LR to Photoshop or Lightzone

[marcgoldring]

I'm using LR 1.1 and loving it. I've got PS CS2 and a trial copy of Lightzone, which is quite interesting. I've figured out how to take a file into either of those editors with LR changes visible AND pretty much how to get back into LR with it once I've finished my work in those editors.

What I'm not clear about is what files I need to save. As I understand it, when I export to PS or LZ, I get a file with "-edit" appended to it. So when I come in to LR, do I need to keep the original file or will this "edit" version have all the original LR edits in it? Is it now equivalent of my RAW file? My files are multiplying and I dare not delete anything. Slowly going nuts...maybe not that slowly.

In the past, in my workflow, I'd archive the original RAW file AND the finished image file. What I think I think is that with LR I don't need to make that distinction. BUT is that also the case when I take the image into PS or LZ??

Please unconfuse me...

Thanks,

Marco

[tjloeb]

I just attended the NAPP Lightroom seminar here in Chicago. The presenter was Scott Kilbey.

The entire cost of the seminar was worth the explanation by him of how LR works with images.

It is all virtual after you import the orginal until you export the image. All of your work images are just that. Your original remains untouched.

Unlike PS, you are not creating disk based copies.

As a quick test open an image, press CTR + ' as fast as you can and see how quickly virtural copies are created. Try that with PS!

LR keeps all your editing changes in the database as part of the original image, but never applying them to the original. Just like working with film and photopaper.

Neat.

[picnic]

I just attended the NAPP Lightroom seminar here in Chicago. The presenter was Scott Kilbey.

The entire cost of the seminar was worth the explanation by him of how LR works with images.

It is all virtual after you import the orginal until you export the image. All of your work images are just that. Your original remains untouched.

Unlike PS, you are not creating disk based copies.

As a quick test open an image, press CTR + ' as fast as you can and see how quickly virtural copies are created. Try that with PS!

LR keeps all your editing changes in the database as part of the original image, but never applying them to the original. Just like working with film and photopaper.

Neat.
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It may be Jeff and Michael who coined this, but 'round trip' to PS is what I say.  I hit ctl-E to send the processed file in LR to open in PS, I process further if needed and 'save'--it saves back to the psd file that LR created with an edit suffix--which you can have stack with the original RAW.   I haven't quite worked out my workflow yet--I did try printing from LR--a processed file (softproofed in PS and adjusted) that came back into LR 'finished' but didn't resize it for printing and I tried the sharpening.  I'm hopeful for some better printing options since my preference is to use PKS for output sharpening in PS.

Love the virtual copies too.  There's a lot in LR that I use (library--originally I didn't like because I used Imatch, but I've grown to really like it and use it now), the Develop module--and will probably use the print module more once I get my ducks in a row.  I do use PS a lot--so knowing that its so easy to do an edit is great.

Diane

[ktmjose]

I'm using LR 1.1 and loving it. I've got PS CS2 and a trial copy of Lightzone, which is quite interesting. I've figured out how to take a file into either of those editors with LR changes visible AND pretty much how to get back into LR with it once I've finished my work in those editors.

What I'm not clear about is what files I need to save. As I understand it, when I export to PS or LZ, I get a file with "-edit" appended to it. So when I come in to LR, do I need to keep the original file or will this "edit" version have all the original LR edits in it? Is it now equivalent of my RAW file? My files are multiplying and I dare not delete anything. Slowly going nuts...maybe not that slowly.

In the past, in my workflow, I'd archive the original RAW file AND the finished image file. What I think I think is that with LR I don't need to make that distinction. BUT is that also the case when I take the image into PS or LZ??

Please unconfuse me...

Thanks,

Marco
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Marco

DO NOT delete your original files. When your file comes back to Lightroom from LZ it is a TIFF or JPEG (your choice) with all of your adjustments. It is not a raw file. I assume that PS will come back as a PSD, but someone with knowledge of PS will have to answer that. Your past workflow will work just fine for any images that are "round-tripped".

Joe

[marcgoldring]

Thanks, everyone, very helpful. Now I'm much clearer on how to handle files.

Marco

[vandevanterSH]

I'm using LR 1.1 and loving it. I've got PS CS2 and a trial copy of Lightzone, which is quite interesting. I've figured out how to take a file into either of those editors with LR changes visible AND pretty much how to get back into LR with it once I've finished my work in those editors.

What I'm not clear about is what files I need to save. As I understand it, when I export to PS or LZ, I get a file with "-edit" appended to it. So when I come in to LR, do I need to keep the original file or will this "edit" version have all the original LR edits in it? Is it now equivalent of my RAW file? My files are multiplying and I dare not delete anything. Slowly going nuts...maybe not that slowly.

In the past, in my workflow, I'd archive the original RAW file AND the finished image file. What I think I think is that with LR I don't need to make that distinction. BUT is that also the case when I take the image into PS or LZ??

Please unconfuse me...

Thanks,

Marco
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You send to CS with LR edits, comes back file-Edit.Psd..hit the print module in LR, and print.  For me it is easier than printing from CS3; unless I am missing something.

Steve