Lightroom Secrets

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom. Tips, tutorials, news…

[genemccullagh]

The Indispensable Guide to Lightroom CC

Like any well used application, Lightroom has grown in features and complexity since it was first released. Whether you are new to Lightroom or a seasoned pro, it is important to have a well written guide to help you understand how it all fit together. Seán McCormack's latest book The Indispensable Guide to Lightroom CC is just such a guide. Seán has been involved with Lightroom since the beginning and is a great contributor to the Lightroom community. His contribution continues with this book.

I enjoyed reading The Indispensable Guide to Lightroom CC. Seán's personality shines through and you get the feeling of sitting down with a friend who is helping you learn Lightroom. He walks you through each part of Lightroom, step by step. Included are many sidebars with interesting information relevant to the topic at hand.

Especially useful is the information about Lightroom and the cloud. Lightroom has evolved from a local disk bound system to include mobile applications, a web interface, and a strong tie to Adobe's Creative Cloud. Seán takes special care to make sure you understand how all of this fits together.

There is also some very good coverage of third party utilities which showcase Lightroom's extensibility and power. And, even though Seán downplays his own Lightroom plugins, you should definitely take a look at them. They are useful and well written.

If there is anything negative to be said about this book it has to do with some of the illustrations. This is really a problem with the amount of information Lightroom presents in some of its panels and dialogs making it difficult to reproduce in print. Seán makes a good attempt to fit them in the book but some are just to small to be readable. This is not a problem if you are reading the eBook since it is easy to zoom in on the illustration. It is only an issue in the print version. However, these are few and easily dealt with.

The Indispensable Guide to Lightroom CC is a wonderful guide to Lightroom. Seán is an excellent writer and his photography is stunning (well worth the price of admission)!

Check out Seán's book at Rocky Nook. It's definitely worth your time. While you're at it stop by Sean's blog for some interesting Lightroom information.

[genemccullagh]

ON1 Photo 10 - The Next Generation Is Almost Here!

ON1, Inc. has announced ON1 Photo 10, the next generation of its photo editing and effects app for Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows. Version 10 is a ground-up rework of Perfect Photo Suite 9, optimized for performance, stability and ease of use. Up to 4x faster than the previous version and requiring less memory to run, ON1 Photo 10 also includes an integrated mobile workflow, a modern user interface, and the essential ON1 photo editing tools photographers have come to love.

ON1 Photo 10’s enhancements include:

A significantly improved Effects module. Filters respond faster than ever before and presets are easier to find and apply. New preset categories have been added for popular photography genres, and include settings for color grading and haze reduction. The Perfect B&W module has been fully integrated into Effects, which lets you apply any filter—including the popular Dynamic Contrast effect—to your monochrome images. Lastly, you now have complete control over the organization of your presets and preset categories, making it easy to customize Effects to work the way you want.

Two-way syncing of photos between ON1 Photo 10 and mobile devices with our free Photo Via app for IOS. Photo Via lets you share albums, smart albums and folders of photos between your desktop and your iPad or iPhone using Dropbox or Google Drive. With Photo Via, you can search, rate and share photos easily from any iOS device, and have the metadata synced back to your desktop.

Better and faster workflow tools for working with faces in the Portrait module. Find facial features quicker, even with side views or faces at an angle. Portrait is faster and better than ever. The new way of working with facial features makes it easier to retouch the areas you care about.

Access to Resize from any module, which lets you use the photo enlargement features of Perfect Resize from any part of ON1 Photo 10. Sharpen, add a watermark, or create a gallery wrap when you want, without jumping to a different module.

Color and tone controls that make sense. Use Enhance’s exposure adjustments, better color controls, and improved highlight and shadow recovery to make your photos pop before taking them into other editing modules.

Browse’s new Smart Albums feature, which lets you put your most important photos —wherever they are—at your fingertips. You can even automatically publish your Smart Albums to your mobile device with Photo Via.

A new export feature, which automates the process of creating photos for printing and sharing. Take a single photo, or a group of photos, and create whatever size and file format you need. Combined with our improved batch processing options, we make it simple for you to print, share and manage your photos without undue complexity.

Throughout ON1 Photo 10, you will find an improved user experience, with more responsive sliders, tools that won't stick, and a user interface that is snappy, modern and easier to use. Most of ON1 Photo 10’s image processing algorithms utilize modern video cards (GPUs), providing better overall performance, a new sharing feature for posting photos directly to Facebook®, Twitter®, Messages®, Mail®, Flickr® and more.

About ON1 Photo 10

ON1 Photo 10 is a full-featured photo editor that works either as a plug-in editor to Adobe Photoshop® and Lightroom CC, or as a standalone application. ON1’s open system allows access to your photos no matter where they are stored: your computer, your network, or on cloud-based storage services. We support all of the key online storage services, including Dropbox, Google Drive, and Microsoft’s OneDrive. ON1 Photo 10 works on both Mac OS X (10.8, 10.9, 10.10) and Microsoft Windows (7, 8, 10), while Photo Via requires iOS 8. Version 10 supports Photoshop CC 2015, CC 2014, and CS6; Lightroom 6, 5, 4; Photoshop Elements 13, 12 and 11.

Availability and pricing

ON1 Photo 10 will be available late October 2015, and has an introductory price of $89.99. For a limited time, ON1 Photo 10 is bundled with exclusive extras which include: three months of the new ON1 Photo Magazine; “The Ultimate ON1 Photo 10 Training,” 10 in-depth video courses from Matt Kloskowski; and a family license pack good for five installations. 

[genemccullagh]

Victoria Does It Again!

If you haven't heard of Victoria Bampton (a.k.a. The Lightroom Queen) then you need to get acquainted with her immediately! Victoria is one of those rare people who actually cares and helps whenever she can. She is a treasured member of the Lightroom community.

Whenever a new version of Lightroom comes out I wait with great anticipation for the newest version of Victoria's book The Missing FAQ. It's such an indispensable tool that I keep a copy on my desktop for quick and easy reference. Yes...it's that good!

Victoria brings a wealth of knowledge to the table and it shows on every page of The Missing FAQ. She has been helping Lightroom users since the beginning and really knows how to approach any situation you may be faced with in Lightroom.

You can see the attention to detail on every page. Complicated interfaces are explained thoroughly. Whenever you have a question about what some part of the Lightroom interface does Victoria will explain it in easy to understand terms.

here are many informative charts throughout the book that help you understand the logic behind Lightroom's workflow philosophy. You can also follow the red "Fast Track" arrows for a condensed tour of Lightroom if you are anxious to get up and running as quickly as you can.

Victoria takes the time to explain and illustrate different techniques and how the various sliders impact your images. Several parts of the book invite you to "try it with me" so you can learn these skills quickly.

The book is available as an eBook for $31.95 or an eBook and full color printed version combination for $46.95. Previous versions paperback copies were only available in black and white so this is another improvement. There are other sources (such as Amazon) but the best deal is directly from Victoria's site.

For me, Victoria's book is a key part of Lightroom. Adobe should just include it with every copy and pay her a handsome sum! You really need to take a look at The Missing FAQ and while you're at it sign up for Victoria's newsletter. You won't be disappointed.

[genemccullagh]

Launchbar + Lightroom = Speedy Import

Application launchers have been around for some time now. As the number of applications grew and we collected more and more specialized programs it became tiresome to wander through a long list to find the application we wanted. On the Mac side of the world, Quicksilver was one of the earlier and more powerful launchers.

Currently the two main Mac application launchers are Alfred and Launchbar. Both have their strengths and weaknesses. I have used both for a while and have decided I prefer Launchbar. With the release of version 6, Launchbar has gained many new features and stability. On the Windows side of the world the two most cited launchers are Launchy and Executor. I'm not sure if they can do what I am about to show you since I don't use Windows all that often anymore. If you are a Windows user and use one of these, please let us know in the comments if this is possible. Thanks!

Regular readers of Lightroom Secrets will know that I am a big advocate of using keyboard shortcuts wherever I can. It speeds up my workflow and cuts down on the tedious dance of keyboard to mouse to keyboard to mouse to… Now don't be fooled by the categorization of these utilities as Application Launchers. They do much much more.

In this example I want to show you a Launchbar feature called Instant Send. Instant send is a way to take selected items (files, folders, text, etc.) and hand them off to other applications. Lightroom is an application and Launchbar can hand files to it. Here's how…

Select the files you want to import into Lightroom.

Activate instant send with the keystrokes you've chosen in the Launchbar preferences. I use a double tap on my Control key. The Launchbar HUD (Heads Up Display) will appear and tell you how many items are ready to be sent. It will also show you a yellow icon with an arrow and vertical bar. This lets you know you are ready to choose the receiving application. To choose it press the Tab key.

Next type the abbreviation you use to launch Lightroom and it will be at the top of your list. Launchbar will learn what you use to launch Lightroom after a few times.

Once you press Enter, Lightroom will open and the Import Dialog will appear showing all of the images you selected, ready for import! If you only chose some of the images then only those will be checked. The remaining images in the folder will be unchecked. From here you make your usual Lightroom import choices and you are done!

If you have Lightroom set up to ask you which Catalog to open it will still do that and then continue on to the Import Dialog once you select a Catalog.

This is one example of using Launchbar to get images into Lightroom. I find it convenient when I have a few images files I need to throw into a Catalog and Lightroom isn't running. I could, of course, drag and drop them on the Lightroom icon in the dock but that would require me to leave the keyboard and go to my mouse and back to the keyboard and… well, you get the idea.

A single license for Launchbar costs $29.00 ($19.00 to upgrade from version 5). It is a free upgrade if you bought version 5 on or after March 24, 2014. If you think that is too expensive, don't despair. You can download and use Launchbar for FREE. After 30 days it will gently ask you to buy a license now and again but none of the features will be disabled! That's a sweet deal. But I do encourage you to buy a license since the developer needs to eat and we all would like to see version 7 and beyond.

Give this a try and see if it fits into your Lightroom workflow. It will save you time!

[genemccullagh]

Get Your Site Running with CE4 and Lightroom

For many years now Lightroom has made it possible for you to create websites to showcase your images. The Web Module is an often overlooked part of the Lightroom experience. This may be so for any number of reasons. 

The heavy hitting modules ( Library Module  and Develop Module ) are where most photographers spend their time. The Web Module itself has always had more promise than delivery. Or, perhaps, users couldn't invest the time to learn how to manipulate the default Web Module assets. Whatever the cause, it has spawned more than a few third party plugins for Lightroom to make the Web Module easier to use.

Matthew Campagna, and the good folks at the Turning Gate, offer one of the best Web Module additions available. Core Elements version 4 (CE4) is now available and Matt was kind enough to send me a copy to play with.

The basics remain the same from CE3. You can get an idea of this from my previous article TTG CE3 Is Out Into The World. CE4 brings new power, flexibility, and nuance to the process.

There is ample documantation available on the Turning Gate site. Having already installed CE3 I tried my hand at the upgrade process. It was well documentated and easy to do! What's more, CE3 and CE4 play nicely together. I was able to install the CE4 components and publish a gallery in a very short time. That CE4 gallery was picked up by my existing CE3 generated site with absolutely zero friction or effort. Very nice!

And my site was already set up with a responsive design and worked well when viewed on my iPad and iPhone!

One word of caution; you will need some basics FTP skills to get everything installed. However, the documentation is very thorough and will walk you through step-by-step. But, there is some assembly required.

CE4 is extremely customizable. You can change colors, fonts, layouts, behaviors, and on an on. Responsive design is built in so your content will look great an any device with zero intervention on your part.

Support for all major social networks is included and easily added to your site.

CE4 allows you to keep your entire workflow within Lightroom. Galleries are easily added. There's no need to export images and go into another application to create your website. All of CE4's sites are search engine optimized as well.

Even though creating a site using CE4 is easy, don't be fooled. There is a lot of power under the hood. If you are a photographer with some geeky super abilities you can access the advanced customization hooks like PHPlugins, the integrated grid framework, Font Awesome icon support, and much more!

Every site is standards compliant using HTML5, CSS3, and jQuery. That means your site will work on pretty much every device and in any modern browser.

The Turning Gate has an active support community and is committed to seeing you through to launching your site!

I heartily recommend TTG CE4 if you want to leverage the Web Module and keep your workflow in Lightroom.

[genemccullagh]

Lightroom, Model Releases, and the Cloud

Several months ago I wrote about how you can use Evernote and Lightroom together. (see Remember Everything: Lightroom and Evernote) Here is another way you can make Lightroom and Evernote help you with your workflow. Let Evernote hold your model releases and let Lightroom keep track of where they are. 

Lightroom has quite a few metadata fields in which you can store important information. But your Lightroom Catalog cannot hold PDF or other document files. This leaves the photographer to come up with a system to store model releases and link them up with the images they pertain to. That's where Evernote comes in.

Evernote can generate a link directly to the model release you store there. I suggest you create a notebook called Model Releases in your Evernote account and upload the release files to that notebook.

Let's take a look at how to get the link via the browser version of Evernote. There are similar ways to do this from the native application as well.

Select the note that contains the release file and click the Share link in the upper right of the browser window. That will present you with a menu. Choose Link. Once you do that Evernote presents a dialog with your link URL.

Click the Copy to Clipboard button to put the link URL in your clipboard. Now switch to Lightroom.

You can paste this link into pretty much any metadata field that accepts text. However, I would suggest you change to the IPTC Extended fields and use the Model section. That way you develop a consistent place for these links.

You can paste the URL into the Release ID field. If you select all of the shots the release applies to before pasting the URL into the Release ID field, Lightroom will happily apply it to every image selected.

Now, whenever you need to access the model release for a shot you can use the link to your Evernote note safely stored in your Lightroom catalog!

Still not an Evernote users? No problem. Many other cloud services have a similar capability. Here is how you can do this using Dropbox.

Create a folder called Model Releases to hold your release files. Select the applicable file and click the Share Link button.

In the share dialog that is presented click the Get Link button.

Dropbox will copy the link URL and let you know with a message at the top of your browser. Now just follow the same steps to paste the link into your Lightroom Catalog.

If you use a different service check to see if it provides a way to capture a link back to your release file. Then you can store your model releases there and let Lightroom keep track of those links for you!

[genemccullagh]

Using Adobe Illustrator with Lightroom

Lightroom is very flexible when it comes to working with external editors. You probably already know that it will automatically detect if you have Photoshop installed and make that the default external editor. If you have other image editors like Pixelmator or Photoshop Elements you can add those as external editors too. Most of these pixel based editing programs will easily roundtrip back to Lightroom with a simple Save command.

But sometimes you want to do things that most pixel based editors just can’t do (or at least can’t do well). One such artistic avenue is vector editing. That is where Adobe Illustrator excels!

The problem you face is that Illustrator Saves to an AI file by default. Lightroom doesn’t understand AI files and can’t import them into the Catalog so what can you do? As it turns out, with just a little bit of extra work, it is possible to roundtrip from Lightroom to Illustrator and back to Lightroom again! Intrigued? Then let’s get started.

You first need to add Illustrator as an external editor in your preferences.

The two important things to make sure you set are the file format and the resolution. Illustrator works very wells with Photoshop PSD files and so does Lightroom so choose PSD as your file format. What the resolution is isn’t as important as you remembering what you set this to. You’ll need that number when it comes time to return from Illustrator to Lightroom. 240 is the Lightroom default so I chose to leave it there since I can remember that.

For this example I want to take an image from my Catalog into Illustrator so I can trace the image and bring back part of the image as a graphic trace while leaving other parts as an image. In this example the large tree will remain an image and the background will be converted to a graphic trace representation. So to start choose Photo…Edit in…Edit in Adobe Illustrator CC… (or whatever you named it when you set Illustrator up as an editor).

When you choose that you will be presented with some options.

To keep your Lightroom adjustments choose the first option (1). The File Format (2) and the Resolution (3) should already be at what you set them when you set up Illustrator. If not then change them to PSD and the resolution you want (I suggest 240 to keep it simple).

Press Edit and your image will open in Illustrator. Since I want to preserve some of the image I first drag the layer down to the new layer icon to make a copy.

Next I’ll lock the bottom layer to make sure it doesn’t change.

With the top layer active I use the Selection tool (black arrow) and click on the image to select it. From the Image Trace dropdown I choose 16 colors to do an image trace.

Once the trace is complete you will see an Expand button in the toolbar. Press that to set the paths. Switch to the Direct Selection tool (white arrow) and click outside the image to deselect the paths. Then draw a marquee around the portion of the image whose paths we will delete in order to retain the image.

Then press the Delete key.

Those paths are then gone and the image from the underlying layer shows through.

Normally at this point we would just save the file and it would be sent back to Lightroom. But since that would create and AI file we can’t do that. Instead we’ll use the Export command under the File menu. When you do you will first get the export dialog.

Illustrator should already have the correct filename in the Save As field and the folder will also be correct. Just be sure to change the Format to Photoshop (PSD) then click Export. You’ll receive a warning.

Go ahead and replace the file. Then you’ll get the Photoshop Export Options dialog.

Here is where you need that resolution number. Choose Other and enter the resolution you chose. I also choose a flat image option since the Illustrator layers won’t be readily available if you go back out to Illustrator again. Click OK.

Back in Lightroom you will now see your original image and the Illustrator enhanced PSD version.

In my example the background is the image trace and the large foreground tree is still a pixel based image. The version in Lightroom is all pixel based at this point of course.

Back in Illustrator you still have the file open and unsaved. If you want to preserve the vector characteristics then go ahead and save the AI version of the file. You can’t import it into the Catalog but you can do other work on it and export a format that can be imported into Lightroom is you like.

So as you see it really isn’t that much extra work to get Lightroom and Illustrator to play nicely together. It opens up some very interesting artistic possibilities.

[genemccullagh]

Before/After - A New Video Series from Photography Concentrate

You need a bookshelf. So you go to a large discount retailer near you and find a nice one. It comes in a box marked "Assembly Required." The next thing you know you have panels, shelves, and 122 assorted bits of hardware strewn across your floor while you ponder the mysteries of the instructions sheet.

If you actually want a functional bookshelf then there isn't much room for creativity in this exercise. Bolt 24a attaches side panel C to shelf 2. Step by step. No deviations.

But photography and Lightroom aren't like that. Sure, there are some things that need to be done in a certain order to get a certain result, but you are free to explore and tinker and adjust. Sometimes, though, you just want to see how someone else approaches the process.

There are a lot of courses and books that will teach you Lightroom. While you will have all the skills you need, in the end you may not know where and in what order to apply them. That's where a video series like Photography Concentrate's new Before/After: Transforming Photos from Bland Before to Amazing After With Lightroom comes in.

In these eleven video lessons, Rob Lim let's you "look over his shoulder" as he take you from start to finish...from before to after. You'll be able to see different skills used for different photos and get a sense of how all of these tools you've learned about work together.

I really enjoy this type of video learning. It gives me a sense of sitting down with a friend and talking about creative ways to approach a photographic problem. It helps that Rob is very personable and has a style that will immediately put you at ease.

This may be the video series that puts it all together for you. If you're already skilled with Lightroom you might find some fresh approaches here. In either case I recommend you have a look.

The video series is available for $18.95.

However, until Midnight May 11th Lightroom Secrets readers will get a 30% discount. You can grab these videos for $13.26 until then!!! Just go to http://photographyconcentrate.com/lightroom-secrets/ and your discount is automatically applied.

I enjoyed watching these videos and I hope you do too!

[genemccullagh]

Lightroom Goes Mobile

With the recent release of Lightroom 5.4 your images are no longer tethered to your computer. Adobe now offers an iOS app called Lightroom Mobile and Lightroom on the Web. You now have a somewhat convenient way to work on your images from an iPad. You can run Lightroom Mobile on all versions of the iPad (except the 1st generation) and the iPad mini. The Lightroom Mobile app is available for FREE on the app store.

This is a pretty complete offering considering that it is version 1. It makes me hopeful that the team has much more in store for us. After all, consider how much Lightroom has changed and improved since its version 1 release.

Julieanne Kost offers a nice exposition of the features in Lightroom Mobile on her Adobe TV channel. Spend a few minutes and watch all four episodes to get an introduction to what Lightroom Mobile can do. Here is episode 1 to get you started.

Lightroom mobile extends your existing workflows beyond the desktop.  Lightroom mobile allows you to utilize your iPad to do all sorts of great things and have the changes sync back to your Lightroom catalog at home, including: nor

access images in your Lightroom catalog

make selects, reject unworthy photos

apply a preset

refine your adjustments using all your favorites from the Basic panel, including Highlights, Shadows, and Clarity

import new photos directly from the camera roll

As with many tablet apps, Lightroom Mobile hides many of its capabilities and the workflow is not immediately intuitive. I suggest that the first thing you do after downloading it is to open the settings menu and click on the gestures option so you can learn the "secret" handshakes.

You will soon get the hang of the interface. Lightroom Mobile provides access to data, histograms, adjustments, presets, cropping, flags and more.

Yes. You are limited to the built in set of presets and there are no flags or stars. But, remember, this is only version 1.

If you want a really deep dive into Lightroom Mobile (and Lightroom on the Web) I would heartily suggest you run over to Victoria Bampton's site The Lightroom Queen and buy a copy of her newest eBook Adobe Lightroom Mobile 1 for iPad - The Missing FAQ. 

It's a bargain at £3.95 (or about $6.75). Full of screen shots, tips, gesture advice, and more. Victoria's Missing FAQ books are a must have.

Lightroom on the Web is a much less exciting offer. It is available at https://lightroom.adobe.com/ and offers very basic functionality. Your images and collections are populated on the site as you synchronize them with Lightroom Mobile. There is no editing capability and you cannot even share a single image. Sharing is done at the collection level. You can see which collections are shareable (i.e. Public) by the small share icon in the corner.

There is also a basic slideshow capability with no way to customize. All in all, this is the weakest link in the mobile toolset.

While I am excited that Lightroom has made its way to the iPad I have to say I am disappointed in Adobe's strategy here. In order to use Lightroom Mobile you must have a paid subscription to the Creative Cloud. The least expensive membership is the Photographer's special offer at $9.99 per month (and that offer expires in a few months). True, you get a lot as a Creative Cloud member but that's not the point.

Lightroom still remains a stand alone application as well as being offered through Creative Cloud. It has numerous ways to share images with many different services and sites. Even a free Creative Cloud membership comes with 2Gb of online storage. So why didn't Adobe offer Lightroom Mobile without forcing users into a paid Creative Cloud membership? I don't really know. I believe that the Creative Cloud is a great deal overall. However, if I were a Lightroom user and did not use anything else I would be upset by this tie in for Lightroom Mobile and Lightroom on the Web.

So if you are a Creative Cloud member you should not hesitate to give this a try. If you aren't a member you can still try it for 30 days. But don't wait. If you decide you like it you'll need to grab that $9.99 deal before it expires.

[genemccullagh]

Bēcreative. Bēsocial. Bēhance!

It can be said that a great deal of inspiration comes from collaboration. But, how do you find other creatives to talk with and get suggestions from? There are a ton of social media sites for sure. Finding like minded creatives can take some time though. That's where Bēhance comes in.

Bēhance is the leading free online platform to showcase & discover creative work. As a member, you can create a portfolio of your work and broadcast it widely and efficiently. Companies explore the work and access talent on a global scale. You can now share work directly to Bēhance from the Creative Cloud and select Adobe tools.

Bēhance is free - upload unlimited projects into your portfolio

Find people you know, or discover top creatives in your field

Track portfolio stats like who is appreciating your work, project views, comments, and more

Share what you’re working on from Creative Cloud or Photoshop to Bēhance as Work-in-Progress

Download Bēhance for iPhone to discover creative work and track activity & notifications on the go

Download the Creative Portfolio app to showcase your portfolio anywhere (even without internet connection)

Take a look at Paul Trani's explanation of Bēhance.

Lightroom works with Bēhance via the built in Publish Service. Click the Bēhance Publish Service in the Library Module to set it up.

You will get the usual Publish Service setup dialog. Here you can sign in if you have an account or sign up for one directly from the dialog.

Once you've set up your options and activated the Publish Service you will see the Work In Progress folder under the Bēhance Publish service.

Drag and drop your images here (just like any other Publish Service).

Each image becomes a separate WIP (Work In Progress). When you're ready press the Publish button.

For each image you can set the title, tags, comments, and visibility.

Back in the Publish service collection there are two ways to get to your WIPs.

The link (1) next to the Publish button will take you to your Work In Progress section on Bēhance. Right clicking on an image and choosing Go to Published Photo (2) will take you directly to that WIP on Bēhance.

As you can see, the title (1), comment (2), revisions (3), and tags (4) you set up in Lightroom appear on the Bēhance site. You can add revision from the site or by making changes in Lightroom and republishing. Each time you republish a new revision is added to the WIP for that image.

The integration between Lightroom (and other Creative Cloud applications) and Bēhance makes it easy to get started. There are many other aspects to Bēhance that make it a rich environment for creatives.

Jan Kabili, in her lynda.com course covered the Lightroom Bēhance connection very well. Here is the video.

If you'd like to see the entire course (and it is well worth it) you can try a free 7 day pass to lynda.com by clicking here.

I hope you get involved on Bēhance and get inspired! Let me know when you do. I'd love to see what you're up to.

[genemccullagh]

Have Some Fun in After Effects

I don't think anyone would argue with the statement that Lightroom's Slideshow Module is not very powerful or flexible. The Slideshow Module is great for a quick slideshow. But if you want a professional looking product you will do much more work than you need to using Lightroom alone.

If you are a full Creative Cloud member then I have good news! You have access to After Effects. After Effects is an industry-leading animation and motion graphics application. It is certainly capable of creating any slideshow you can dream of.

You may be wondering if Lightroom works with After Effects. Since they are both part of one big happy Creative Cloud family they do play well together.

There are three ways to get your images from Lightroom into After Effects. The first is to set up After Effects as an external editor in Lightroom. While this will work via the Edit In feature you may be left with duplicate images in your Catalog. Also, After Effects will not return anything to Lightroom since it will be producing a very different creature. One that Lightroom is not designed to manage. However, it is an expedient workflow from an After Effects perspective.

Another method is to create an export preset to send your images to a folder that After Effects can access. This has the advantage of not creating copies in your Catalog (unless you opt to have them imported after they are created). This is a good way to get images from Lightroom and keep the image sources separate.

The third method is to simply drag and drop your images from Lightroom into After Effects. This is the workflow we'll look at here. It's simple and doesn't create unnecessary copies of image files.

To start open Lightroom and After Effects. Resize Lightroom so you can see both applications. Select the images you want to include and drag them to the project panel in After Effects.

Once you drop the images After Effects will become the frontmost application and your images will be in the project panel and already selected.

Next, grab the already selected images and drag them down to the new composition icon at the bottom of the project panel.

When you let go After Effects will present you with the New Composition from Selection dialog box. You are a few choices away from a basic slideshow.

Select Single Composition so that all your images are in one composition (1). You have two choices to make in the Options section. Choose which image will be used as the size of the composition (2) and then decide how long you want each image to be displayed (3). In this case we have chosen 3 seconds. Make sure that you check the Sequence Layers option to have After Effects line up your images so they appear one after another. Choose overlap, set a duration for the transition, and select Dissolve Front Layer (4). This will create a cross fade from one image to the next. When you're done click OK (5).

Looking at After Effects we can see how the images overlap (1). With the playhead in one of the overlapping areas you can see how the fade is underway (2). If you select a layer and then press T to see the opacity values you will notice how After Effects has set up keyframes to handle the gradual change in the opacity of the front layer.

The keyframes appear as small diamonds. With the playhead between them you can see that the current opacity is at 66%. The left keyframe is 100% and the right keyframe is 0%. Simple.

So what have you gained over using the Slideshow Module? Isn't this all possible in Lightroom? The short answers are "nothing" and "yes." However, now that you are in After Effects you can add special effects. Title and text can appear, wander around the screen, and disappear again.

Now you have the ability to match slide durations to music. You can create several compositions and combine them. The possibilities are endless. Have a little fun and give After Effects a try. You will be pleasantly surprised!

[genemccullagh]

Take Another Look at the Slideshow Module

Issue 10 of Lightroom Magazine is out! This is in an electronic magazine designed for the iPad. They are currently hard at work on an Android version. If you have an iPad why not check it out? (CLICK HERE) There is a sample issue available for free!

If you are interested in making the Slideshow Module stretch a bit then you'll enjoy my recent article. A copy is attached to this post for your downloading pleasure.

There is a lot to explore in this issue. Nicole S. Young (a.k.a. Nicolesy) wrote a great feature article on the HSL Panel. Seán McCormack explains how to use onOne Software's Perfect Enhance 8 with Lightroom. Pick up some tips and tricks from Seán Duggan. To finish off, enjoy the images of this issue's featured photographer Eduardo Lowe. All in all, a wonderful issue!

Click here to download a copy of the Slideshow Module article!

[genemccullagh]

Learning Couples Photography

The good folks over at SLR Lounge gave me the opportunity to watch another of their fine workshops. Last time I had fun watching their HDR workshop (see Learn HDR with SLR Lounge). I have a lot of experience with HDR and still learned some things from SLR Lounge. Since I don't do much couples portraiture I was particularly interested in the Natural Light Couples Photography Workshop. The introduction video below is a great place to start.

This workshop is taught by Pye Jirsa (A.K.A. Post Production Pye). He is very good at leading you through all the different parts of the workshop. There are actually two separate parts to the workshop. Part One deals with the actual couples shoot. Here is an outline of Part One:

Introduction

Advice, Gear & Settings

Lighting Techniques

Posing/Communication

The Foundation Poses

The Willow Tree

The Bike Ride

The Grassy Hill

The Sunset Ridge

Conclusion

The approach Pye takes is to talk with you about a technique and then take you along on a shoot to see how that technique is put into action. I find this a very easy way to visualize and learn new skills. There is a lot of emphasis on posing, settings, and, most importantly, how to handle your client and get the most from them. This is great stuff!

Part Two brings you back to the studio for post-production. Here Pye walks you through what to do with the images you captured during the couples session. Take a look at the outline for Part Two:

Introduction

The Foundation Poses

The Willow Bench

The Willow Picnic

The Bike Ride

Walking on the Field

The Field Picnic

The Silly Field Portraits

The Field Portraits

Cliff Side Portraits

Conclusion

I enjoyed this workshop. Part One taught me quite a bit and helped me understand what goes into a full blown couples portraiture session. Part Two was well presented and I didn't see any problems in Pye's post production techniques. If you need some pointers or want to get started in couples portraiture this would be a good place to start. Pop on over to SLR Lounge's site and read more about the Natural Light Couples Photography Workshop. 

[genemccullagh]

Learn to Push Light with Piet Van den Eynde's New Book

Piet Van den Eynde has released a new book through Craft and Vision calls Pushing Light: Extending Dynamic Range with HDR and Other Techniques. I enjoy reading Piet's books and always learn something from them. His latest offering is no exception.

As with all of Craft and Vision's books, this is beautifully formatted and easy to read.

Piet's writing style is entertaining and informative. He covers each topic with enough depth to get you started. There are more than enough screenshots and illustrations to keep you on target and help you learn a new technique.

This is more that just a book on HDR.[1] Piet covers a range of techniques for extending the dynamic range of your images. Take a look at the table of contents to see what I mean.

Introduction

In-camera Dynamic Range Boosting: The Example of Fujifilm and Nikon

Using Graduated Filters

Case Study: Landscape Photographer Bart Heirweg

Using Fill Flash and Reflectors to Manage Extreme Contrasts in a Scene

Getting the Most Out of a Single (Raw) File: The Basic Panel

Getting the Most Out of a Single (Raw) File: Beyond the Basic Panel

Multi-image Techniques: Layer Masking in Photoshop

Case Study: Magnum Photographer Carl De Keyzer

Case Study: Architectural Photographer Toon Grobet

HDRI: High Dynamic Range Imaging

Case Study: Fernando Gros

Specialized HDR Techniques: Case Studies

In addition to the text Piet includes several video tutorials to further illustrate the techniques. You'll find these videos throughout the book. (Wherever you see the PLAY> button.)

Piet also includes several Case Studies in which other photographers walk through some of their workflows for extending dynamic range.

All in all this is an excellent introduction to high dynamic range. It is well worth the $10 price tag!

For more information on learning HDR take a look at my recent post Learn HDR with SLR Lounge  ↩

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Make 2014 the Year You Soar!

Happy New Year!

I would like to thank you all for a fantastic 2013! Your support of Lightroom Secrets is greatly appreciated.

Time marches on and now we have a new year ahead of us. In these early days we are renewed with the hope and promise of a fresh start, new adventures, second chances, undiscovered talents. It's time to look back over your photographic journey and look at the highs and the lows. What are you most proud of? What areas need work? What's your plan for 2014? There's so much to see and do it can make your head spin.

Start with the annual housekeeping tasks. Mundane, sure. But still important.

Check your batteries. If some are getting old and not holding a charge as long as you like then it's time to replace them. Not just your camera. Remember your flash, external trigger, GPS units, and so on.

Go into Lightroom and update your metadata presets to reflect 2014. No sense adding 2013 copyright notices for your new creations!

Make an archive copy of your Catalog to preserve all your work prior to 2014. Once that's safely stored away you can continue to add to the master copy. One Catalog is still the best option for Lightroom (with a few exceptions).

Do some cleanup on your drives. Clear out any temporary or duplicate files. You'll want to have room for this year's masterpieces.

If any of your drives have been acting up now is the time to replace them.

Inventory your flash cards. Make sure you've imported all your images and have sufficient backups. Then run them through your camera for formatting. Start the year with clean cards just screaming for new images!

Now that you have that done you can move on to the more esoteric tasks. What do you want to accomplish this year?

If you want to do a 365 project then you'll need to start today!

Try your hand at an unfamiliar photographic discipline. If you're a studio photographer, add landscapes to your portfolio. If you are a nature photographer, try macro. Venture into some untried or little visited corner of the photographic universe.

Take a course. There are many online options. Workshops are abundant. Local Adult Education and Community Colleges offer classes. There is always something new to learn.

Perhaps a personal project. Sometimes having a theme can make you stretch your creative muscle or help you out of a slump.

Volunteer. There are many charities that need photographers to help at events or document their activities. You can help your community and hone your skills at the same time.

Get involved. Whether it's a local camera club or an online forum on Lightroom, get involved and meet new people. Share ideas. Ask questions. Photographers in general (and Lightroom users specifically) are a good bunch. Don't be shy. I've met some wonderful folks over the years. I count many of them as friends even though we've never met face to face. For every nasty troll on the internet, there are a hundred great people so don't be discouraged.

These are just a few ideas. Whatever you decide to do let's make 2014 the year you SOAR!!!

Have an absolutely wonderful time this year and thanks again for being a Lightroom Secrets reader.

[genemccullagh]

Learn HDR with SLR Lounge

As one year ends and another begins, we often think about learning new skills or revisiting and improving on existing skills. HDR (High Dynamic Range) photography is a fascinating area to explore. When the software first started to give us a way to extend the dynamic range in our images we saw HDR everywhere. Most of it was surreal and, honestly, not very good. But that's often the case as new techniques are discovered and played with. 

However, HDR has come a long way since the early days. Folks like Trey Ratcliff have shown us that HDR can be artistic, realistic, and, at times still surreal. I still enjoy trying new ways to create HDR images. If you are new to HDR or want to brush up on your HDR skills let me recommend the HDR Photography Workshop from SLR Lounge. This is a comprehensive course with over 10 hours of video and source files so you can follow along with the examples and techniques shown in the course. The good folks at SLR Lounge were kind enough to send me a review copy.

The instructor, Pye Jirsa (a.k.a. Post Production Pye), presents the material in an entertaining way. This makes the course enjoyable as well as informative. There are ten separate Chapters in the course.

Chapter 1 – Introduction to HDR

Chapter 2 – HDR Camera Settings

Chapter 3 – HDR Considerations

Chapter 4 – Salton Sea

Chapter 5 – Page, Arizona

Chapter 6 – Moab

Chapter 7 – Salt Lake City

Chapter 8 – Salt Lake Mountains

Chapter 9 – Bryce and Zion

Chapter 10 – Las Vegas and Los Angeles

The first three chapters are filled with introductory material and foundational concepts. If you are a beginner at HDR you will get a lot from these chapters. More experienced HDR photographers may want to skim over this to brush up. The remaining chapters are where the fun really begins.

Instead of just presenting images and working through the process, you are taken on a tour of the southwestern U.S. with on location video and image capture pointers. Then you get to see the results of the shoot and work through the images. The source files are included so you can try these techniques out.

I was glad to see that Pye used Lightroom and Photomatix throughout the course. Even though he uses the previous versions of Lightroom and Photomatix, all of the techniques work with the current versions. Pye also points out that there are many other tools you can use for HDR processing so even if you don't use Lightroom and Photomatix you should have no problem.

Here's a brief video with Pye describing the workshop.

I think this is a great way to spend your time learning HDR. The course comes as a download, on DVD, or as a combination package. The combination and DVD versions include a bonus chapter.

If you decide to buy this course (or anything else SLR Lounge has to offer) use the code LRSECRETS on checkout for a 10% discount! And, as always, the same code (LRSECRETS) will get you 15% off Photomatix.

[genemccullagh]

Wow Your Workflow with Perfect Batch

Perfect Photo Suite 8 from onOne Software is, as you probably already know, one of my favorite tools for Lightroom and Photoshop work. And when it comes to batch processing...WOW! Perfect Photo Suite 8 includes Perfect Batch. This is batch processing on steroids.

Not everyone has a need for batch processing. Being a Lightroom user you are already familiar, if not comfortable, with batch processing. After all, you can make adjustments on one image and apply those to another 500 images in the blink of an eye. Take that to another level and use the tools in Perfect Photo Suite 8 for batch processing.

Rather than me trying to explain this process watch the video below. I think you'll agree there are some powerful possibilities with Perfect Batch!