I had heard/read from several sources that lightroom is really excellent if you're trying to sift thru, sort, edit and organize a large number of photos...
having just returned from a week's vacation with 1800+ photos and feeling rather daunted by the task of going thru them, i decided to break down and buy lightroom...
just loaded it onto my computer, opened it up and realized i haven't the foggiest notion where to start!
can anyone recommend a good getting started guide / tutorial?
I just learned from trial and error, but once you get the hang of it. you will love it!! checked out that tutorial too... very helpful to me .. Thanks.
OMG, practically impossible! if you're can try and have a session with a professional photographer (or serious LR user) to explain their workflow. the initial set-up, import, cataloging are key. you'll love the develop module!
With that many photos I typically pull the good ones off (discard the rest) then import into Lightroom. The number of photos we can produce via digital can be daunting at times.
tx for the links and book suggestions... i'll spend some time on the tutorials this evening... i've done quite well with scott kelby's books so far, so will likely get the one for lightroom as well... i have faith that i can figure this out :)
I am sure you have seen it before but it will give you some indication how I cull images. I dont go into how I sort, and put meta data against each but I am happy to record one for you. http://365project.org/agima/365/2012-03-29
I would also recommend looking at and watching photoshop TV and lightroom killer tips. Google both of these and you will get some great information.
Oh by the way, you have done the correct thing in buying Lightroom... I personally would be lost without it and I have a rather large collection of images.
Of course feel free to ask any questions that you need help on as I am only a email away. :)
@agima tx Brendan!!! yes - i am pretty sure i watched your video before and that was one of the first places where i saw how cool it could be to have a tool to help sort thru photos... i will watch again paying more attention to the actual functions :)
You can purchase the Lightroom 4 workflow by Jared Platt, from creativelive.com. I watched it live (which is free) and it really changed my life. I've been using Lightroom for a year and I thought I got it all figured out until I watched the workshop. I think you can purchase it for $150. It's roughly 12 hours of pure knowledge!
Also you can check youtube, just search "lightroom basic tutorial"; you'll find tons of videos to get you started, and the best, they are free!
@terryvet92 my first thought is i haven't the time for this... my second thought is that this would make a good birthday prezzie for me :) i must investigate where such courses might be offered around where i live (i am sure there are lots of places that would do this!)...
I need it too! I am swamped in photos and so hard to sort through them. Sometimes, when I see a messed up a whole bunch of shots of something, like yesterday, it was small ants dragging a big dead ant, I am actually relieved because I don't have to really sift through carefully or worry about clogging up my computer....since I delete almost all of them. LOL! I need lightroom
@espyetta just sat thru a couple of the tutorial videos and while there are a lot of short cuts and labels to remember, it is starting to make some sense... it is waaaay past my pumpkin-ing hour and i am off to bed, but i hope to have some time tomorrow to play around and get started with some sorting and prioritizing...
I think I would leave Lightroom for now and use Picasa from Google. Much easier and its free.Photoshop Elements has catalogue functions and more friendly.
@northy There is a ton of info in the 'net but I decided to go do the course because then I would carve out the time for it. I find it hard to justify the time out to watch stuff. The guy I'm doing the course with is a certified LR expert/trainer so hopefully I'll learn a proper workflow. My problem has been putting all the bits I've learned together into a whole process! I'll let you know if it was worth the time & money! Good luck and happy playing!
@terryvet92 oh yes! pls do let me know if it's worth the time and money... i am really thinking a couple of formal classes would do me a world of good...
@northy Just back from my day spent learning lightroom and yes, for me it was worth the time and money. I learned a few tips and tricks that it would have taken me a lot longer to learn on my own. I also got a couple of presets to use as the first adjustment on every image and I must say they do a great job of improving the RAW file straight away and then making it easier to do the rest. There's still a lot to learn but I feel a lot more comfortable about it than I did before! The instructor I had was great and very down to earth - very encouraging of a bunch of enthusiastic amateurs! So I say, if you can find a good course nearby, it may well be worth it for you to go and spend a day learning the basics and then play with it from there.
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It really was excellent & I learnt so much. I think he's done a version for LR4 now too.
Stick with it. Lightroom is definitely worth the initial pain imho.
i have http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_14?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=lightroom+4+for+digital+photographers&sprefix=lightroom+4+fo%2Cstripbooks%2C363
but could never have figured it out from the book alone.
there are also iphone/iPad apps.
tx for the links and book suggestions... i'll spend some time on the tutorials this evening... i've done quite well with scott kelby's books so far, so will likely get the one for lightroom as well... i have faith that i can figure this out :)
Have a look at how I process after a photoshoot.
I am sure you have seen it before but it will give you some indication how I cull images. I dont go into how I sort, and put meta data against each but I am happy to record one for you.
http://365project.org/agima/365/2012-03-29
I would also recommend looking at and watching photoshop TV and lightroom killer tips. Google both of these and you will get some great information.
Oh by the way, you have done the correct thing in buying Lightroom... I personally would be lost without it and I have a rather large collection of images.
Of course feel free to ask any questions that you need help on as I am only a email away. :)
tx so much!
n
Also you can check youtube, just search "lightroom basic tutorial"; you'll find tons of videos to get you started, and the best, they are free!
Give http://layersmagazine.com/category/lightroom a look its Adobes own site. I wouldn't say Lightroom has a step learning curve at all as some seem to say here.
http://lightroomkillertips.com/
the program also has a help feature
http://www.ononesoftware.com/products/perfect-layers/