Photography News

The Develop module in Lightroom, as the name suggests, is where you "develop" your images and to quicken the process up, there are several keyboard shortcuts available which allow the user to access and edit tools with a few key combinations - improving the speed at which you can process your images - and greatly improve your workflow.

 

As there are quite a few keyboard shortcuts we'll be breaking the list up into parts and we're starting with 19 basic but essential shortcuts for photo editing. 

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  1. Undo - Ctrl + Z 

If you want to go back a step as you don't like a particular edit, press Ctrl + Z on your keyboard to save you time moving your mouse, clicking the 'Edit' tab and selecting 'Undo'. 

 

  2. Auto Tone - Ctrl + U

If you want Lightroom to have a crack at balancing your exposure this is the tool for you. With the click of two keys on your keyboard the Exposure, Contrast, Highlights, Shadows, Whites and Blacks sliders are adjusted by the software to create a more balanced exposure. The results can be quite good but you can always use the keyboard shortcut we've just talked about to undo the changes if you don't like them.

 

  3. Auto White Balance - Ctrl + Shift + U

Again, this allows Lightroom to adjust settings automatically for you. This time, the Temp and Tint sliders are tweaked. You may not like the way your image looks after the automatic changes but you can always press Cntrl + Z to go back a step. 

4. Increase/Decrease Selected Slider In Small Increments - Arrow Keys

When making changes to a particular adjustments option you can use your mouse to adjust the slider's position, increasing or decreasing the effect as a result. You can also write a value into the numeric box at the side of it but for more control, make use of your keyboards arrows. Left and down decrease the effect while the up and right arrows increase it. It also means your focus stays on the image rather than having to look where your mouse is positioned on the slider then flick your attention back to the image to see how it looks. 
 

5. Increase/Decrease Selected Slider In Larger Increments - Shift + Arrow Keys

This works the same way as the above controls, but the increments at which the sliders/figures can be altered is increased. 
 

6. Move Up And Down Through Basic Panel Settings - . (full stop) + , (comma)

The Basic Panel Settings section is where you'll find options to edit white balance alongside other tonal adjustments. You'll probably find you flick between a few of these options so instead of moving and clicking your mouse to select a different slider, just use the full stop and comma keys to circle through the various options available. 

7. Select White Balance Tool - W

To quickly access the white balance tool (looks like a pipette) from any module, just press 'W' and it will instantly be selected to make quick and white balance adjustments. 

8. Select The Crop Tool - R

The crop tool is a really useful function that can be accessed from any module with the 'R' key. In Lightroom, the crop tool combines as a handy rotational tool, too. Press 'R' again to deactivate this option. 

9. Select The Spot Removal Tool - Q

The Spot Removal tool has various useful features including the ability to remove dust spots and fix skin blemishes. It's found under the Histogram tab but can be quickly accessed by pressing 'Q'. 

10. Select The Adjustment Brush Tool (from any module) - K

The Adjustment Brush allows you to make a variety of changes to your images in a much more precise way. For example, you may want to brighten someone's teeth without changing the exposure of the whole shot. To access this tool quickly, press 'K'. 

  11. Select The Graduated Filter Tool - M

The Graduated Filter in Lightroom is a very useful tool for balancing exposures (simulating the effect of a graduated ND filter photographers place in front of their camera lenses) and can be selected by pressing 'M' on your keyboard. 

12. Increase/Decrease Brush Size - ] / [

These controls work with various tools in Lightroom and are a quicker way to adjust the size of the brush you're working with rather than having to move your mouse to select and move a slider. [ decreases the brush size while ] increases it. 

 

13. Increase/Decrease Brush Feathering - Shift + ] / Shift + [

To alter how hard/soft the brush you're using is you can use two commands: Shift + [ to decrease the feathering and Shift + ] to increase the feathering. 

  14. Rotate Photo - Ctrl + ] Ctrl + [

To quickly change to orientation of the image you have selected use Ctrl + ] to turn it clockwise and Ctrl + [ to turn it counterclockwise. 

15. Zoom In / Zoom Out - Ctrl +  / Ctrl  -

When you want to work on a particular area of a photo you can use Ctrl + to zoom in then press Ctrl - to zoom back out. 

16. View Before And After Left/Right - Y

To compare your edited shot with the original side-by-side press 'Y'. 

17. View Before And After Top/Bottom - Alt + Y

To compare your edited shot with the original one above and one below press 'Alt + Y'. 

 

18. View Before And After In A Split Screen - Shift + Y

To compare your edited shot with the original on a split-screen so you see the original on one half of the shot and the edited version on the other half-press 'Shift + Y'

19. Edit in Photoshop - Ctrl + E

There may be times when you need to take a photo into Photoshop to finish the edit and to do this quickly without having to save your image and reopen it again, you can press Ctrl + E in Lightroom and it'll be opened in Photoshop automatically. 

 

You've read the technique now share your related photos for the chance to win prizes: Daily Forum Competition

You may have noticed that photography lenses are marked in f-numbers, f/1.4, f/2.8, f/8, while cinema lenses are marked in T-numbers, T1.5, T2.9, and wondered whether they mean the same thing. They are closely related, they sit in the same spots on the aperture ring, and a T-number looks just like an f-number with a different letter in front. But they measure two genuinely different things, and the gap between them tells you something real about how lenses work and why a cinematographer cares about it while a portrait photographer mostly does not. 

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There is a peculiar cult operating inside photography. You have seen them: the Autofocus Clergy.

 

The laboratory monks of corner sharpness and focus-acquisition speed. Men refreshing firmware notes with the anticipation of Renaissance astronomers awaiting celestial revelation. They speak of subject detection as if divine intervention had finally solved photography's ancient tragedy: the terrifying possibility of missing something.

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The Fujifilm X100VI has a cult following for good reason: it packs an optical viewfinder, IBIS, a built-in ND filter, and a fast fixed lens into a body small enough to carry anywhere. The catch is the price, and increasingly, the availability. 

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I had the good fortune of spending some time with Sony's new RX10 V, and I shot the entire range of my life with it. A World Cup match here in Seattle one weekend, then a family outing to the Ballard Locks the next. 

 

The promise of the Sony RX10 V is a simple one: leave with one camera, come home with every photo. Let's take a look at why, for me, that promise mostly holds up.

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It might seem strange to be out on the beach at night with your camera but you can get some interesting pictures so delay the visit to the pub for a little longer and do some night-time coastal photography once you have your sunsets in the bag.

  1. When To Shoot

The usual thinking for low light work is to shoot while there is still some colour in the sky and this helps avoid those stark black backgrounds. This is definitely good advice and helps you avoid pictures with too much light pollution, which comes out a yucky yellow and can look horrible. But after you've got your sunset shots, stay out after the twilight hour and continue shooting to even later.

You can try this photography at any time of the year, however you may prefer to wait until later in the year when the sunset isn't as late so you don't have to stay out for as long or late.

 

2. What To Shoot

As the sun sets, try shooting silhouettes or if the sky is particularly impressive, make this your focus. Later on, what you shoot is dependent on where you are. If you are at a traditional seaside resort with some nightlife there may be a pier and amusements that are worth shooting. On night's that are clear and the moon is full, try shooting some seascapes decorated in moonlight.

 

 

3. White Balance

The colours you get with different artificial lamps can vary, and you can get orange or green colour casts depending on the light type. Leave the camera in auto white balance and see how it copes with the light source. If you do not like the look of the results, try setting the colour temperature manually. To be honest, though, do not worry too much about weird colour casts because they can embellish the moodiness of the scene.

 

4. Flashguns

You could introduce your own light to close-by subjects thanks to flashguns. The flashgun on the camera hot-shoe will work fine for many scenes but beware of glare off glossy surfaces. 

 

5. Longer Exposures

Another way is to have the camera on the tripod, open the shutter on a long exposure setting of a few seconds or use the Bulb setting with a remote release to keep the shutter open while you fire the flash several times to light up foreground features. If you're working on the sand do make sure your tripod is balanced and secure.  This painting with light technique is fun and will need several attempts to perfect so don't expect to get it right straight away. When trying this technique, do not stand between the subject and the camera and fire the flash because your ghostly image will show. 

 

You've read the technique now share your related photos for the chance to win prizes: Daily Forum Competition

Choosing between a wider aperture and a longer zoom range is one of the most common trade-offs in APS-C lens selection, and few comparisons make that tension as concrete as the Tamron 17-70mm f/2.8 versus the Sigma 17-40mm f/1.8. These two lenses cost $200 apart, share the same weight, start at the same focal length, and yet produce noticeably different results depending on what you're shooting. 

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The latest winner of our popular daily photography theme which takes place in our forums have been chosen and congratulations go to Boulevardier (Day 8 - 'Panoramas').

 

Daily Theme Runners-Up

If you didn't win this time, keep uploading your images to the daily competition forum for another chance to win! If you're new to the Daily Theme, you can find out more about it in the Daily Theme Q&A. 

Well done to our latest runners-up, too, whose images you can take a look at below.

  Day 1

Villages & Towns

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Day 2

Underwater

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Day 3

Beachcomb

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Day 4

Any 'Colour'

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  Day 5

Horizontal Lines

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Day 6

Capture Culture

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Day 7

'Summer' Theme

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You’ll find the Daily Themes, along with other great photo competitions, over in our Forum. Take a look to see the latest daily photo contests. Open to all levels of photographer, you’re sure to find a photography competition to enter. Why not share details of competitions with our community? Join the camaraderie and upload an image to our Gallery.

Printing the same image twice with two different profiles and then comparing them under controlled lighting is one of the most effective ways to sharpen your eye for print quality. Most people look at a finished print and react to it instinctively, but that habit makes it nearly impossible to diagnose what's actually working or failing. 

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Lightroom's masking tools are powerful, but there are times when a sky mask or landscape mask alone won't isolate exactly what you need. The intersect tool lets you combine two masks so only their overlapping area is targeted, giving you precise control that add and subtract alone can't match. 

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Thanks to modern architecture that favours glass and steel over bricks and mortar cities are full of reflections which give us an alternative way to photograph the places we live in.

 

1. Take A Walk 

You probably already know where you can find buildings with good reflective qualities in your town, but it's still worth having a walk around at different times of the day to find out when it's the best time to shoot.

 

2. Time Of The Day 

Surprisingly, with modern buildings bright sunlight can work really well so don't think your hunt for reflections is only limited to early and late parts of the day. However, weekend mornings are a good time if you don't want people in your shots but if there are people around, which may include security guards, and they ask you what you're doing just polity tell them as it's easier than having an argument and then them calling the police.

If you get a particularly spectacular sunset it's worth hanging back as the colours look really good when reflected in modern glass. The same goes for blue skies and white fluffy clouds. In fact, if you have a building that stands away from the rest of the high risers you can almost lose it in the sky.

 

3. Make The Ordinary Look Fab

Reflections are a great way of making the ordinary look extraordinary too and items we see every day such as trees, colourful signs and lamp posts suddenly turn into an abstract image of wavy lines, shapes and colour. They also give you the opportunity to photograph a well-known building in a different way.

 

 

4. Where To Stand

You can photograph the building almost straight on to produce a simple reflection or see if there's the opportunity to line up a shot where the real building meets the reflection so you can create a whole building from the two halves. The contrast of old vs new is something that's always worked well and it's not something that should be ignored here. A big, glass skyscraper reflecting an old, battered, slightly wonky pub can look really great.

 

5. Converging Vertical Issues

Don't get too hung up about converging verticals as with some modern buildings they can create an interesting composition. It may distort your reflection though so it's best to just experiment and see.

 

6. Go Wide & Add Detail 

If you do opt for using wides try giving your image a little foreground detail to fill what can be a big empty space and if you find you have a problem with glare at any time, just adjust your position until it's no longer in the shot.

 

You've read the technique now share your related photos for the chance to win prizes: Daily Forum Competition

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The latest winner of our popular daily photography theme which takes place in our forums have been chosen and congratulations go to Leon88 (Day 20 - 'Dog').

 

Daily Theme Runners-Up

If you didn't win this time, keep uploading your images to the daily competition forum for another chance to win! If you're new to the Daily Theme, you can find out more about it in the Daily Theme Q&A. 

Well done to our latest runners-up, too, whose images you can take a look at below.

  Day 16

Summer Show

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Day 17

Castles

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Day 18

Close-Up Portraits

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Day 19

Puddles

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  Day 21

Family Vacation

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Day 22

Statues & Sculptures

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Day 23

Stately Homes

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You’ll find the Daily Themes, along with other great photo competitions, over in our Forum. Take a look to see the latest daily photo contests. Open to all levels of photographer, you’re sure to find a photography competition to enter. Why not share details of competitions with our community? Join the camaraderie and upload an image to our Gallery.

Almost every camera has a shutter, the mechanism that controls how long light hits the sensor, but not all shutters work the same way. Among mechanical shutters, there are two main designs, the leaf shutter and the focal plane shutter, and the difference between them is not trivia. It determines how fast you can sync a flash, how quiet your camera is, how big and expensive your lenses get, and which kind of photography each system is best suited to. If you have ever wondered why a small fixed-lens camera can do something your big mirrorless body cannot, the shutter is often the reason.

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Red lights blinking on my NAS. Drive failure. Double drive failure. I'm on RAID 6, so the data's still there, but my heart rate has increased. My day is reprioritized — time to work on this.

So I did what we all do now — I asked the internet, specifically Google's AI, how to fix it. The advice was tactically good, but it missed the real problem, and a thought stuck with me: the same AI tech I was leaning on for answers is the reason storage just got so expensive.

When storage costs this much, having good discipline with your data management practice beats blind redundancy.

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Choosing between the 7Artisans 135mm f/1.8 and the Viltrox 135mm comes down to a real tradeoff: raw optical and autofocus performance versus a lighter, smaller package at a lower price. At $689, the 7Artisans sits well below the Viltrox, and that gap raises a fair question about what you're actually giving up. 

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You come home from a trip with hundreds of images, sit down to edit, and feel nothing. It happens more than most people admit, and it usually isn't a gear problem or even a skill problem. 

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Choosing the right portrait lens for an APS-C system is genuinely hard when the native options are expensive and heavy. The Viltrox 75mm f/1.8 and Viltrox AF 90mm f/2.2 are making a strong case for themselves as lightweight, affordable alternatives for Fujifilm, Sony, and Nikon APS-C shooters. 

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Window pulls are one of the most technically demanding parts of real estate photography post-processing, and getting them wrong is more obvious than most people expect. A bad blend doesn't just look overprocessed; it can make an entire interior shot read as fake, which undermines the entire purpose of the image. 

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Standing on a clifftop surveying a gorgeous vista can lift your spirits as high as the summer breeze. It doesn’t take much effort to sit still for half an hour listening to the gentle sounds of lazy waves, distant boats and calling sea birds and forget all about why you were there – to photograph a coastal panorama.

Coastal cliff top scenes or images shot from the shoreline can add that real something else to your portfolio and today’s software is very capable of helping you achieve your vision.  

Many people believe they need specialist tripod heads and other tools, but for a simple coastal vista, all you need is a correctly levelled tripod and a spirit bubble hot shoe level. It's also worth remembering that shooting manually (white balance, focus and exposure) will make life easier in the long-run as you probably won't have to spend extra time adjusting each image before stitching.

Before starting your panorama, do take a look at the foreground as if you have elements which are much closer to the camera you may want to consider moving to a different spot as the final image won't look right or stitch well unless you're using a purpose-built panoramic tripod head.

 

 

How To Capture The Perfect Panorama:

1. Ensure the tripod is set on sturdy ground. Alter the leg length for comfort, and then alter the length for a second time using the tripod's spirit bubble (most have this built-in), so that the tripod head will rotate on a horizontal plane.

2. Attach the camera with lens in either landscape or portrait orientation (depending on your view and the overall size you want your panorama to be) and check everything is level. When shot in landscape orientation, panoramas tend to be much more narrow but this can work well with some shots so do experiment. 

3. Look at the scene you are trying to capture and decide on a start and endpoint for your image.

4. Ensure the scene hasn’t got a speeding boat or the white line left from the wake that could occur in more than one image, as this will make the task of stitching the images together extremely difficult and could ruin the panorama. 

5. Quickly shoot the entire scene, making accurate movements. If you can imagine you have a protractor on the scene in front of you try to take a shot every 10-15 degrees. Always leave some overlapping (around one-third approximate overlap between each frame)  and use a remote / cable release if you have one to prevent shake as you don't want to get home to find that one out of the several images you've taken isn’t sharp. You may also want to shoot a little wider than necessary as the stitching process can often leave the end result requiring some cropping.

Owing to the growing popularity of Leica cameras in recent years, a bunch of new lens manufacturers have sprung up to provide much cheaper alternatives to Leica lenses. And what's particularly exciting is that, with the aid of modern technology, many rare and desirable Leica lenses from the past can now be reproduced with incredible accuracy.

  

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