• The application feels faster, switching between modules is quicker and when scrolling through the library thumbnails snap into focus much quicker (note I’m using a Macbook with one gig of RAM, YMMV).
• Vastly improved sharpening tools. In the Develop module the sharpening slider has been replaced with four individual controls (Amount, Radius, Detail, and Masking). This could be a mixed bag, on one hand you have more fine-grained control on the other hand it takes longer — it would nice if this were a “advanced” option.
• “Clarity” controls. A new Develop module feature which Adobe says “adds depth to an image by increasing local contrast.” I haven’t had time to really get the hang of it, but in certain situations it can give images that extra “pop” that editors are always asking for.

At the O'Reilly site I found 3 interesting posts. First there's a short piece by James Duncan Davidson that details changes in Photoshop Lightroom version 1.1, a post by Mikkel Aaland called What I Like about LR 1.1, and a story by Colleen Wheeler that brings some news about a much anticipated Lightroom book.

Photoshop Actions & Brushes Create Realistic Painter Effects

Gavin Philips has released a new set of creative Photoshop actions and art history brushes that create painterly effects. Below is an interview with Gavin that explains his new ‘Paint like Monet’ program. (There is a free action available at Gavin's site. Try the free 'Pastel' creative Photoshop 'action' for PC or the free 'Pastel' creative Photoshop 'action' for MAC.)

What does your 'Paint like Monet' program do for photographers and graphic artists?
It shows them how to quickly create authentic painted portraits using only Photoshop and our custom art history brushes. Also included are several creative Photoshop 'actions'.

How do the creative 'actions' work?
Many photographers and graphic artists use Photoshop ‘actions’ for doing repetitive tasks, such as converting to black & white, or converting from RAW to JPG.

Our creative ‘actions’ combine many complex steps and produce stylish imagery at the click of a button. We also include text messages to give the artist suggestions about how to customize their photo during the ‘action’, or after it has finished playing.

Don't you need a program like 'Painter' to paint digitally?
Our painted examples prove that you do not. Photographers and graphic artists want a streamlined workflow where they do not have to keep switching programs.

There is also the issue of the large amount of time needed to learn ‘Painter’ in order to produce high-quality paintings with it.

I tried using Photoshop's art history brush and all I created was a mess. How are you using it to create these painted photos?
The way to make Photoshop’s art history brush a great tool is the design of our custom art history brushes. We invested considerable time creating the custom brushes in Photoshop that are all included in the set.

The settings of the brush, and when to change the settings is also crucial. Through hundreds of hours of testing, we came up with the best techniques. This is what we teach in our movies.

Read the full interview and find out more about this program.

3 Free Photoshop Actions - Plus Photo FX Actions Discount

Gavin Phillips, creator of some very popular FX Photoshop Actions, has set up a new special discount deal for all PhotoshopSupport visitors, plus he is offering 3 free Actions that you can test drive and keep. Here are the details from Gavin:



"Our creative Photoshop Actions and short Flash movies enable you to create elegant imagery in minutes. Our Actions incorporate dozens of steps in Photoshop that you can apply by simply clicking a button. In addition to the Photoshop Actions, our short Flash movies give you other creative ways to use our actions, explain a technique or finish what the Action started. Our specialized program has been published by the 'Professional Photographers of America' (PPA) twice as well as in other publications. Try my 3 Photoshop Actions for free. They produce the effects above (from left to right — Infrared, Toned and Softly).

"We offer 4 sets of Photoshop Actions and Flash movies and we are offering a special discount for a limited time (offer ends July 10th). Purchase one set of Photoshop Actions and get a second set for free. Visit the special Actions discount page for details."

Gavin has also kindly written up a nice Photoshop Actions Tutorial that will give you a quick course on Photoshop Actions.

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Essentials From Total Training - 5 Free Video Clips

Total training has released Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Essentials with Ric Kasnoff. Ric is a professional photographer with over 35 years of industry experience. He has trained thousands of photographers in seminars and workshops and has been presented with over 100 awards for his work.

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Essentials will quickly get you up to speed, introducing you to the Lightroom Interface and workspace, showing you how to set up your preferences and personalize Lightroom to suit your workflow. You will learn how to import, store and name files using keywords and discover the many features of the Lightroom Library and how to get the most from the Develop Module. Plus, explore all of the export options available using the Slideshow, Web and Print Modules to output your images professionally. Below are some sample clips, as well as an interview with Ric.

Free sample clips from Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Essentials
Here are 5 clips from Lesson 2 - Setup and Preferences (20 min):
1. Creating & Placing a Catalog
2. Setting Preferences
3. Catalog Settings
4. Personalizing Lightroom
5. Notes on Color Management

Exclusive 20% Discount On Select Total Training Products & Bundles
To redeem our exclusive discount coupon, use promotion code save20pss in your shopping cart. You could save hundreds of dollars. Use this special link to see the full offer.

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom - Who Needs It?

If you have managed to live without Photoshop Lightroom up until now, what makes it so fantabulous/damned hot that you need to place it at the top of your software wish list? Read Adobe Photoshop Lightroom - Who Needs It? by Mark Galer for some thoughts on Lightroom's top features. From the intro:

Photoshop Lightroom has had somewhat of an identity crisis amongst the general population of photographers since its release in early 2007. The Adobe engineers built it to fill a gap in the Photoshop family of products (Photoshop CS3 and Photoshop Elements being the other two family members) but many amongst the photographic community have not been able to identify its primary task to make it the ‘must have’ product that Adobe hoped it would become for all digital photographers.

Adobe would like to think that no photographer could imagine living without this product, but in reality, most digital photographers have survived without it for years and question why thy need it now. Much of the confusion for many photographers exists because the feature set of each of the Photoshop products overlap, e.g. they all allow you to adjust the brightness and contrast of your image. Why buy two products when the one I have does the job nicely?



Fig 01. Lightroom – not a browser but a database

A rose by any other name would smell as sweet
I believe Adobe are afraid of scaring off photographers by telling them what Lightroom actually is – a database with extras (hopefully I haven’t offended your creative sensibilities by using the ‘d’ word and you will prove Adobe wrong by carrying on reading). Adobe has spent so long avoiding using the term (dancing around the reality of what the product is by using photo-friendly terms such as library and catalog) that they have created considerable confusion as to the product’s true identity and function amongst a broad section of the photographic community.

So what’s so great about a database and why does a photographer need one? A good photographic database will let you locate and see a full-screen preview of any image you have ever taken in seconds – even if the image file isn’t on your computer - now how scary a concept can that be?

Read the rest of Adobe Photoshop Lightroom - Who Needs It?.

Free Photoshop Lightroom Getting Started Guide For Beginners

Adobe has posted an excellent 41 page PDF booklet that is a super helpful quick reference guide to have around while learning the program.

It's filled with some appealing photography and there's an index at the end that makes it very easy to find specific Lightroom help. Here are the main section headings of the guide, and the small intros to each one:

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Overview
Lightroom offers a complete environment for digital photography, from raw capture to creative output. Start with the Library module, where you import your images, move seamlessly to the Develop module to perform advanced image adjustments (or export them to Photoshop), and share your photos as slideshows, prints, or web pages.

Getting Images Into Your Library
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom takes a unique approach to importing and managing your files. The Import dialog box offers valuable tools, including file handling options, metadata templates, keywording, and exposure presets.

Viewing And Using Your Library
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom provides a simplified inter face design that lets you focus on editing your photographs. At the heart of Lightroom is the Library module. It enables you to easily store, locate, sort, and adjust individual images as well as entire groups.

Image Adjustments
The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Develop module offers sophisticated image adjustment tools in a convenient set of panels.

Exporting Images
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom gives you the ability to export your images in different formats while renaming and resizing them into your preferred color space — either one at a time or as a group.

Slideshow
Slideshows are a great way to share your images. Adobe Photoshop Lightroom provides you with easy-to-use tools that will give you impressive results.

Print
The Print module lets you print directly from Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, without the additional step of exporting the photos into an external editor, such as Adobe Photoshop.

Web
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom gives you a comprehensive and streamlined system for creating your own web photo gallery. Professional, intuitive presets are provided to get you started, but Lightroom also allows for basic customization of your web pages.

The Lightroom Getting Started Guide comes in two versions — high and low res. Get the high res if you can, as the photos really look much nicer in this one.

Lightroom Getting Started guide – high resolution (PDF, 64 MB)
Lightroom Getting Started guide – low resolution (PDF, 5.4 MB)

For lots more free Adobe Lightroom tutorials visit our Adobe Lightroom Tutorials Page.

Adobe Lightroom 30-Day Free Trial Download

On the Adobe Download Page you'll find a list of all of their available free trials. The Lightroom free trial is located near the bottom of the Print Publishing category. Or you can simply follow this direct link to the Adobe Lightroom Trial Page. The free trial period is 30 days, starting from the time you install the product.

Inside Lightroom — Adobe Lightroom Resource Center & Lightroom Blog From O'Reilly

O'Reilly Media's Inside Lightroom site has a growing collection of Lightroom articles by industry experts. Recently the front page offered these entries: