I just found out that LR can be used in a solid Smart Object workflow... Photo>Edit in>Open as SO in PS
Is anyone out there working this way?
This rocks! I'm totally immersed in Smart Objects, and had been longing for some way to incorporate Lightroom (or even Aperture) but really couldn't get a flow going. I'm even teaching a digital workflow class where I needed to cover LR but was still trying to figure out how, without just saying, OK, now we're going to forget about these Smart Objects we've been working with...
damn!
My basic workflow for my landscape work is RAW processing through LR, open as Smart Object in Photoshop. There everything is non-destructive .. the smart object remains. Even if I need to do some cloning, I copy a small section and paste it above the smart layer, and clone that. Sharpening is applied to the smart object, so it always adjustable. This is my master file, which once saved can be printed back in LR if I want, or from Photoshop.
Only downside so far is the inability to open the RAW back up in LR ... it opens in ACR. This is only a problem if needing to edit/add local adjustments ... global adjustments work fine. Of course, that problem will hopefully vanish later this week when CS4/ACR 5 ships
Lately I've been opening this file as a smart object in a new file, and add a border/matt combination. This allows odd sizes to be printed as 11x14's or 16x20's. Any tweak to the master file automatically shows up in the matted version.
My portrait work is another story however. With the addition of local adjustments and the great output options, I rarely open a portrait up in Photoshop anymore. I've found I can pretty much do anything with local adjustments, including brightening of eyes, retouching, etc. in LR. Very nice workflow.