My Favourite Top 4 Features of the New Lightroom 5

I love Lightroom. I have loved it ever since I started playing with the Beta version of Lightroom 4 way back in January of last year. My workflow begins with LR, the majority of my adjustments are made there, and my workflow ends there. In fact, I now only use Photoshop for the major edits or special effects. It simply makes my pictures look better... the end.

Well, you can imagine how intrigued I was to hear that Adobe had released a Beta version of Lightroom 5. I happily skipped off to their website to learn more and do a little downloading...

My first thoughts? "Hmm... I highly doubt they have done anything to make me want to upgrade from LR4... I love LR4... I don't need anything else". Yes, I was a little less open-minded than usual, but was pleasantly surprised and may be seriously considering the upgrade after all... and here are 4 reasons why:

1. Healing & Cloning just got WAY easier. Before, you could only do very basic spot healing & cloning, and then it was only in very restricting circles. Now, you can heal in any shape you like with the new healing brush. Need to heal a power line or wrinkle? Done!

2. The new Radial Filter tool. LOVE this tool - probably my new favourite feature even. Before, if you wanted to add some drama or emphasize a particular focal point in your photo, you could use the post-crop vignetting, BUT this only really worked if your focus or subject was in the centre of the shot. Well, if you are a fan of the 2-thirds rule, like me, that didn't work since your subject is never in the centre! This tool now allows you to put those focus alteration wherever your little heart desires! You draw the circle area you want to emphasize or alter, adjust the circle (or oval!) to fit, and make your setting changes. You can even pick whether you want to alter the area inside OR outside the circle. (Big smiley faces here!)

3. The hidden spot finder! OK.. that is probably not its official name... but it makes finding those hidden spots easier to find and remove, so that name works for me. To find all those annoying specks, (you know the ones... those annoying spots in the sky that you only see after you have paid oodles of cash to have a photo blown up and printed on canvas!) you open the spot removal tool, and then click the option at the bottom to "visualize spots". The picture goes into negative mode and VOILA! Your hidden spots are now sitting ducks for removal.

4. Full screen at the touch of a button! So, you think you've finished your edits and want that "stand back and admire your masterpiece" moment. Just hit the F key, and your shot goes full screen. (Yes... it's the simple things for me!)

There are more highlights like improvements in the perspective correction, as well as enhancements to the slideshow & book modules... but those are my top improvements, based on my needs. To download your Beta copy just head over to the Adobe Labs website. Nice job, Adobe chaps and chapesses!

New Toy!

I have a confession...I love snow globes. I probably have ever since I was a fresh-faced young student and saw Bill Pullman  give that oh-so-sentimental-and-romantic gift to Sandra Bullock in While You Were Sleeping. (Permission to roll your eyes just a little bit!)

Well, I follow several Photographers who develop and sell editing actions, (they come in handy occasionally, when having a "creative block" or speed things up when I'm running on a tight deadline!) and a few of them have made snow globe templates, this year. It's an old concept, but seems to be enjoying a sudden revival, thanks to these Photographers.

This was one kind of template I just couldn't resist... and I've spent the last 24 hours happily playing! (These particular templates are courtesy of Stacie Jensen of Rock My Edits) Ahhh, if only I'd have had them a month ago to make our Christmas cards. Oh well, next year maybe...

Lightroom 4 is Here...Again... Officially... and in its Full Perfected Glory!

News has just hit the web - Lightroom 4 has been officially released and is now available for download. (Retail version available from March 6 or 7, depending on supplier.) WOO HOO!

Even better still, Adobe have slapped a fantastically affordable price tag of just $149 (US) until March 31, 2012. I really hope that isn't a glitch, but it does seem logical when LR3 was on sale for half price for the last couple of weeks.

I'm now off to do my happy dance... :-)

UPDATE: Thanks to the guys at Scott Kelby and the guys at Kelby Training, who just confirmed on their live webcast, that the price is actually not a limited time offer - it is the new price!! DOUBLE WOO HOO and high five to Adobe!

Newborn Sessions - My Top 5 Tips

Last week, I had my first newborn session in...er...hmmm... 3 years (wow! that long?!) and I had forgot how much fun they could be. Mind you, it does help when you have a cute, happy, cooperative subject! (With an awesome, cooperative parent in tow!)

So, from my recent refresher course and past experience, what scraps of advice would I offer a would-be newborn photographer? Good question... my tips would be:

1. Take your time. Babies (and new Moms!) don't want to be rushed -they are still finding their place and routine in the world. Be prepared to wait and take things slow. I like a 2 hour window.

2. Pick the best window of opportunity. I find 7-10 days old, to be the best for newborn shots. You get the best chance, at this stage, of a nice blend between sleepy baby and awake baby during your session.

3. Warmth is key! A toasty baby is a happy baby. I keep an extra heater near baby (unless I am using my continuous lighting kit - then heating comes from the lights instead!), and have a hairdryer on standby to warm up any props or cooler surfaces (like my leather ottoman). Warm hands also help!

4. Plan your props. This is where you can make your signature mark, so plan ahead well. I like to keep it simple (I'm not a fan of dressing up babies like dolls - I prefer to keep them as the blank canvas that they are), and ask parents to maybe bring something of significance to them (like a favourite stuffed animal or hobby item). My other favourite prop is my sound machine - I have it set to play a heartbeat noise and hide it behind my backdrop or just out of frame. It's a great baby soother!

5. Prepare for serious editing! You may be the best photographer in the world, with amazing SOOC (straight out of camera) results, but I have not met a newborn yet with perfect skin... and yet, newborn photos show them that way! Newborns tend to suffer with all sorts of dermatological conditions, such as newborn acne and cradle cap. So, I find the post processing requires a fair bit of healing brushes and skin tone adjustments.

So...yeh... that was fun... I now have to find more babies to photograph! (And NO, I am not having any more of my own! My family can forget that one! ;-)

Instagram

Well... my January has been a wee tad busier than anticipated, and whilst I had every happy intention of releasing my camera from it's Lowepro cocoon on a regular basis, life has just found a way of keeping it in there!

Of course, I can't possibly leave my life completely unrecorded (that would just not be me), so I have had to fall back on my trusty, pocket-sized sidekick - the iPhone! Now, I know the quality isn't quite spectacular, but I have discovered a way to satisfy my creative urges enough, and that is with the Instagram app - a snazzy little app that adds a little "je ne sais crois" to your "snaps". And the double bonus? It's a free app, of course. Gotta love free! :-)

Adobe Launches Lightroom 4 Beta!

For the past few days, I've been getting some cheeky teasing emails from Kelby Training about something coming that was "Big, Huge and Live"... and my initial reaction? Meh...whatever! I'm cynical and have a very limited Photography budget, so figured it was gonna involve something I couldn't afford (hmmm... sounds like so many things in the photographic world, doesn't it?!).

I was wrong... it was something very cool... and (even better) FREE! Adobe just announced that they were making available a pre-released Beta version of their Lightroom 4, and it is not going to cost you a penny! How cool is that?! !

Now, I am a girl on a PSE kinda-budget, so this is like having 5 Christmases all at once, for me. Yeh, I know that it is only temporarily available (until March), and it is just a Beta version - so there may be a bug or 2 and support is limited, but I am still one happy camper for now. I have only had an hour or 2 to "play" so far, and have nowhere near delved beyond its basic editing functions ... but I am sold already! (Not sure how my hubby will feel about this!)

If you fancy joining the legions of willing Adobe-loving guinea pigs, you can download Lightroom 4 Beta HERE... and if you are planning on a "play" with this yummy little piece of software, you may also find this site useful - http://lightroomkillertips.com/ .