Lightroom - is it worth it

FoxT

Well, I have been using Picasa for some time now & I love the ease of use & simple file management - but its image processing capabilities are quite limited. No levels/curves, very basic b/w conversion etc. So, I decided to try a lightroom 30-day trial. Lightroom costs about eu250-300, and I love the image processing options. You can do loads of things very easily & can very quickly & easily work on contrast, colour balance,split toning, sharpening, b/w conversion etc etc. , but file management side of things is incredibly complex ( and, it must be said, somewhat irrational) Picasa is brilliant at this. No such thing as importing or exporting, you just edit your photos & there they are, with the originals all stored away automagically.

I can go into Picasa & see at an instant all the folders in my PC that have pics in them, I can locate the pics on disk if I want, I can go back to the original, edit, re-edit, backup , etc and I have never had to use help. It all just works naturally. Lightroom is way more complex & if you want help you go through a whole myriad of PDFs , videos (yuck!!) , bulletin boards etc,

The whole transition is just too complex.

Am I thick? Do I need an SNA? Or is there a better solution out there?
Help!

- FoxT

daycent

It takes a while to get used to but yes, it's definitely worth it. I only use about 2 of the 5 modules and I still couldn't manage without it. I'm still learning new things about it. I love features like the ability to sync develop settings in such a controlled, straightforward way. It's actually quite intuitive once you get used to the feel of it.

You could always run Picassa side by side. It can be handy for locating files visually instead of relying on keywords etc.

SetOverSet

I felt the same when I first started using LR tbh. The learning curve's kinda steep, but as daycent said, once you get your head around it, it's fairly intuitive. I use LR3 now. It's a great RAW processor, supports tethered shooting, has built in lens profiles (or you can create your own) and the built in luminace and colour noise reduction is top notch - I don't have the most amazing camera in the world (D5000), but I'm quite comfortable shooting up to ISO 3200 - not to mention, metadata search, stacking, batch-processing, etc, etc... but, saying all that, if you're happy enough with Picassa and it does everything you need, stick with it

Hugh_C

I've been using it so long (since V1) that it has become second nature. I take a large volume of pics on a weekly basis (>1200 often) and LR is invaluable for bulk work. Couldn't do without it. I have to add though that I use it in tandem with an even more powerful editor (pshop) when I need more complex editing than LR has to offer.

I don't understand why you find the file management complex, I get LR to import all data off my cards and store it automagically on my raid. I pretty much ignore where stuff goes coz LR creates its own hierarchy (on OS X anyway).

squareballoon

I haven't been using LR for long but couldn't do without it now. Definitely worth it.

FoxT

Thanks for all the responses! I find Picasa is great for ease of use, but I have reached the point where I find the processing options are too limited with it. Also its performance is poor, especially with RAWS, which it does not render well anyway.... So I am definitely moving. I am looking at ADCSee pro 3 ( 4 due soon) as well as LR 3. No decision yet, though.


- FoxT

af_thefragile

I've found Light Room to be the best software I've used at photo processing.

But its only simple photo processing such as enhancing exposure, contrast, saturation and stuff like that I've used LR for so far. Its supposed to be really good when working with HDR as well.

FoxT

First off,
thanks to everybody for your feedback & advice. Some of you may be interested in my experience...


I have trialled Lightroom & also ACDsee pro 3 for the past month or so. I agree that lightroom is a great photo processing product... but it is not for me right now.

My 2c is that
- lightroom image processing is a tiny bit better than ACDSee*
- but ACDsee file & metadata management is way, way easier than lightroom
- and ACDsee is half the price (approx)
- and ACDsee has some cool features that I like
- and lightroom help is really, really poor. If I need help I want a manual with an index, so I can look it up fast & get on with getting the job done.ACDsee help is good at this. Lightroom help is full of video tutorials etc that might be good, but they take up so much time.

So, I will be going to ACDsee when funds permit.


Thanks again

- FoxT

ditpaintball

I used to use it, and found it great at the time but it was always lacking total control over images.

I have since shifted my work flow to importing and organising with Adobe Bridge and then using Photoshop to process and retouch. I was able to do this by picking up new photoshop techniques and learning all about actions. But as soon as I get a MAC, that will be changed to Bridge -> Aperature -> Photoshop.

Moral of the story - If you are a hobbyist and do not entend to do large batches of images, then stick with light room. But end of the day, photoshop is where it is at.... it is just daunting to learn at the start.