But that’s not the case anymore. Lightroom doesn’t have a photo limit that anyone has hit. Adobe doesn’t even recommend creating multiple catalogs anymore. So the first thing I tell people is to stick with one catalog. Keep it simple. I’ve got 70,000 photos in one of my catalogs and I don’t notice it to be significantly slower than a smaller catalog.

Now, does that mean you should never create multiple catalogs. Nope. It’s like many other things out there. Know what the rules are, then know how and when to break them. I know wedding photographers that create a new catalog each week for each wedding. Honestly, if I were a wedding photographer I’d probably do the same. I know people that create a catalog for their personal photos and one for their professional photos. Me personally, I don’t agree with that one. But hey, if it works for you then go for it.

My point is, if you have a good reason and are an advanced enough Lightroom user then creating multiple catalogs may be the way to go. But keep it mind, multiple catalogs is an “advanced” thing to do in Lightroom. You’re not going to find a lot of support for it, you’re going to complicate your workflow, and you’re not going to find a clear cut path on exactly how to make it work well.

But I think for most people, one catalog will work just fine. Load it up with as many photos as you’d like and don’t sweat it. It keeps things simple and, in my book, simple is usually good when it comes to managing our photos.

• Chicago: May 21-22
• Atlantic City: June 3-4
• Los Angeles: July 15-16
• Las Vegas: August 5-6

Have a great weekend!

By the way, if you hadn’t noticed Photoshop CS is no longer – it’s called Photoshop CC now

Subscription Vs. Owning
I don’t want to get too much into whether the CC is a good deal or not. There’s a ton of blogs and articles doing that today already. Make sure you stop over to Scott’s blog because he’s got a great Q&A writeup on this announcement. I also don’t want to talk subscription vs. ownership of software. I know a lot of people have feelings on this, but to me, the subscription model doesn’t bother me – I just want good software. Adobe delivers, and I’m willing to pay monthly, yearly or however to get it. I will say this… For anyone but photographers, it’s a total no-brainer and the industry is eating it up. But for photographers (hobbyists, enthusiasts, prosumers and those that don’t necessary run a business or make money from photography) it can be a big change, and one that isn’t so easy to swallow if you just use Lightroom and Photoshop.

Here’s one way to make it simple though. If you use Photoshop, Lightroom and just one more Adobe product (InDesign, Illustrator, Premier), then it’s a great deal. Sign up right now because it’s the best deal out there.

If you use Lightroom, and sometimes Photoshop, and no other Adobe products then you have a decision to make and that’s who this post is for. I’d like to help you make that decision on what this means for you as a Lightroom user.

How Lightroom Fits In To The Creative Cloud
First off, Lightroom is the place for photographers. Come to grips with it. If you’re a photographer then you need Lightroom. The solution is not Bridge, it’s not Camera Raw or some combination of the two. Lightroom is it. Stop debating, stop thinking that you’re situation is different and that you actually like using the Bridge and Camera Raw combo more. You don’t Trust me. So if you haven’t hopped on the Lightroom wagon yet, do it. You eventually will, so you might as well do it now (again, this applies to photographers, not designers). I know I sound very cut-n-dry here by saying it that way, but this whole “I Like Bridge/ACR” and “I like Lightroom!” crap doesn’t help anyone. If you’re a photographer then use the program that was built for you (end rant)

Next…The most common question I’m getting (as a Lightroom guy) is do I subscribe or not to get Lightroom. See, if you subscribe to the CC, then you get Lightroom (because it’s part of CC), Photoshop and every other Adobe program there is for your subscription price. If you don’t subscribe and you’re a Lightroom user, nothing really changes. Lightroom 4 is still available to purchase outside of the CC and Adobe plans the same for Lightroom 5. So you will indeed be able to upgrade to Lightroom 5 without subscribing to the Creative Cloud.

Knowing that Lightroom is the place for photographers, your decision actually becomes easier. Why? Because you basically have many of the features that are new in Photoshop CC in Lightroom 5 already. Really? Yep, let’s run through the list:
1) Radial Gradient Filter (we got it in Lightroom 5 last month)
2) Upright Lens Correction Adjustments (yep, Lightroom 5 last month)
3) Non-destructive Cloning and Healing Brush (you guessed it, Lightroom 5 last month)

Not to mention, as a Bridge/Camera Raw user, you don’t get Smart Previews where you can work on a smaller “preview” version of your photos while your main photo drive is offline. So if you’re a Bridge user, forget about unplugging your photo hard drive and doing anything with your photos.

NOTE: I know Lightroom 5 isn’t out of beta yet, but right now it’s free to use. It’s perfectly stable and I’ve switched all of my editing and catalogs over to it. So for all intents and purposes, Lightroom 5 is out and for now, it’s free.

Now, what didn’t you get in Lightroom 5 that Photoshop CS6/Elements don’t have (but Photoshop CC does have)?
1) Camera Raw as a filter in Photoshop – I have to admit it, this one is huge to me. I often work on my photos in Photoshop and wish I had access to the raw adjustments that I have in the Develop module. Camera Raw is identical to the Develop module in Lightroom and having it as a filter is a nice thing to have. There’s workarounds with Smart Objects but let’s face it – smart object workflow is clunky at best. So for me, this one is a must-have.

2) Camera Shake Reduction – Another cool feature. I’m usually pretty good about having my camera on a tripod so it’s not one I use a lot, but in those times you need it I’m sure it’ll come in handy.

3) Remember a while back Adobe released a bunch of cloud updates for Photoshop like conditional actions and more support for filters and smart object layers. So if either of those are part of your workflow then the CC is where you’ll need to go to get them.

So do you really need Photoshop? I know we’ve been conditioned to think that Photoshop is the place for photographers, but Adobe has built one totally kick-ass program with Lightroom. So much so, that I think Lightroom has become the place where photographers spend most of their time (and rightly so). Photoshop was built for EVERYONE where Lightroom was built just for photographers. And when you factor that Lightroom 5 just took away the #1 reason most photographers leave Lightroom (cloning and healing), you should be pretty darn happy as a Lightroom user.

Getting Back On Topic
To bring this all around to the topic of this article, what does all of this mean for Lightroom users? If those two features that I mentioned above are absolute must-haves, you do need Photoshop CC. Also, if you don’t already own a version of Photoshop or Elements and you need selections, layers, panoramas, blend modes, filters, actions, professional level retouching (beyond whitening eyes/teeth and smoothing skin because Lightroom does that), then Photoshop CC will be essential.

But if you have a previous version of Photoshop (or Elements), and don’t need the two features I mentioned above, then nothing really changes for you. You still have the same exact software you paid for a year or so ago and nothing was taken away from you. Your workflow doesn’t change, where you store your photos doesn’t change and your Lightroom/Photoshop interaction doesn’t change. You’ll still be able to upgrade to the latest and greatest version of Lightroom. So if the features of the Creative Cloud don’t interest you at this point then, as a Lightroom user, skip it for now. I’m willing to bet that Adobe has things in the works and they’ll hope to change your mind. Remember, this stuff is in it’s infancy stages right now. But in the meantime, your photo workflow and the software you use can remain exactly as it was before yesterday. You can still buy Lightroom 4 standalone today, and you’ll still be able to buy Lightroom 5 standalone (or upgrade) when it officially comes out.

One Final Thought
One last thing. Adobe is offering a single app membership program for $9.99/month for one year. That’s cheaper than any other upgrade version of Photoshop you’ve ever paid for before. Consider this. Tom Hogarty (Adobe Group Product Manager) sneaked a Lightroom-like tablet feature on our talk show The Grid, last week. And while he didn’t go into specifics about other “cloud” like features, it stands to reason that Adobe must be working on adding more features that will make the CC more and more compelling for you as a Lightroom/Photoshop user. They’re not just going to leave us out. So, will the price go up from $9.99 after the first year? Maybe. But for $10/month now (Skip a Starbucks trip for a couple days a month and you’ll pay for it), it’s easy to swallow and it gives you 1 year of the newest, latest, greatest features. You can wait and see if the features that do get added to the CC become worth it to you to continue.

And if they don’t, well then cancel your subscription after the first year and spend $59 on Photoshop Elements if you really need Photoshop

Thanks for stopping by today. I’m always interested in your comments so feel free to leave ‘em here. Have a good one!

(click to see the image larger)

It not only works in the Develop module but all of the modules. Cool huh? Well, have a great weekend! I’m on my way out to Adobe Max this weekend so I’ll make sure I give you a report next week if anything cool happens.

There is a trick, however, if you’re setting up Elements as an external editor with Lightroom (on the Mac that is). First, you go to menu to Lightroom > Preferences and click on the External Editing tab. Now, your first inclination (at least it was mine) is that you go to the Photoshop Elements folder and select the first Elements application icon that you see for your editor. But if you do, when you try to edit a photo in Elements you’ll see the Elements interface open, but the photo will never show up. Here’s the fix. Instead of choosing the Elements icon in the main application folder, you need to go to Applications > Adobe Photoshop 11 > Support Files and choose the Adobe Photoshop Elements Editor.app file. Here’s a screenshot of what it looks like.

Now when you go to edit your photo from Lightroom in to Elements, it’ll automatically create a copy and launch Elements for you, and the photo will automatically open. When you’re done just choose File > Save and return to Lightroom to see the edited version.

SIDE NOTE: If you’re into Elements and learning more about it, I write articles for a really great mini-magazine/website called Photo Elements Techniques. Here’s the link to check them out.

From what I’ve heard, this has always been a big stumbling block for many Elements users so I hope this helps out. Take care!

Enjoy!

1) Full Screen Preview – It’s funny how the little things that get changed between versions of Lightroom can mean so much. For me, a full screen preview is something I use every single day. I like to see my photos without the clutter of the interface around them when I’m making my edits. Before Lightroom 5 you had to press like 3 keys and you still didn’t get a great looking Full Screen preview of your photos. It looked something like this:

Now, all we have to do is press the F key once and you get a real full-screen preview that looks something like this.

2) The Radial Filter – This new filter is going to get used a lot by me. I’m a vignette junkie and I’ve always hated how it just goes into the center of the photo. So the Radial Filter is a must have for me and knowing it’s keyboard shortcut (which is Shift M by the way) has become essential.

3) Inverting the Radial Filter – Building on the shortcut above, I’ve found that sometimes I want to invert the way the Radial filter works. Meaning that you’re basically flipping it. Rather than the filter affecting the middle and gradually fading off toward the edges, you can tell it to do the opposite by hitting the Apostrophe key.

So there’s my top 3 keyboard shortcuts (so far) in Lightroom 5. Enjoy!

Well, one of my favorite new features is the new Radial Filter. It’s a new great way to draw attention to certain parts of your photo without using the Post Crop Vignette in the Effects panel. Plus, it lets you control exactly which part of the photo you show off (the vignette doesn’t give you that control).

The other really cool part about the Radial Filter is that it let’s you save the settings as a Develop Module preset. And because I’m a preset junkie, I decided to make my own presets that use the filter in different parts of the photo (with different strength settings). So basically, you’ll see presets that put focus on the upper right, left or lower right or left parts of the photo. And each preset comes with 3 different strength settings that let you control just how dark the rest of the photo gets (Light, Medium, Strong).

Here’s a few samples. You really have to try the presets out though, since they don’t show up as well when the images are small.

• The preset downloads for Lightroom 5 are below:
• Click here to download the Lightroom 5 Spotlight Radial Filter Effect Presets.
• And here’s a link to a video on how to install and organize Lightroom presets if you don’t know how.

Hope you enjoy. Have a good one!

Over at the National Association of Photoshop Professionals HQ, Scott Kelby and I put together an entire launch site for you to check out. It’s got videos on all of the new features, links, resources, tips, tricks and links to download the beta version. Here’s the site, so head on over to be the first to check out the new beta.