Category Archives: Photoshop

Camera Raw, Lightroom Classic & Desktop | April 2023

The latest updates to Camera Raw (15.3), Lightroom Classic (12.3) and Lightroom Desktop (6.3) have been released to customers. These updates include new camera and lens support along with bug fixes. There is one major new feature along with other minor features and enhancements that I’ll discuss below.

AI-powered Denoise [Camera Raw, Lightroom Classic & Desktop]

With these latest updates, Adobe is introducing AI-powered Denoise!

Using artificial intelligence, Camera Raw, Lightroom Classic and Desktop can now remove noise from your photos. Better still, the noise is removed whilst preserving fine detail, far more effectively than the legacy noise reduction controls.

At present, Denoise will only work with Bayer and X-trans raw files. It won’t work on files such as JPEG, HEIC, ProRAW, sRaw, etc. However, Adobe plan to expand support for other file types in future versions.

Lightroom Classic Denoise

Denoise Workflow and File Management

The process of denoising your photos is very simple.

First, Adobe recommend that photos are denoised before editing, especially healing and masking as they can be affected by noise. Edits such as Highlights, Shadows, Dehaze and Clarity can also look different in denoised photos.

Denoise can be accessed via Photo > Enhance menu, or via the ‘Denoise…’ button in the Detail panel (see above screenshot).

Adobe Denoise analyses each photo dynamically to find the optimum range, but the default ‘Amount’ value (50) is always halfway between least and full denoising. In other words, the meaning of ‘full denoising’ varies with the photo, based on the analysis.

In the Enhance dialog, you can press-and-hold anywhere within the preview image to see the photo without Denoise applied. This provides a simple way to make before/after comparisons, especially when fine-tuning the Amount setting.

As with previous Enhance features, any adjustments you may already have made to the original photo will automatically be carried over to the enhanced DNG, although denoising first is recommended for the reasons mentioned above. Any legacy luminance or colour noise adjustments are ignored, and set to zero in the new DNG file. You can edit the new DNG file just like any other raw photo, apply your favourite presets, etc.

The zoom level used in the Enhance Preview panel is 200%, which is a tad high for normal resolution displays but is fine for 4K and higher.

The Denoise process produces a new derivative DNG file with ‘Enhanced-NR’ appended to the filename. Making the result of Denoise into a DNG has all the advantages that normal raw files do, and is similar to other features that produce a DNG. These include, Merge to Panorama and Merge to HDR. However, in the case of Denoise, like the other Enhance features, the resulting DNG also contains a copy of the original mosaic data, so nothing is lost. That being said, Denoise can’t yet be applied on an already enhanced image (Super Resolution or Denoised).

To make the task of finding files that have had ‘Denoise’ applied, the engineering team have provided an option to automatically add keywords to ‘Enhanced’ images. This option can be found under File Handling tab in Preferences dialog as shown in screenshot below.

The new keyword is added to each file based on the enhance workflow you have selected.

  • Raw Details
  • Super Resolution
  • Denoise

A new badge    has also be added to Grid thumbnail and filmstrip. Apparently, the keywords and badges are to make Denoised file easier to find. Personally, I think the engineering time would have been more usefully spent in providing a ‘filter’.

No doubt, there will be numerous comparisons between Adobe Denoise and third party offerings such as those from DxO and Topaz. Each will have areas where they perform well and others where they perform less well. By way of example, some of the third party products may excel at removing all traces of noise without human intervention whereas Adobe’s Denoise at it’s default setting of 50 tends to leave a little residual noise. However, this should not be seen a shortcoming, especially since a small movement of the Amount slider is all that’s needed to remove the noise. Another example, Some 3rd party applications apply global sharpening whilst Adobe Denoise does not. Personally, I prefer to have some control over the amount of noise reduction and sharpening applied to photos, but other users prefer that the process be a single click.

A comprehensive explanation of Denoise written by Eric Chan from the Camera Raw team can be found here.

Masking

Masking continues to be improved with new tools and UI tweaks. I’ve highlighted some of the new features and UI tweaks below.

Curves [Lightroom Classic and Desktop]

A ‘Curves’ panel has been added to to Masks in Lightroom Classic and Desktop. This brings both versions of Lightroom into line with Camera Raw.

Other Curve enhancements include:

  • Indicators (dots) have also added to Tone Curve and Masking Curves panel to indicate if that Curve has active settings. See above screenshot.
  • Support has also been added for Renaming and Deleting Curve Presets through the UI. The option is only available for User Created Presets.
  • The Histogram shown in local curve will be displayed for the selected mask, and not of the entire image. See above screenshot.

Select People [Camera Raw, Lightroom Classic and Desktop]

Two new attributes for the People mask.

  • Facial Hair
  • Clothes

Also, the People mask attribute ‘Face Skin is now renamed to ‘Facial Skin’.

History Step [Lightroom Classic]

The Mask Name would now be added to History step when its settings, like Exposure, Contrast, etc., are changed.

Adaptive Presets [Camera Raw, Lightroom Classic and Desktop]

The Portrait Group of ‘Adaptive’ Presets has been expanded to include

  • Polished Portrait
  • Darken Beard

Library Enhancements [Lightroom Classic]

The Lightroom Classic engineering team have spent some time working to improve Scrolling and Walk Performance. However, at this time these improvements are limited to macOS systems.

For example, many Library module views now leverage native macOS capabilities for drawing/rendering of Images. This should help in optimising overall scrolling performance.

With these changes, you should experience better performance in the following views in macOS.

  • Improved / smoother Publish Grid scrolling and People View Scrolling.
  • Improved/ smoother scrolling experience in Import Grid , Import Loupe.
  • Faster walking in Full Screen.

Other Performance tweaks have been implemented as follows:

  • Keywords – optimised ‘Purge Unused Keywords’ workflow.
  • Map – the embedded browser framework that is used to render web content Classic in Map and Web modules has been updated.

UI Enhancements [Lightroom Classic]

Eyeball icons & Edit indicators

  • Eyeball icons replace the ‘switches’ and are now visible by default for all Edit panels and Healing, Redeye, and Masking tools. They can be clicked and held to temporarily hide settings of that panel. However, should you wish to switch a panel off, then press and hold Option/Alt key to convert Eyeball icons to  a Panel Switch.
  • Edit Indicators are also available in the toolbar. For the Global Panels, Eyeball icons also act as edit indicators.

Edit in Photoshop > Select Photoshop Version

Lightroom Classic now includes an option to select Photoshop version from all the different Photoshop versions installed on your system for your ‘Edit in Photoshop’ workflows. You can select the preferred Photoshop version from ‘Photoshop version’ dropdown in Preference > External Editing tab > Edit in Adobe Photoshop section. By default, latest version of Photoshop installed is selected. Once the Photoshop version is selected, it can be used for all the Edit-In Photoshop workflows.

Open as Smart Object Layers in Photoshop

A new option  has been added to open selected images as Smart Object Layers in Photoshop.

Feature Enhancements [Lightroom Desktop]

In addition to the headline feature mentioned above, Lightroom Desktop receives the following enhancements.

  • Video Improvements (Auto – B&W – Extract frame – Export frame – Trimming improvements (Timeline, Numeric in Crop))
  • Batch Editing -Already have it, just more discoverable -Copy -Paste -X to clear current settings -Gear to specify what gets copied
  • Resize Filmstrip
  • Preference to turn off Tool Tips
  • Performance Improvements: Crop, Scrolling, Pan and Zoom
  • [Beta] Content Authenticity feature via Export (opt in) -File or Cloud – Credentials to include -Verification site – https://verify.contentauthenticity.or -See list of creators, tools, what was done -See original (See original and edit side).

New Camera Support

Details of new camera support added since the last release can be found here

New Lens Correction Support

Details of new lens support added since the last release can be found here

Disclosure: As an Adobe Community Expert I receive a free subscription to Adobe Creative Cloud.

The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 5 Book: The Complete Guide for Photographers

 I’m often asked which books I recommend for Lightroom and Photoshop. On the face of it it’s a fairly reasonable question but one that I struggle to answer without showing my bias.  How come?

Well,  since Lightroom 1.0 I have assisted Martin Evening with his Lightroom Book: The Complete Guide for Photographers. My input has been fairly limited in so far as I act as his technical editor. Nevertheless, having read pretty much every Lightroom book available in the english language I can say that Martin’s is by far the most comprehensive. I wont pretend that it’s a book for beginners or even an easy read. No, this book is written with the intention of providing the reader with comprehensive information and tips on all aspects of Lightroom.

Lightroom was designed from the ground up with digital photographers in mind, offering powerful editing features in a streamlined interface that lets photographers import, sort, and organise their images. In this completely updated version Martin describes features in Lightroom 5 in detail from a photographer’s perspective.  He has been working with Lightroom from the beginning, monitoring the product’s development and providing valued feedback to Adobe. As a result, Martin knows the software inside and out, from image selection to image editing through image management to the final print. In this book he’ll teach you how to:

  • Work efficiently with images shot in raw or JPEG formats
  • Import photographs with ease and sort them according to your workflow
  • Create and manage a personal image and video library
  • Quickly apply tonal adjustments to multiple images
  • Integrate Lightroom with Adobe Photoshop
  • Export images for print or Web as digital contact sheets or personal portfolios
  • Make the most of new features in Lightroom 5, such as extended spot
  • removal, Upright™ corrections, and Smart Previews

The book can be obtained from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk

Wild Yellowstone – Day 8 (Yellowstone National Park)

Another relatively early start to the day, but rather than pre planned locations we would stop as and when the mood took us or an opportunity for a good photograph arose.

Our first stop was near the Mount Haines viewpoint on the West Entrance road. We had noticed a small heard of elk were making their way across the Madison River, and the light on the far bank was really quite lovely. Fortune favoured us because having crossed the river, the elk stopped to graze for a few minutes.

Elk Calf in Morning Light, Madison Meadow

As we made our way along the Firehole River we came across a Great Blue Heron. Just as we stopped the cars it flew out from the river onto the bank. Fortunately, for us it stayed out of the shadows and we all managed to get a few reasonably good shots.

Great Blue Heron, Firehole River

Our next stop was along the Firehole Lake Drive, which branches off the Grand Loop Road about half way between the Lower and Midway Geysers Basins.  We had been along this road a few days earlier and photographed the White Domed Geyser, but on this occasion we would spend most of our time concentrating on the colour and details to be found in the algae mats and run-offs from the hots springs and thermal pools.

Firehole Spring, Firehole Lake Drive

The Artist’s Paint Pots area was another interesting stop. It’s a relatively small area with a short but steep hike up to a couple of large and very active mud pots. I managed to get a few shots with the pots spurting hot mud into the air, but my favourite shot of the stop was of an American Robin. Pretty much everywhere I went, the Robin followed or was it the other way round 😉

American Robin, Artist’s Paint Pots Area

Images edited in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4.1

** Disclaimer** Above images are quick previews specifically for this blog so that friends and family can see how I’m getting on.

Adobe Lightroom 3.4 and Camera Raw 6.4 Release Candidates

Adobe have announced Lightroom 3.4 and Camera Raw 6.4 Release Candidates on Adobe Labs. An updated version of DNG Converter is also available for download. As in the past, the “release candidate” label is used to indicate that these updates have undergone internal testing but would benefit from additional user testing.

These updates included support for the following recently recent cameras:

 

  • Canon EOS 600D (Rebel T3i / Kiss X5)
  • Canon EOS 1100D (Rebel T3 / Kiss X50)
  • Hasselblad H4D-40
  • Olympus E-PL1s
  • Olympus E-PL2
  • Olympus XZ-1
  • Samsung NX11

A small number of additional lens profiles have also been included.

The following bugs that were part of previous Lightroom 3 releases have been corrected:

  • Lightroom encountered issues presenting double-byte character metadata after the image was edited on Photoshop.com.
  • Publish collections did not work properly if the sort order is set to descending. (“Z to A”).
  • Using the up/down arrow keys or the mouse wheel to adjust a parameter while the graduated filter is activated caused increments of plus or minus 100 instead of 1.
  • Interlacing artifacts, and a slight magenta cast in the deepest shadows could have appeared on some high-contrast edges of Canon mRaw files.
  • A magenta color cast could have appeared on Nikon D7000 images if the multi-exposure feature was used with raw capture.
  • Video files were allowed to be added to a SmugMug publish collection not capable of supporting video uploads.
  • Folder creation caused an expanded folder hierarchy to close unexpectedly in the Library Module.

A small number of bugs found in Camera Raw 6.3 have also be fixed. They include:

  • Camera Raw did not allow write-back capability for the EXIF GPS properties
  • The DNG File format did not support XMP Media Management
  • A JPEG file with a specific characteristic was found to have a pink cast
  • The undo command (Command Z) was failing to undo crop adjustments
  • Single images marked for deletion were not moved to the trash
  • A magenta color cast could have appeared on Nikon D7000 images if the multi-exposure feature was used with raw capture