p.1 #1 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
I’ve been shooting with real cameras since the Nikon D90 days, and I’ve always used Adobe Lightroom to process my images. I know the software well enough to make any edits I want, but I struggle with consistency and rhythm in my post-processing. I tend to edit each image individually, relying on instinct rather than applying a consistent style across my work.
This creates a few problems:
1. Editing takes a long time, which pulls me away from the enjoyment of shooting.
2. My images all look different. They’re fine for social media, but not polished enough to share proudly with fellow photographers or in communities like this one.
I understand that everyone eventually develops their own style and flow, but I’m looking for best practices and a solid starting point to help me build that consistency. If anyone has suggestions, tutorials, or examples that helped you build a consistent editing flow in Lightroom, I’d really appreciate it. I’m not looking to copy someone else’s style—just hoping to find a solid starting point and some best practices to build my own. Any guidance would be welcome.
p.1 #2 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
It probably would be helpful for those you are asking to first provide a sample of what you shoot and the end result of your current efforts. We've all been down this learning path so don't be reluctant. Many here on FM can provide help.
What is being captured and how (i.e. equipment settings) are definitely the beginning input to any workflow. The process starts with a solid culling approach. Actual editing takes on a more general approach when the subject matter is highly varied where a second edit is required (more specific details within a capture that need tweaking). Here it becomes a single photo by photo effort to reach a final state that one can be truly satisfied with. A workflow becomes easier to develop when the subject is more consistent.
I mostly photograph family moments and my kids’ activities. Lately, I’ve been making a conscious effort to shoot just for myself—to slow down, stay present, and reconnect with the creative side of photography.
I almost always shoot in aperture priority mode, setting shutter speed to at least twice my focal length and using auto ISO capped at 6400. I find post-processing to be the least enjoyable part of photography, but I’m starting to realize it’s where I need to invest more time and practice if I want to improve my craft.
p.1 #4 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
Post processing can achieve a lot -- in fact I have come to believe the final pic is "created" at the PP stage from the raw input and I enjoy the chance to do that. This does not take me away from my photography -- creating the final picture is only half done when it is captured in the camera. The second half awaits.
These days I start with the colour profile. For me that is a Cobalt profile for my Sony A7CR. Then I do an Auto to get a quick feeling for how the pic would look with some basic adjustments but usually I don't stick with the Auto suggestions. I adjust the sliders manually based on what I know about how they will change the look. Recently I have been testing the effects of LR's "Adaptive" AI profiles. So far, I generally do not like the "Adaptive Color" although it gives a good start if there is a very wide dynamic range eg a very bright sky or lake. I almost always use "Adaptive B&W" if I am going to make a B&W image from a colour one. It does an impressive job.
Next step is cropping. I really dislike pictures having a "ragged" edge or a distracting element half appearing at the edge. So I crop to tidy up, at least. Then I might crop further if I believe the subject would benefit from, say, a 1x1 aspect ratio. I always stick with recognised aspect ratios, to ensure there is consistency as you view pics in succession.
There's lots more after that -- NR, distraction removal, straightening, etc. And before that, with initial selection. I only keep about 20% of pictures to begin with. The near misses and safety shots are discarded right at the start.
In my head I am asking myself, "why did I take this picture -- what attracted me to taking this shot, have I directed the viewer's attention to that, and minimised anything which would take their view away from that?" Sometimes I have to admit to myself I did not capture the original picture well enough in the first place. So off to the bin it goes as a lost opportunity!
Obviously this post could go a lot further -- become a book! -- but you asked about rhythm and this is my typical rhythm for the start of working to get the picture I want.
PS like you I shoot in aperture priority with auto ISO to control the speed. I cap at 12800 these days because LR's NR is so good.
p.1 #5 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
Interesting collection and I like the composition used in a few of them. It appears some of the landscape captures were taken on overcast days which kind of dulls the results. Granted the weather can't be controlled but when possible the sun is your friend both in the early hours of the morning and again late in the afternoon.
p.1 #6 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
There is no rule that says you must enjoy or even do any post processing. If you don't enjoy that aspect of photography, concentrate on capturing the images as you want them. Visualize what you want. Contrast can be created by raking, dramatic light. For landscapes, that is typically sunrise, sunset or at the edge of weather changes. Consider using strobes or reflectors to control lighting. Use manual white balance so you can capture consistently accurate colors rather than needing to make color corrections afterwards. Use manual exposure so you are controlling the image rather than the camera.
p.1 #7 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
The problem is that software is changing so fast, any set workflow is going to be obsolete after a few revisions, especially with the AI surge.
My general workflow is as follows: store images in a folder by shoot name and dates, catalog these however you choose (I don't bother cataloging since everything is already sorted in the relevant shoot folder). In that shoot folder I have sub-folders for raws, jpegs (if shot), trash (not deleted, but not showing in the raw browser) and output images. On import, I add my standard adjustments for a given camera and ISO range that include as shot WB, as shot exposure, base saturation and clarity settings and a very subtle auto levels tweak. On edit, my basic workflow is: Color profile, WB, Exposure, Contrast, Sat, Clarity, Levels and/or Curves, Highlight/Shadow, Noise, Crop, Dodge and Burn, Vignette and finally output size. AI enhancements are getting good enough to replace multiples of the above steps however.
p.1 #8 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
I'm not sure what you men by eiditing. To me editing is the image selection activity whereas processing is working on the image from RAW to output and the various local adjustments. I disdain the LR, so cannot help you with that, but I find that image selection is the most time consuming and tedious process. I usually do that in about three passes. For example on a busy day I might capture 10,000-15,00 images or more. I'd go through those and select about the best 1000-1500. Normally I save first pass files at least as an archive. Then I'd go back later and narrow down selections to a few hundred and then maybe 30-50 would be the best ones. I usually find the best processing settings for the lens and situation, and save that as a preset (or whatever the software calls it). I would apply the preset to all the images in the group and then do any individual adjustments like exposure +/- before batch processing that group.
One of the issues you have is showing a bunch of random images together. Some are different subjects, lighting, white balance, contrast, vignetting, etc. Keep them on different pages with some level of thematic organization. It's not expected that a person uses the same style for totally differt subjects or situations.
p.1 #9 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
schlotz wrote:
Interesting collection and I like the composition used in a few of them. It appears some of the landscape captures were taken on overcast days which kind of dulls the results. Granted the weather can't be controlled but when possible the sun is your friend both in the early hours of the morning and again late in the afternoon.
Completely with you on this. Sometimes the only chance I get to shoot is when I’m on dad duty—trailing behind the kids with their gear stuffed in my backpack alongside the camera. On those days, I don’t get to pick the weather. I shoot what I get.
jeffbuzz wrote:
There is no rule that says you must enjoy or even do any post processing. If you don't enjoy that aspect of photography, concentrate on capturing the images as you want them. Visualize what you want. Contrast can be created by raking, dramatic light. For landscapes, that is typically sunrise, sunset or at the edge of weather changes. Consider using strobes or reflectors to control lighting. Use manual white balance so you can capture consistently accurate colors rather than needing to make color corrections afterwards. Use manual exposure so you are controlling the image rather than the camera.
Yes, but if I optimize my workflow and create a good starting point that gets me 50% there with a single click, I think it will make things easier. Post processing is a key part of the modern digital photography and I would rather spend time and learn proper workflows than to avoid it.
As Rob said above that he starts with Cobalt profile. I don't have those, but there are like dozen or so profiles that now comes with LrC, so maybe that is a starting point for me. I am just trying to understand how people more experienced and better than me handle their post processing workflows.
EB-1 wrote:
I'm not sure what you meant by editing. To me editing is the image selection activity whereas processing is working on the image from RAW to output and the various local adjustments. I disdain the LR, so cannot help you with that, but I find that image selection is the most time consuming and tedious process. I usually do that in about three passes. For example on a busy day I might capture 10,000-15,00 images or more. I'd go through those and select about the best 1000-1500. Normally I save first pass files at least as an archive. Then I'd go back later and narrow down selections to a few hundred and then maybe 30-50 would be the best ones. I usually find the best processing settings for the lens and situation, and save that as a preset (or whatever the software calls it). I would apply the preset to all the images in the group and then do any individual adjustments like exposure +/- before batch processing that group.
One of the issues you have is showing a bunch of random images together. Some are different subjects, lighting, white balance, contrast, vignetting, etc. Keep them on different pages with some level of thematic organization. It's not expected that a person uses the same style for totally different subjects or situations.
My images don’t have a consistent look—I tend to process them case by case. I’ve read plenty of photography books and understand the manual editing process, but when I look at my shots, I don’t see a clear, consistent style. Some I really like, others feel just okay. Meanwhile, a lot of folks here post work that’s instantly recognizable—you can tell it’s theirs by the way they shoot and process their images.
p.1 #10 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
The only time I ever felt it was important to have a consistent look was when I was working on a specific project (i.e. a photo shoot with a person on assignment, or if I am shooting just for me, on vacation) and really only at that point did I create a preset to just apply my color grading and curves across a subset of images (which, incidentally, is not much different than 20-30 years ago picking a camera to take on a trip and only shooting one particular type of film). I think that's where consistency is more important, but still not really required if your client asks for some diversity in looks.
I would personally find photography really boring if I wanted everything in my catalogue to look the same.
Part of me wonders if you're talking less about the actual act of "developing" your images and more about your image content. If you really work on and master the art of lighting and composition, even bland development can never truly tarnish the artistic virtue therein. One of the most exciting things about all the development of post processing software in this age is that I can go back to images I shot when digital photography was in its infancy and achieve the vision I had then but wasn't possible because the computing tool was either woefully inadequate or just didn't exist. Even Ansel Adams later in his career went back and reprinted his work as darkroom technology had advanced considerably in his lifetime.
TLDR: if the content in your image is good, "looks" are secondary.
p.1 #11 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
corposant wrote:
The only time I ever felt it was important to have a consistent look was when I was working on a specific project (i.e. a photo shoot with a person on assignment, or if I am shooting just for me, on vacation) and really only at that point did I create a preset to just apply my color grading and curves across a subset of images (which, incidentally, is not much different than 20-30 years ago picking a camera to take on a trip and only shooting one particular type of film). I think that's where consistency is more important, but still not really required if your client asks for some diversity in looks.
I would personally find photography really boring if I wanted everything in my catalogue to look the same.
Part of me wonders if you're talking less about the actual act of "developing" your images and more about your image content. If you really work on and master the art of lighting and composition, even bland development can never truly tarnish the artistic virtue therein. One of the most exciting things about all the development of post processing software in this age is that I can go back to images I shot when digital photography was in its infancy and achieve the vision I had then but wasn't possible because the computing tool was either woefully inadequate or just didn't exist. Even Ansel Adams later in his career went back and reprinted his work as darkroom technology had advanced considerably in his lifetime.
TLDR: if the content in your image is good, "looks" are secondary....Show more →
There is nothing wrong striving for a look to your images that identifies your style. I try to have my B&W images a certain look so there is consistency between images in a book or on the wall. I’d find having images hanging on walls that have a totally different look to appear like they are fighting each other for attention.
p.1 #12 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
The best thing you can do for yourself is build your own LR presets based on camera and lens combination. Then you have a very easy starting point for every image and you don't have to do all the baseline work every time. It also keeps your color and processing style consistent.
I don't process any images in bulk. Every "keeper" deserves my full attention.
p.1 #13 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
At least for processing consistency in certain situations, it may help to learn and become comfortable with setting the camera in full manual exposure mode (including ISO).
For example, if it's full sun and you're shooting with the sun behind you, the intensity of light on the subject does not change and there is no need to change the exposure. This is also true on overcast days, shooting backlit, etc. You just have to establish a 'good enough' exposure and stick with it for that lighting situation. If you're not already familiar with reading the histogram of an image while reviewing them in-camera, or using the live histogram while shooting with your mirrorless camera (assuming you have one), it will be good to learn this as well for helping set a good exposure.
Once you have the images in LR, pick one that is a good example for the majority of a given lighting situation and adjust it as you like. Then copy/paste all of the exposure-relevant settings to the other images. From there, go through the images and tweak as needed. This will give you a base set of adjustments that will apply to all/most images and only require minor tweaks for some.
If it's a hectic, dynamically changing situation, then sure, use auto exposure. But if there is time to slow down and think a bit about how the camera settings may impact the time you spend in post, switching as much out of auto as possible, will be helpful.
With modern cameras, sensors and software, being off a stop or so with exposure usually is not a big problem (at least with under exposure). You can recover a lot in post and AI noise reduction will go a long way in this process. This is what I meant about establishing a 'good enough' exposure for a given lighting situation. Since you will be sending images through LR anyway, you can fix exposure errors then without much penalty. The key, IMO, is to be as consistent as possible during image capture to save as much time as possible in post production.
p.1 #14 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
Thanks for the suggestions. These are incredibly helpful, and I’ll definitely try to incorporate some of these tips into my shooting and post-processing in the future.
p.1 #15 · Trying to Build a Consistent Lightroom Workflow
What is a ‘color profile’, is that applied during import? Despite using Lightroom and for over a decade, I still use only the most basic functions.
Import all the pics and put the files on my NAS
I’ve mainly been shooting sporting events (1DXII jpgs), so I choose and early one, do some basic edits,(exposure, contrast, shadows, saturation, sharpening) and then paste that to all the pics
Go through and select the pics I want (P) Flag them.
Then go and crop and tweak these as needed.
Export them as smaller jpgs and upload through the website onto Flickr.
Do people use a profile when importing files? Is that reversible?
I do say that in flat lighting, my pictures lack snap. I know that is inherent, but I feel like I should be able to tweak them more.
