The most important thing is that you understand that your original catalog is left untouched, a new upgraded copy (with custom name) is created, and it is the new upgraded copy that will open in the new version of Lightroom Classic. While it may be ideal if they renamed the old (original) copy of the catalog and kept the same name for the newly upgraded version, I like that we have an opportunity to insert control if we choose. This is definitely a step up from what has happened in the past. There’s also a new option to provide a custom name for the upgraded copy of the catalog. I appreciate that Adobe has listened to the feedback, and tried to make this process a little less opaque.
The first thing you’ll notice when you launch the new version of Lightroom Classic is a new catalog upgrade dialog box. Side note, your old Split Toning presets still work with Color Grading, so don’t panic. Until then, check out what Adobe has to say about the new Color Grading panel. So much so that we’ll be diving deeper into it here on the blog in the near future. All of these options present a huge opportunity for creative expression, enhancement, and tweaking of color. There is a global color tint option as well. Additionally, you can also change the luminance of the tint you are introducing. There are some key differences between Color Grading and Split Toning, which is that Color Grading allows us to add a tint to the midtones in addition to shadows and highlights. You can think of Color Grading as an evolution of the Split Toning panel, which it has replaced. I expect the feature that will garner the most excitement is the brand-new Color Grading panel found in the Develop module. That said, Adobe has been releasing new features (along with new camera support and bug fixes) just about every 2-3 months since all apps went into the Creative Cloud subscription, so the number of new features with each release is pretty focused.
Today is the first day of Adobe MAX, and in case you just awoke from a coma or were rescued from a deserted island, it is 100% free and virtual this year, so be sure to sign up for all of the great content (such as my 30 page workbook from my LrC lab).Īlong with every Adobe MAX comes updates for Adobe software, so let’s dive into what has been added to Lightroom Classic, Lightroom, and Adobe Camera Raw.