Confessions of a Lightroom Addict
I thought I'd share some of my Lightroom confessions in the hopes that I would either a) get a quick laugh from you as you realize you're not the only one that does something odd in Lightroom or, b) undermine my professionalism and credibility by showing you some of the silly things I do. Make sure you leave a comment here if you have your own confession or just want to second your favorite of mine. Here goes:
1. Whenever I go into Photoshop I set the bit depth for 90% of my photos to 8 bit instead of 16 bit. Yes, I know I could easier call some of your first born ugly as opposed to choosing 8 bit but that's my story and I'm stickin' to it.
2. I don't keyword my photos nearly as much as I should. I mean, I know the benefits of keywording. I keyword about 80% of the photos I import into Lightroom. But that's not enough because you can bet whenever I search for photos, the ones I want to find end up being part of the 20% that I didn't keyword. It probably has something to do with that 80/20 rule thing.
3. I've accidentally synchronized the develop settings on ALL 480 photos in a folder (on more then one occasion). While the settings I used may have worked on a few photos, the majority look really bad with the same develop settings. The worst thing is, that sometimes I didn't know I did it and I'd later look through my photos cursing myself, wondering how the heck I could be such a bad photographer.
4. I hate metadata. I'm sorry, I had to say it. I can't stand it when I look at feature lists for Lightroom (or any other product for that matter) and I see anything with the word "metadata" listed as a feature. It's important stuff, I know, but it's also very boring. I just assume it should be there but don't try to sell it to me as a feature.
5. I love the benefits of metadata. The Metadata panel rocks and the benefits of good metadata support is very important. That's what makes me feel bad about the #4 confession above. It's an inner struggle I deal with daily ;)
6. I add an edge darkening vignette to everything. I think it's safe to say I'm addicted to the Lens Vignetting setting.
7. I avoid the slideshow module at all costs. If I've got a quick slideshow to show a friend or client near my computer then sure I'll use it. If I'm presenting in front of a group I use Fotomagico on the mac. (iPhoto on the Mac or Slideshow Pro on the PC are really good too).
8. I NEVER EVER EVER EVER use Lightroom's noise reduction feature. While we're on the topic of things I never use, I don't use the Camera Calibration and the Snapshots panels either. Oh and I rarely use anything other then the 3 contrast presets in the Tone Curve panel. Hey... this is confessions right. I'm just bein' honest here.
9. I have 3 backups of all of my photos. However, I just realized that I only have 1 backup of my catalog. So if I'm so paranoid about losing my photos you'd think I would be just as paranoid about losing all of the work I've done to them right? Well I just realized as I wrote this that my Time Capsule (my backup drive for my mac) is the only backup I have of my Lightroom catalog. If something happened to it and my laptop (which are both in my house) then I'd be in trouble. That's going to change today though, as I've started another Time Machine (the backup program on a Mac) backup at work.
10. I get upset every time I find myself constantly hitting D to go into the Develop module with a photo, then pressing G to quickly get back to the Library grid to pick another photo. Then pressing D again, and then G again, and so on. Truth be told, I guess I'm paranoid because I feel like I'm missing something because I never hear anyone else complain about this. So I quietly keep doing it.
11. I have WAY too many Develop presets. 156 to be exact. But I love 'em so I don't see it changing anytime soon.
12. Since I've gotten Lightroom, I've found I get just a little ticked when I have to take a photo into Photoshop for further editing.
13. Unless a feature is so good I just can't stand it, I typically wait about 1 week before installing Lightroom updates.
14. It bugs me a little when people don't believe that I didn't "Photoshop" a photo. I may have Lightroom'd it, but I didn't Photoshop it. And so what if I did! :)
I hope you enjoyed my confessions and leave one of your own as a comment here. Whether you agree or have a totally different one, go ahead and let us know.
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April 18th, 2008 at 7:06 am
Hi Matt
I have a confession; I always guess when it comes to print resolution. The prints are Ok, but why go to the moon if the earth is OK. So Matt, how about a more in depth video about how to pick the right print resolution for the right size print. What is the printers’ native resolution and how can you find out. Have a great weekend.
Regards
Alan
April 18th, 2008 at 7:59 am
Hi Matt & every 1
1st thing I think it would be Awsome it There was an CS3 Module. No leaving Lightroom at all. Hell that would really kick Aperture’s Butt.
2nd Im with you on the what did you do to that photo. Nothing I took a great shot…& saying that without trying to be a jerk.
3rd Matt Off subject a little but with Mpix when sending files to to the what kind of file do you send them. Say for an 20X30…
Thanks for your site Matt & Napp they really help me alot.
Jared
April 18th, 2008 at 8:22 am
Matt,
Amen to confession #’s 6, 8, and 10!
Thanks for sharing.
Aaron
April 18th, 2008 at 8:27 am
Hey Matt,
My addictions, not necessarily related to Lightroom, and in no particular order…
Your Blog
Kelby’s Blog
Cross’s Blog
Ziser’s Blog
McNally’s Blog
Peterson’s Blog
and LightRoom’s Grayscale presets
Oh and most importantly, GOLF!!
April 18th, 2008 at 2:02 pm
10? Why 10? How come you ever worked this way? Don’t you just choose a number of files into your fast collection, choose the same collection and start developing the selected files from the filmstrip?
I rarely switch between library and development more than two or three times a session…
For the rest … I defenitely go along…
By the way: THANK YOU, MATE! I do appreciate all the effort you do on this site. Thumbs-up from here (Germany that is…).
Take care,
S.
April 18th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
I completelly agree with #10 and #12!
#10 bugs me in a special way because I do it sooooo many times, I’m always swithcing back and forth, and for some reason I hate using keyboard so it takes me even longer to do it with the mouse….
anyway, keep up this great blog!!
April 18th, 2008 at 3:31 pm
#8 You don’t use Snapshots? I find they’re a great way to save settings that I like for a particular photo (as opposed to Presets, but I guess you’re a Preset kind of guy) and then to A-B them against another array of settings. If I like them both, I’ll make a virtual copy and apply the B setting to it.
Hey, quick question: how many Catalogs do you use? Just one or multiple?
April 18th, 2008 at 5:54 pm
My confession -
I have also become a lightroom addict.
I have way to many presets (thanks to you :)), way to many print templates ( thanks to various people wondering if something can be done in Lightroom and then I challenge myself to see if I can do it, whether or not I need the template myself ) and I must admit all this flexibility is preventing me from almost doing anything.
You see, I’m an Engineer ( you know the guy that no one talks to at parties, except other engineers). Lightroom has provided me with so many neat tools to play with.
For example, I’m addicted to virtual copies.I don’t know when to stop playing and just accept the last acceptable iteration of an image.
As for your comment on “did you photoshop it ?” My answer is no I lightroomed it. ( they think - “engineer trying to make a funny comparison to a darkroom”.)
Seriously though, I really appreciate that Lightroom has brought me back to the basics of “developing” my images.
Its a great program and it looks as if 2.0 will be even better.
April 19th, 2008 at 3:37 am
Good to know that. Sometimes I think that this hapnes just with me…
April 19th, 2008 at 3:36 pm
My confession is that I don’t use LR anymore except for editing. It was too much of a hassle to move back and forth between PS and LR. I wouldn’t use LR at all if the loupe aspect of Bridge was better.
April 20th, 2008 at 10:33 pm
Echoing yours, I love vignetting. I realized lately that I might use it a little TOO much and have been trying to cut back, but the photos just look strange without it.
I don’t use the noise reduction because I still think it needs a little work.
And finally I didn’t even realize I had a preset problem until you brought it up. I went and counted and I have 132. But I swear I’m going to be deleting some of those soon. Maybe.
April 21st, 2008 at 1:01 pm
I’m so glad to hear that a pro is addicted to vignetting!!! It makes me feel better about myself because I love vignetting!
April 21st, 2008 at 4:48 pm
Thanks for sharing these confessions. It made my day end with a big smile. Great writing-style!
My confessions:
1. I hate tips: I like to experience myself and I don’t like people telling me ‘this is the way you should do it’.
2. I love tips on lightroom: It saves me a lot of time and I’m surprised every week to see something I didn’t know before.
3. I love the internet: What a great way of sharing things and communicate.
4. I do 95% of editing in Lightroom.
5. I hope to see a lot of tips on this site.
6. I go to sleep now. It’s been late for to many days in a row.
Thanks again,
Rob
the Netherlands
April 21st, 2008 at 6:52 pm
Matt,
D+G all the way. Required evil I guess. Actually to solve the multiple-folder situation you can use your beloved keywording
As long as the pictures that span multiple folders can somehow fit within in the same keyword group, you can have all of them in one Grid view by selecting the keyword selection rather than the folder selection. Problem partially solved.
And #12, I’m with you on that ALL THE WAY! I never thought I would say it, or get to a point where I DREAD going into photoshop to further a picture.
But this whole trend of wedding photographers and their damn actions and texturing….. it’s really hard to resist. I’m resisting, I’m retarding my photoshop urges. I can NOT wait for v2 to get out of beta!!!
If you shoot raw, you’ll find yourself using the camera calibrate sliders, trust me, it can do wonders! Not so much on jpgs. I’ve decided I actually dislike jpg very much, there is no breathing room with/for the pixels.
BTW, I have found ways to tweak a picture in un-orthodox ways with lightroom, as long as they’re RAW tho. There are some very interesting things you can do as far as massaging light/color/feel/detail in lightroom.
If you ever read this comment, hit me up, I’ll gladly explain in detail.
Sorry, I digress
-AL
April 22nd, 2008 at 3:06 pm
OMG, I think I could confess to about 90% of these as well.
I’m hopelessly addicted. Is there a 12-step program? I’ve even forsaken Photoshop on far too many occasions just so I could be with Lightroom. Does that make me a bad person? 
Thanks again, Matt. I truly enjoy your blog!
April 22nd, 2008 at 8:19 pm
Hey Matt -
I love one of your last confessions - Did you Photoshop that? I get that all the time.
This is the first time I think I have commented - but I have been lurking for a while. OMG - I am addicted to Lightroom! I love all your presets too
Deb
April 23rd, 2008 at 8:38 am
RE: 3. I’ve accidentally synchronized the develop settings on ALL 480 photos in a folder (on more then one occasion).
Hey, that makes me feel better, since I’ve done that, too. But only once…so far. (head thunk)
April 25th, 2008 at 8:38 am
I convert everything to DNG. My RAW photos from my D-SLR and the JPEG photos from my point and shoot. I just like having everything in a single file format.
April 25th, 2008 at 12:19 pm
Right on, except for the vignetting. There are these 2 guys — Scott Kelby and Eddie Tapp, who each teach vignetting techniques (Tapp calls his “Layer Mask Lighting”) that just are much better than the LR vignetting, depending on the photo. So I still do all serious vignetting in CS3.
Thanks for the entertaining “Confessions.”
April 26th, 2008 at 11:16 am
Hi Matt,
I have to admit I was intrigued and a little amused when I heard about this from Scott’s blog. However it did get me thinking about my own workflow habits.
Although I use the CS3 bridge and not Lightroom (yeah I know this blog is about Lightroom and I do respect that) but If I may, I’d like to share with you some of my own “Confessions of an Adobe Bridge Addict’s habits lol, good or bad with you here anyway. Here goes:-
Good habits:
1. Whenever I download my photos using the CS3 Bridge, I always tell it to back up to a folder on my second hard drive, before I erase that memory card!
2. I don’t just stick with the default names my camera attaches to the photos like DSC0047.NEF, so I’ll go for something more descriptive like ‘Lions_ChesterZoo’, so I can find them some other time.
3. After the Import, I create 3 Folders within Bridge, naming them ‘Original Camera RAW Files’, ‘Working PSD (Photoshop) Files’, and ‘Finished Work’ for my JPEGs ready for output (sometimes though within that very same folder, I’ll have sub-folders for sRGB output and a Pro Photo Lab profile, etc.
Okay, now for my Bad habits:-
1. I never bother entering my full contact details in the ‘metadata’ tag file. ust sticking with my name and Copyright info. I know I should set up a ‘Metadata Template, so Bridge will automatically apply that to my photos upon Import.
2. After the Import, I just don’t use Keywording, )I know it would maybe be helpful to me if I took the time to do that).
3. I very often just leave the ‘1′, ‘2′, ‘3′ etc Star photos siting there wasting space on my hard drive, where I could be deleting those when I’ve already backed up those photos to my Backup drive anyway.
5. Finally, not owning a copy of Lightroom lol! However I do plan on buying a copy before the end of the year!
I hope you’ve found that interesting. I find it very re-assuring to know that even you Matt have some bad habits, and that you are willing to share these with people!
Very much appreciated!
Thanks!
April 26th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
Kathleen Difato I found this little how to: Catalog Backup in Lightroom
Posted by Sean McCormack from Lightroom News. I am not sure if this is what you need. I am a newbie to Adobe but I hope it helps. Matt I hope this is aloud posting from another site. If it isn’t I apologize in advance.
http://lightroom-news.com/2008/02/04/catalog-backup-in-lightroom/
April 28th, 2008 at 8:11 pm
Matt,
Love your blogs, and I also am an addict when it come to edge vignetting.
I had a portrait studio years ago when pictures where done it B & W.
It seems like for a long time after color became the major mode in pictures that it fell out of favor. Needless to say I have been glad to see it return in LR.
It’s also much easier than doing in in the darkroom!
Keep up the good work,
Jim B.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:27 pm
Metadata is my current addiction. I’ve had my Nikon D80 for 4 months, and just forced myself to start shooting in manual about 2 weeks ago. I’m in such a learning stage that I analyze the data on all my photos, trying to figure out what I’ve done right or wrong.
I’m brand new to Lightroom, so this may be a really dumb question: before I uploaded all my pictures through iPhoto, but now I’m doing it in Lightroom. Will it make an extra copy (I already keep a backup copy when I’m importing to Lightroom) if I import to iPhoto, too? I like viewing in iPhoto, but I rarely use its editing features.
August 11th, 2008 at 11:57 am
Just got Ver 2LR had 1.4
In previous ver.s under MetaData Browser we could see images shot with different cameras, lenses, apertures, file type, shutter speed, ISO, date, location, creator and label.
Can’t find that in 2. Can you?