Lightroom Vs. PS

[King Damager]

Ok, so I'm starting to wonder whether it's worth me investing in Lightroom.

I've already got Photoshop (CS4), but what are the main additional things that you can do in Lightroom that you can't do in PS?

Anyone had any experience with Adobe's student discount program as well?


kd

 

[The_Abyss]

Image management. Both programs complement each other. Unless more complicated editing is required I rarely use Photoshop these days. No plans to upgrade mine beyond CS5 - Lightroom works well enough 99% of the time for me.

 

[Logsi]

They're two different programs.

I use lightroom and aperture to store photographs and do edits and then Photoshop to finish and export.

 

[Bri]

As said above, I rarely use PS now. Much easier to manage images and batch process with presets in LR. Really cuts down on the time taken to process.

 

[King Damager]

They're two different programs.

I use lightroom and aperture to store photographs and do edits and then Photoshop to finish and export.

Could you expand on what your typical post processing would be then? With the programs? Or anyone to be fair...

kd

 

[The_Abyss]

Could you expand on what your typical post processing would be then? With the programs? Or anyone to be fair...

kd

For the majority of my photos:

- import into Lightroom
- bulk apply lens corrections appropriate for each photo
- discard the rubbish, from both Lightroom and hard drive (I'm much better at this now - I used to hold on to far too many photos in the hope that technology would catch up and magically fix them later)
- clean up dust spots and minor editing as needed
- apply presets or design a new one
- export for whatever I'm using them for

If I need more editing I just open CS5 from within Lightroom, make the changes and then close again. All my work is stored within Lightroom.

Mind you, lately I've been thinking about moving to Mac which would probably mean changing to Aperture. Not sure about that yet...

 

[xaldub]

If you're content with using Adobe Bridge to organise and manage your photos then it's not critical that you get Lightroom. Personally, I prefer the user interface of Lightroom, and I think it's more capable of organising/indexing larger volumes of images, plus it has the ability to add keywording, copyright information etc.

From a photoediting perspective I still find Lightroom a bit on the light side capability wise, but how applicable that is to you depends on the type of images you shoot ( I nearly always take studio/model work straight into CS6 after basic adjustment of RAW settings in Lightroom ).

A few additional features have been added to Lightroom, such as integration with social media sites, the ability to make slideshows and photobooks. If these things appeal then Lightroom might be a good choice for you.

The good news is that it is nowhere near as expensive to purchase and keep upgrading as Photoshop CS. For many people Lightroom would be enough to do most of their photographic work - but if you are a serious hobbyist or a professional then it's likely you'd still want Photoshop at your disposal.

 

[Logsi]

Could you expand on what your typical post processing would be then? With the programs? Or anyone to be fair...

kd

-Import to the computer through lightroom and put into a folder
-flag keepers, view just keepers
-start to edit and make my way down through the different sliders and process to my liking. Maybe i should expand on this as this part is the most lengthy by quite a margin...
-copy and paste adjustments to similar pictures
-open in photoshop and do more in depth dodging/burning and other more powerful editing. I find exporting better through photoshop also. All edits are kept within the lightroom ecosystem.

 

[ThePirateHulk]

Mind you, lately I've been thinking about moving to Mac which would probably mean changing to Aperture. Not sure about that yet...

I don't see why since Lightroom is available on the Mac too. If you're happy with is, why change?

The bulk of my editing is done in LR and then I use Photoshop for more specific tasks which are just beyond LR's capabilities.

 

[Paul11]

people generally do 95% in lightroom

and 5% in photoshop for the few bits lightroom cant do

personally, i do everything in lightroom now and would never go back

 

[Razor-BladE]

As everyone has said, 99% done in LR.

1. Import.
2. Delete mis-focused, blurry, generally definitely unusable shots.
3. Delete duplicates and other rubbish shots.
4. Apply preset.
5. Go through the lot for any minor adjustments; normally just exposure.
(5b. Use PS if needed)
6. Export.