Lightroom 3 Question

tacomadm18 · Aug 19, 2010

I don't want to start a war, but I have a question.

I like to shoot (for fun) and was using Elements 7, but I did not like the way you had to tag, import photos etc,,,, so I switched to picasa 3. It seems like it will do an O.K job, and I don't do a lot of post editing at all. What I don't want to do is to invest a lot of time in picasa and then find out it has some bad short comings,,,,, which is why I like to get some comments on Lightroom 3.
My main focus is to; keep my pics organized, easy to find, easy to import, easy to print with an online service, and program is easy to use.

thoughts

Robin Usagani · Aug 19, 2010

I love LR3. Made my life so much easier. The quick editing it can do is amazing too. I keep finding new things I can do with LR3. I guess I should read the manual but I like learning as I go.

KmH · Aug 19, 2010

The Organizer in Elements 7 is a browser.

Lightroom is a database manager and takes quite a bit more work to manage images effectively with in comparison.

Elements 7 can edit pixels, Lightroom can't. Elements has the capability to do layers. Lightroom doesn't.

If you want "easy to find, easy to import, easy to print with an online service, and program is easy to use.", stick with Picasa.

Both Elements and Lightroom have a significant learning curve it doesn't sound like you're interested in dealing with.

Dominantly · Aug 19, 2010

I LOVE LR3.

I had the trial for about 3 month, and now that it has expired and I no longer have it, I am not a happy camper. I have CS4, PSE6, PSE7, and a bunch of plug ins to use, but they still don't make me as happy as LR did.

oldmacman · Aug 19, 2010

For me, there is no one program that does everything in my work flow. I love Aperture 3 for its organization, ease of uploading to my web site, photo printing and book creation. For my best pics, I do most of the processing in LR3 because the mods seem to have more gradation between steps and I like clicking back to a step if I have gone in the wrong direction. With both of the above programs, I will still do PS edits because it is more powerful than either of them for fine edits.

My biggest knock against LR3 is that the spot removal tool is odd.

Naphtali14 · Aug 19, 2010

I personally think lightroom is the best out there. Lots of professionals use it in their workflow combined with photoshop.

Garbz · Aug 20, 2010

Here's an easy comparison. Think of Lightroom as a program with the power of Elements 7 with the organising capacity of Picasa.

If you don't do much editing then the move from Picasa to Lightroom may not be worthwhile. Picasa has some fantastic sorting and metatagging options. If it weren't limited in editing capability I'd probably just use that.

Fate · Aug 20, 2010

I swear by Lightroom 3. Great for organising your photos and lots of export settings. I in fact use it for maybe 95% of my editing as well - only use photoshop for really precise cloning and things. So yes, highly recommended.

mwcfarms · Aug 20, 2010

I hated Elements organizer. Wasn't very time effecient in my mind. I have been trying Lightroom 3 in conjunction with PSE8 and love it. Will definitely be purchasing it when the trial runs out. I can sort my pictures now in a fraction of the time. I finish everything off is pse8.

tacomadm18 · Aug 20, 2010

I think I will try LR3.... thanks

NWK04 · Aug 20, 2010

:thumbup: LR3

SageMark · Aug 20, 2010

LR3, I swear by it.

SrBiscuit · Aug 21, 2010

i am now in LOVE with LR3.
i have been doing my best to do all my edits in LR3, and im really liking my newfound workflow.

highly recommended.

GeneralBenson · Aug 21, 2010

mwcfarms said:
I hated Elements organizer. Wasn't very time effecient in my mind. I have been trying Lightroom 3 in conjunction with PSE8 and love it. Will definitely be purchasing it when the trial runs out. I can sort my pictures now in a fraction of the time. I finish everything off is pse8.

Curious as to what you do to all your photos that requires going into PSE for every image? I find, and I've heard likewise from a lot of people, that I rearely have to kick something out into PS anymore. LR takes 95% of my images from start to finish.