Camera Bag

[mom2rtk]

Each image is a little different and I treat each one individually. Here's basically what I do..

open the image
adjust the white balance
switch to black and white and adjust the contrast, brightness, etc.
go back to color and adjust a little more if necessary
If I need to "fix" anything like fringe or heal a spot this is when I do it.
noise reduction then sharpening if necessary
apply any kind of effects (grain, vignette, etc.)
export to jpeg or send to Photoshop

Cool idea to adjust contrast and brightness in b/w. I'll have to try that! Many thanks for responding.

When I import I usually apply a preset I've done the includes what I do with most of my images such as bump up the clarity and a slight bump on the blacks. I'll also apply key words that apply to all the images on the import.

Next I'll go thru and mark images for deletion that are out of focus etc. At the same time I often mark my prefered images that I want to select and may do more edits. At some point here I'll apply additional key words.

Once I've completed any edits (cropping, recovery, fill light etc.) then I'll export directly to Zenfolio. Recently I've stopped saving my jpgs locally unless I have a particular reason to do so. I'm not necessarily recommending this but I feel comfortable enough with this for myself. If I need them I can download from Zenfolio.

I do like your idea of having certain presets. I know I saw that in one of the tutorials. I am starting to see a pattern to what I like, usually a slight bump up in exposure and contrast, just a matter of personal preference. I can see starting with something along that line.

For me, each photo is different, especially on vacation where photos come from sooooo many different places and lighting conditions.

However, you don't necessarily have to adjust each photo individually, one-by-one. I usually have several similar photos that are taken around the same time, at the same place, in the same lighting conditions. With these several "similar" photos, I can make my adjustments to 1 photo and then "Sync" these adjustments to all the "similar" photos.

I do like to increase the blacks a little bit. I also like to increase the Clarity and Vibrance. How much I increase the other sliders in the Develop module will depend on the photo itself.

Hope you're getting the hang of using Lightroom. Looks like Scott Kelby's book The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 Book for Digital Photographers (link to Amazon) is coming out on July 12!

The other book I'd really recommend, too, is Martin Evening's book The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 Book: The Complete Guide for Photographers (link to Amazon), which came out earlier this month on June 8. As good as this book is, it's 672 pages, so it's *very* thorough. I'd probably use this more as a reference book.

Hope that helps!

First, Many thanks for always being willing to take the time to help me with such thorough answers! I really do appreciate it.

I like the idea of fixing one photo in a group then using the sync function.

I'm sort of getting the hang of LR3, but still struggling on some things. I think I need to sit down and watch the tutorials again. It all made sense when I watched it, but I need to watch again to set it in my mind.

I will definitely pick up one of the books. I'd like one to read through to complement the online tutorials, then one to act as a reference. It sounds like the ones you mentioned will do just that!

 

[raysnkaysmom]

Ok...question for photography at Epcot...
We are going to Epcot for our honeymoon, and I got the idea from the WEdding and Honeymoon board of having a Disney photographer... Of course, I'm already booked with our wedding photographer (outside of Disney), but was wondering, couldn't we just put our wedding attire back on, get a photopass and take pics around Epcot??
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/digital-photos.htm#discount

Seems like such a huge savings...and if they aaren' t perfect, I wont' be upset, as its our second set, but I'd LOVE to have Disney wedding pics

Anyone hear or see this happen before??

 

[mom2rtk]

I have a question on how to handle my images once I have finished my LR edits.

I have a storage system I have used for years with the software I got with my camera. It just stores them by date in folders. I was thinking of just continuing that system and exporting my LR edited photos into a subfolder in the appropriate date as needed.

Here's my question: When I exported so far, I selected the option to optimize for screen viewing since I was posting them online. I forgot about that and printed a couple and didn't think they were that great. I"m assuming I need to save them optomized for glossy paper since that's what I print on.

Do I need to save them in both forms? Is there that much difference if I just use the "optimize for glossy paper" option even for my online stuff?

 

[mom2rtk]

Ok...question for photography at Epcot...
We are going to Epcot for our honeymoon, and I got the idea from the WEdding and Honeymoon board of having a Disney photographer... Of course, I'm already booked with our wedding photographer (outside of Disney), but was wondering, couldn't we just put our wedding attire back on, get a photopass and take pics around Epcot??
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/digital-photos.htm#discount

Seems like such a huge savings...and if they aaren' t perfect, I wont' be upset, as its our second set, but I'd LOVE to have Disney wedding pics

Anyone hear or see this happen before??

Adults are not allowed to enter the parks in costume, only children up to age 9. One of the things they are specifically trying to prevent is exactly what you are describing. They want to keep those photos an exclusive of those willing to pay the price for a Disney wedding.

 

[Daisy14'sDH]

I dunno about the age rule... they sell the Pirate league gear to anyone... but I do know what you mean, a wedding dress is a far cry from a pirate costume... so with that said if you wore a dress purchased at BBB....

 

[lov2b@disney]

no they will not let you in to epcot in your dress...you have to be booked through DFTW and have a disney wedding photographer

 

[MICKEY88]

you could always get the disney bride and groom hats/ears and have pictures taken bythe photo pass people..

 

[disneyboy2003]

I have a question on how to handle my images once I have finished my LR edits.

I have a storage system I have used for years with the software I got with my camera. It just stores them by date in folders. I was thinking of just continuing that system and exporting my LR edited photos into a subfolder in the appropriate date as needed.

Here's my question: When I exported so far, I selected the option to optimize for screen viewing since I was posting them online. I forgot about that and printed a couple and didn't think they were that great. I"m assuming I need to save them optomized for glossy paper since that's what I print on.

Do I need to save them in both forms? Is there that much difference if I just use the "optimize for glossy paper" option even for my online stuff?

I don't know much about optimizing for screen vs. optimizing for glossy paper, so I can't help you with that.

In terms of organizing your photos into folders, though, I usually create folders of specific locations, rather than folders of different dates. For example, let's say I went to Las Vegas for a 7-day trip. A year from now when I look back at my Vegas photos and want to find Mandalay Bay photos, I'm *not* going to remember the exact date I went to Mandalay Bay. With your date-based folder system, you'd have to go through all 7 folders to look for Mandalay Bay photos.

In this case, I would just create 1 Las Vegas folder, perhaps "Las Vegas NV, 6-2010" for example, and I'd dump all the Vegas photos in there. For sure, I would add keywords for each photo so that later on I can search "Mandalay Bay" and pull up all those photos in an instant. If I took LOTS of photos at a bunch of Vegas hotels, then *maybe* I would consider creating sub-folders like "Mandalay Bay", "MGM Grand", "Bellagio", etc., just to make it easier to pull up those particular photos.

For WDW, what I typically do is create a "WDW, 6-2010" folder. Within this folder, I'll create several subfolders: "Magic Kingdom", "Epcot", "Disney's Hollywood Studios", "Animal Kingdom", and "Resorts". If I end up going to Magic Kingdom several times, then I'll create sub-sub-folders within Magic Kingdom for the different dates, like "Magic Kingdom, 6-24-2010" and "Magic Kingdom, 6-26-2010". This is what the folder hierarchy looks like...

WDW, 6-2010
--Magic Kingdom
----Magic Kingdom, 6-24-2010
----Magic Kingdom, 6-26-2010
--Epcot
--Disney's Hollywood Studios
--Animal Kingdom
--Resorts​

Later on, when I look back at my Magic Kingdom photos, I can simply open the "Magic Kingdom" folder, and all the MK photos from BOTH dates will be displayed. With this folder organizing system, I don't have to remember the exact date for a photo I'm looking for.

However, be sure to add keywords to all your photos, too! All my Magic Kingdom photos will always have the word "Magic Kingdom" as a keyword. So later on, you can search your *entire* library of photos and very easily pull up all your Magic Kingdom photos.

Hope that helps!

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

True - you can only take your pictures in the park with your wedding attire on if you have a DFTW.

However, you can do a Resort Photoshoot in your wedding attire. Just not in the parks. But you could schedule a session at Poly and get pictures there.

These aren't from a Disney Photographer, but to give you an idea of the location...

Otherwise, Another option - anyone can book a private session in the Epcot World Showcase, but can't wear your wedding attire. You could wear a white sundress though...

 

[MICKEY88]

there is one other way to pull this off, take lots of good scenic shots at WDW..then when you get home,find a local photographer, who has a green screen, they could shoot you in front of the green screen, then drop in your disney beckground...

 

[WDWFigment]

I would be nervous about doing it with the resort PhotoPass people. They can be just as hit-and-miss as the in-park PhotoPass, and that's a lot of effort/time/money for shots that may end up being less than stellar.

 

[Marlton Mom]

I agree with Figment about the hit or miss nature of Photopass photographers.

I'm not sure about this but don't they let guests in wearing costumes for Halloween?

Perhaps you could convince a friend who is good at photography to accompany you and and your costumes (i.e. "Bride and Groom ") for a round of pictures at Mickey's not so scary Halloween party.

Mwa ha ha......
Always scheming!
Marlton Mom

 

[mom2rtk]

So those of you who ordered this student edition:

1) how long did it take to arrive?

2) Is it exactly the same as I have been using in the free trial?

3) Will I have to uninstall what I have, or will I just enter the number I get on what I receive?

I guess I was surprised there was an actual "delivery" with this. I thought once I sent a copy of my son's student id and paid, they would just email me a code.

 

[ssanders79]

We got married in the Wedding Pavilion in 2005. To get pictures in our attire in the parks was a huge extra fee that we did add-on to our DFTW package. Our package included pictures during the ceremony, around the wedding pavilion with the castle in the background and pictures at the reception on a balcony at the GF.

 

[Luv2Scrap]

I have never heard about this software, but I'm a student so I could get the discounted price if I wanted it. I have CS3 that I can use minimally, meaning I took a class last year but don't remember much , and I haven't had a lot of time to practice and learn more.

Would this software be a good option for me for when I don't need something as powerful as CS3? Or would I be better off continuing to clunk my way through CS3, hoping that I will get better at it with more practice?

Does this software do anything that CS3 doesn't do?

 

[marandaclan]

Thinking about purchasing some prints on PhotoPass -but wondered if anyone knew of any valid promotion codes that are good now.

THanks!

 

[JimbobJimbo]

 

[steery1]

 

[giantstu]

A few of mine

 

[raysnkaysmom]

Yeah...talked to a wedding photographer in the area, said that only Disney photographers are allowed IN the parks, and that if you are in your wedding dress, they generally do it before or after park hrs...
So, we may end up doing it at a resort
And... we'll just go with photopass honeymoon photos
Hopefully by then, we'll have our awesome camera and can set some up ourselves