Summary
Julian Kost presents 15 new features in Lightroom Classic that enhance photo editing efficiency and quality. Key additions include automatic dust removal, improved reflection removal, and enhanced object detection that now includes shadows and reflections.
New color adjustment tools, such as the point color variance slider, allow for refined skin tone and color contrast adjustments. Landscape masking has been upgraded to recognize snow and ice, and cropping now supports zooming with precise repositioning. HDR editing benefits from more precise headroom control, while external editing in Photoshop gains new color spaces. Users can quickly find missing subfolders, adjust capture times to the millisecond, and benefit from new ACR sidecar file support to optimize file sizes.
Library filtering has improved with new smart collection filters, and video exports can now reach 4K resolution. Expanded tethering supports more Leica cameras, and multiple performance enhancements improve overall usability and responsiveness.
Key Insights
- Automatic dust removal streamlines spot correction by combining visualization and one-click application.
- Reflection removal uses an updated model for better glare and reflection detection without generative AI hallucinations.
- Object detection now includes shadows and reflections, improving removal accuracy and naturalness.
- Point color variance slider adjusts color contrast globally or within masks, enhancing skin tone and selective color refinement.
- Landscape masking now selects snow and ice, enabling targeted adjustments to these elements separately from sky or water.
- Zooming while cropping allows precise framing with pan and straighten tools accessible at any zoom level.
- HDR headroom control slider offers granular 1/10th stop adjustments for high dynamic range displays.
- New SDR and HDR color spaces are supported in Photoshop external editing workflows for enhanced color fidelity.
- Lightroom alerts users to missing subfolders and simplifies relinking to maintain catalog integrity.
- Performance improvements enhance responsiveness across presets, cropping, slider adjustments, and image loading.
Key Learning Points
- Utilize the visualize spots feature within dust removal to identify and remove dust spots more efficiently.
- When removing reflections, compare old and new models to appreciate the improved detail retention and texture filling.
- Enable detect objects during removal to automatically capture shadows and reflections for seamless edits.
- Use the point color variance slider to either homogenize or enhance color contrast within targeted masks, especially useful for skin tones and detailed subjects.
- Apply landscape masking with new snow selection to make nuanced temperature, tint, saturation, and exposure changes on snowy or icy areas.
- Leverage zooming and panning within the crop tool to achieve more precise compositions, including access to straighten tools at any zoom level.
- Adjust HDR headroom with the new precise slider to optimize image appearance on different HDR-capable devices.
- Select appropriate color spaces in Photoshop external editing preferences to maintain color accuracy across SDR and HDR workflows.
- Regularly check for missing subfolders in Lightroom’s folder panel and use the find missing folder feature to reestablish links and prevent catalog issues.
- Export videos and slideshows up to 4K resolution for higher-quality outputs directly within Lightroom Classic.
Conclusion
The latest Lightroom Classic update delivers powerful new tools and refinements that significantly improve photo editing workflows and output quality for Users of LR Classic.
From automated dust and reflection removal to advanced masking and color adjustments, these features save time while enhancing precision. Expanded color space support and HDR controls cater to professional needs, and smarter library management ensures catalog integrity (at long last !).
Performance boosts round out the user experience, making Lightroom faster and more responsive. Together, these improvements equip photographers and editors with a comprehensive, modernized toolkit for managing and enhancing images more effectively than ever before.