Just bought Lightroom...Super basic question...

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DramaticAudio

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Sorry for the remedial question here, but I've had no training yet and I'm just getting started. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

My question is this:

When I import RAW footage from my Canon 5D, as it's importing and just as the catalog becomes accessible in Lightroom, the images look great... very close to what I saw in my viewfinder/LCD. But then... Lightroom messes up the image. The contrast and saturation get cranked up and the pictures look horrible. I then have to undo what it did to the image to get it back to the flatter image that I intended with the shot. I realize that it's reading some sort of metadata and trying to make my life easier or whatever but it's going the entirely wrong way for my tastes.

This is driving me crazy.

How do I turn this "feature" off?

Thanks again :)

JS
 
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If I may...

I've spent the last 2 hours reading up on this subject and I'm still having a hard time matching my LR adjusted images to the previews on my camera. I'm getting EXTREMELY close, but not perfect. I'm using the Camera Calibration and selecting the camera's preset, but I also find that I have to use the "tone curve- flat" preset, as well as drop the red saturation -8 to get a reasonably close match.

Here's the rub though... I use a "User definition" in my camera and I'm not just going with the straight "standard, neutral, landscape, etc". presets in that my camera provides. I drop the contrast and saturation levels significantly for my general shooting style. How do I compensate for these adjustments?

Thanks again :)
 
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[quote author=DramaticAudio link=topic=8537.msg57728#msg57728 date=1259734822]
If I may...

I've spent the last 2 hours reading up on this subject and I'm still having a hard time matching my LR adjusted images to the previews on my camera. I'm getting EXTREMELY close, but not perfect. I'm using the Camera Calibration and selecting the camera's preset, but I also find that I have to use the "tone curve- flat" preset, as well as drop the red saturation -8 to get a reasonably close match.

Here's the rub though... I use a "User definition" in my camera and I'm not just going with the straight "standard, neutral, landscape, etc". presets in that my camera provides. I drop the contrast and saturation levels significantly for my general shooting style. How do I compensate for these adjustments?

Thanks again :)
[/quote]

I have tried trying to re-create the Jpeg that the camera produced but found that I would never get an exact match. Is there any particular reason that you are trying to re-create the Jpeg look ?
 
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Good question! Heh.

I guess I sort of get married to the look of the shots as I capture them. I at least want to know that I CAN have an exact match without too much trouble so that my starting point is as close as possible to what I'm used to from the camera's LCD. Seems like there should be a methodology worked out for this. To what advantage does Canon/Nikon have by keeping their settings secret?
 
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Thats a million dollar question! I guess it's their way of getting you to use their own software.
The only way to get LR to display an exact match to your LCD is to shoot JPEG but then you lose the flexability that RAW provides.

Ian
 
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If you fell in love with the captured image in don't see why you shoot in RAW at all. Jpg would give you the LCD-version. Maybe you should shoot RAW+jpg, and keep the RAW just for backup reasons?
 
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[quote author=DramaticAudio link=topic=8537.msg57737#msg57737 date=125975'469]
Good question! Heh.

I guess I sort of get married to the look of the shots as I capture them. I at least want to know that I CAN have an exact match without too much trouble so that my starting point is as close as possible to what I'm used to from the camera's LCD. Seems like there should be a methodology worked out for this. To what advantage does Canon/Nikon have by keeping their settings secret?
[/quote]

The camera's images may be familiar, but are they what you want? While they may be, I would still suggest shooting some unadjusted images in RAW and try to make your adjustments in LR. Its a different work flow, but you might find that it gives you more control over how your images look in final form. And to answer your last question, I can tell you that Nikon's answer is the sale of Capture NX.

--Ken
 
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[quote author=ianb link=topic=8537.msg57738#msg57738 date=1259751943]
The only way to get LR to display an exact match to your LCD is to shoot JPEG but then you lose the flexability that RAW provides.
[/quote]

Yeah, I definitely don't want to lose the RAW flexibility. I guess my desire to get an exact match is just part of how I'm trying to learn this software. Gives me a goal, ya know? :)
 
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[quote author=perottol link=topic=8537.msg57739#msg57739 date=1259752389]
If you fell in love with the captured image in don't see why you shoot in RAW at all. Jpg would give you the LCD-version. Maybe you should shoot RAW+jpg, and keep the RAW just for backup reasons?
[/quote]

I may just do that as part of the learning process. But really, I think once I get more comfortable with the process of adjusting with LR, I don't think I'll need to. Thanks!
 
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[quote author=Replytoken link=topic=8537.msg57745#msg57745 date=1259771737]

to answer your last question, I can tell you that Nikon's answer is the sale of Capture NX.

[/quote]

Interesting that Canon gives it to you with the purchase of the camera but Nikon charges extra. Canon's works but LR is way better. Perhaps the Nikon utility is more robust?
 
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[quote author=DramaticAudio link=topic=8537.msg57758#msg57758 date=1259783412]
[quote author=Replytoken link=topic=8537.msg57745#msg57745 date=1259771737]

to answer your last question, I can tell you that Nikon's answer is the sale of Capture NX.

[/quote]
Interesting that Canon gives it to you with the purchase of the camera but Nikon charges extra. Canon's works but LR is way better. Perhaps the Nikon utility is more robust?
[/quote]


IMHO, Nikon's software, while certainly capable, is "an acquired taste", and I am mostly speaking about its UI. YMMV.

--Ken
 
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Nikons ViewNX is free to download and can adjust/convert NEF files. CaptureNX is it's big brother and will cost $$. I use neither because the interface is horrible and I get the results I want from LR / ACR.
 
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[quote author=sizzlingbadger link=topic=8537.msg57781#msg57781 date=1259794378]
I use neither because the interface is horrible...
[/quote]

Nik,

Now tell us how you really feel! :D I was trying to be polite in my post, but I would have to agree. The funny thing is that their interface has not changed in eight years. NikonScan software came with my scanner that I purchased in 2''1, and CNX follows the same UI. Perhaps the Nikon engineers are still using Win95?

--Ken
 
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[quote author=DramaticAudio link=topic=8537.msg57755#msg57755 date=1259783'36]
Yeah, I definitely don't want to lose the RAW flexibility. I guess my desire to get an exact match is just part of how I'm trying to learn this software. Gives me a goal, ya know? :)
[/quote]

I find that using LR on a RAW file I can always get a result that I prefer over the camera produced Jpeg. But it would be nice to be able to get LR to default to what the camera would have produced, as a starting point for further adjustment.
 
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