The post 8 Core Lightroom Retouching Techniques to Enhance Your Photos appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darina Kopcok.
Adobe Lightroom is the preferred RAW editor for many photographers. It’s user friendly, yet has many powerful features to help you get the most out of your photos. Here are the core Lightroom retouching techniques to get more out of your photographs.
1. Start with your histogram
The histogram is the first step in retouching using Lightroom. It mathematically represents the tonal range of a given photograph. The tonal range considers all the tones between the darkest part and the lightest part of your image.
The histogram maps out the brightness area in the photo in grayscale. Black is situated on the left side of the histogram, while white is on the right. You can find all the shades of grey in between. Every shade has a scale of brightness values. For a standard JPG image, there are 256 different recorded values of brightness, “0” being pure black and “255” pure white.
Learning how to read your histogram is important because it will tell you whether your photo is properly exposed or not. If you have pixels touching the very ends of your histogram, your photo is either underexposed or overexposed
Unfortunately, you can’t recover these missing details with Lightroom retouching techniques.
2. Choose the correct Color Profile
Before you start the retouching process, you should decide on a color profile, as it will make a significant difference in the color and contrast in your photo.
You can find the Color Profiles in the Basic panel. You can choose from Adobe profiles or from color profiles from your camera.
3. Get a base with the Tone Curve
Before making exposure adjustments in the Basic panel, it’s a good idea to get a base with the Tone Curve.
The Tone Curve is a graphical representation of the tones found throughout your image. By making tweaks to the curve, you can influence the look of the shadows and highlights.
I recommend starting by lifting the curve at the midpoint when in the Point Curve. This will boost the midtones and contrast, which looks attractive in most images.
Pull the curve down in the bottom quarter of the curve to deepen the shadows. These simple tweaks can make your image immediately look more dynamic.
Mid-tone lift in Tone Curve.
If you’re new to the Tone Curve, you might be more comfortable starting with the sliders in the Region Curve. This won’t give you as much control as the Point Curve but will help you make significant changes to the aesthetic of your image.
Once you’ve made other edits to your image, you can come back to the Tone Curve for further tweaks.
Retouching is a process of building and assessing, so you’ll most likely have to jump around from one panel in Lightroom to another until you get a look that you’re satisfied with.
Tone Curve for apricots image.
4. Tweak the Basic Panel
the Basic panel
The next step is to correct your White Balance.
Keep in mind that White Balance can be set in-camera to be 100% accurate, or can be used creatively if you’re not striving for a correct white. For example, if your style is warmer in tone, you can push your white balance above 6000+ to give it a golden look.
I kept my image on the cooler side because I wanted to bring out the blue and emphasize the complementary color choice to make my apricots pop.
Once you’ve made the best white balance, make any necessary edits to the Highlights, Shadows, and Whites and Blacks in the Basic Panel.
If your image doesn’t look correctly exposed in these areas, you can then adjust the exposure. However, I don’t recommend starting there. It’ll boost the exposure in all those areas, which may not be what the image needs.
5. Layer Contrast and add Vibrance in the Presence Panel
When retouching in Lightroom, I recommend using the Vibrance slider instead of Saturation.
Vibrance lifts the mid-tones. Saturation boosts all the color in the image, which can make it look unnatural and clownish. If you do choose to use the Saturation slider, watch how it affects your picture as you move the slider. A maximum of +10 is usually more than enough.
Be sure to add a bit of Clarity, which will boost the contrast in the image. The best retouching is often the result of layering various effects at low numbers, rather than adding a high amount of any one tool, such as Contrast.
To create contrast, you can use a combination of Contrast, Clarity, Texture, and the Tone Curve. Even a touch of Dehaze works great for a lot of images.
6. Adjust color in the HSL Panel
Color has a huge impact on your image. Color is an aspect of composition and crucial to the aesthetic of your photography. The HSL panel in Lightroom is where you will do the most color treatment.
Unless your aesthetic is quite warm, you might want to bring the orange saturation down a bit in your photos. It tends to look too strong. Also, pay attention to the Luminance sliders and use them instead of Saturation to control brightness, as they control the brightness of individual colors.
Before and After Lightroom Retouching – Shot at F9 on 50mm at 1/200 1SO 100
7. Try Split Toning in the highlights and shadows
Split Toning is a Lightroom tool that you can use to great effect when it comes to Lightroom retouching techniques. Split Toning adds color toning to the highlights and shadows individually, based on luminance.
However, note that a little goes a long way.
To add split toning, hold down the Alt/Option key while you move the sliders for Highlights and Shadows. This will allow you to see the variations for each color and pre-visualize how it will look applied to the image.
Dial-in as much saturation as you feel appropriate for the image. This is usually a low number. A small amount is often all you need to make your images more dynamic.
Split-toning is sometimes overlooked or used with too heavy of a hand, but with a subtle approach, it’s a very effective Lightroom retouching technique.
8. Enhance with local adjustments
Local adjustments are applied to a localized area in an image rather than globally. They only affect the part of the image selected. This allows you to fine tune your photo and have more control over your final result. You can use them to correct problem areas or to create a certain effect.
The local adjustment tools are:
the Graduated Filter
The Graduated Filter is for filtered effects and creating evenness throughout the image.
the Radial Filter
The Radial Filter helps you easily isolate subjects for retouching.
the Adjustment Brush
Layer your local adjustments to create targeted and powerful results.
The Adjustment Brush helps you create masks for localized retouching by brushing them on.
the Spot Removal tool
The Spot Removal tool gets rid of blemishes or small objects in the image. The Adjustment Brush is for creating free-form masks, while the Radial Filter is used to isolate subjects.
Range masks have been added to three of the local adjustment tools to allow you to target color and luminance.
The key to enhancing your images with local adjustments is to use a combination of the tools for subtle adjustments, as well as adjusting the opacity or feathering of the tool to create subtle transitions.
Using local adjustments is one of the most powerful Lightroom retouching techniques.
Conclusion
You’ll get the best result in Lightroom by layering the different tools. For example, don’t just use the Contrast slider to add contrast and call it a day. Layer the contrast with small adjustments to the Tone Curve, Dehaze, and Clarity for a subtle and effective look.
Every photographer develops a workflow that works effectively for them. Hopefully, these core Lightroom retouching techniques will help you fine-tune your editing process.
If you have any other Lightroom retouching techniques you’d like to share, please do so in the comments section.
The post 8 Core Lightroom Retouching Techniques to Enhance Your Photos appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darina Kopcok.
The post How to Publish a Photography Zine to Promote Your Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Matt Murray.
Until a couple of years ago, I’d never considered publishing a photography book or zine. Years ago, the self-publishing options weren’t very attractive to me: they were either expensive and complicated or offered templated cookie-cutter style books that didn’t appeal.
In recent times, new publishers specialising in short-run zines have sprung into the marketplace, making it much easier for photographers to get their work into print. Inspired by other photographers producing zines, I have just published my own. Here is my guide on how to publish a photography zine to promote your photography.
What’s a zine?
A zine is a self-published booklet of images and text, often produced in limited edition print runs. The word zine (pronounced zeen) is derived from both the word magazine and also the word fanzine – unofficial publications produced by fans of a particular movement in popular culture. Zines were usually put together by hand, then photocopied and stapled.
Copies of my first film photography zine Every Summer. I also had limited edition art print postcards created to celebrate the launch.
These days the term zine is commonly used to refer to any short-run booklet of photography and/or images. There are so many creative choices that you can make when you publish a photography zine. The look and feel of the final product are up to you, and the lines between a zine and a book are often blurred.
For example, my first photography zine Every Summer is perfect bound, meaning the pages are glued together into the spine without a staple. It’s full-color, printed on uncoated paper, and the cover has a smooth laminate finish. It falls somewhere between the extremes of a do-it-yourself stapled zine and a high-end coffee table book.
So now you know what a zine is, your next question might be, why publish a photography zine? I’ve outlined a few reasons below.
Seeing your images in print is magical
One of the most frequently said things about photography in the digital age is that we’ve ended up with tens of thousands of images on devices and hard drives that are hard to access and view. There’s nothing quite like having an image in your hands – whether it’s an instant photo, a print, or your own book or zine.
Close-up of my first photography zine Every Summer. Holding it in my hands for the first time was magical.
Seeing my first photography zine in print was so much more satisfying than seeing images on a computer screen. Creating a zine also ties together the set of images as a collection, with a single narrative throughout. A zine is a perfect way to showcase your images to others.
Use a zine to promote your photography
Publishing a photography zine is a fantastic way to promote your photography. A zine could be used as an alternative to (or in addition to) your digital offerings.
I recently showed my first zine to a professional photographer friend and he said it was a really interesting concept he’d consider for promoting his wedding photography business.
In this digital age, a zine could be a way of standing out from the crowd by providing something tangible people can hold in their hands that promotes your photography.
Creating a zine as a tool for personal growth
Publishing a zine is such a rewarding project. As a photographer, there are many other skills you’ll potentially need to learn or improve to get your zine into production. Design, editing, writing, printing and marketing: these are just some of the skill sets you’ll use.
Once you create your zine, you can send it to your favorite clients, give it away to leads at events and shows, and, of course, send it as a gift to family and friends. You never know who might end up seeing it.
Blurring the lines between a zine and a book, my first self-published work “Every Summer” is perfect bound.
Creating a zine is also addictive – once you create your first, you’ll no doubt be thinking of your second. So, if you’d like to publish a photography zine, where do you start?
Zine ideas
The concept of most zines or books revolves around an idea. Your zine could be made up of images from a road trip, a wedding, your favorite city, or your neighborhood.
A zine could also show off a photographic style, a personal project, tell a story through images, or be a showcase of your best work. It can also be a combination of all of those things or none of them – it’s up to you.
My first zine is a collection of images that I took on the Isle of Wight in England. When I reviewed the images in the weeks after my holiday, I felt there was a certain magic to them, so I decided to put together a zine.
It’s also becoming increasingly common for photographers to collaborate on zines together, typically with the same subject or style in mind.
Choose your images
Choosing and editing your images is a process in itself.
It’s not necessarily about choosing all the best images but choosing images that work well together and continue a narrative throughout your publication. For example, there were some images that I loved from the Isle of Wight, but there didn’t seem to be a point in the zine where it made sense to include them, so I left them out in favor of other images.
The first 20 pages of my zine Every Summer in acontact sheet view. Choose images that work well together and continue a narrative. Also, note the double-page spread on pages 6-7.
Some people find it beneficial to print out small copies of their images and arrange them on the floor to work out an image order. I tried this approach, but I found that it just left me with a stack of paper to put in the recycling bin. I found it easier to rate images in Lightroom and then drag them onto pages in InDesign, where I could play around with the layout.
To add text or not to add text?
There are two schools of thought around adding words to a photo zine or book. The first is that the photos should do the talking and everything else is a distraction. The second is that well-thought-out text adds context to the images and makes it a more rewarding experience for the reader.
Generally, I fall into the latter school of thought.
I decided to add passages of text to my zine for one simple reason – I wanted to introduce locations by recounting anecdotes from when I visited these places on the Isle of Wight. These passages detailed what attracted me to photograph those locations.
Adding text throughout my zine gave me the opportunity to provide context to the locations I photographed on the Isle of Wight.
Either way, it’s commonplace to write an introduction at the start of your zine or book. This should introduce yourself to the reader and explain your motivation behind producing the zine and your relationship to the images.
For example, in my photography zine Every Summer, I reflected on my relationship with England, my home for over a decade, and how travel photography has influenced the style of images I take. In my introduction, I also added my contact details so readers could send me feedback about the zine.
Zine design
The design of your zine can be as simple or as complex as you like. Some online publishing companies have their own software that makes it as easy as possible for you to choose a layout, drag and drop photos, and add some text.
With other zine publishers, you can create your own design in software programs like Adobe InDesign and then upload them as a PDF for printing. Always make sure you read and understand the instructions your printer gives you about document set-up and exporting your publication – especially with regards to the quality of your images, color space, page bleed, and margins.
Of course, you can also work with the book module in Lightroom too.
Many pages in my zine follow a standard layout. This is broken up by double-page spreads and full-page photos throughout the zine.
Creating your zine in InDesign also gives you the flexibility to produce an electronic PDF version of your zine to distribute to people. You can also do that with the first option, but some online publishing companies charge an extra fee to download a PDF copy of your work. You can also create a PDF version in the Lightroom Book Module too.
Whichever road you go down, remember that simplicity is often at the heart of good design. Try and stick to a standard way of displaying your photos throughout the book, with the occasional breakout from that design for a double-page spread or full-page photograph.
Simplicity should also be front of mind when working out your choice of font. Don’t choose too many fonts to work with and always make sure they’re easy to read. For my photography zine Every Summer, I chose two fonts.
Part of the introduction to my first photography zine. I explained who I was, my motivations for putting the zine together, and my relationship to the subject matter.
For headings, I chose a retro font that captured the spirit of the 1970s. This matched the subject matter of some of my images such as the retro ice-cream van and the seaside pier at Sandown. For body text, I used a typewriter-style font that is easy to read, and also conveys some of that retro charm.
Print vs screen
Looking at images on a screen is not the same as looking at images in print. Digital images are usually in the RGB color space, which has a wider color gamut than the CMYK color space used for printing. Our screens are also back-lit, so often digital images look brighter and more saturated than images exported for print.
At some stage, your publication will be converted to the CMYK format. Some online publishers do this process automatically for you, but if you are uploading a PDF to a printer, they will typically ask you to supply a PDF in the CMYK color space. Always check with your printer on the exact settings to use.
Seeing your images in the CMYK color space for the first time can be a bit of a shock: it has a narrower gamut than RGB, which means that not all colors from the RGB color space can be displayed when printed. This means some colors may look slightly different in the printed version. For example, the vivid blues, yellows, and oranges of the ice-cream van on the front of my zine are not quite that vivid in the print version, but they’re close.
Laying out images and text for my zine in Adobe InDesign. A lot of people shy away from InDesign, but it really isn’t difficult to pick up, especially if you’re familiar with Adobe Photoshop.
Zine format and size
When you publish a photography zine, you will also need to decide on the dimensions of your zine and how many pages it will have. Remember, the more pages your zine has, the more expensive it will be to produce and potentially ship to customers.
For my first zine, I chose a square 210mm by 210mm format (just over 8 inches). I’d seen a friend’s zine using the same dimensions and it felt like a good size to me. Square pages also have an advantage: they suit portrait-orientation images, landscape-orientation images, and square images.
Another consideration is the type and weight of paper you want your zine printed on. There is usually a range of types including satin, gloss, uncoated, and even recycled. Many publishers will send you a sample of their papers for free. This sample pack will also help you decide on the weight (thickness) of different paper stocks.
Many online printers offer a wide range of choices for your publication.
Final review
When you’ve finished your layout and have a zine ready to publish, check everything as many times as you can. After you’ve completed your checks, ask a trusted friend to do the same. I made one small error with my zine and it still annoys me. As it turns out, a couple of people I sold my zine to didn’t even notice it.
If you’ve never printed anything before, you can also get in contact with your printer to ask for their advice on your publication. For example, you could ask them if the images are good enough quality to print, if the layout will work, if you’ve done the page bleed and margins correctly, and if you exported your PDF in the correct color space.
When you’re satisfied that everything is correct, it’s time to print.
If you’re a little nervous about the final product, order the smallest quantity that is financially practical. This will give you the opportunity to check you’re happy with everything before another print run.
After that, it’s time to show your zine to the world! I’ve sold my zine via my website to friends, family, listeners of my podcast, and others in the photography community. For the launch, I even had some art print postcards created featuring three images from the zine as a bonus for my customers.
Exporting my zine from Adobe InDesign. Find out what settings you should be using from your printer for the best results.
Conclusion
I hope this article has been helpful for those wishing to publish a photography zine. Self-publishing can be a lot of work, but ultimately, it’s a very rewarding process. There are so many skills related to photography that you can learn and improve, adding to the creative challenge.
Seeing your images in print for the first time in a publication that you’ve created is very special. I’ve learned so much creating my first photography zine and plan to create another in the coming months.
Whether it’s just for fun, a creative challenge, or to promote your business, learning how to publish a photography zine is a fantastic way to get your images in front of other people and reach a wider audience.
If you have any questions about the zine-making process, please let me know in the comments below.
The post How to Publish a Photography Zine to Promote Your Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Matt Murray.
The post Heaps of Fun Creative Photography Ideas to Keep Your Photography-Juices Flowing appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.
This week, I thought I would compile a few videos of creative photography ideas that will get your photography juices flowing.
These videos are from Jordi Koalitic, who shares some of his unique, fun ideas.
Some of these you can do in your own home or out and about. Check them out, try them out, and share some of your photos with us in the comments section!
Still looking for more creative ideas?
Then you may also like:
10 Great At-Home Creative Photography Ideas
Creative Photography Exercises to do at Home (video)
10 Creative DIY Photo IDEAS when Stuck at Home (video)
Creative Abstract Photography with Food Coloring and Milk
Creative Water Photography – A Step-by-Step Guide to Making Water Monsters
Creative Photography Exercises: Setting Limitations to Achieve Better Photography
How to Use a Pinhole Body Cap for Awesome, Creative Photography
The post Heaps of Fun Creative Photography Ideas to Keep Your Photography-Juices Flowing appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.
The post Black and White are Rarely Black or White appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Herb Paynter.
There are very few absolutes in this life. Most issues we face fall into more “gray areas” than the purely polar dictionary definitions of actual black and white. We use these terms rather cavalierly when expressing personal opinions even when real-life situations are anything but! This is also true in a number of photography-related issues. Since photography is the topic de jour, I’ll turn the conversation in that direction. I’ll explain to you how black and white are rarely black or white.
Total black and white can lose important detail. Occasionally this is appropriate for drama, but in general, even the darkest areas of an image should contain contrasting tones. f/9, 1/250, ISO 200, 70.0-200.0 mm f/2.8.
The hard facts
Black is the total absence of light, as in a cave at midnight with your eyes closed. Nada, nothing, total emptiness. Nothing is quite as disorienting or scary as total blackness. Blackness is un-relational and unforgiving. Even our sense of balance is affected by our inability to orient ourselves to our environment. What we can’t see, we can’t relate to.
Opening up the darkest channel (unfortunately labeled “Black” in most software) can reveal a depth that otherwise gets buried in the D-max of the photographic medium.
White is at the other end of the light measurement scale, defined as a direct unobstructed blast of light from the Sun at noon. Blinding, blazing, searing, scorching light.
True white light would actually blow the rods out of our eyes and leave us (at least temporarily) blinded. Perhaps it is good that we don’t try to function either physically or psychologically in either of these two extremes.
Dark and light vs black and white
In the photographic film and darkroom world, “D-max” and “D-min” determined the total light range of photographic prints and transparencies. Actual black and white light measurements simply cannot (by definition) be replicated in photographic materials.
D-max refers to the maximum light blocking capacity (density) of a particular film or print. D-max is the point of maximum development for either film or prints in a traditional (chemistry-emulsion) darkroom environment.
D-max for an inkjet printer would be the darkest black that can be achieved by a particular ink on a particular paper (yes, some different inks and papers achieve different results).
D-min would be the highest light-reflective measurement possible from a particular paper with no ink.
In either case, neither “actual” black nor total white is possible. In truth, black and white cannot be expressed in the medium of photography, though we still employ the terms.
Actual original image (left) and adjusted image (right). No kidding. RAW files deliver! f/2.8, 1/250, ISO 1600, 35-100mm, f/2.8.
Real-life vision vs digital interpretation
By contrast, we live our everyday lives in the natural world where we can experience this “actual” extreme range of natural light. We occasionally witness these extreme lighting conditions, and this reference to reality keeps our lives in clear focus.
There exists a broad range of contrast in nature’s lighting that keeps our visual cortex amused and intrigued. We experience the extremes of light and dark almost every day, and our eyes adjust to these dynamics quite naturally. But in the subdued visual expression called photography, we are restricted to using a much more muted palette, which presents our minds with a different challenge.
Our brains insist on detail to help us navigate this world, both visually and rationally. We are a relational species, and we rely on the existence of distinct details in our surroundings in order to relate and negotiate our way through those surroundings. The very same issue determines how we relate to things photographic, which brings me to my point – finally.
Every physical item that we describe as “black” must be distinguished from actual dictionary-definition “black” if it is to be seen as a dimensional object.
Detail is all about contrast
Contrast is the determining factor in detail. Without contrasting tones, there can be no detail.
Our eyes get to experience the full dynamic range of light in real life. However, in photos, our perception is very limited by the whole visual D-max/D-min thing. We must learn to use what range we have to mimic the range that we don’t… get it? Pushing the internal tones around within an image will simulate the full range of tones that we normally see (and often take for granted) in real life.
Another example of extremes. The lighting was good on the female, but the male model was underlit. Some serious internal adjustments were made in one copy of the RAW file, and a masked copy of the correction was placed into the scene. Once again, tonal reproduction is key. f/3.2, 1/250, ISO 1600, 35-100mm, f/2.8.
In a practical sense, the detail is created when a visual relationship is established. The greater the contrast between tones, the sharper the detail becomes.
In order to express detail in a dark area, there must be a distinction between black and “almost black.” Without that distinct separation, there can be no detail.
There is a cardinal rule when printing a photo on a printing press… “there are no absolute blacks and only specular (reflections) pure whites in print.” Even pure white must contain a tonal element to maintain dimension and texture – neither black nor white express detail.
Black must be implied more than stated. Even a black hat or garment must contain tones of dark gray to carry the illusion of detail.
Black is a relative term. Total black loses important detail and dimension. f/4.5, 1/50, ISO 1600, 35-100mm, f/2.8.
Delivering the impression
When a photo lacks internal contrast, it lacks detail. The tension of contrast creates both detail and definition. Of course, even detail is a relative thing. Not all images require the same dynamic appearance. If all pictures contained the same degree of (internal or overall) contrast, the monotony of sameness would probably drive us to boredom.
The point I want to make here is that in order to keep the human mind amused, engaged, and involved, we must learn to use all the tone dynamics at our disposal.
Fortunately, the human mind (and it’s willing accomplice, the visual cortex) provide us with a very forgiving and creative instrument that interprets (and believes) the limited dynamics of printed photos. When this tonal orchestration is successfully accomplished, the result can be breathtaking.
We were designed to be very creative. Start believing that and watch the magic happen.
The post Black and White are Rarely Black or White appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Herb Paynter.
If you are still stuck indoors, photograph from your windows, or step out into the garden (if you are lucky enough to have one). Alternatively, go back through your archives and do some brand new edits on your photos, like false-color infrared or black and white.
Use backlight, sunsets, sunrises, intentional camera movement or close-ups of foliage.
The choice is yours! I look forward to seeing what you share
Check out some of the articles below that give you tips on this week’s challenge.
5 Tips for Capturing Nature Across Different Seasons
5 Tips for Taking Beautiful Photos of Nature
How to Take Creative Landscape Shots using Intentional Camera Movement
Simulating False-Color Infrared Photography in Photoshop
Create Powerful Black and White Photos with the Photoshop Gradient Map
Simply upload your shot into the comment field (look for the little camera icon in the Disqus comments section) and they’ll get embedded for us all to see. Or, if you’d prefer, upload them to your favorite photo-sharing site and leave the link to them. Show me your best images in this week’s challenge.
Share in the dPS Facebook Group
You can also share your images in the dPS Facebook group as the challenge is posted there each week as well.
If you tag your photos on Flickr, Instagram, Twitter or other sites – tag them as #DPStrees2020 to help others find them. Linking back to this page might also help others know what you’re doing so that they can share in the fun.
The post Weekly Photography Challenge – Trees appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.
The post Loupedeck CT Review – Could This Be The Best Editing Tool? appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Carl Spring.
If you’ve read my previous review of the Loupedeck+, you’ll know I am a massive fan and it is now a firm part of my editing routine. As I said in that review, it was something that I was honestly wary of before trying it, but something I do edit without now. So when I got the chance to do the new Loupedeck CT review, I jumped at it.
The Loupedeck CT is a completely new editing station. Loupedeck has marked this as their professional tool, designed to deliver a premium editing experience. Along with the dials and buttons familiar to those who have used the Loupedeck+, the Loupedeck CT features a touchscreen interface system of virtual buttons, that you can fully customize to your editing needs.
Compatibility
The CT is compatible with a wide range of software right out of the box. And it has the ability to add even more software via an ever-growing library of custom profiles.
Here is a list of compatible software out of the box (takes deep breath):
Abelton live
After Effects
Audition
Capture One
Final Cut Pro
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Lightroom Classic
Adobe Photoshop
Premiere Pro
System (Windows & Mac)
Profiles exist for many more programs, including Davinci Resolve, Photomechanic, and Logic Pro X, amongst others. This is a serious list of professional software, and the ability to customize the Loupedeck CT means that there is an almost limitless opportunity to create your very own tailored workspace.
Design and build quality
The Loupedeck CT is very different from the Loupdeck+. It is much more compact in its footprint. The size is about the same as two mobile phones placed side by side. This smaller footprint not only makes having the CT on a smaller desk much easier, but it also means it is simple to add to your bag when editing on the road or on location.
The packaging looks and feels premium. It reminded me of an Apple device in the way that the quality oozes out before you even see the product.
Jet black packaging with an embossed and foiled logo on the side really does make this product feel luxurious. It may sound silly, but when packaging is this good, I feel that it shows the importance of attention to detail to the company.
Once the Loupedeck CT is removed from the packaging and those, oh so satisfying, clear plastic covers get removed, the quality of the Loupedeck CT shines through.
The build quality on this device is excellent, with the device itself comprised of an aluminum top plate (save the virtual buttons workspace) with a solid plastic underside. All buttons and dials are all reassuringly firm, with the dials having a tactile click when turning, whilst the virtual buttons have haptic feedback, which you turn on or off.
The center dial is used as a touch screen interface for some adjustments, and again, it works perfectly. It is responsive and has worked flawlessly during my time with the unit.
This is a very well-made piece of equipment that is another step forward in quality from the already well-made Loupedeck+.
The Loupedeck CT also has a Bluetooth chip, which will eventually, via an update, make the unit connect wirelessly.
It also comes with 8GB of storage, which mounts as an external drive when you connect the Loupedeck CT. This storage allows you to save all settings and preferences within the device. So, when you transport the product, all your settings travel with you. This is great for those that travel regularly or use different computers for different projects.
Ergonomically, the unit is made for one-handed operation. This is not to underestimate the amount of editing this thing can do on its own. Whilst the Loupedeck+ feels like something that is aimed to replace your keyboard, the CT feels like an addition to your keyboard and mouse. It is an incredibly powerful enhancement to your workflow.
Buttons on the Loupedeck CT are backlit in a way that aids your use of the device. The buttons’ color shows how it is mapped at a glance. The three colors are green, purple, and blue.
Green buttons are assigned to workspaces (of which you can have multiple per application). The purple buttons are assigned to actions (such as applying a preset or creating a copy of the image, etc.). Finally, the blue buttons are there to take you into page-based layouts. This allows you to create sub-menus within a workspace, such as a page dedicated to your image presets, without the need to change the entire workspace.
Installing the Loupedeck CT
Installing the Loupedeck CT is a simple affair. You just download and install the software from the Loupedeck website, then connect the Loupedeck.
The Loupedeck itself is USB-C, which helps future-proof the product. However, it comes packaged with a USB-C to USB-A braided cable, which will be welcomed by a lot of people. The cable itself is of high quality, reinforcing the attention to detail that Loupedeck has put into this product.
The installation and setup is easy. But you will need to spend some time with the software to set the Loupedeck CT to your preferences.
Learning curve
The learning curve is the part of Loupedeck CT that is the thing that you will find hardest. It’s not that the CT is hard to use, in fact, it is the total opposite of that. It is more about remembering which button is where, how you have your dials set, and moving your hands away from existing workflows.
With the Loupedeck+ everything is set and you quickly become accustomed to where everything is. However, whilst the flexibility of the Loupedeck CT is its strongest feature, it does mean you have a larger learning curve. As an example, when moving from Lightroom to Photoshop, the button layout changes, so it takes more time to become a power user across multiple software.
The initial setting up of custom workspaces will take time and effort from the user. However, this is the step that is essential for those looking to get the most out of this device.
The software makes it simple to set up, but you need to customize the layout of the deck for your specific editing style. You will then need to do this on a software-by-software basis. This process may take a few hours, but it is so worth it. The profiles supplied by Loupedeck are great and get you started instantly, but every editing workflow is different and the Loupedeck profiles are unlikely to match your specific workflow.
As with the Loupdeck+, the CT makes using software easier. It does have a learning curve though, one for each software you use it with.
The Loupdeck CT in use
The first thing I noticed about the Loupedeck CT was its software awareness. Switching over to Photoshop from Lightroom, the Loupedeck instantly changed to its Photoshop workspace. There was no lag or waiting. It was ready to go. This smoothness is the same for every software. You can even set it up to control your Spotify, so you can keep your hands on the Loupedeck whilst you decide what music you want to listen to whilst you edit.
This key feature makes the Loupedeck CT amazing for those who work in several different pieces of software. It really does make this device a huge step up from the Loupedeck+.
I know when I reviewed the Loupedeck+, I said that video editing wasn’t great. With the CT, it really performs.
Moving to Premiere Pro, you get the tools you use the most right at your fingertips. As someone who isn’t a huge video editor, it makes editing easier for me. I have also been experimenting with Final Cut Pro, and again, the Loupedeck saves me having to search through menus when I am looking for a tool.
I am sure that in the hands of a more capable editor, this tool will be huge in speeding up workflow. For an amateur like me, it makes things easier and encourages me to dig deeper.
This is also true of Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Audition, which I profess to be completely lacking in in-depth knowledge. However, I can see how this, in the right hands, will be incredibly useful.
The centre wheel is one of the highlights of the CT. Being able to use it for things such as colour grading is so intuitive.
Moving on to photography (the reason I am sure most of you are reading this), to sum it up, it is amazing. If the Loupedeck+ is a high-quality, off-the-peg suit, the CT is a custom-tailored suit from Saville Row; every button and dial customized to fit your editing needs.
In Lightroom Classic, it performs beautifully. Editing is effortless and the Loupedeck makes the whole process quicker, easier, and more tactile. The ability to customize a setup to be exactly how you want is something that gives this an advantage over the Loupedeck+ for those who use more advanced features regularly. This is shown in the ease of adding your own presets to buttons. Simply create the preset, then ask Lightroom Classic to update, and instantly, it is available to add to your layout.
It is when you move to Photoshop that the Loupedeck CT really shines. The ability to customize your button layout combined with size means using this with a mouse or graphics tablet is a joy. Also, the ability to use the touchscreen center button makes working in color an amazing experience. The Loupedeck CT is a much more enhanced experience than the Loupdeck+ when it comes to Photoshop.
The integration with Adobe products is still deeper than with other software, though. Switching to Capture One Pro, the experience is simply not quite as fluid. Capture One is in Beta mode even though it comes pre-installed. In use, it lacks the level of integration found in Lightroom and can’t offer the same functionality.
This is due to Loupedeck relying on keyboard shortcuts rather than the software API. Loupedeck has released an enhanced plugin profile, which allows greater integration for Capture One users. This does help, but it relies on you having to set your keyboard to the US setting, which as a UK user, is an annoyance.
I know discussions have taken place with Phase One on fully integrating the Loupedeck CT, and for many professionals who use Capture One, this would be a game-changer. Until that happens, the best way to describe the Capture One experience is good, but not as good as Lightroom.
What I love
There is a lot to love about this product. The main things for me are:
Size
Look and build quality
Unlimited customization options
Multi-software usage
What could be better
Integration with non-Adobe products
No wireless option (although this may be coming)
Is it worth it?
This is the big question. This Loupedeck CT is not cheap. It currently retails at £469.
It warrants that money to those who spend a lot of time editing and those who use a variety of software daily. It is much more suitable for a wider variety of programs than the Loupedeck+. If you use Adobe products, it is pretty much flawless.
However, if you mainly edit in Lightroom, you will possibly be better served with the Loupedeck+. It has all the features you need and comes at a lesser cost.
The other question is whether it is better to invest in the Loupedeck CT or a graphics tablet. Again, this depends on your usage and editing style. Personally, I would make more use of the Loupedeck CT. However, you may not.
The Loupedeck CT is aimed at a certain group of people. To those that will get the most out of this product, the £469 price tag is easily justified in the time saving and workflow enhancements the CT will give them. The Loupedeck CT is no mere editing gadget – it is a tool that takes your editing workflow to another level.
I really suggest you try a Loupedeck before dismissing it out of hand. Be warned though, you will probably fall in love.
The post Loupedeck CT Review – Could This Be The Best Editing Tool? appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Carl Spring.
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.
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?
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
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.
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.
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.
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.
The post Ways to Use Lightroom to Find Photos Worth Revisiting appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Rick Ohnsman.
I don’t have to tell you these are abnormal times. Like many others in every profession, photographers are experiencing a huge decrease in business due to stay-at-home and social distancing restrictions. While we hobbyist photographers may not rely on photography for our income, we just aren’t getting out as much to take pictures. So, maybe this is the time to go “back to the mine” (your photo archives), to see if you’ve overlooked some diamonds in the rough worth revisiting. Let’s take a look at how to use Adobe Lightroom to find photos you might have passed over. Also, how to use it to do some cleanup you just never got around to before.
I’d passed this shot by after an edit session I did years ago following a trip to Trillium Lake in Oregon. Now, using Lightroom to find photos I’d passed over, I found it was a diamond in the rough, simply needing some polishing.
See if this describes you
You’re a photographer and make photos pretty routinely on trips, photoshoots, studio sessions, weddings, portrait work, or whatever genre of photography you do.
You make dozens, if not hundreds of images, during just a single shoot.
Then, you want to quickly edit and get the best shots to your client, perhaps print some, or post the best to social media. When done, you’ve cherry-picked the best shots, edited them, wrapped up and moved on.
Left behind on your drive are perhaps the other 95-percent of shots that didn’t jump out at the time. There are quite possibly some good images still there that might only take a little extra editing to polish up, diamonds in the rough as it were.
Perhaps the shots were taken years ago, maybe even with lesser cameras, but now with more editing experience, you have skills to bring them to life.
There are also photos you’ll never use. Trash that just never got taken out. Images just taking up room on your hard drive.
Let’s cover how to use Lightroom to find photos, flag them for a second look or clean them out.
Get a DAM
Lightroom is a very capable photo editor, but there’s little dispute that Photoshop is the more powerful program for really serious photo editing.
Other programs have also risen to the forefront; Skylum Luminar, Phase One Capture One Pro, Corel Paintshop Pro, DXO Photolab, and ACDSee Ultimate. The list is growing and joined by many free and quite capable photo editing programs.
Using the Flags, Star-Ratings, and Color Codes in Lightroom is a great way to better manage your photo library.
One of the greatest strengths of Adobe Lightroom, however, is as a Digital Asset Management (DAM) tool.
In layman’s terms, that means it does a great job of organizing your photos, helping you search for images using keywords, ratings, color-codes, flags, collections, filters, and other means of organizing, sorting, and searching. At its core, Lightroom is a database program.
Many photographers who have spent years learning Photoshop still use that tool for most of their editing but are now looking to Lightroom as a partner program for organizing their photo libraries. What they had previously done with Adobe Camera Raw and Bridge can be done with Lightroom, which if desired, can simply send images out to Photoshop for editing or be used as an editor and more.
A jealous secretary
A concept many new Lightroom users find hard to grasp is that the photos you work with while using it are not “in” Lightroom. Lightroom is strictly a note-taker, a “secretary” to use that term, that records everything about an image; where it is, the metadata, how you’ve rated, flagged, color-coded, keyworded, and otherwise tagged it.
When you edit a photo in Lightroom, each and every step of that edit, text data, is stored in what is called the “catalog.” Your images are never altered, Lightroom just appends “notes” to them.
I tell you that to tell you this – Lightroom is a “jealous secretary.” She will keep meticulous notes about everything you do with your images, so long as you use “her” to do the work.
If you work with your images outside of Lightroom, say using the File Explorer in Windows or the Finder on a Mac, you are essentially working “behind Lightroom’s back.” She will let you know it too, losing track of where your images are and what you’ve done to them.
Ever see a “?” mark on your Lightroom photo or folder? That’s your secretary scolding you. There are ways to recover from this, but my recommendation is if you are going to use Lightroom as your DAM program, keep your jealous secretary happy and do all your image management with her exclusively.
Question marks on folders of photos in Lightroom means the program can’t locate the item. This will happen when you use tools outside of Lightroom to move or change your image.
A culling session
If culling is not a term familiar to you, here’s a dictionary definition: “A selection of things you intend to reject.”
In Lightroom, one of the first things you need to do to work with images is to “import” them. This is sometimes where people become confused. An “import” in Lightroom is simply a means of telling the program where your images are.
Let’s use two examples of how this might work.
Returning from a shoot, I have my images on my camera card. I pull the card from the camera, put it in a card reader, open Lightroom and using the Import process. Here, I copy the files from the card to a location on a computer hard drive, be it an internal or external drive. Lightroom copies the images to that location, builds thumbnails for them, and stores the information in its catalog.
I already have the photos somewhere on one of my computer drives. I use the Import function of Lightroom to Add the photos to the LR catalog. Lightroom does not move or copy anything, it simply now has information about those images and where they are.
If you are importing images from a camera card into Lightroom and want it to copy them to a location on your hard drive, the “Copy” method is what you want.
In both scenarios, the photo files are not “in” Lightroom, and not in a subfolder of that program. They are wherever you chose to store them. However, now your “LR secretary” is keeping track of them.
If your images are already on one of your computer drives and you simply want to be able to work with them in Lightroom use the Import “Add” function, not the “Copy” function.
Once visible in Lightroom, the temptation is to look through them and start editing the ones that jump out at you. I’ve done that many times, in a hurry to get to the obvious “nuggets” and start editing them.
Instead, I’d like to introduce you to a way to more formally, and with greater organization, go through a folder of images.
The proper way to do this is when you first start working with that new folder of images. But, if you are like me, you might not have known to, were lazy and impatient, or for whatever reason just didn’t do this. No worries, it’s not too late for a proper culling session.
Here are the steps:
Go to the folder where you have the images. You should be in the Library module of Lightroom and in the grid view (Hit “G” on your keyboard) so you can see all of your images.
Do some folder-level keywording. If all of the images in the folder were, for example, taken at the beach, you might want all of them to have that keyword to aid in searching later. Hit Ctrl (Cmd on Mac) A to select all of the images. Then click in the Keywords section at the right and type in the keywords you want. If you want more than one to apply to just certain selected images, pick those first and then use a comma between them. i.e., Fireworks, Still-Life, Sparklers.
This entire folder of images were shots of fireworks, so I selected all images in the folder and added the keyword “Fireworks.”Selecting several images within the folder, I added additional keywords – Still-Life, and Sparklers. You can have multiple keywords for an image if you separate them with a comma.
Time to quickly go through your images one-by-one. To move faster through the images, first, turn on Auto-Advance. You can either turn this on by going to Photo in the top pulldown menu and selecting Auto Advance or simply by holding down the Shift key while you work. Now bring up just the first image in Loupe View (Hit the Enter key).
For this first pass, you want to flag the images you want to keep and cull out the ones you know you’ll never use. Viewing each image, hit either the “P” key to flag the image as a Pick or “X” key to reject it.
If you just can’t decide, the right arrow key “>” to move on.
To quickly cull your images in Lightroom, turn on Auto Advance and then use the “P” key to flag an image as a Pick, the “X” key to mark it as a Reject, or just use the Right Arrow Key to move to the next image with no flagging. Note the white flags are picks, the black flags with an X are rejects.
Try to be selective here. This does not immediately throw out any images and you can change your mind later. However, your objective ought to be to do some serious housekeeping, X-ing out the images you are unlikely to ever use, and Picking the ones you will probably want to edit later.
Everyone is different. Some people are tidy and have no problem tossing things out they don’t expect to use. Then there are folks like me, packrats for whom this is a tougher task.
Time to be brave. You can check to see which images you flagged with an “X” as rejects if you like. Hit “G” to go back to the Grid view. Now using the Library Filter (top of the grid), click the word “Attribute” and then click the Black flag. This will show the images you flagged as Rejects with the “X.” You can take another look at these if you have to and if you decide it is not one you want to be rejected, hit the “P” key to change it back to a Pick.
Taking out the trash
So let’s get rid of the rejects. To see what you flagged with an “X” as a reject, hit Ctrl- Backspace (Cmd on Mac). You will see two options:
Delete from Disk – This will permanently delete the images from your hard drive. You might still find them in your recycle bin if you accidentally pick this, but consider this the trash for the most part.
Remove from Lightroom – The files will remain on your drive, but you will no longer see them in Lightroom. This is the safer option if you are unsure, but it’s also like just putting your garbage in the hall closet. If you plan to clean the house, do it and don’t look back.
Decision time. After you’ve using the culling step to flag your Picks and Reject images, hit Ctrl-Backspace. This question will appear. You can delete your rejected images entirely or, simply remove them from showing up in Lightroom but retain them on your drive. Choose wisely.
Colors and flags and stars, oh my!
If you were disciplined, using the Pick and Reject options helped you separate the wheat from the chaff, getting rid of things you’ll never use and perhaps freeing up all kinds of space on your hard drives. So now let’s use some tools to go a little deeper, helping you to organize and find images warranting further work.
Lightroom lets you tag photos with several different things to add in organizing, sorting, filtering, and finding them. Let’s look at the options.
Sorting – There are many different ways to sort your images in the Library view of Lightroom. This doesn’t change anything but simply allows you to see them in whatever sort order you like. Some are obvious, like sorting by Capture time so you can see the images in the order you took them. Others, like sorting by aspect ratio, are less obvious but sometimes very useful. Say you need an image for a magazine cover and want a portrait-orientation image. Sorting by aspect ratio is the ticket. Explore what this very simple option can do for you.
Using the Sort by Aspect Ratio option can be handy if you want to group your portrait and landscape orientation images together.
Color – You can flag your photos with any of five different colors (Red, Yellow, Green, Blue or Purple). What each color signifies is strictly up to you. Maybe you want to flag all of your very best images with Red, your Landscapes with Green, your images you want to edit with Yellow – whatever you like. To flag an image, click on the image(s) you want that color applied to, then click on the color patch you want to apply that color tag to. You can also use the keyboard shortcuts – 6-Red, 7-Yellow, 8-Green, 9-Blue. There is no number shortcut for Purple.
If you’ve used color codes to identify different photo types, sorting by color can be useful.
Star Rating – How to apply a star rating is easy. When on an image, just click the number key for the rating you want to assign or use the star symbol on the toolbar at the bottom. What a certain rating means…that’s your call. Is a 5-star image your best ever? Is a 1-star image one that barely escaped deletion? What does a 3-Star rating mean? Whatever you come up with, be consistent and the rating system will be more useful.
Come up with your own scheme of using the star-rating in Lightroom and then sort by rating.
Flags – We already discussed flags earlier. Basically, they are a way to mark an image as a pick or a reject. Use several or none. You can use these tagging tools singularly or in combination, depending on how you choose to mark up your images. For example, a really great landscape photo might be a green, 4-star, flagged as a Pick image. The power comes in how once marked up, you can filter and sort your images.
Finding, filtering, and sorting
So you’ve cleaned up your folders, eliminated the rejects, and flagged your images with color codes, star ratings, and perhaps added some keywords. (We didn’t get into keywording much as that can be an art unto itself. I refer you to this article to learn more about the power of this tool).
Now we want to use this organization to help us find all our best lighthouse images taken in the past three years, for example. If we were good about marking up our images, we might have put the keyword “lighthouse” on them, flagged them with red (which we decided were our best photos), or maybe just made our top images 5-star.
How do we use the markups to find what we seek?
Creative use of the Library filter in Lightroom can bring up just the image you’re looking for if you’ve properly labeled your images with star ratings, pick flags, color codes and keywords. Here, I was looking for all my photos that had the keyword Lighthouse, were 4-star images, and color-coded red.
The better you are at marking-up your images, the greater the degree of precision you will have in finding that needle in a haystack when it comes time for that. I personally have over 100,000 images in my Lightroom catalog. (That’s a big haystack!) So, to use Lightroom to find photos requires some creativity with the Library filtering tool.
You will be able to search through basic things you may have added; keywords, file names, folder names or anyplace else where text might be. You can search your Attributes, the star ratings, color codes, flags.
Another very powerful Attribute is being able to search for unedited photos. Note the filter selection in the image below. Using that icon, I can have Lightroom show all photos for which Lightroom has no edit history.
If I bring up a folder with images that were edited elsewhere before coming into Lightroom, they will also show up as unedited. But, assuming this is a folder with images that have been brought in directly off your camera card and never been touched with anything other than Lightroom, this is a fantastic way to show those “passed over nuggets” we might want to revisit.
Using the Library filter, I’m able to see all the images for a particular year shot with my Canon 6D that are unedited by Lightroom. Creative use of the Text, Attribute, and Metadata filter in the Library Filter function of Lightroom can tell you much about your images and help you find that missing needle in the haystack.
Searching through metadata can also be a powerful way to find photos. Without you even having to enter any information, your camera captures a wealth of data about each image it takes. (Have a look at my article on Irfanview which gets into metadata.)
So, say you’re still looking for those lighthouse photos, but you never put keywords on them. Searching for “lighthouse” isn’t going to help. But say you do know you took the photos on a trip in September of 2017 and shot them with your Canon 6D. Putting just that information into the search filter in the Library module should greatly reduce the size of the “haystack.”
The more precise you can be with your search parameters, the more precise your search will be. Explore all the search options in the Text, Attribute, and Metadata areas and how using them in combination can greatly help you find what you seek.
Become a Collector
Using the Library filter is a great way to search through your photos when you’re looking for something, particularly an ad hoc search for something you don’t need to find often. When you really want to tap the power of the database that is Lightroom, Smart Collections are really cool. First, let’s describe what a Lightroom collection is.
Say you like to take pictures of flowers. Even when you’re out on some other kind of shoot, when you see a nice flower, you take a shot. Thus, you have flower pictures scattered throughout your folders. Now, how would it be to see all of those in one place, without having to move, copy, or duplicate anything? That’s what a Lightroom collection can be, a “pointer” to images that groups them all into one “folder” without moving anything.
There are two kinds of collections in Lightroom.
The first is a regular collection. You can add the photos manually. You can drag them from their folder location to a collection you have set up. Alternatively, if you designate a collection as the “Target collection,” while viewing that image in the Library module, you can just hit the “B” key on your keyboard to add the image to the target collection. You can also select multiple images in the Library module, hit the “B” key to add them all to the target collection.
Remember that nothing really moves, no duplicates get made, no additional drive space is needed. Collections are virtual – only pointers to the original files.
Collections can be very handy. When I’m gathering photos for an article, I will often create a Lightroom collection with the title of the article, make it the target collection, and then as I prowl through my library looking for photos I might want to use, I hit the “B” key on the keyboard and they are added to the collection. Fantastic!
Be a Smarter Collector
Collections are a great tool, but we can go a step further.
Let’s go back to our flower photos example. If I took some flower shots every time I did a shoot, I want them to automatically show up in my Best Flowers collection without any additional work on my part? A smart collection uses filters and conditions like the Library filter but runs continuously in the background.
To set up a new Smart Collection, go to the Collections tab in the panel on the left side of Lightroom. Click the + symbol. Select Create a Smart Collection. Then use the controls in that menu to set up the parameters defining what will be selected.
So, if I set up a smart collection, name it “Best Flowers” and use the parameters where, for example, keywords contained “flowers” and the rating was 3-stars or above, any photo added meeting those conditions automatically appear in that smart collection without any additional work by me. Once built, your smart collections just work silently in the background of Lightroom. (I would just have to remember to be diligent about rating and keywording my flower photos each time I had some new ones brought in.)
Once you set up the parameters for a Smart Filter in Lightroom, it will watch for any images that meet those qualifications and add them to the collection. Here, I have a filter that looks for photos with the keyword “Flowers” that are rated 4-stars or higher. Now, if I’m good about rating and keywording my flowers photos as I take them and import them into Lightroom, they will automatically be added to this collection
Another great use for a smart collection – make one to show all your unedited photos, wherever they might be in your library.
Set your smart collection parameters to something like my example below. It has the Has edits set to False, the camera as the one I’m interested in, my Canon EOS 6D, the File Type Raw, and the Pick Flag is on.
Now, unedited images I’ve flagged as Picks will immediately show up here as soon as I imported them in Lightroom. As I edit them, they will fall off this list. Think of this kind of Smart collection as your “In Box” of photos for editing.
I can also use the other tools and filters we’ve discussed to determine if I will keep them at all. I can do additional culling here if I decide I won’t edit them and perhaps delete them.
Use a Lightroom Smart Collection to act as your “In Box” telling you which photos need editing. I’ve set this Smart filter to add photos that are not edited (Has Edits is False), where the file type is Raw, I’ve flagged the photo as a Pick, and the photos were taken with my Canon 6D. Smart Collections can be very powerful and the beauty is, as collections are strictly virtual, there’s no need for additional copies, folders, or duplicates that would take up more drive space.
Also, remember images in a collection are just pointers to the original files. So if you click on an image in a collection and open it in the Edit module to make changes, you are also editing the photo in the folder where it really lives.
Polishing up the diamonds
When you can’t be out taking more photos, a good use of your time might be to use Lightroom to find photos worth revisiting.
I’m betting that you’ve passed over many diamonds in the rough, and a trip back through the mine that is your photo library will yield some yet undiscovered treasures. Happy prospecting. For now, stay home, be well, and “Live long and prosper.”
The post Ways to Use Lightroom to Find Photos Worth Revisiting appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Rick Ohnsman.
The post Tips for Finding Beautiful Portrait Light at Home appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Charlie Moss.
It can be tempting to think that you need lots of money, space, and equipment to shoot great portraits. But using just your camera and a reflector, you can find beautiful portrait light at home to shoot in.
Almost everyone will have at least one room in their home with natural light from a window that could make a great portrait. It’s just a case of figuring out where the best light in your home is. Sometimes this takes a little trial and error, but as long as you get a good grasp of the basics, you should be able to shoot some great portraits at home!
Open up your aperture
Shooting indoors often means less light than if you were shooting outside or with studio strobes. To get some more light into your camera, try opening up your aperture and setting it to the lowest number possible.
Opening your aperture up to let more light into your camera also has the effect of creating a shallow depth of field. A shallow depth of field has real advantages when you’re shooting at home – it can blur out the background and any unwanted clutter.
ISO200, 35mm (50mm equiv.), f1.4, 1/320th sec
Alternatively, if you need to place your subject right next to a wall that isn’t as great a background as you hoped for (like above), try hanging a large sheet of paper behind them. The result would be like going to a studio with a paper backdrop. Or if you fancy something completely different, try creating a more creative backdrop!
Get your subject to turn their face towards the light to make it fall in a very flattering way that illuminates their features. If you turn their face slightly back towards you then you can create the classic “Rembrandt light” that fine art photographers love so much (just turn their face towards you enough to create a “triangle” of light on the side of their face away from the window).
By just changing the way your subject faces, you should be able to experiment with broad and short lighting with just a single window. If you have a patient subject, then a single window and a model can be a great way to learn about new kinds of lighting while finding lovely portrait light at home.
Shoot in the bathroom
I’m not even messing about. Bathrooms often have incredible light because of all the white, reflective surfaces. Even a bathroom with a small window can have lots of light bouncing about just waiting for you to photograph it.
ISO800, 35mm (50mm equiv.), f1.4, 1/1100th sec
If you want to fill in some shadows, or even add a bit more directional light, you can experiment with using a reflector. You can use the silver side to add a bright, directional light in a room like this by bouncing light into the brighter side of the face. Alternatively, you could use the white side of a reflector to just gently lift any shadows that you get, to make the light more even.
ISO1600, 35mm (50mm equiv.), f1.4, 1/3000th sec
Don’t be afraid to push up your ISO either if you want to capture a fast-moving or unpredictable subject like a pet. Most modern digital cameras can now go quite high with the ISO without seeing any problems in the images.
I shot the images above at ISO 1600, with an extremely fast shutter speed as my cat zipped around the house from dark to light spots. I had the camera set to Aperture Priority mode, so the camera chose its shutter speeds. Aperture Priority mode is a great choice for shooting portraits indoors because it lets you make creative choices about aperture and depth of field without having to worry about shutter speed.
Experiment with the time of day
As the sun moves, the light will change in different parts of your house. Make it your mission to observe and try out the light as it changes throughout the day if you want to find the good spots for beautiful portrait light at home.
I took both of the above shots in the same room, sitting in almost exactly the same place. The difference was the time of day. The shot on the right with the hard light was taken in the bright morning light. In comparison, I took the image on the left in the afternoon when the sun had stopped shining directly into the room.
Patches of light and shadow can make for really interesting photographs as you let them play across the face or body of your subject. Be sure to experiment with how they create different effects both in the photographs themselves and when you post-process them afterward (increasing the contrast can work really well for light like this).
Use what you have
When I first moved into my home with its large room designated as my studio, I shot almost exclusively with strobes. I would shut out all of the natural light so that I could concentrate on just using my studio lights. I hadn’t even considered that I might have beautiful portrait light at home.
ISO200, 35mm (50mm equiv.), f1.4, 1/240th sec
One day, though, I just wanted to grab a quick self-portrait. So I opened the curtains and photographed myself in the morning light.
On inspecting the files later, I discovered that this light was unexpectedly beautiful. Now I shoot regularly sat face-on to this big window in my studio with no additional lighting or reflectors because I discovered it was simply wonderful light.
Learn from my mistake – test out every window in your house for portraits, at different times of the day.
When you move into a new home, make it one of the first things that you do. Don’t wait several years to realize that you already have wonderful natural portrait light at home!
I’d love to see your portraits using the natural light in your home. Please share them with us in the comments section!
The post Tips for Finding Beautiful Portrait Light at Home appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Charlie Moss.
The post Peak Design Donates 100% of Profits from Travel Tripod Launch to Charity appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.
Peak Design, the camera carry company based in California, launched their Travel Tripod in early April.
And they donated 100% of the profits to charity.
The Travel Tripod has been making waves ever since it was funded on Kickstarter, where the promise of a stable, compact tripod drew in 12 million USD from nearly 30,000 donors.
Fast-forward a year, and the Travel Tripod was ready to launch as two separate products:
A carbon fiber option and an aluminum alloy option, both offering unprecedented compactness and stability as a pro-level travel tripod solution.
Then, in the weeks prior to the launch, Peak Design announced its intentions to donate all profits to two charities:
The CDC Foundation, for COVID-19 relief, and Climate Neutral, an organization that works to combat climate change.
As explained by the Peak Design CEO:
Now more than ever is the time for us to act on our core values and ensure that our employees, contractors and retail partners can find economic shelter in a product we’ve spent years developing…Peak Design is also in a unique position to offer financial support to those that are solving the problem. To be able to donate in a time of need speaks volumes to the company we’ve built over the last ten years.
Now that the launch is complete, Peak Design has released their numbers; the company sold over 2000 tripods, culminating in a whopping $ 218,000 USD donated to the CDC Foundation and Climate Neutral.
For those who are interested in the Peak Design travel tripod, it offers:
A weight of 2.81 lbs (1.27 kg) for the carbon fiber model
A weight of 3.44 lbs (1.56 kg) for the aluminum model
A weight capacity of 20 lbs (9.1 kg)
Minimum height of 15.2 in (38.5 cm)
Maximum height of 60.2 in (153 cm) with the center column raised
Setup in 9.8 seconds
A ball head with a phone mount
You can pick it up for $ 599.95 USD (carbon fiber) or $ 349.95 USD (aluminum).
Now over to you:
Do you own a travel tripod? And how does the Peak Design Travel Tripod compare? Share your thoughts in the comments!
The post Peak Design Donates 100% of Profits from Travel Tripod Launch to Charity appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jaymes Dempsey.
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