Where Does Lightroom Fit In?

Q: Does Lightroom replace Photoshop?

Nope. It was designed to work with Photoshop. Although Lightroom does some things better than Photoshop, it doesn’t do a few critical things that Photoshop does brilliantly. And, honestly, I can’t imagine using one without the other.

Q: You keep referring to the company name Adobe. Aren’t you guys Adobe?

Nope. We are not Adobe. Weird question I know but you won’t believe how many people ask us. So, since we’re not Adobe, we don’t make Photoshop or any of the other cool products they make. We do provide kick-butt training on their products though.

Q: what does Lightroom do better?

I think Lightroom is better than Adobe Bridge (both the original CS2, and the new and improved version in CS3) for sorting and comparing images, editing a photo’s metadata, adding keywords-pretty much anything that Bridge does, Lightroom does better and much faster. Also, I think the controls for processing RAW photos are far superior in Lightroom than in Adobe Camera Raw in Photoshop. (Lightroom has all the controls from Camera Raw plus a number of incredibly helpful features that even Photoshop CS3 still doesn’t have.)

Q: So are you saying not to use Bridge and Camera Raw?

Yup, that’s what I’m saying. Well, there’s certainly nothing wrong with the Bridge and Camera Raw (and they’re both much improved in Photoshop CS3), so you certainly can use either (or both) if you want to, but here’s the thing: I think Lightroom is significantly better than the Bridge for importing, sorting, comparing, adding keywords, editing metadata, viewing photos, and…well…I can’t think of anything the Bridge really does better for photographers than what the Library module of Lightroom does. But then, Lightroom was designed exclusively for photographers, where the Bridge has to make a lot of people happy (designers, illustrators, people working with PDFs, Web designers, etc.).
Then there’s Camera Raw. It’s really great, but Lightroom has all the features of Adobe Camera Raw, and some features Camera Raw still doesn’t have, including some amazing interactive features that take Lightroom over the top.

So, it comes down to this: if Adobe designed a product from the ground up exclusively for Photographers, and it was created, moulded, and tweaked by pro photographers to address the workflow issues they face every day, and it’s faster, more customizable, and has more power (not to mention features that Photoshop CS3 still doesn’t have), why wouldn’t you use it instead? Now, Adobe probably isn’t thrilled to hear me saying this, but it’s their own fault. Surely, they realize Lightroom is better at managing, sorting, and displaying thousands of images? In fact, they are the one’s who let Lightroom’s Develop module have many more features than Adobe Camera Raw in CS3, so surely this didn’t catch them by surprise.

In my opinion, every part of Lightroom is better than it’s corresponding part in Photoshop. For example, Lightroom’s Print module blows away the printing features of Photoshop CS3. Blows them away-no contest. The Color Management is nearly invisible (which it should be), and you can’t compare the silent, highly limited features of the Bridge’s slideshow to Lightroom’s full featured Slideshow module. Plus, Lightroom’s Web module, with it’s slick built-in Flash and HTML templates and are a breeze to customize is leaps and bounds ahead of Photoshop’s Web Photo Gallery. I can’t explain what Adobe’s thinking, but I know what I’m thinking: I’ve pretty much stopped using the Bridge and Camera Raw for most of my photo management and Raw editing, and I recommend the same thing to my friends.

Q: So what does Photoshop do better?

For one thing, retouching: Lightroom doesn’t really have retouching tools so if you need to remove a wrinkle, make someone thinner, clone something, or any of a thousand other retouching tasks, you need Photoshop. Also, Lightroom doesn’t have layers (yikes!), so compositing (and many other tasks) still needs to be done in Photoshop. And you can’t make selections of any kind in Lightroom (double-yikes!). Lightroom doesn’t have filters-not a one (no Unsharp Mask, no Gaussian Blur, no nothin’). Plus there’s no Brush tool or brushes in Lightroom, or professional control over type, or Layer Styles, or guides, or a Pen tool, or blend modes, or Layer Masks, or Actions, or Extract, or Feathering, or a Gradient Tool, or Shapes, or Channels, or Lab Color Mode, or CMYK conversions, or …well…I could go on and on, but as you can see, these two programs really need each other big time.

Q: So do you ever use the Bridge?

Actually, the Bridge in CS3 is much, much, much improved and I do use it sometimes when I want to take a quick look at some photos already on my computer, especially when I’m looking visually for one particular photo (so I’m not using keywords or filters to find the photo I need). So, I do sometimes use Bridge 2.0 for managing just one single shoot (or one folder of photos). But a soon as I start dealing with one than just one folder of photos, then I’m right back to Lightroom, and happy to be there.

Q: So will you be adding Lightroom coverage to Photoshop User magazine, and the NAPP member website?

Actually, we’re doing it one better, as we just launched Darkroom Magazine: the how-to magazine for Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Users. We’re sending this magazine to NAPP members for free, along with their subscription to Photoshop User magazine. The public will be able to subscribe, but only to the downloadable electronic version-not the full color printed version.

We’re also adding a special Lightroom section to the NAPP member Website, with a “members only” discussion forum, and of course, that’s in addition to our “Lightroom Killer Tips” video podcast, hosted by our own Matt Kloskowski.

I’m also launching a nation-wide Lightroom tour, called “The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Live Tour,” and it kicks off in March in San Francisco, and I’ve also written a Lightroom book in the exact same style and layout as my book “The Photoshop CS2 Book for Digital Photographers,” and it’s called (not surprisingly), “The Photoshop Lightroom Book for Digital Photographers” (From Peachpit Press).

So, in short, I think the combination of Lightroom and Photoshop CS3 is the future of the professional digital photography workflow, and so NAPP and I are dedicating ourselves to leading the way in Lightroom training, education, and news. This Lightroom Learning Center is just the beginning, and the tip of the iceberg for what we have planned in the next 12 months.

Q: So it sounds like Lightroom is the perfect program, right?

Hey now, I didn’t say all that. After all, this is just Version 1.0 and I do expect some small bumps and bruises along the way (as with any 1.0 product), and of course, I’ve already put together my personal feature wish list for Version 1.5 or 2.0. But because of Adobe’s brilliant public beta program, during which they got the input and advice of thousands of working photographers, I think Lightroom is already much more mature than it’s age.

Well, I hope this FAQ answers at least some of your questions, and I hope you’ll give Lightroom a serious look. If you’re a photographer, I think you’re going to be surprised at how at home you feel, and how easy it is to get organized and retake control over your vast library of photographs, and your digital photography workflow.

All my best,
Scott Kelby

Editor and Publisher of Darkroom Magazine, and NAPP President