Photoshop Vs Lightroom-what and why?
Photoshop Vs Lightroom-what and why?
Photoshop Vs Lightroom, a brief discussion of both. Ok so I’ll let you in on a little secret when I did my photography qualifications we used film cameras! That’s right manual cameras that you somehow had to negotiate loading in a pitch black room. Add in the mix of other students also being in there and you have an interesting scenario. So my ‘Lightroom’ was an actual Darkroom. Where you loaded the canisters with your film before placing them into developer and fixer. Silently praying that what you thought you had taken a picture of actually came out usable.
Needless to say there was a lot of waste. A lot of unusable images, sometimes due to the actual taking of them or down to the developing process. Equally when my Diploma in Graphic Design we only had Photoshop and InDesign. This meant Photoshop was left all the wacky things you wanted to do with images. As you can imagine when I picked up a DSLR I was overwhelmed. What the heck did all these buttons do and where was my manual aperture and shutter speed. Baffling is the term I’d use.
Photoshop Vs Lightroom: A DSLR
Luckily my husband is very technologically minded and was able to guide me through it. Before long I was happily snapping away. It didn’t take long though before my original Nikon 3300 wasn’t cutting the mustard. I upgraded to another Nikon, the D7200 and started getting a collection of lenses. Having found what, I like I definitely have my favourite lenses.
Then came the RAW epiphany. Having always had low quality digital cameras RAW was never on my radar. Until I started doing reading and research. Basically RAW was the answer. Most people and camera shoot in Jpeg mode, meaning the camera does a lot of work for you. However, when you shoot in RAW you are taking a raw unprocessed image. So minimal light balance etc. This means you need to ‘develop’ you image, enter Lightroom. So Lightroom enables you to play with the balance, the clarity, the saturation and so much more. Meaning a flat and bland picture can become something fabulous.
Photoshop Vs Lightroom: Before and After in Lightroom
Have a look at the images below. We had very flat light that day, plus it was chilly so Zammi’s coat was a little ‘starey’ meaning dull, with a little tweaking it’s a different image. I rarely use Photoshop now. I much prefer Lightroom. Personally I think the finish is better and it’s a lot subtler. It also allows water marks and creates a catalogue for me to keep. I do use Photoshop for my blacked out background pictures but very rarely for anything else.
During a shoot I often get asked ‘can’t you just Photoshop it out?’. Well yes I can, but isn’t that not really the point. In my personal opinion isn’t the point of a shoot to capture a moment and memory with your horse. To create a lasting piece of art work that will evoke thoughts of a happier time. Not too cut bits out and in them in create to create a false portrait? Its meant to be your horse, in all its beauty, flaws and all.
To create the perfect shoot then why not read my previous blog post?
