Lightroom Journal

The Camera Raw 4.5 and DNG Converter Release Candidates (RC) are now available on Adobe Labs. The ‘release candidate’ label indicates that the plug-in is well tested but would benefit from additional community testing before it is distributed automatically to all of our customers. The Camera Raw team would like the community to help verify the quality of the plug-in through normal usage as this will ensure that the plug-in is tested on a diversity of hardware and software configurations not available internally at Adobe.

This release includes new camera support for the Olympus E 420 and E 520 camera models.

Please provide feedback on your experience with the Camera Raw 4.5 plug-in and the DNG Converter on the Camera Raw User to User forum

For Lightroom customers who would like to use the new support provided for the Olympus cameras, download the DNG Converter release candidate and convert your raw files to DNG before importing them into Lightroom 1.4.1.

Posted by Tom Hogarty at 11:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The DNG Specification has been revised and the version number incremented from 1.1.0.0 to 1.2.0.0. This is not an area of frequent change given that the format has done a good job of addressing the progress of raw formats over the last three years.(The last update was finalized in February of 2005)  This update addresses several industry requirements for the DNG format including the formalization of the concept of a "camera profile" and a metadata tag to validate your image data. 
The definition of a camera profile for the DNG format as well as the allowance for multiple camera profiles to be embedded in a single DNG file will provide the industry with the ability to characterize raw data in an efficient and standardized format.(Think ICC profiles but for raw data)  
Additional metadata tags have been defined for the DNG format including a field to indicate a 'hash' or the integrity of the raw data within the file, providing a valuable tool for validating the safety of your image data.  A DNG file is comprised of three components: raw data from the sensor, metadata to describe the raw data and an embedded preview to represent your interpretation of the raw data. (See my earlier blog post on DNG if you need more background) Writing metadata back to a standardized file format like DNG is a common operation but many are concerned about the sanctity of the image data from the sensor.  The opportunity to 'fingerprint' that block of data and check it from time to time to ensure that there hasn't been any disk corruption or I/O errors is a significant step forward in ensuring the archival safety of your images.  For the developer crowd, the DNG SDK has also been updated to reflect the changes to the specification.

The DNG Codec for Windows Vista users is also now available as a free download from Adobe Labs.   This is our first release for the Windows Codec platform and before finalizing the release we're offering it as a 'Release Candidate' on Adobe Labs.  A release candidate is a version of the technology that is nearly complete but we would like the community's help in ensuring compatibility across a wide variety of hardware and software configurations. 

On a final note, If you missed it earlier, you'll want to check out John Nack's blog post on the DNG format submission to the ISO.

Posted by Tom Hogarty at 10:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (16)

The Lightroom 2 beta has two expiration dates.  If you already own Lightroom it's August 31st.  If you don't own Lightroom it's 30 days after you started testing the beta.(A 30 day trial)   I don't think anyone disagrees that it's important to reward the current owners for their purchase and use of the first version of Lightroom but we also don't want to discourage new customers from providing feedback on the future of Lightroom.  To that end, we've provided current Lightroom customers with the opportunity to invite friends or folks they meet on the forums to enjoy the beta through the end of August.  Don't be shy.  If someone has taken the time to provide feedback on the forums and wants to continue using the beta beyond 30 days, send them an invitation.  It's a quick process and I've already sent many invitations myself. 
The invitation link is here: https://www.adobe.com/cfusion/entitlement/index.cfm?e=labs_lightroom_invite
Enter your Lightroom 1 serial number to authenticate the process and you'll be able to send up to 5 invitations at a time. (The invitee will receive an email with a serial number for use with the beta)

Posted by Tom Hogarty at 04:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

The Lightroom 1.4.1 and Camera Raw 4.4.1 updates have been posted to the following locations: Lightroom(Mac, Win), Camera Raw(Mac, Win).  The updates provide all of the changes included in the original Lightroom 1.4 and Camera Raw 4.4 releases but also include corrections for issues described below and in previous blog posts.  The Camera Raw plug-in will also be available later this evening via the Adobe Update Manager and the Lightroom update can be located by choosing 'Check for Updates…' under the Help menu.  The Lightroom and Camera Raw team apologize for any inconveniences caused by the issues presented in the initial updates

Lightroom

• Lightroom 1.4 incorrectly modified the EXIF time date field of images that had a metadata update applied.  This incorrect modification does not appear in Lightroom or Bridge and is only viewable through third party EXIF tools.  This error has been corrected in Lightroom 1.4.1 and all files in a Lightroom catalog that have been incorrectly modified will be corrected on their next metadata update. (Metadata can be updated by selecting the files in the Library grid view and choosing Command or CTRL + S to save and update the metadata.)
• Olympus JPEG files could render incorrectly in Lightroom 1.4, displaying an artifact in the exported file.
• Any conversion to DNG in Lightroom 1.4 (Windows Only) would cause the DNG file to become unreadable by Lightroom’s Develop Module or Camera Raw 4.4 in Photoshop.  The issue has been corrected and files can be converted to DNG again in order to resolve the issue for existing files.  Returning to the original native raw files is not necessary.  The affected DNG files can be selected and converted again using the DNG Converter 4.4.1 available at www.adobe.com/dng/.  This process is not required but recommended to ensure that a correct validation value is stored within the DNG files.
• Lightroom 1.4 provided degraded import performance relative to Lightroom 1.3.

Camera Raw

• Camera Raw 4.4 incorrectly modified the EXIF time date field of images that were saved as TIFF or JPEG files from the Camera Raw dialog.  This has been corrected in Camera Raw 4.4.1
• Olympus JPEG files could render incorrectly in Camera Raw 4.4, displaying an artifact in the exported file.
  

Posted by Tom Hogarty at 06:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (45)

Version 2 of Lightroom is now available as a public beta, allowing the the photographic community to provide feedback on new features and workflow enhancements. It's hard to believe that Lightroom 1.0 was released just over a year ago and Lightroom 1.1 shortly thereafter.  It really feels like the beta process never stopped and we've received a ton of great feedback through the feature request submissions, customer conversations, forum discussions, tradeshows and targeted customer visits. We're glad to continue the process by releasing this version before it's final to get your opinions on our progress.  This is different from the previous Lightroom beta in that we'll be targeting feedback on new enhancements and aiming to release the final version sooner than we did in the previous year-long beta.   I've provided a few key notes below but I strongly recommend reading the entire Release Notes document available on Labs.adobe.com.

Beta Eligibility

Q: Who is eligible for the  Lightroom 2.0 beta?
A: All Lightroom 1.0 customers.  Lightroom 1.0 customers can download and install Lightroom 2.0 beta for use throughout the beta program

Q: What about customers new to Lightroom?
A: Anyone can download the Lightroom 2.0 beta and try it for 30 days

Q: How can new customers try the beta for the entire program?
A: An invitation program  through labs.adobe.com allows Lightroom 1.0 customers to invite friends  to try the beta beyond  the 30 day trial until the beta expiration date

Q: When does the beta expire?
A: August 31, 2008

 

IMPORTANT NOTES, PLEASE READ

Primary Known Issues

• Lightroom 2.0 beta will not upgrade Lightroom 1.x libraries.  The beta is intended to be used for testing and feedback purposes.  Lightroom 1.x and 2.0 beta libraries will be migrated to the finished version of Lightroom 2.0.
• While data loss is not expected, this is a very early ‘beta’ quality build and you should always work on duplicates of files that are securely backed up. 
• Lightroom 2 beta will not overwrite or interfere with a machine that currently has Lightroom 1.3.1 installed. 
• Develop settings applied in Lightroom 2.0 beta are not guaranteed to transfer correctly to the final version of 2.0.  This is particularly true for localized corrections.
• The new Photoshop integration functionality is only available with Photoshop CS3 (10.0.1) and should only be used for testing purposes.  Metadata associated with the original file may not carry over to the subsequent file saved from Photoshop
• Additional known issues are listed in the release notes.

New Features
Library

• Streamlined Library Layout
• Smart Collections
• Powerful Filter Bar to search and refine images
• Suggested Keywords for simplified keywording
• 10k pixel size limit raised to 30k pixels
• Output-based Collections
  

Multiple Monitors:

• -Four flexible modes for an alternate window:  Grid, Loupe, Compare, Survey
  (Check out the Live Loupe mode!)

Photoshop CS3 Integration: 

• Open files in Photoshop as a Smart Object
• Select multiple images to merge as a Panorama
• Merge multiple exposures into a single Photoshop HDR image
• Load multiple files or virtual copies into Photoshop as separate layers in a single document.

Export Functionality:

• Auto-add exported images to the Lightroom catalog
• Auto Output Sharpening for images on export

Develop Module

• Non-Destructive Localized Correction for dodging and burning specific areas of an image
• Post Crop Vignette
• Basic Panel Keyboard Shortcuts
• Improved Auto Adjustment
• Improved memory handling through 64-bit support on OS X 10.5 and Vista 64-bit.(Not limited to develop module)

Print Module

• Picture Package for multi-page layouts
  
• Print Module output directly to JPEG
  
• Enhanced Print Sharpening based on PhotoKit Sharpener algorithms
• 16-bit Printing for Mac OS X 10.5

Additional Resources

• Lightroom video tutorials by Julieanne Kost:  Lightroom 2 beta Tutorial Part I and Lightroom 2 beta Tutorial Part III. (Part II is on the way)
• Lightroom 2 beta preview by Ian Lyons
• Lightroom Tasmania Adventure
• Lightroom 2 beta review by Uwe Steinmueller at OutbackPhoto.com.
• Lightroom 2 beta review for our French-speaking photographers
• Photoshop Cafe provides a feature review and 1 hour training video.

What about Lightroom 1.4?
Trust me, we haven't forgotten about the photographers who are awaiting a replacement to the Lightroom 1.4 update that we released and subsequently pulled from Adobe.com. Lightroom 1.4.1 and Camera Raw 4.4.1 are currently undergoing additional testing before we release them in the first half of April. Thank you for your patience.

Posted by Tom Hogarty at 10:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (55)