Toronto Photography Meetup Group

Just started getting into Lightroom and was wondering if I could get some help. I have my library loaded and I am going through some photos. When I switch to the next photo, I assume it loads a preview (but it already looks pretty sharp and colours seems great). The histogram says 'calculating' and then after it's finished, the image somehow gets brighter and everything seems more pinkish. What's happening here? I haven't done any global settings to do this. And it seems to compound the more I work on my photos.

Are you working with jpegs or raw files? What is WB set to?

Don't know what is happening after it is fully rendered but what you seeing while it is calculating is the imbedded jpeg preview from the raw file. Does the rendered image look the same in other image softwsre? i.e. faststone viewer

@itsaphoto - RAW files on auto WB
@James - I think that might be it. Just tried loading the photo with Adobe Camera RAW and it was the same. Sucks, I prefer the JPG version more haha

don't worry, you can easily match it with a bunch of settings, first of, start by going into the Camera profile (last tab in Develop mode)
Adobe is notorious for "poor" raw representation. If you really want to keep jpeg settings on your raw files you should convert raw in OEM software into dng or tiffs (pain in the ass)

Import with Lightroom's default settings and don't use Auto WB.

If you like the Nikon (you still shoot Nikon) profiles that Adobe made, (I like "Camera Portrait V3") then create a preset to just change to that profile.

Play with your images from there, you have a steep learning curve a head of you now.

The initial preview is the embedded jpg that is in the RAW file - it has the camera settings and is just like a SOOC jpg file.

As it loads in the Develop module and calculates - it is rendering the RAW using the Adobe secret formula - which is not the same as the camera manufacturer's secret formula. Hence the different looks you are getting.

I believe that the views in the library module are the embedded jpg - hence the extra speed in the previews when inside the library vs. develop module.

I did use the default import without any autoWB, but will try your suggestion next time. Seems kinda daunting =_=



this might be it :s I assume Sam's solution is the only way around it?

You confused me becasue you said Raw file with auto WB but I guess you meant with your camera on AWB.

You files in LR, are not going to look like your in camera jpgs, not unntil Nikon opens up their RAW file to Adobe, Apple et al.

Neither is bad, just different and you just have to get used to a new look that will evolve over time. Shoot both for now until you get used to RAW+LR.

I don't claim to be some LR guru but if you want buy me coffee sometime and I'll sit down with you and show you what I know.

I might take you up on that offer in the new year. Kinda swamped at the moment.

Swamped? Wait 'til you have kids one day!

True. That's why I don't intend to bahahah.

Unfortunately it's the price we pay. Lightroom (and Aperture for Mac) rule the market when it comes to management of images, but Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) (which Lightroom uses internally) is frankly not a great RAW converter. The current version is better (Lightroom 2 and it's version of ACR were infamously downright crap when it came to Sony RAW files, and Adobe tried to blame Sony for it, but Adobe have improved significantly in the current version (though there remain a long list of better RAW converters, but I can only speak from heresay.

When it comes to Creative Styles (basically the in-camera curve, WB etc adjustment), I'm trying to find a way to put this in a field that LR can read. I've found some user templates that attempt to approximate what the creative styles do, so that I can automate which levels to apply. Unfortunately this appears not to be a feature natively in LR.

I'd be interested in sitting down and maybe learning something, or passing something along too as I've almost got my importing workflow the way I want it.

When you first import it uses the embedded JPEG file (the image you would get if you were shooting in jpeg) Then it renders as to your import settings. In my workflow. I import without any presets, this results in pretty flat lacklustre images. From there I adjust WB on a photo and sync it to all of the images with the same lighting. From there I apply custom presets again depending on the look and feel I'm going for. It sound like a lot of work but doesn't really take much time.