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Author Topic: Leaf shoot tethered with Lightroom (virtually).  (Read 10756 times)

E_Edwards

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Leaf shoot tethered with Lightroom (virtually).
« on: December 04, 2006, 05:21:54 pm »

Hi guys,

I'm so excited about this that I want to share.(Maybe some have tried it).

I am shooting tethered to C8.4 with the Aptus and displaying the images on Adobe Lightroom simultaneously. In effect, it looks like I'm tethered to Lightroom, with its wonderful fast display of files. It's far quicker than anything else I've tried.

This is how it works:

You shoot tethered using C8.4, a stable but arcaic program. You make the preview window the smallest possible size, the program just runs in the background.

You shoot, the files go to a designated folder and Adobe Lightroom opens them automatically the minute they go into that folder.

The files display nice and large ready to scroll with all the up-to-the-minute benefits of a good file browser.

I use this system in conjuction with Quickeys, a macro program. You will need this program to make the whole thing work as if you were shooting tethered in Lightroom.

My shooting key is simply the return key, which makes sense. I have never liked the Command-T combination for shooting.


The macro program tells Lightroom to go and shoot with C8.4, do it in a blink and return instantly to Lightroom (It happens so quickly, you don't notice). You just wait for the data to transfer and as soon as the camera beeps to tell you its ready (green light), you get the thumbnail on display in Lightroom. Your preview window also displays the picture as big as you like.

With the macro, you tell Lightroom to display the latest thumbnail and simultaneously to apply any presets, (sharpening or colour correction)which are applied automatically when the picture is imported. All these commands are actuated when you press the key to take the picture.

That's it.

What is good about this is that if,  say, you are looking at a picture magnified on the screen (I use the full screen mode on a 30" cinema display, it impresses the hell out of my clients!), you then take the next picture and it displays exactly at the magnification you were on the previous shot and at the exact location, ideal to check slight changes to your still-life setup.

You have to create a Lightroom Preset with the sharpening that you like, so your image displays nice and sharp. This all happens in the background when the picture is imported.

It works a treat, with the macro program you can press Command-L in Lightroom and it will open up the Live Video (from C8.4) in front of you.

Give it a try, it's worth it.

Edward
« Last Edit: December 05, 2006, 06:51:48 am by E_Edwards »
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KristerH

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Leaf shoot tethered with Lightroom (virtually).
« Reply #1 on: December 04, 2006, 06:19:48 pm »

Edvard. Interesting.
How do you get Lightroom to show the latest pic in folder ?

Krister
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E_Edwards

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« Reply #2 on: December 04, 2006, 07:15:12 pm »

Quote
How do you get Lightroom to show the latest pic in folder ?


For this purpose, it is assumed that you are in Develop mode and Loupe view, and the only shortcuts available for this are Next Picture and Previous picture. --> <--

Provided you are currently viewing your latest picture, you just incorporate the forward arrow -->into your shoot macro and the next thumbnail to come will display on the screen.

BTW, you need to give the macro a pause between the click of the shutter and the time it takes to display the thumbnail, how much of a pause depends on your computer power, whether you are shooting with medium format or with a Rollei Shutter, etc.

In my case, and with a Rollei shutter and view camera, it takes about 10 seconds from shutter triggered to full display at 100 % magnification,  full screen, sharp.

Edward
« Last Edit: December 05, 2006, 06:44:19 am by E_Edwards »
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Dustbak

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Leaf shoot tethered with Lightroom (virtually).
« Reply #3 on: December 05, 2006, 02:43:05 am »

I am definitely going to try this. I don't know quickeys, where can I find this?

I think I found it, http://www.cesoft.com/products/qkx.html
« Last Edit: December 05, 2006, 02:45:01 am by Dustbak »
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john beardsworth

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« Reply #4 on: December 05, 2006, 03:06:05 am »

Quote
Edvard. Interesting.
How do you get Lightroom to show the latest pic in folder ?

Krister
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=88669\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]
Just set LR's Library to sort in reverse order of capture time.

Essentially, aren't you really just using the macro program to control your camera control software? In Lightroom all you need to do is set up a watched folder, define develop and metadata presets in its auto import settings dialog, and set up sorting. So the macro program does nothing in LR - it merely looks as if the macro program tells Lightroom to go and shoot with C8.4, but in fact the macro just makes the camera shoot.

John
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Dustbak

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« Reply #5 on: December 05, 2006, 03:06:37 am »

Quote
I am definitely going to try this. I don't know quickeys, where can I find this?

I think I found it, http://www.cesoft.com/products/qkx.html
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=88731\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]


I now do something similar but in Adobe Bridge. I depend heavily on the image processor in the Bridge and batch processing from the Bridge. I have had a glance on Lightroom. Does Lightroom support stuff like image processor or batches with actions attached to it?

hmm... instead of edit I pressed reply on my own previous post.  
« Last Edit: December 05, 2006, 03:07:47 am by Dustbak »
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E_Edwards

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« Reply #6 on: December 05, 2006, 03:19:28 am »

Quickeys is good to have anyway. It takes a litle learning at first, then suddenly it all makes sense.


Start by practicing on a little macro, for instance, change the shooting key from the current Command-T (on the Mac) to "Return".  Make sure that it only applies to C.8.4 initially, you can specify which programs to be affected by the macro, it's great.

To program the key "return" on the macro initialy, press the mouse down, hold it down and then press the key "return" at the same time. That's a special key to program, the other keys are easier, you just type them!
« Last Edit: December 05, 2006, 03:25:03 am by E_Edwards »
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E_Edwards

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« Reply #7 on: December 05, 2006, 03:28:49 am »

Quote
So the macro program does nothing in LR - it merely looks as if the macro program tells Lightroom to go and shoot with C8.4, but in fact the macro just makes the camera shoot.

John


Well, yes essentially, but it is important, otherwise you would need to swap applications manually. With this, it happens all for you when you depress the shooting key. The macro is swapping applications for you and makes sure that lightroom is in the forefront. With full screen, you don't even know that you are using C8.4.4 in the background.

It also moves and displays the next (latest) thumbnail to come, so you don't have to press on the thumbnail to view it.
« Last Edit: December 05, 2006, 06:46:16 am by E_Edwards »
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E_Edwards

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« Reply #8 on: December 05, 2006, 03:36:48 am »

Quote
Does Lightroom support stuff like image processor or batches with actions attached to it?

I only use Lightroom as a shooting window for tethered. I prefer to process the files with C10, which in my opinion still does the best job, despite it's slowness.
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john beardsworth

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« Reply #9 on: December 05, 2006, 03:42:23 am »

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Does Lightroom support stuff like image processor or batches with actions attached to it?

Lightroom is a batch image processor. It's designed so you don't need Bridge's image processor to output large numbers of images. However, in actions you can tell Photoshop to do more things than in Bridge.

John
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E_Edwards

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« Reply #10 on: December 05, 2006, 03:43:35 am »

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Just set LR's Library to sort in reverse order of capture time.
John


I'll try that today, see if it works. I guess it means your thumbnail is the first one in the line?


------------------

Hmm, I've tried it but it doesn't actually show the preview unless you click on the thumbnail.

With my macro, however,  it does show the preview without clicking on anything, so, unless I discover a better way, I'll stick to what works for me.
« Last Edit: December 05, 2006, 06:02:21 am by E_Edwards »
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Dustbak

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« Reply #11 on: December 05, 2006, 08:34:06 am »

Quote
Lightroom is a batch image processor. It's designed so you don't need Bridge's image processor to output large numbers of images. However, in actions you can tell Photoshop to do more things than in Bridge.

John
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=88739\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]


John,

In Bridge I can use the image processor and attach an action to it to process together with the image processor. Is that possible in Lightroom?
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john beardsworth

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« Reply #12 on: December 05, 2006, 08:36:56 am »

Not really, but Lightroom does many of the things that actions are commonly used for. You can drag files from Lightroom and drop them on a droplet.

John
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James Russell

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Leaf shoot tethered with Lightroom (virtually).
« Reply #13 on: December 05, 2006, 09:57:45 am »

Quote
I'll try that today, see if it works. I guess it means your thumbnail is the first one in the line?
------------------

Hmm, I've tried it but it doesn't actually show the preview unless you click on the thumbnail.

With my macro, however,  it does show the preview without clicking on anything, so, unless I discover a better way, I'll stick to what works for me.
[{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]


E,

I've also tried lightroom as a tethered solution for the leaf but I shoot faster than you do so I've seen a lot of stops, and files get moved into a seperate folder, which requires a restart of the programs.

I'm curious, what are you getting from importing directly to lightroom that LC10 was not giving you.

Thx.

JR
[a href=\"http://www.russellrutherford.com/]http://www.russellrutherford.com/[/url]
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E_Edwards

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« Reply #14 on: December 05, 2006, 10:22:06 am »

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E,

I've also tried lightroom as a tethered solution for the leaf but I shoot faster than you do so I've seen a lot of stops, and files get moved into a seperate folder, which requires a restart of the programs.

I'm curious, what are you getting from importing directly to lightroom that LC10 was not giving you.

Thx.

JR
http://www.russellrutherford.com/
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=88790\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]


James,

I don''t know if Lightroom can keep pace with fast fashion shooting, but for still-life, it takes exactly the same time for the image to appear on the screen as using C8 for capture, (with a Rollei shutter), only the screen redraw and scrolling is very much faster, bigger and better thought out with Lightroom.

The major drawback of Lightroom as it stands is the very basic control of sharpening. For you and skintones, it should be more than enough, but for product, you need masses more sharpening and Lightroom doesn't offer the amount or the control that C10 or C8 can give you. Again you'd need to work really hard in Photoshop to get the amount of sharp detail in highlights and shadows that you can get with C10 so easily.  If Lightroom could import the sharpening from C8, it would be just wonderful.

Edward
« Last Edit: December 05, 2006, 10:22:59 am by E_Edwards »
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James Russell

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Leaf shoot tethered with Lightroom (virtually).
« Reply #15 on: December 05, 2006, 10:35:40 am »

Quote
James,

I don''t know if Lightroom can keep pace with fast fashion shooting, but for still-life, it takes exactly the same time for the image to appear on the screen as using C8 for capture, (with a Rollei shutter), only the screen redraw and scrolling is very much faster, bigger and better thought out with Lightroom.

The major drawback of Lightroom as it stands is the very basic control of sharpening. For you and skintones, it should be more than enough, but for product, you need masses more sharpening and Lightroom doesn't offer the amount or the control that C10 or C8 can give you. Again you'd need to work really hard in Photoshop to get the amount of sharp detail in highlights and shadows that you can get with C10 so easily.  If Lightroom could import the sharpening from C8, it would be just wonderful.

Edward
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=88797\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

The only problem I have with Verion 8 is it's not a continuing piece of software and Leaf is obviously moving to LC10.

The only problem I have with LC10 is it's not stable for what I do.  It always crashes or glitches.

The only problem I have with the Leaf is there is not an easy or stable way to batch thousands of files into jpegs if they require any form of correction.

I just did a whole series of tethering tests using the Aptus with your version of lightroom, V-8, and LC 10.  I also tethered the Canons to C-1.

V-8 and C-1 are the only stable ways to tether.

V8 is faster, has quicker previews, C-1 is far more functional and mature.

Then again, after I shoot I still have to process hundreds or thousands of files to get to web galleries and C-1 is not a step ahead of Leaf, it's miles and miles ahead.

C-1 will save me 3 hours a day in post production work compared to anything else in the market.

Three hours a day adds up quickly.

JR
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E_Edwards

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« Reply #16 on: December 05, 2006, 10:57:22 am »

Here is a comparison detail of what you see at 100% in Lightroom and C10.

With Lightroom, that's as sharp as it gets. With C10 you could go sharper if you wanted, though it would look oversharpened.

Of course you could apply further sharpening to the Lightroom file afterwards in Photoshop, but that's adding another stage.

Edward
« Last Edit: December 05, 2006, 11:01:55 am by E_Edwards »
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