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Archive 2012 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?

  
 
JimboCin
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p.2 #1 · p.2 #1 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


Bobby: Thanks for posting the information. Very helpful!

Jim



Jul 14, 2012 at 10:45 PM
James_N
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p.2 #2 · p.2 #2 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


You don't "have to" switch... it depends on what you're doing.

If you expand the little grey arrows in the Quick Develop panel (Library Module) you'll see it has the same sliders that are in the Basic panel (Develop Module) except for Saturation. And the advantage of using the Quick Develop panel on a selection of multiple images is that the adjustments are relative to the content of each image rather than absolute as when using adjustments in the Develop module, applying presets, or syncing settings.

For simply tweaking a single image (or a series of images) you can work in the Quick Develop panel without ever going to the Develop module. If you're using graduated filters or adjustment brushes, etc then the Develop module is unavoidable.

So, for example, if you're a wedding or event photographer and you have a series of photos shot in relatively similar light that you want to tweak... you can simply select the series of images, apply the Match Total Exposure (CTRL + ALT + SHIFT + M) setting, then do your final tweaks in the Quick Develop panel without ever leaving the Library Module.

Match Total Exposure is an awesome feature in Lightroom and most users don't seem to be aware of it; its not even in Adobe Camera Raw. Here's how Martin Evening describes it:

"You can use this command to match the exposure across a series of images that have been selected via the Filmstrip. Match Total Exposures calculates a match value by analyzing and combining the shutter speed, lens aperture, the ISO speed the photos were captured at, plus any camera-set exposure compensation. It then factors in all these camera-set values, combines them with the desired exposure value (as set in the most selected image), and calculates new Lightroom exposure values for all the other selected images. I find that this technique can often be used to help average out the exposure brightness in a series of photos where the light values were going up and down during a shoot, which is probably why the chief Lightroom architect Mark Hamburg also likes to describe this as a a “de-bracketing” command. So in effect, if you highlight an individual image in the series and select Match Total Exposures, the other images in that selection automatically balance to match the exposure of the target image."


rlcramer wrote:
<snip>

Lightroom Con's
- Lightroom performance under 4.1 is MUCH worse than when I was using 3.X
- The fact that I have to switch from the Library module to Develop, in order to tweak an image is simply ridiculous

<snip>

Bobby




Jul 15, 2012 at 02:41 PM
NathanHamler
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p.2 #3 · p.2 #3 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


Someone brought up a good point...are lightroom libraries on an Apple machine able to be DIRECTLY transferred to a Windows machine without any problems?? If they aren't, then it's not really "cross platform compatible" like everyone thinks....like could you take a Lightroom library from a mac, and just copy it straight to a windows machine (and vice versa), and open it up and everything be there....adjustments, files, etc... (assuming you are using a Managed library, and not a Referenced library...)??

Personally, if i absolutely HAD to, i could switch right now, cold turkey, to a windows machine running lightroom...it would take me a bit to figure it out, but honestly it's all in what you're used to....neither one is better than the other...someone mentioned something about aperture's straighten tool not being intuitive...see i view lightroom as the opposite....to me it's just annoying to straighten a photo in LR...i tap the "s" key, and then grab the photo and straighten, that's it...same with cropping....how in LR when you crop the "box" stays put and the photo moves around is annoying to me...in aperture you just move the box where you want, and that's it...just different strokes...

either way, LR is still faster than working in PS/Bridge....so i'll take what i can get if i absolutely HAD to move to windows...but i dont foresee that happening anytime soon....



Jul 15, 2012 at 09:32 PM
ggreene
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p.2 #4 · p.2 #4 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


For me LR's great weakness is it's performance for culling photos. It's very slow and I'm on an SSD boot/application drive. I still use Breezebrowser Pro to do all my initial culling and then import them into LR. I've tried a lot of so called fast viewers but BBPro continues to be the best one. Very happy Chris Breeze still supports it.


Jul 18, 2012 at 08:19 PM
robbalbrecht
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p.2 #5 · p.2 #5 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


For me the constant crashing and basic unreliability of Aperture pretty much sealed it's fate. I really like LR4, it could be faster but at least it's solid. Learning a new program is always fun but it hasn't really been that bad.


Jul 20, 2012 at 06:45 PM
S Dilworth
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p.2 #6 · p.2 #6 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


robbalbrecht wrote:
For me the constant crashing and basic unreliability of Aperture pretty much sealed it's fate. I really like LR4, it could be faster but at least it's solid. Learning a new program is always fun but it hasn't really been that bad.


Aperture 3.3.1 is as stable as the pyramids. It did go through a period of instability nearly two years ago, but that has been fixed.



Jul 21, 2012 at 07:36 AM
matthewbmedia
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p.2 #7 · p.2 #7 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


This --> Aperture's Interface is amazing, and actually makes me enjoy sitting in front of my computer, noodling away at my images.

Also this -> Speed. I've yet to use a version of lightroom that can ingest as fast as aperture, and "decode the raw file" as fast as aperture. On lower end hardware Aperture can lag - but on an SSD and 8gb of ram aperture is actually quite fast.

I honestly can't wait to see what aperture 4 holds - After seeing 3.3 bring a unified library format I fully expect it to come after a mountain lion launch.

LR does have better NR and "default camera profiles". I do prefer apple's raw conversion for canon files over ACR - although with cs6/lr4 - acr got a lot better. Aperture's default for Nikon files have some wierd green/blue hue shifts.

But the biggest reason for me is drive space - You didn't even touch on aperture's awesome brush engine - brushing in multiple curves adjustments, etc... (most people miss that one). I only use PSDs now when I need to do serious pixel manipulation... And the skin softening brush is quite good too.



Jul 22, 2012 at 09:29 PM
matthewbmedia
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p.2 #8 · p.2 #8 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


BluesWest wrote:
Based on what I've read, it is not clear whether Apple has a long-term committment to any of their professional applications. After all, they are now essentially a toy company.


I wouldn't worry about their committment - it's in their DNA to simplify the complex. To "pros" this looks like "focusing on consumers" as the company continuously refines and simplifies its products to be more accessible to the masses. But every time they do this - there is hidden power beneath the veneer of simplicity. Pages does this, aperture does this, fcp x does this...

To those pros who worry I ask the question - Is the retina display macbook meant to be a consumer toy for just checking email and facebook?



Jul 22, 2012 at 09:57 PM
hidden_Markov
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p.2 #9 · p.2 #9 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


and those toys are multiuse. A growing trend in certain industries is ipad based sales. Food pos systems are taking them onboard in growing numbers. Not a new idea but...a cheaper option. Vice proprietary stuff around before. Hot sync software updates, common and lively programming language , very common hardware and you don't have to be a slave to say companies like NCR you used to have to be.




Jul 23, 2012 at 02:22 AM
rattymouse
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p.2 #10 · p.2 #10 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


rlcramer wrote:
Lightroom Con's

- The fact that I have to switch from the Library module to Develop, in order to tweak an image is simply ridiculous



Yeah, hitting the "D" key to switch to development is such a pain. Boo hoo hoo!!!

Oh the pain, the agony of hitting the "D" key.




Jul 23, 2012 at 10:27 PM
matthewbmedia
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p.2 #11 · p.2 #11 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


It's not about how hard it is to switch modules, its the fact that you even have to - Editing in context is a big deal in aperture - being able to always make edits to an image regardless of where you are in your workflow.

i.e. If you are working on a photo spread and realize that the white balance between the 2 images isn't matching - Having to switch to a different module to make edits to a photo just sucks -

(I haven't used LR's new book feature yet, so not sure if they've added minimal "develop" module features while working on a book)




rattymouse wrote:
Yeah, hitting the "D" key to switch to development is such a pain. Boo hoo hoo!!!

Oh the pain, the agony of hitting the "D" key.





Jul 24, 2012 at 12:32 PM
James_N
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p.2 #12 · p.2 #12 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


The R, Q, M, and K keys, in addition to the D key, will all take you to the Develop module.

And in any event a user doesn't absolutely have to go to the Develop module unless he/she wants to use one of the more selective tools. Its possible to edit an entire shoot by using the Quick Develop panel in the Library module.



rattymouse wrote:
Yeah, hitting the "D" key to switch to development is such a pain. Boo hoo hoo!!!

Oh the pain, the agony of hitting the "D" key.





Jul 24, 2012 at 04:22 PM
Mescalamba
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p.2 #13 · p.2 #13 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


My few cents is that Aperture apparently has better colors (color profiles) for most cameras. But as its Apple only, well even tho I can run it on my PC, its bit too much work.

Tho if you can choose and it goes well for you, why not.

I prefer Capture One, wierd I know, but for what I have it gives me best results. And thats I think most important thing about RAW developing software.



Jul 24, 2012 at 04:35 PM
rattymouse
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p.2 #14 · p.2 #14 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


matthewbmedia wrote:
It's not about how hard it is to switch modules, its the fact that you even have to - Editing in context is a big deal in aperture - being able to always make edits to an image regardless of where you are in your workflow.

i.e. If you are working on a photo spread and realize that the white balance between the 2 images isn't matching - Having to switch to a different module to make edits to a photo just sucks -

(I haven't used LR's new book feature yet, so not sure if they've added minimal "develop" module
...Show more


I just dont see the big deal. If you find you need to edit something, hit D and you will be editing in the blink of an eye. Once done, another key stroke gets you where you want to go. It takes almost no measurable time. To complain about this is beyond petty. It's a piece of software that gets the job done.






Jul 24, 2012 at 08:05 PM
anthonygh
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p.2 #15 · p.2 #15 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


Jumped to the end here...if I go down to my local pub and can't make my mind up as to what of two beers I like despite trying both regularly...it sort of suggests they are equally appealing.

I wouldn't go asking the other customers in the pub which beer I should prefer....



Jul 24, 2012 at 09:00 PM
rlcramer
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p.2 #16 · p.2 #16 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


rattymouse - I'm assuming you've never used Aperture. When it comes to clean UI and the ability to edit your image no matter what "screen" you are on, this is one minor area where Lightroom really lags. It might not sound like a big deal "to just hit the D key," but once you experience how Aperture's "edit anywhere" setup works, you'll know what I mean. Lots of software "gets the job done" but it is clear to most people that some software is simply more elegant to use than others. Keep in mind - in the end I decided to stick with Lightroom, but I am familiar enough with Aperture to know the areas where it completely beats the pants off of Lightroom for my particular workflow.

Bobby



Jul 24, 2012 at 09:03 PM
matthewbmedia
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p.2 #17 · p.2 #17 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


So the workflow in LR when editing an image in a book spread is -

Hit D, make some edits - hit whatever key to get back to the book - look at the two images side by side, hit D again, tweak a little based on memory, hit whatever key to get back to the book - compare your two images, hit D again...

Is that correct?




I just dont see the big deal. If you find you need to edit something, hit D and you will be editing in the blink of an eye. Once done, another key stroke gets you where you want to go. It takes almost no measurable time. To complain about this is beyond petty. It's a piece of software that gets the job done.




Edited on Jul 24, 2012 at 09:27 PM · View previous versions



Jul 24, 2012 at 09:25 PM
matthewbmedia
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p.2 #18 · p.2 #18 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


Bobby - how are the brushes in LR4? Are they available from the quick develop module? Can you brush in any adjustment or just brush specific ones?


Jul 24, 2012 at 09:26 PM
rlcramer
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p.2 #19 · p.2 #19 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


Matthew -

All that is available in quick develop is white balance and exposure / tone controls (contrast, highlights, shadows, etc). You can't do any brushes, etc. It's just the most basic of editing operations.

And to answer your other question, you can't make any tweaks to an image in book mode. The "D" key will quickly become your friend when making books...

Bobby



Jul 25, 2012 at 08:29 PM
hugowolf
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p.2 #20 · p.2 #20 · Am I an idiot for switching from LR4.1 to Aperture 3.3?


rlcramer wrote:
All that is available in quick develop is white balance and exposure / tone controls (contrast, highlights, shadows, etc). You can't do any brushes, etc. It's just the most basic of editing operations.
Bobby

You can’t crop in the library module, and can’t apply lens corrections. Most annoying is the inability to crop in the print module.

Brian A



Jul 25, 2012 at 08:59 PM
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