This past summer i tried the free trial of Lightroom 4, and I didn't care for it because I am familiar with the interface of Photoshop. I tried GIMP, and really didn't have an opinion. Buying CS6 is cost prohibitive for me, but once I learned I could subscribe, I was in!
I really, really like Camera RAW 7.0.
However, I am getting tired of seeing the reoccurring bill every month on my CC. What am I going to loose if I buy Lightroom 4 and Elements, and maybe keep GIMP around?
Here is what I do:
Basic adjustments
Minor Layers work
logo work- sometimes
and I LOVE RAW 7.0.
I just really don't have the time or patients right now to learn Lightroom. For example, I had a gard time understanding how to get a photo "out" of Lightroom when I was done with it?
Anyhow, any tips or suggestions would be great! Thanks!
You suggested solution will certainly work and be much cheaper than getting PS. Most people that use LR end up using it for about 80-90% of their workflow. It can be limiting however because of the lack of layers and a limited brush selection, so it is always good to have another editor like GIMP around for those situations.
Obviously learning LR will take a little bit of time, but it is very well designed IMHO and there is nothing really that complicated about it. So exporting images for example is pretty easy. They even have soft proofing now in LR4.
Bottom line is that if you are looking for a cheap alternative, why don't you give LR another try. I believe it is part of your subscription too, so you can try it again without having to make an upfront commitment one way or another.
How about LR 4. and PS 5. ? I am sure you can get a copy of the older PS pretty cheaply.
I love CS6, but if it is cost prohibitive, you do what you have to do ... I use LR for all my prescreening, ranking/rating, and basic development.
I still prefer to do any cloning, knockouts, layers, etc, in Photoshop.
Spend 2 hours undertstanding the basics of Lightroom. You really need to know how to use filters, Collections, rankings, etc, in a consistent way to avoid having to redo that later as you learn. But it is a great tool in many ways.
It took a bit to get used to LR4 ... I had only used CS3/CS5 ... so LR was counterintuitive for me for a while. Once I figured out the relationship of LR4 to ACR, LR4 then made more sense processing.
The new ACR is nice, and the adjustment tool in LR4 provides ample abilities as you learn to use them. The biggest thing (imo) you lose is layers, some selection tools and other more advanced abilities. But, if I had to make do with only LR4 ... it wouldn't be the end of the world ... actually might make things much simpler.
Short story ... LR4 is good stuff, even if it takes a little bit to adjust to the user interface.
PS & LR are two different, yet similar tools, very much like a simple pocket knife aka LR vs your Swiss Army knife that can handle almost any challenge.
I have LR with my cloud subscription.... have the tuts...been watching peoples love/hate relationship with it over the years.
its great for those guys who do not know how to use PS
but if you don't have the ca$h then... you have to go with what you can
and if you just want to process images with minor adjustments then LR will be fine
As a beginner in digital image editing, who was getting real frustrated with LR4, I am getting more used to it and at this point, I'm lovin' it! Out of the thousands of dollars I have spent on the "digital Darkroom" (and this isn't my first time around the block) it is the best $140 I have ever spent. Wouldn't trade it for any other program.
Yeah, my Digital Darkroom attempt in 1999, was an expensive disaster. This one is going much smoother. Thanks to Adobe support, FM'ers support and YouTube. That being said, I have tons to learn. But now, the info is readily available for the most part, and more do-able.
Just my 2 cents, and we all know what 2 cents is worth!
