or zoom lens, the higher resolution of cameras and phones allows image enlargement to reveal distant detail – especially since Internet images are usually restricted to around 1500 pixels (long dimension). No longer are photographers restricted to close proximity to the subject to capture significant detail.

This resolution restriction can actually work to your advantage in this respect: you can enlarge images to a greater magnification with no noticeable loss of detail.

Keeping your distance also allows you to capture images more candidly and thus more naturally. This is how you turn a limitation into an advantage.

The New Corona Photography Workflow- Shoot Privately but Share and Participate Publicly

While the normal reticence of sharing in public is a barrier that holds back some from participating in public meetings, with this online Corona photography workflow, sharing ideas and experiences might just break that barrier for some and provide them a fresh opportunity to participate. Now they can share a voice and increase personal involvement in a (socially and medically) safe environment.

In social media, everybody is on level ground and has an equal chance to “speak up” and participate. Sharing is a vital part of the human experience, and this unique opportunity could provide that social spark that we need to get through this situation and be better for it.

The Internet provides both good and not-so-good subject material and expression, but within the individual online club environment, this behavior can be more carefully monitored and even protected.

The challenge

Here’s what I propose that we adopt and promote without hesitation…

Individuals:

If you are not currently a photo club member (either local or online), join (at least) one right now; I am a member of several.

Each local club has a website and a Facebook page. Even if you only read DPS articles and rarely comment, this will give you a chance to speak out (in a silent way) and let us hear from you!

Search your favorite social media for online groups and clubs. There are dozens available, and many are geared to unique kinds of photography. There is rarely a fee involved, and your involvement is welcomed.

I just started an online Facebook group called “Corona Camera Club” just to push back on the negative connotation and put a new twist to the term. This will be a group based on light, not darkness. The basic “focus” of the group will be on the lighter side of photography. I invite everyone to join in and start sharing photos and posting positive experiences. There’s enough negative energy in the world right now, let’s turn up the light and keep it positive.

Club and group leaders

Post challenges to your members based on weekly (or monthly) themes. Keep these themes upbeat and creative. Provide online access to articles and presentations that would normally be presented in your local club meetings.

Contact all your members individually and encourage them to enlist one friend every week to join the group. This Corona photography workflow effort is like an old fashioned block party where all neighbors gather and share food and activities. Okay, we can’t eat online, but we can interact more frequently.

Don’t hesitate to research group sharing opportunities available to businesses and online schools to conduct interactive meetings and turn them into online clubhouses. I certainly invite your current members to join our CCC Facebook group too. Let’s make this a universal family project.

Get creative

Take this opportunity to show your creative imagination. Share images that are upbeat, positive, and inspiring. We all need to be realistic about the problems and risks and our physical activities are restricted, but our minds can run wild. Use this time to brighten eyes and uplift spirits. I’m using this post to try out a personal interpretation of some of my nature shots.

Finally, make your contributions and comments often and regular. Since this Corona medical crisis has limited our physical gatherings, let’s just gather online and channel our energies in a more positive collective enthusiasm. Use your computer, your tablet, and your phone to connect with friends and loved ones using all the services that are available. Love and camaraderie are contagious too, and this kind of infection is all good.

corona photography workflow - flower - plant

Let’s determine to find the lighter side of this dark cloud and turn the threatening negative into a big positive. When this scary time is over, the new friendships and associations will be all the deeper, and we can resume our lives on a higher level.

Remember, the word corona only recently has been defined by a virus. One of the dictionary definitions of corona describes the super bright crown of light that surrounds the Sun. It’s time to get out of the darkness and dive into the light.

Let’s participate in this Corona photography workflow and give this word a new meaning as we lighten up.

The post The New Corona Photography Workflow- Shoot Privately but Share and Participate Publicly appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Herb Paynter.


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RAW Power 3 available for Mac and iOS, includes workflow improvements and new editing tools

17 Apr

Gentlemen Coders LLC, the creator of RAW Power for macOS and iOS, has released RAW Power 3.0. The latest version introduces more integration with native macOS and iOS Photos applications and delivers an improved workflow.

RAW Power 3 is the first, and currently only, third-party application to include full support for Apple Photos libraries on macOS and iOS. With this integration, photographers can rate and edit their images on their Mac or iOS devices with full iCloud synchronization.

The software was developed by Nik Bhatt, a former Apple engineer. While at Apple, Bhatt led the iPhone and Aperture teams. Of RAW Power 3, Bhatt says, “RAW Power has gained a strong following among serious photographers for its unique control over Apple’s RAW engine, combined with its robust and easy-to-use editing tools.”

RAW Power 3 includes a variety of improvements to its integration with Apple Photos and its overall workspace. Users can utilize tabs to view multiple albums in the library at the same time. Users can also rate, flag and filter albums, with ratings and flags automatically syncing through iCloud Photos. Click to enlarge the image. Image credit: Gentlemen Coders

From its first release, RAW Power has been designed to build upon the existing Apple Photos native application and add additional functionality and editing capabilities. RAW Power allows the user to keep their files organized at the system level while also performing more advanced edits to their photos. By leveraging Apple Photos, users can also avoid committing to a proprietary photo library or subscription-based software.

Considering the Mac version of RAW Power 3.0, the software works directly with your Photos library while adding additional editing and organizational tools. You can browse and create albums and folders, which are then instantly applied to the system’s photo library and changes are synced over iCloud when using iCloud Photos. RAW Power 3 specifically adds rating and flagging functionality to the software, something not available in Apple Photos. In the case of a flag, this will instantly appear on the image file in the Finder as well.

RAW Power 3 introduces a variety of user-requested features, including hot and cold pixel indicators, integration of LUTs and reordering of default adjustments within your customized workspace. Click to enlarge the image. Image credit: Gentlemen Coders

Additionally, RAW Power 3 includes a new section for recently viewed items. There’s a threshold for what counts as “viewed,” meaning that only images you spent more than a few seconds looking at will be included. To make it easier to view and work on multiple images or albums at once, RAW Power 3 includes tabs.

RAW Power 3 introduces a variety of new image adjustments, including: Auto Enhance with Face Balancing, Auto White Balance, LUTs with film simulations, Levels and a Channel Mixer. With the new adjustment tools, the total now available to users is 15. With so many adjustments now built into the software, RAW Power 3 includes a refreshed editing interface and new workflow functionality. Users can reorder and select the default adjustments, to ensure that adjustments they use less frequently do not clog up their workspace.

RAW Power 3 introduces two new Auto adjustment features, including Auto Enhance and Auto White Balance (shown here). Image credit: Gentlemen Coders

RAW Power 3 also adds LUTs. The software ships with 20 of them, including Bhatt’s own film simulation LUTS. Users can add their own LUTs as well. When using LUTs, users can adjust the strength of the effect using an intensity slider. With respect to existing image adjustments, there have also been tweaks. For example, there are now hot pixel indicators in the software.

Considering the new Auto Enhance image adjustment, this works by analyzing the image on a variety of criteria before applying varying levels of different RAW Power adjustments. Auto Enhance can adjust highlights and shadows, change the exposure, adjust white balance and more.

RAW Power 3 for iOS includes many of the same improvements as RAW Power 3 for macOS, including the new image editing tools, including LUT integration. RAW Power 3 for iOS also includes the ability to reorder and organize your workspace, which is even more important when working on the smaller display of an iPhone or iPad.

The iOS version of RAW Power 3 for iPhone and iPad (shown above) includes a nearly identical feature set as the Mac version, including batch editing. For example, you can batch process and apply Auto Enhance to selected images, as shown in this screenshot. Image credit: Gentlemen Coders

With the latest version of RAW Power, users can now manage their images either in the native Photos application or in the iOS Files app. You can switch seamlessly between Photos and Files, although some iOS limitations result in edits, ratings, flags and filters not syncing over iCloud when working in Files.

The same new rating workflow from the Mac version carries over to iOS, representing a first for iCloud photographers on iOS. By utilizing ratings and flags, you can easily sort and filter your image library to quickly find specific images.

RAW Power 3 also includes new one-tap integration with the popular Halide camera application and Halide has added RAW Power to its quick-launch integration within the app’s photo reviewer.

If you use Portrait mode on your iOS device, RAW Power 3, like prior versions, can access the depth data in your image files. By utilizing this data, users can selectively adjust different areas of the image depending on how close or far the subject was from the lens. For example, you can adjust the highlights and shadows in the background and foreground independently while also adjusting the depth mask threshold. You can see the mask created using depth data in this screenshot from the iPad version of RAW Power 3. Image credit: Gentlemen Coders

For users of Apple’s Portrait mode on their iOS devices, RAW Power 3 can access the depth data in the image file and allow users to create depth maps for selective edits. You can access and edit using the depth data on both iOS and Mac versions of RAW Power.

RAW Power 3 for macOS and iOS is available today from the App Store. For existing owners of RAW Power 2, the update is free on both platforms. For new users, RAW Power 3 for macOS is $ 39.99 and RAW Power 3 for iOS is $ 9.99. RAW Power 3 for macOS runs on macOS Catalina and Mojave. On iOS, RAW Power 3 runs on iOS 12 and iOS 13, although the app does not support iPhone 5s, 6 or 6 Plus or iPad mini 3 or earlier.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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File Management Tips to Create a More Efficient Photography Workflow

22 Mar

The post File Management Tips to Create a More Efficient Photography Workflow appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jackie Lamas.

file management tips in photography

As you gain more clients, this also means that you’ll have to start implementing a more efficient workflow so that you can work quickly and get your images to your clients. In this article, we’re going to explain some file management tips to help you stay organized session to session.

file management tips

What is a photography workflow?

A workflow is a process in which a photographer has a file management system in place that helps them to get images edited and processed faster and more efficiently.

Basically, it’s a way to organize your images so that you can get them to your clients much faster. The way that a photographer manages their workflow can be different from person to person depending on what they photograph, their workloads, and what the end goal for their clients is.

file management tips

In time, you’ll be able to implement these file management tips so that your workflow is quick, and you’re able to deliver the images to your clients faster. You’ll also access the images on your hard drives quicker when you need them because they’ll be nice and organized.

Uploading the images

The first of the file management tips regards uploading your photos to your computer. Some like to go straight into Lightroom or the editing program and upload the images directly.

However, I recommend that you first upload your images onto your actual hard drive. This can be directly onto your computer’s hard drive, an external hard drive, or both. Uploading to both is the best option since sometimes computers can shut down or stop working and you wouldn’t want to lose your photos!

file management tips

Make sure to copy the images from the memory card rather than moving them. Doing this means if the upload didn’t go smoothly, you still have all of the images safe on the memory card.

Here are the steps to organize the Upload of your images onto your computer or external hard drive:

  • Create a folder with the year 2020
  • You can now create separate folders for the types of sessions you do. However, this is not required and it depends on how you want to manage your files.
  • Create a folder and name it according to the shoot date, last name of your client, a dash, then the location or something specific. For example 2020.03.06 Burns Family – Secrets Resort Puerto Vallarta
File Management Tips to Create a More Efficient Photography Workflow
File Management Tips to Create a More Efficient Photography Workflow

The location is optional, but it does help keep the information to the session together. It’s also good for searching later on when you want to find a location photo to post on social media or otherwise.

Renaming the images

Renaming images can seem like an added step, however, keeping the naming simple with numerical sequence, adds more organization in the end.

It’s tough when looking for an image by the original image name of IMG_ when it would be much quicker to remember the name and then look for an image that way.

file management tips

Rename with the last name, a dash, then the sequence number, for example, Burns-0001. Use more than three zeros so that you can safely number the images when you have more than one hundred images.

If you have more than a thousand, use another zero. This can keep all of your images organized and you won’t get jumping numbers from 01 and 11.

file management tips

When you import the images into your editing program, the renaming stays and will get saved the same when you’re finished editing. This is really helpful especially when the family wants a particular photo to order. They can simply use the sequence number and you can quickly find the image in the edited folder.

Importing into Lightroom

Now that you’ve organized the session into the yearly folder, session folder, and have renamed the files you’re ready to import into Lightroom.

Some photographers like to import the images straight from the memory card into Lightroom but creating the folders seems easier in Finder than in Lightroom. However, with time, you can choose how you want to import the photos that help your workflow work for you.

file management tips
Choose the “add” option a top to import the photos.

There are two different options to choose from when importing. You can simply add the photos, which is the simplest choice seeing that we’ve already backed them up onto your hard drive in the desired folders. Or the COPY option, which will create a duplicate of your image into a specific folder on your desktop. This usually creates a copy in another place and can take up unnecessary storage on your computer.

File Management Tips to Create a More Efficient Photography Workflow
Check the box Add to Collection and this window will popup. Name it with the year and shoot date so your catalog stays organized as well within Lightroom.

We’ll go with the ADD option today since we have put the originals in the specific folder we made earlier.

Check the Collection option and put them into a Collection with the date and name – just like we did in the source folder.

File Management Tips to Create a More Efficient Photography Workflow

This will make it easier to find the folders in the left sidebar while editing without making multiple duplicates or without getting lost in the Import or Folders section.

File Management Tips to Create a More Efficient Photography Workflow

Now we’re ready for editing!

Organized editing

In Lightroom, editing can seem like a lot of work. However, you’ll want to go through this process so that your workflow is quicker and editing time is minimized.

Use the color tags to choose your favorites. This is how I personally tag the photos using the number keys:

  • Number 9 is Blue for chosen images
  • Number 8 is green for additional editing – usually when I have to swap out ahead or do some major editing.
File Management Tips to Create a More Efficient Photography Workflow

After you’ve used the color of your choice for the chosen photos, at the bottom of the screen is a Filter option. Choose the blue square (or the colors you’ve chosen), so that all you see are the photos tagged Blue.

The great thing about using the filter and colors is that if you missed a photo somewhere, you can turn off the filter and go back and choose more photos to edit or tag.

File Management Tips to Create a More Efficient Photography Workflow
Here at the bottom right-hand corner, you can toggle the color filter to show or not show.

Alternatively, you can untag a photo and it will hide it from view. Then you can just edit the blue-tagged photos without additional clutter.

Using the color tags in the toggle on/off filter modes keeps your photos organized, in the same folder, and easy to edit.

Exporting your final images

The final of the file management tips is exporting your final images.

After you’ve edited your photos it’s now time to keep them organized so that you can find the final edited photos with ease.

Go into the Library window, with the color tag filter ON, choose all of the images you’ve edited with the Select All option, and click Export.

File Management Tips to Create a More Efficient Photography Workflow
We have only the blue tagged photos highlighted. Toggle the color filter on, select all images with that filter and then hit Export.

Choose the same folder your images are in, but create a subfolder with the words EDIT (or you can choose whichever name is best for you). This will create a folder within the original source folder on your hard drive.

File Management Tips to Create a More Efficient Photography Workflow

This keeps all of the images from that session in the same location, which makes it easier to find later on.

file management tips for better workflow
As you can see, the edit folder appears in the family session folder with the RAW files. The final jpeg images are named the same for easier referencing.

In conclusion

These file management tips will help you categorize and catalog your sessions so that you have a more efficient photography workflow from start to finish.

File Management Tips to Create a More Efficient Photography Workflow
When you search for the images you can now do so with the name or date. Makes looking for images much simpler when you have your files organized.

Do you have any other file management tips to better organize your workflow? Share with us in the comments.

The post File Management Tips to Create a More Efficient Photography Workflow appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jackie Lamas.


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6 Tips for a Faster Lightroom Workflow So You Can Get Back to Taking Photos!

20 Nov

The post 6 Tips for a Faster Lightroom Workflow So You Can Get Back to Taking Photos! appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.

faster-lightroom-workflow-tips

Many photographers rely on Lightroom to organize, edit and share their photos. While this software has a vast array of tools to help people in several key areas, it has not always been known for speed. Recent updates and GPU acceleration have helped, but if you really want to have a faster Lightroom workflow, there are some simple things you can do to supercharge your post-processing. These aren’t hacks or plugins, but simple tweaks to Lightroom that can make your life a lot easier.

6 Tips for a Faster Lightroom Workflow So You Can Get Back to Taking Photos!

1. Apply a preset when importing images

The first thing you can do for a faster Lightroom workflow is to apply a preset when importing images.

Lightroom has a mind-boggling number of options and sliders to adjust when editing images. If you find yourself using the same types of edits on most of your pictures, you can use Presets to shave hours off your editing. Most people already know this, but you might not be aware that you can apply Presets when initially importing your files.

On the right side of the Import screen, there is an option for “Apply During Import.” Use this to select one of the many presets built into Lightroom (or select one of your own that you may have saved) and have it automatically applied to your pictures as you import them.

faster Lightroom workflow

In the screenshot above, you can also see an option called Nikon RAW import. That’s a custom preset I made that contains specific adjustments I like to apply to my Nikon RAW files, which gets me to a good starting point when editing. That alone has helped me with a faster Lightroom workflow, but applying it to a batch of photos on import is even more of a speed boost.

Don’t worry about messing anything up if you apply presets on import. Like everything else in Lightroom, they are non-destructive, meaning you can always go back and change things later.

2. Sync settings across multiple images

If you have spent any time editing multiple similar images in Lightroom, particularly from an event or photo session with clients, you have no doubt found the Copy/Paste Settings to be useful. Right-click on any image in the Develop module and choose “Develop Settings->Copy Settings…” Then check the boxes next to any (or all!) the settings you want to copy.

Finally, go to another photo, right-click, and choose “Develop Settings->Paste Settings.” Or better yet, use Ctrl+C (cmd+C on mac) and Ctrl+V (cmd+V on mac) like you would on any word processor.

faster Lightroom workflow

I shot dozens of pictures of this wasp. The Sync Settings option let me instantly edit a single image and then apply those edits to all my other images in an instant.

This process works great, but what if you want to paste your settings on to five, ten, or a hundred images? Even the fast method of using Ctrl+V starts to feel like a chore.

Fortunately, there’s a better way.

faster Lightroom workflow

Image 21 is selected, and Images 17-20 are also highlighted. After clicking the Sync… button, all the edits from 21 will be applied to 17-20.

In the Develop module, select a single picture in the filmstrip at the bottom of the screen. Then hold down the [shift] key and select more images. Finally, click the “Sync…” button to synchronize any (or all) of your edits on the original image to the rest that are selected.

When I discovered this trick, I almost fell out of my chair! I didn’t just speed up my Lightroom editing. It supercharged my editing.

3. Straighten your pictures with the Auto button

I’m always a little leery of anything that says Auto when I’m editing pictures. I don’t need my computer to do what it thinks is best – I want my computer to do what I think is best! At best, I use some Auto options, like when setting white balance on RAW files, as a rough draft that I go and refine.

However, there is one Auto setting that I have learned to use over and over again. Learning to embrace Auto for straightening my photos has saved me a lot of time and really led to an overall faster Lightroom workflow.

Image: The Auto button in the Crop & Straighten panel can really help make things go faster when...

The Auto button in the Crop & Straighten panel can really help make things go faster when you need to straighten your photos.

The reason Auto works so well for straightening images is that it doesn’t try to make a guess which affects the artistic goals of the photographer. It simply looks for straight lines such as light poles, buildings, or horizons, and then adjusts images accordingly. It works far more than I initially thought. Plus, it can really speed things up when editing in Lightroom.

faster Lightroom workflow

My tripod was askew when I shot this, but Lightroom fixed it with a simple click of the Auto button.

4. Automatically organize with smart collections

Collections in Lightroom are an easy way to organize your images. You can create as many collections as you want, and one photo can exist in multiple collections. What you may not realize is that Lightroom lets you create Smart Collections, which are populated dynamically according to rules you specify.

To create a Smart Collection, choose the + button at the top-left of the Collections panel. Then select “Create Smart Collection…” and specify your parameters for the Smart Collection.

faster Lightroom workflow

As an example of how this can lead to a faster Lightroom workflow, I create Smart Collections to sort my photos by month for an entire year. I do this each January, and for the rest of the year my photos are automatically sorted month-by-month without me having to do anything.

Image: I create Smart Collections for my personal images at the beginning of each year. My images ar...

I create Smart Collections for my personal images at the beginning of each year. My images are then sorted automatically.

These Smart Collections also do not include any photos with the keyword “PhotoSession” which I apply to all images that I take for clients. Photos with that keyword go in another set of Smart Collections that I use to keep client images separate from personal photos.

Smart Collections can contain dozens of parameters including Rating, Pick Flag, Color Label, Keyword, even metadata such as camera model or focal length. They are an incredibly powerful but very simple way to make your day-to-day Lightroom editing significantly faster.

5. Multi-Batch Export

Lightroom has long offered customizable export presets. These allow you to export photos with certain parameters specified such as file type, image size, quality setting, and even specifying custom names.

faster Lightroom workflow

New in the November 2019 update to Lightroom Classic is the option to perform a single export operation that utilizes multiple Presets. This means you no longer have to do an export operation for full-size JPGs at 100% quality, another export for low-resolution proofs at 80% quality, and so on.

Just check any boxes in the Export dialog box for the presets you want, and Lightroom will take care of the rest!

Image: The November 2019 update to Lightroom Classic lets you select multiple presets for a single e...

The November 2019 update to Lightroom Classic lets you select multiple presets for a single export operation.

This is a great way to save time when you are ready to export your images. It’s not the kind of workflow addition that will change your life, but it’s another simple but highly effective process you can utilize to shave precious minutes from your editing. And as someone who exports a lot of photos regularly, those minutes add up.

6. Cull on Lightroom Mobile

One of my favorite aspects of the Adobe Creative Cloud Photography plan is the synchronization between Lightroom Classic and Lightroom Mobile. While the mobile version of Lightroom isn’t as full-featured as its desktop-based big brother, it does one thing incredibly well that has made a huge difference for me when editing photos for clients.

Click the checkbox next to any Collection to sync those photos with Lightroom CC. This means you can access low-resolution previews of all those images on the web, your phone, or tablet. (Note that this does not work with Smart Collections, only regular Collections.)

6 Tips for a Faster Lightroom Workflow So You Can Get Back to Taking Photos!

I don’t find Lightroom Mobile particularly useful for detailed editing, but it absolutely runs circles around the desktop version when it comes to culling operations. If you have an iPad, this could honestly change your entire approach to culling your images. It also works pretty well on other mobile devices too.

Load a picture in any collection that you have synced to Lightroom CC and then click the Star icon in the lower-right corner. This switches to a mode where you can quickly assign star ratings or flags to any picture. Tap one of the Flag or Star icons at the bottom of the screen to change the status of the image. A quick swipe of your finger will load the next image.

faster Lightroom workflow

Tap the star icon in the lower-right corner of Lightroom Mobile to quickly assign Flags and Star Ratings with a swipe of your finger.

This is all well and good, but there’s one trick here that will send your culling into overdrive.

Slide a finger up or down on the right side of the photo to change the Flag status. Slide a finger up or down on the left side to assign a Star rating. Then swipe to the next image and repeat.

All your edits on Lightroom Mobile, including Star ratings and Flag statuses, are instantly synced back to Lightroom Classic on your computer.

I’m not kidding about the speed of this operation, either.

I used to dread the culling process, but now it takes a fraction of the time it used to. A few weeks ago, I returned from a photo session with over 1,100 images. In about an hour, I was able to cull them to a fraction of that amount, thanks to Lightroom Mobile.

Image: There were hundreds of images from this session that I had to sort through. Lightroom Desktop...

There were hundreds of images from this session that I had to sort through. Lightroom Desktop makes this a burden, but Lightroom Mobile makes it a breeze.

All six of these tips have saved me a huge amount of time over the years. I hope they are useful to you as well.

If you have any other tricks or suggestions for a faster Lightroom workflow, leave them in the comments below!

The post 6 Tips for a Faster Lightroom Workflow So You Can Get Back to Taking Photos! appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.


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Your Workflow for Styling Food Photography

05 Nov

The post Your Workflow for Styling Food Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darina Kopcok.

styling-food-photography

The success of any shoot relies on the timing and organization of the various elements to your workflow. There are so many things to remember when shooting. In food photography, forgetting one detail can make the difference between a great picture and one that is so-so. Here are my tips on what to consider during every stage of your food shoot and styling food photography.

styling-food-photography

Choose the right lens

Like with any genre of photography, choosing the right lens for what you’re trying to achieve is essential. In food photography, you can get a lot of mileage out of a couple of key lenses.

One of these is a 100mm/110mm macro lens if you’re shooting with a camera with a full-frame sensor. The macro capabilities will allow you to take the tight shots of ingredients or dishes, but you can also step back to take beautiful “food portraits.” This can make it a really versatile lens.

Another important lens is a 50mm. This will allow you to take overhead shots, and it’s a good lens to have for food portraits as well. Just keep in mind that on a full-frame, a 50mm is actually a wide-angle lens for food photography. You might need to use large backgrounds, and you can also end up getting distortion when shooting at a 3/4 angle — another good reason to have 100mm macro in your kit.

A 35mm lens is best suited to overhead shots and capturing large spreads of food and some lifestyle type of shots.

If you have the budget for it, I recommend a 24-70mm, as it’s an excellent all-around food photography lens.

Your Workflow for Styling Food Photography

Check your camera settings and exposure

If you want to shoot food, it’s best to set your camera to take RAW images. JPEG images are processed, which is handy, but they have a very limited color range as opposed to a RAW file. They also degrade in quality each time you retouch them, whereas you can edit RAW images as much as required without losing important information.

Do what you can to obtain the best exposure in-camera. Getting things right in-camera saves you a lot of time. It’s much harder and more time-consuming to try to fix things in post-production, and you still can’t always get as good of a result as you would if you just took the time to get things right in-camera.

When shooting in natural light, put your white balance on Auto and correct it in post-production if you need to. If you’re shooting with flash, be sure to set it to Daylight white balance.

If you’re using artificial light, set your ISO to 100. Your shutter speed should not exceed the sync speed of your camera. If you don’t know that, you’ll have to look it up. It’s generally around 200.

When shooting in natural light, use a tripod and lower your shutter speed to account for lower light conditions rather than cranking up your ISO, which will give your images unwanted noise.

Your Workflow for Styling Food Photography

Harness the light

Before you put the “hero” food down on the table, do a lighting test with a stand-in that is a similar shape and size of the dish you are shooting. Food dies very quickly, so you don’t want it sitting around while you’re tinkering with your lights.

Soft light is usually best for food photography, so use a diffuser, scrim, or translucent fabric to diffuse the light. In most cases, directional light (coming from one direction) will look best. Use black cardboard to create shadows, white cardboard or reflectors to kick in light or fill shadows.

The light should come from the side, the back, or somewhere in between to be most flattering to food. Never use front light – it looks great in portraits, but is too flat for food and will cause unwanted shadows on your set.

styling-food-photography

Choose the right surfaces and backdrops

Styling food photography also includes your surfaces. Your surface is what you place your food on. The backdrop is what goes behind your scene.

Slightly textured backgrounds and surfaces add more dimension and interest. But you can have too much of a good thing; a lot of texture will detract from the food, so tread lightly.

Avoid backgrounds or wood surfaces that are orange in tone, which looks unattractive with food. Most food is warm-toned, so a cool or neutral backdrop will make it pop. A warm backdrop with warm food can end up looking dated.

When choosing custom backdrops, avoid those that are shiny or reflective in any way. Metallic paint, black marble and such will be difficult to work with. A lot of matte varnishes also end up having a bit of glare, so do a patch test first.

Get creative with your surfaces and backdrops. Tablecloths, tissue paper, craft paper, canvas, linen, cheesecloth are all inexpensive DIY backdrops you can use.

 Choose the right props and shooting them correctly

There is a reason that “prop stylist” is a whole occupation on its own. Don’t underestimate how powerful the right props can be.

The key is to not over-prop your scene. One or two props are often all you need unless you’re telling a wider food story like a tablescape. Too many props distract from your food.

It’s also vital that you use dishes and flatware that are on the smaller size. Props can often appear to the camera much larger than they really are, and dominate the image.

Go for matte dishes as much as possible. You can manage reflections in glass and cutlery by spraying them with “Dulling Spray” by Krylon.

You can also use a polarizing filter to cut down on reflections, although you’ll lose 1-2 stops in doing so.

Your Workflow for Styling Food Photography

Food styling tips

Use garnishes, herbs, seasonings, crumbs etc to create interest and texture on your set. Use them sparingly though, to avoid a messy look.

Keep herbs fresh by storing them between sheets of wet paper towels. You can also put them in a Mason jar filled with water to make them last longer.

When dressings salads, do so at the last minute, and always have extra dressings and sauces ready to brush on your food subjects.

One great tip used by pro food stylists is to use citric acid, a product like “Fruit Fresh,”  to keep produce fresh-looking. Simply dissolve it in water and soak fruits and vegetables in the solution for 1/2 an hour. To keep a misted look on produce without having the water droplets evaporate quickly, use glycerine mixed with water and spray it on the items.

A food photographer should always have a food styling kit with items like brushes, cotton swabs, water spritzers, and squeeze bottles to bring to shoots. Other important items for your kit are drinking straws, tweezers, paper towel, and clean cloths.

Your Workflow for Styling Food Photography

Be aware of composition

Composition is a big subject and it can have a lot of impact on your food photography. Without it, the eye loses interest in what’s in the frame.

When shooting, check that you don’t have too much empty/passive space; crop tighter or rearrange your composition. On the other hand, you can shoot a bit wider to give yourself more leeway for cropping your compositions in post-production.

Remember that odd numbers of elements create balance and harmony, while even numbers compete with one another and weaken the impact of the image. There are many other principles of composition, like the Golden Mean, as well as leading lines, patterns, repetition, and texture.

Color is also a part of composition, so think carefully about how the colors of your props and backdrops complement your food.

Colors that are opposite the color wheel are called “complementary colors” and are especially pleasing to the eye.

Shooting your image

It’s best to shoot with a tripod and tether to your computer or laptop so you can see a larger and more accurate rendition of your image on the screen.

If you’re working with clients, they will expect you to shoot tethered. You’ll need to be able to show them every image and get their approval before moving on to the next shot to avoid them coming back to you, saying they didn’t like the image.

Shoot at a minimum of f/5.6 if you’re shooting overhead images

As for your aperture in general, f/5.6 or f/8 is a good default for food shots. You can have some nice bokeh with more of the food in focus.

While you’re shooting, don’t forget to take an image with a grey card or Color Checker to properly white balance in post-processing.

styling-food-photography

Focus and angle

To get the correct focus and angle, think about which would best complement the food and show it to the best advantage.

Overhead shots are the most graphic and work for many types of flat foods, such as pizza. They’re also a great way of getting more elements into the shot because the depth becomes flattened.

Use lower angles or straight-on angles for tall foods, such as burgers and stacks of pancakes. Keep in mind that lower angles create more surface shine

In general, you usually want to focus on the front of the food.

styling-food-photography

Post-Processing

Everyone has their own personalized workflow, but here are some tips for editing and retouching that you might find helpful.

If you use Lightroom, work on virtual copies of your files and keep the original untouched. Organize your images in Collections and input metadata that will help you find certain images according to keywords and other attributes.

If you’re more of a Photoshop person, save working copies as you retouch to avoid losing your work. Make sure you are using the correct color space for your purposes.

Always back up your RAW files and your work in at least three places, including a cloud backup system.

Your Workflow for Styling Food Photography

Your workflow for styling food photography: conclusion

There are a lot of details to remember while shooting and styling food photography. Hopefully, these workflow points can function as a kind of checklist for you of all things to keep in mind so you can take your images to the next level.

Do you have any other tips on styling food photography that you’d like to share? Please do so in the comments!

The post Your Workflow for Styling Food Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darina Kopcok.


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How to Use Lightroom Mobile to Speed Up Your Workflow

14 Aug

The post How to Use Lightroom Mobile to Speed Up Your Workflow appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.

One of the common complaints about Lightroom Classic is that it’s just not as fast as some photographers expect. When I get back from a session with hundreds of RAW files to process, the thought of going through each of them one-by-one is enough to give me a headache. The few seconds it takes Lightroom to load each photo for flagging or cropping can be enough to make you want to quit photography altogether! Fortunately, if you subscribe to Creative Cloud you have options. In this article, you’ll learn how to use Lightroom Mobile to dramatically increase the speed of your workflow.

How to Use Lightroom Mobile to Speed Up Your Workflow

One of my favorite aspects of the Adobe Creative Cloud subscription is how you can take advantage of many of the features of Lightroom Mobile even if you don’t store your primary images in the cloud. You can store bite-size previews of your images from Lightroom Classic in your Creative Cloud account, which you can then load on a mobile device for editing.

After you finish editing on your mobile device, all the changes will be automatically synced back to Lightroom Classic on your computer. I use this technique all the time now, especially for culling and cropping after a long photoshoot. I think you might find it incredibly useful as well.

Sync with Lightroom

The first thing you need to do is enable syncing between Lightroom Classic and your Creative Cloud account. Click on your name in the top-left of the Lightroom Library module and choose “Start” under “Sync with Lightroom.”

How-to-Use-Lightroom-Mobile-to-speed-up-your-workflow

This will then enable you to start syncing your edits. One thing to note is that if you have a basic 20GB Photography plan, the photos you sync will not count against your storage quota. That is only for images you upload directly to Lightroom Mobile or Lightroom CC, as well as any documents you have stored in your Creative Cloud Files.

After Sync is enabled, you can selectively sync any individual collection by clicking the arrow icon just to the left of its name.

How to Use Lightroom Mobile to Speed Up Your Workflow

This will start uploading previews of each image to your Creative Cloud account. While this is happening you can see the upload status by looking above your name in the top-left corner.

How to Use Lightroom Mobile to Speed Up Your Workflow

Completing the initial synchronization will take a few minutes or more depending on the speed of your internet connection. The individual preview files being uploaded are quite small, but if you sync an album with a few thousand images it might take longer than you expect.

One thing to note is that you can only sync collections that have been created manually by you. Smart albums, which are created dynamically according to rules you specify, are not possible to sync with Lightroom Mobile.

Edit on Lightroom Mobile

When the sync operation is complete, load Lightroom Mobile on a phone or tablet and the collections you synced will show up in your Albums list.

How-to-Use-Lightroom-Mobile-to-speed-up-your-workflow

If you have never used Lightroom Mobile before you’re going to be amazed at how quickly you can perform operations like moving from one photo to the next, flagging/rejecting, cropping, or pretty much anything else you might do in Lightroom Classic.

How-to-Use-Lightroom-Mobile-to-speed-up-your-workflow

Upon loading your images into Lightroom Mobile, you can quickly swipe between them to check for focus and composition. Simple gestures like swipe up on the left to assign a star rating and swipe up/down on the right to mark a picture as Pick or Rejected make the editing process much faster than Lightroom Classic. A few taps will let you quickly crop, rotate, and make basic exposure adjustments.

As far as individual features go, the two programs are almost the same. However, the mobile version has an interface designed around touch instead of a mouse/keyboard combo. This means some things don’t behave quite how you might expect, but once you get the hang of things, it’s not bad at all.

Image: Lightroom on an iPad, even a basic version and not an iPad Pro, is extremely fast, fluid, and...

Lightroom on an iPad, even a basic version and not an iPad Pro, is extremely fast, fluid, and easy.

Since the images synced between Lightroom Classic and Lightroom Mobile are small previews and not full-resolution originals I would recommend against using the latter to check for accurate focus or do highly detailed adjustments. I find Lightroom Mobile most useful for just the basics like flagging and cropping, but your own usage might vary.

How-to-Use-Lightroom-Mobile-to-speed-up-your-workflow

Lightroom on a mobile device lets you access almost all of the editing options on the desktop version, but I prefer to use it for just a few basics.

Sync back to Lightroom Classic

The beauty of this entire process is that as soon as your edits are applied to a photo, you don’t have to manually re-sync anything. Any edits you make automatically copy back to your original Lightroom files on your desktop. All you have to do is load up that program, wait for automatic sync to finish, and your pictures are ready for further edits.

Ever since I started using this Desktop->Mobile->Desktop workflow for my initial culling and cropping, I have found myself enjoying the whole process. I’ll sit back on my sofa or relax with a drink at the kitchen table while rapidly flipping through pictures on my iPad for the first round of edits. I’ll then return to my desktop, and the rest of the editing is much less stressful.

Image: Finding the best photos out of a batch of 600 is much, much faster when using Lightroom Mobil...

Finding the best photos out of a batch of 600 is much, much faster when using Lightroom Mobile.

This may seem a bit overwhelming at first. However, once you try this process, you will be surprised at how easy it is.

What about you? Do you have any other tips for speeding up your Lightroom workflow? Share them in the comments below!

 

How-to-Use-Lightroom-Mobile-to-speed-up-your-workflow

The post How to Use Lightroom Mobile to Speed Up Your Workflow appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Simon Ringsmuth.


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Datacolor announces two new SpyderX Tool Kits for an all-in-one color correction workflow

19 Jun

Datacolor has launched two new kits that bundle together some of its most popular color correction tools to simplify the color workflow of photographers from capture to print.

SpyderX Capture Pro tool suite

The SpyderX Capture Pro is a bundle designed to offer the most essential components in a color workflow. It includes Datacolor’s Spyder LensCal, Spyder Cube, Spyder Checkr and SpyderX Elite, each of which are designed to play an integral role in the image capture and editing process.

SpyderX Studio tool suite

The SpyderX Studio bundle, on the other hand, includes tools not only for calibrating your camera and monitor, but also your printer. It includes the Spyder Cube, SpyderX Elite and Spyder Print.

If the items in these bundles were purchased on their own, the SpyderX Capture Pro tool suite would cost around $ 370 and the SpyderX Studio around $ 675, based on the retail price of the individual components. Through July 14, 2019, Datacolor is selling the SpyderX Capture Pro bundle through its website and authorized retailers for $ 320 and the SpyderX Studio bundle for $ 400 as part of an introductory offer. After that, the prices will increase to $ 400 and $ 500, respectively.

Press release:

Datacolor Launches SpyderX Tool Kits for Digital Photographers

Lawrenceville, New Jersey, USA, June 18, 2019 – Datacolor®, a global leader in color management solutions, announced the launch of two new product bundles for photographers to manage their color workflow: SpyderX Capture Pro and SpyderX Studio. Both include the recently launched SpyderX color calibrator for monitors – the most accurate, fastest (4X faster) and easiest-to-use Spyder, ever.

SpyderX Capture Pro provides all the essentials needed to precisely manage color from image capture through editing, and includes:

  • Spyder LensCal – Calibrate cameras, lenses and DSLR components.
  • Spyder Cube – Set white balance and RAW conversion.
  • Spyder Checkr – Next-level camera color calibration.
  • SpyderX Elite – Professional monitor calibration.

SpyderX Studio is the essential all-in-one photographic workflow solution for precision control from capture, to editing to print, and includes:

  • Spyder Cube – Set white balance and RAW conversion.
  • SpyderX Elite– Professional monitor calibration.
  • Spyder Print – Printer profiling for any printer/ink/paper combination.

Datacolor is kicking off the launch of these two products with a special 20% savings introductory offer. From June 18 through July 14, 2019, you can purchase the SpyderX Capture Pro for $ 319.99 (reg. $ 399.99) or the SpyderX Studio for $ 399.99 (reg. $ 499.99).

SpyderX Capture Pro and SpyderX Studio can be purchased at spyderx.datacolor.com, Amazon or with authorized resellers.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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