LR decreasing contrast and saturation on its own

[Eruname]

This problem just started yesterday. I've been very happy with LR until this point.

Yesterday when importing a few RAW files, when I selected the photo to work with it in the Develop section, I noticed the photo's contrast and saturation decrease noticeably. I checked the preview in My Computer as well as my camera's LCD screen to make sure I wasn't imagining this happening. I tried importing the photos again, and this time was in the Library section. After about 5 seconds without me touching anything at all, I see the photo have its contrast and saturation reduced.

I tried this over and over again and made sure I didn't have any deveop settings applied at the time of import. The reduction of contrast and saturation is happening on every single photo I import and this is aggravating me a lot.

I took screenshots of the immediate upload where the photo looks normal and then 5 seconds after when Lightroom decides to make my photo look worse:





Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Ian Farlow]

Do you have the highlighted preference set by any chance?

 

[Kiwigeoff]

This problem just started yesterday. I've been very happy with LR until this point.

Yesterday when importing a few RAW files, when I selected the photo to work with it in the Develop section, I noticed the photo's contrast and saturation decrease noticeably. I checked the preview in My Computer as well as my camera's LCD screen to make sure I wasn't imagining this happening. I tried importing the photos again, and this time was in the Library section. After about 5 seconds without me touching anything at all, I see the photo have its contrast and saturation reduced.

I tried this over and over again and made sure I didn't have any deveop settings applied at the time of import. The reduction of contrast and saturation is happening on every single photo I import and this is aggravating me a lot.

I took screenshots of the immediate upload where the photo looks normal and then 5 seconds after when Lightroom decides to make my photo look worse:





Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I'm sure this will be a preview issue i.e. previews not yet rendered and the in camera jpeg preview being used until LR has generated one.

 

[DonRicklin]

Ian, its the old, thats was the imbedded preview, now you see LR's rendered preview with LR defaults swap.

Danielle, that is how LR works. It can't read the Camera settings to duplicate the jpeg preview from the camera. It builds its own. You can create a preset to bring it closer to what you see in the camera preview.

Or are these images you have had in LR for a while, then Ian's answer maybe the one, if you recently upgraded and Autotone in prefs became a new preference default!

Don

 

[billg71]

I'm sure this will be a preview issue i.e. previews not yet rendered and the in camera jpeg preview being used until LR has generated one.

For more, see this thread http://www.lightroomqueen.com/community/showthread.php?t=1193 and the threads referenced by Victoria in her reply.

 

[Ian Farlow]

Ian, its the old, thats was the imbedded preview, now you see LR's rendered preview with LR defaults swap.

Danielle, that is how LR works. It can't read the Camera settings to duplicate the jpeg preview from the camera. It builds its own. You can create a preset to bring it closer to what you see in the camera preview.

Or are these images you have had in LR for a while, then Ian's answer maybe the one, if you recently upgraded and Autotone in prefs became a new preference default!

Don

Ah ha! Didn't think of that one. That's why you are the Guru and I am the not-Guru!

 

[Eruname]

Ian - no I do not have the highlighted area selected. I wish I would have so I'd have an easy fix!

Don - that makes sense and reading some other threads you linked to has helped me understand. I do have my camera set to high saturation and contrast. But, why would I have just noticed this change yesterday when I've been using Lightroom for more that a month? I just starting shooting RAW 2 weeks ago, but processed around 6' RAW shots since then and didn't notice a difference between the preview and the RAW file.

I don't think I'm that unobservant. :\

 

[Kiwigeoff]

Ian - no I do not have the highlighted area selected. I wish I would have so I'd have an easy fix!

Don - that makes sense and reading some other threads you linked to has helped me understand. I do have my camera set to high saturation and contrast. But, why would I have just noticed this change yesterday when I've been using Lightroom for more that a month? I just starting shooting RAW 2 weeks ago, but processed around 6' RAW shots since then and didn't notice a difference between the preview and the RAW file.

I don't think I'm that unobservant. :\

Danielle, are you rendering standard previews on import? If so what size and what size is your screen?
I'm constantly amazed at how unobservant I can be especially as I am an observant person - say others!!:lol::lol:

 

[Eruname]

Geoff - I'm rendering minimal previews on import. My screen resolution is 1'24 x 786.

This was such a drastic change I'm pretty baffled that I could have missed it before. I talked with another friend who uses Lightroom (I know he has his contrast/saturation turned up high) and he said he's never noticed this issue when he uses it.

 

[Kiwigeoff]

Geoff - I'm rendering minimal previews on import. My screen resolution is 1'24 x 786.

This was such a drastic change I'm pretty baffled that I could have missed it before. I talked with another friend who uses Lightroom (I know he has his contrast/saturation turned up high) and he said he's never noticed this issue when he uses it.

Ok, it may not be the answer but try setting the preview size to 144' ( in catalog settings>file handling) and then select all in the library>all photographs and then in the "library" drop down select previews>render standard size. See if this makes a difference on the next lot of raws you import.

 

[Victoria Bampton]

I'd set it to render standard previews on import personally too.

 

[Brad Snyder]

Don - that makes sense and reading some other threads you linked to has helped me understand. I do have my camera set to high saturation and contrast. But, why would I have just noticed this change yesterday when I've been using Lightroom for more that a month? I just starting shooting RAW 2 weeks ago, but processed around 6' RAW shots since then and didn't notice a difference between the preview and the RAW file.

I don't think I'm that unobservant. :\

I started to answer the OP about 5 times, remarking on this very point of newbie question from a satisfied longer term user. No matter how I tried, it came out smart alec and smarmy, I was still trying when you guys jumped in.

Danielle, with the best possible intentions, I say, you're just going to have to take our word for it and create a strategy for dealing with it. That's how RAW in general and LR in specific works. There are ways are tweaking presets to get close to the in-camera conversion,and we'll be happy to advise, but they'll vary widely upon shooting conditions.

The first big discovery you make when shooting RAW is:

"With the freedom to adjust almost anything, comes the responsiblity for adjusting almost everything." It can be a daunting task, until you get a solid workflow, and a workable group of presets.