A new year, a new medium! I’ve decided to venture into the world of video, and thought it would be interesting to show you how I post-process my photos using Lightroom. It’s such a powerful tool and I’m still often surprised at how much detail it can find in seemingly dull images.
I recently posted a shot from Loch Leven in Scotland, which I had initially dismissed because it really failed to capture the scene as I had seen it. The exposure was all wrong, but I knew there was a great sunset at the time and some beautiful scenery. Sometimes the camera just can’t capture the light as well as your eyes, especially the old point and shoot I was using at the time. I wanted to post some more images from Scotland so I decided to have a play and see what I could do in Lightroom.
It’s definitely the most post-processed image I’ve published on this blog, so it’s a great example to show off what Lightroom can do in a few short minutes. All of my images go through some form of post-processing, from cropping to contrast and clarity. For me it’s a crucial part of the process, so I thought I’d share it with you.
Do you use Lightroom? Or have any comments on my first video? Was it interesting to see my process?! I’d love to heard from you!
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I tried the trial of LightRooom and I was just not technically savvy enough to get it to do what I want! I really love what other people can do with it though. Maybe I will try again!
I think it’s definitely worth a try! I do agree, it’s not the most user friendly in some respects, especially the organising of photos. But once you get used to the software it’s very powerful and can actually save a lot of time.
Cool! I had a free trial already so I have to wait until I can pay for the full version. Thanks!
It looks great and I loved seeing the process. I hear so many good things about Lightroom I know I’m eventually going to have to make the leap. 🙂
If you’re into photography it’s hard to go wrong with Lightroom. It really just helps to take things to the next level. I think there is a free trial so it’s easy to find out if it’s right for you 🙂
Many thanks. I’ve been getting different recommendations to at least try the free trial so I will most certainly be doing that.
Looks great, so funny seeing someone working on their pic on a program that I use so much. I was thinking just before you did something that it could do with that and you did it lol. Raw and lightroom are definitely the way to go, no serious photographer can ever go back after that 🙂
Haha, good to know that other people are using it in the same way as me 🙂 I completely agree, there is no comparison between raw and jpeg, especially considering tools like Lightroom. It makes everything so much easier!
Thoroughly enjoyed seeing your process, I use lightroom all the time and being self taught have often wondered whether I’m doing the right thing and getting the best results. Nice to see someone using it in a similar fashion so I’ll just keep doing what I’ve always done.
Thanks Sam, I’m glad you enjoyed the video 🙂 I’m self taught too so it’s nice to know there are others out there using it in the same way. I’m sure there are more complicated functions available, but I don’t have the patience for that!
I love Lightroom too and it’s interesting to see how you use it (very similar to me in fact, we are obviously all self-teaching ourselves the same stuff!). Have you tried any of the Nik Software programmes at all? I’ve started using Color Efex Pro’s ‘Detail Extractor’ filter which brings up the detail in dark areas, similar to lightening the shadows but you tend to get more detail out. Their Silver Efex programme is great for black and white shots too.
Haha, yeah it seems lots people are using it in a very similar way. I haven’t tried the Nik Software, but just looked it up and seems you can have a free trial so I’ll definitely give it a go. I’ll start by looking at the ‘Detail Extractor’. Thanks! 🙂
Great post! I admit I don’t use Lightroom often (I still prefer Photoshop for some reason) I really like your video. You did a lot to make that image stand out, and with not much time spent.
Kudos on the video too, and yes more of these please! What software do you use for capture? I can’t tell from looking at your dock.
Thanks Jerry! That’s one of the things I love about Lightroom, you can really make some huge improvements in no time at all.
Not sure what you mean by capture software? I just plug my camera in via USB and import into Lightroom. It’s the easiest way for me!
Sorry, I mean what do you use to record your screencasts? I use Screenflow, for example.
Ah sorry! I use a Mac so QuickTime seemed the simplest option for capture. I was surprised how easy it was! I used iMovie for editing the recorded video.