LIghtroom Killer Tips:
If you’re an Aperture user, it’s time to find something else to manage/edit your photos. So if you’ve been waiting to make the jump to Lightroom, now’s your chance. Especially with the $9.99/month Creative Cloud Photography plan becoming permanent.
You’ll notice there’s many similarities between Lightroom and Aperture. So rather than start from scratch and teach you every feature in Lightroom, I wanted to just list the top 10 things I think are most important if you decide to switch. Things that you may be familiar with in Aperture, and what the counterparts are in Lightroom. Here goes!
I’ve used both apps but have favoured Lightroom for many years. Aperture users are going to need to find alternatives and Lightroom is the logical choice for many.
I’ve been a happy and productive professional Adobe customer since 1987, and I’d be doing something far different for a living now, had I not been.
I don’t begrudge Adobe for the thousands of dollars I’ve paid them to license their software. Quite the contrary. I’ve made many times more that amount from the products I’ve created and sold using those tools. I’m also gratified that I’ve played some small part in helping them grow and prosper.
Those original tools and newer ones added over the yeers, including Lightroom, have all improved substantially with successive new versions.
I also think Adobe’s new subscription model is more convenient, while it offers more frequent and timely updates, as well as collateral benefits such as tech support, cloud storage, etc.
I think it’s both sad and laughable that some still do begrudge Adobe for what they call “greed.” More than likely, at least a number of those complainers are more than a bit jealous of us subscribers while they have only to continue to use their outdated, pirated copies.
I’m a subscriber, and my only complaint is a lack of subscription pricing options. $19.99 for one app, $49.99 or all of them? I only use 2 frequently, and another very occasionally. I’d like to see more options like the $9.99 photography bundle.
As it is, I’m always keeping my eyes on the up and comers to see if Acorn or Pixelmator can fulfill my needs.
The subscription model may be more convenient for you, but it’s not for everyone. If I was a professional photographer, I probably would not mind the $10/month price as I like to keep up to date with my professional tools anyway. However, I’m not a professional photographer, but it is a hobby of mine and I like the more advanced features of Aperture over iPhoto. I also, as an amateur, don’t mind skipping versions. My now $80 every couple of years becomes $120 every year.
It will be interesting to watch the success rate of the likes of Adobe and Microsoft as they switch completely to subscription models. Software could become very expensive if too many developers follow suit. Hopefully someone will fill the void left by Aperture (assuming Photos does not) for those who prefer to purchase their software up front.
One thing to remember – Aperture will still work at least 1.5 years. It will be supported in OSX Yosemite, which isn’t even available yet.
Aperture users don’t need to find anything. Aperture still works.
The number of people who really need all those retouch tools etc has to be small and most of them probably have jumped ship already. The rest of us will probably be better served with Photos, provided it isn’t too limited as an editing tool.
Nerd rage on the internet usually indicates that Apple is doing the right thing. I suspect it will turn out that way in this case, too.
I’ve been an adobe customer for over a decade, and recently dropped the creative cloud. When the time comes, if Photos doesn’t live up to Aperture, I will transition to Capture One. I’ve used Lightroom 3-5, and it’s UI (IMO) is horrendous. If Photos includes many of the brushes and “masking” abilities of Aperture, I’m sure it will wind up being a very worthy successor. Besides, I rarely support a company that steals ideas from the original creators and eventually drives them out of the market (not that that’s exactly what happened here, but it’s clear where Lightroom came from). That’s not a world I want to live in.
I believe Aperture users will be better served by Capture One.
http://www.phaseone.com/Imaging-Software/Capture-One-Pro-7.aspx
I see the words “hobbyist” and “casual user” a lot amongst you chronic complainer commenters. That really doesn’t mean anything as far as any sense of “entitlement” you may think you have.
I just watched a YouTube video of a hobbyist—or TEAM of such—who flew their first test flight of a HUGE scale model of a Honda Jet (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luKep-kh09c). Now there’s a hobby that cost some really serious bucks and which takes a lot of time and technical effort.
You seriously think any of those guys waste any keystrokes complaining about the cost of the tools for their hobby? Hell no!
So what it really boils down to is money. Too obvious, right? So, if you can’t afford your “hobby”, quit whining and find something else to piddle around with.
I applaud Adobe for making this bold move to a subscription model which is separating the wheat from the chaff. Call it unfair, as many of you do. But life is anything but fair. Life is for the living, not the deabbeats who somehow think someone other than themselves owes them something.
Money is nothing but energy—something which you create (or not) from your own power and ability and creative imagination. That Honda Jet model started with a mere idea, and its creators joyfully spent the time and money they had to make it a reality.
So get off you duffs and either create something with Adobe tools or go somewhere else.
Choosing to spend less than adobe charges for any reason isn’t a sense of entitlement. It’s a valid choice. Whereas ones preferred tool used to cost ~$40/yr and now costs ~$120/yr, I can see why they wouldn’t be thrilled. The honda plane guys had the cash, so they did what they could with what they had. It’s not practical to hold that over anyone head. Maybe the rest of us love photography, but can’t justify the extra expense (as a single guy with a mortgage, car payment, bills, insurance, etc, it’s tough to justify spending on just about anything). You’re going to have to come to grips with the fact that not everyone loves your tools. Or not. Either way, no need to be condescending. If the tables were turned, and lets say Adobe folded and left everyone with no updates and support would vanish after a year or two…you wouldn’t be upset? At all? All those now useless file formats? (It’ll be easy to pick that argument apart, but hopefully you get my point…I’m not looking for trouble, just saying it’s easy to pass judgement when you aren’t affected.)
“I see the words “hobbyist” and “casual user” a lot amongst you chronic
complainer commenters. That really doesn’t mean anything as far as any
sense of “entitlement” you may think you have.”
Get off your high horse there. This isn’t about feeling entitled. It’s about choice and fitting one’s needs. Read my original post again. It isn’t a complaint. I am just pointing
out that your view of Adobe’s pricing model does not work for everyone.
“So what it really boils down to is money. Too obvious, right? So, if you
can’t afford your “hobby”, quit whining and find something else to
piddle around with.”
Of course it’s about money, but you are wrong about not being able to afford
it. I’d just rather not pay for constant updates that I don’t need. I purchased Aperture 2 and 3 a couple of years apart and have used them for about 4-5 years. They worked great for MY needs. I spent a total of ~$180. Adobe will cost 2.5-3.5x that for the same period of time. I’d rather spend that on a new camera or lens.
“I applaud Adobe for making this bold move to a subscription model which
is separating the wheat from the chaff. Call it unfair, as many of you
do.”
This is a bold move by Adobe and it may work well for them, but I certainly don’t applaud them for raising (in some cases) the prices on their customers. It’s not unfair, it’s just a business decision that they are entitled to make. We’ll see how it pans out in the long run.
“Life is for the living, not the deabbeats who somehow think someone other than themselves owes them something.”
This is a bit uncalled for. Where did I imply that anyone owes me, or anyone else who shares my opinion, anything?
“So get off you duffs and either create something with Adobe tools or go somewhere else.”
I think I will go somewhere else if I find somewhere that suits my needs. Again, it’s all about choice.
This may all be a moot point anyway. We still don’t know what Photos will be capable of, but maybe there is some room to be optimistic: http://www.macrumors.com/2014/07/01/photos-editing-effects-plugins/
Looks like Photos might be more powerful that people are assuming (see the link in my post above). Seems like a lot of people are jumping to conclusions about software we really don’t know anything about yet.
“…it’s time to find something else to manage/edit your photos. …”
Why? Aperture still works fine and we don’t know what the Photos app is all about yet.
“Aperture users are going to need to find alternatives…”
Eventually, yes. But why are we trying to bury a fully functioning application so quickly?
I like it up here on my high horse.
So make your choice and move on if you don’t like Adobe’s offerings. You won’t be missed.
“I rarely support a company that steals ideas from the original creators and eventually drives them out of the market”
LOL Looks like you’ll be giving up your Mac then, right? Apple has done exactly that on several occasions. 🙂
That’s the plan. Has been.
You seem like a miserable guy. I looked at a batch of your previous posts, and you seem to have a penchant for coming down on people whose idea of what works differs from yours. Either that, or maybe you’re somehow threatened by anyone who doesn’t agree with you? Why tell people who never even implied what you assumed about and projected on them “they won’t be missed”? Incredibly petty. Cheer up. Not everyone will agree with you. No need to let it get to you.
OK guys. You’re starting to get personal. Drop the subject and you can both agree to disagree.
I have been shooting professionally since the 1980s and find that Aperture and Lightroom both suck.
I use Media Pro to catalog, and photoshop to edit
Thanks, Shawn.
We like discussion on The Loop but sometimes, things get heated. We want to keep things collegial around here and not let tempers flare if for no other reason than it discourages others from commenting/disagreeing.
A direct rip off of an entire product? Which? Mac OS was a deal between Xerox and apple for company shares. Otherwise, what am I missing?
Roger that. Maybe I went too far, but I didn’t feel like I was off base. It was clearly consistent and intended insult. I apologize for crossing the line.
Accepted. Thank you.