New member. How to use the ebook for Lightroom Classic?

[picchic]

Lightroom Version Number

12.3

Operating System

1. macOS 13 Ventura

Having trouble getting started to use my new eBook for Lightroom Classic. I started reading the ebook at the beginning, but was interrupted. I have used Lightroom since it was created.
But I thought it would be easier to find answers. For example, I wanted to know what "adaptive" is. My search of the book and Table of Contents did not get me started. I am not up on new features and developments in LrC. I want to retouch a portrait that needs facial wrinkles smoothed a bit. My search found mention to use Adaptive: Portraits. I could find nothing explaining what "adaptive" is or how to use my v. 12.3 to retouch a portrait using the "new" features.

Looking forward to your advice. Sorry for the "dumb" question. Thanks!!

picchic

 

[Philippe Coudé du Foresto]

In the case of the preset, "Adaptative" means this preset will create a AI mask to apply it's settings, instead of applying them on the whole image.

 

[Jim Wilde]

The book explains what presets are and how to use them (and how to create your own). It doesn't detail each individual preset.

There are now very many Adobe-supplied presets (some of which are self-explanatory, many are not), and with the recent introduction of the AI Masking technology Adobe have created several groups of "Adaptive" presets which, as their name suggests, use AI technology to automatically enhance specific parts of the image contents. There are three groups of "Adaptive" presets: Adaptive Portrait, Adaptive Sky, Adaptive Subject.
If you expand the Adaptive Portrait group, you'll see 11 different presets available, which are fairly obviously named. You can test each one individually by hovering the cursor over one of them and wait for the analysis to be done and for the potential effect of the preset to be shown to you. If you like the effect, click the preset name to apply. All the presets, Adobe's and any user-created or installed, will be found in the Presets panel in the left-hand panel in the Develop module (or right-hand panel if you've switched the two panels around using the option on the Preferences>Interface tab).

Using AI presets is one (new) way of retouching portraits, the more traditional way would be by using the brush in the Masking panel (which has a bunch of non-adaptive presets available). See the dedicated section in your book which covers Develop Masking.

 

[picchic]

The book explains what presets are and how to use them (and how to create your own). It doesn't detail each individual preset.

There are now very many Adobe-supplied presets (some of which are self-explanatory, many are not), and with the recent introduction of the AI Masking technology Adobe have created several groups of "Adaptive" presets which, as their name suggests, use AI technology to automatically enhance specific parts of the image contents. There are three groups of "Adaptive" presets: Adaptive Portrait, Adaptive Sky, Adaptive Subject.
If you expand the Adaptive Portrait group, you'll see 11 different presets available, which are fairly obviously named. You can test each one individually by hovering the cursor over one of them and wait for the analysis to be done and for the potential effect of the preset to be shown to you. If you like the effect, click the preset name to apply. All the presets, Adobe's and any user-created or installed, will be found in the Presets panel in the left-hand panel in the Develop module (or right-hand panel if you've switched the two panels around using the option on the Preferences>Interface tab).

Using AI presets is one (new) way of retouching portraits, the more traditional way would be by using the brush in the Masking panel (which has a bunch of non-adaptive presets available). See the dedicated section in your book which covers Develop Masking.

Thanks much Jim. It's an honor to have your response to my questions on using new The Lightroom Classic eBook. I was disappointed that one could not find a description of "Adaptive" in the book I just purchased. (I have played with the new "Adaptive" features in Photoshop.) I want to be sure that I can easily find answers in The Lightroom Queen's book. I'm not there yet.
I will take your advice.

Diane