Is LightRoom a verb? Google is, right?
Sometimes, try as we might, we just can’t get the perfectly exposed shot, as was the case with this pair of backlit, Red-Tailed Hawks. I used different metering modes, even my trusty spot metering, and nothing worked to get the subject properly exposed.
Enter LightRoom… Because I shot the image in RAW, and not it’s lower quality cousin JPEG, I was able do a better job at teasing out the details in the image. I increased the overall exposure, adjusted the contrast, brought down the highlights and raised the shadows until I got the results I was looking for. As you change each slider, you see the changes happening to the image.
According to the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, "red-tailed hawk makes a striking appearance with its large, stocky body and mottled brown feathers. The adult’s breast appears white with a brown belly band that looks like a wide belt. Its rust-colored tail, broad and short, distinguishes it from the smaller red-shouldered hawk." LightRoom makes it very easy to make adjustments like this to your images in a non-destructive way. The more you use LightRoom, the more you will realize that there is checklist of adjustments to go thru every time you edit a photo. After a while, it become like a recipe you need to follow to make a good meal. I call it my 7 Step Method.
What to learn more? I am planning a LightRoom BootCamp from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the upstairs classroom at the Given Book Shop in Pinehurst. Thinking the class size will be limited to 6. Seems like that is a good number to get more one-on-one instruction.
The cost of the class will be $140 and will include a $10 voucher for lunch at Roast Office. If you want to bring your own lunch or go somewhere else, you can save $10.
There is no date for the class yet, but I'm thinking it will be a Saturday in March or April.
Here is what we will cover in my 7 Step Method: 1. Import – Folders and Collections
2. Crop/Straighten
3. White Balance
4. Exposure – Contrast, Highlights, Shadows, Whites, Blacks and Clarity
5. Radial Filter and Spot Removal
6. Presets
7. Export
Plans are to offer other monthly workshops on different subjects like flash photography, macro, sports and portraits.
Let me know if you are interested.
Thanks!