Author: Tim Grey

Today’s Question: In your answer [on May 12th] about dots under the buttons for adjustment tools in Lightroom Classic, what is the meaning of “the AI masks may need to be updated“?

Tim’s Quick Answer: The indication that AI masks need to be updated means the overall image has been altered in a way that could cause an AI mask to no longer be accurate, such as when pixels were changed with the Remove tool.

More Detail: The masks that are based on artificial intelligence (AI) technology in Lightroom Classic (or Camera Raw or Lightroom desktop) analyze the image to determine what the shape of the mask should be. For example, you can use the Select Sky option to have a mask created automatically that matches the shape of the sky in the image, so that an adjustment can be applied to only the sky.

While the AI-based mask options tend to perform very well, there are situations where you need to reprocess the image to update the mask, based on having made changes to the underlying image.

For example, let’s assume you used the Select Sky feature to create a mask of the sky for an image that included a power pole that extended into the sky. In this case the shape of the mask would reflect the sky excluding the area of the power pole. The targeted adjustment would therefore affect the sky without affecting the area covered by the power pole.

If you then used the Remove tool to remove the power pole from the sky, the mask for the sky adjustment would no longer be accurate. In other words, when the power pole was removed from the image that area would be replaced by sky, the sky mask would not include that “new” area of sky. Therefore, the mask would need to be updated based on a new analysis of the image.

When this type of situation occurs, the dot below the Masking button (the dashed circle icon) on the toolbar below the histogram would appear red, indicating that the AI masks need to be updated. You can update the masks by choosing Settings > Update AI Settings from the menu, or by clicking on the more button (the three dots) to the right of one of the masks and choosing “Update AI Masks” from the popup menu. In the example above, that would cause the sky mask to be updated to include the portion of the sky where the power pole had previously appeared before being removed.

Today’s Question: You mentioned that Adobe Bridge is available for free for anyone to use. How does one obtain the software?

Tim’s Quick Answer: Adobe Bridge is indeed available for free and can be downloaded via the Adobe Bridge product page on the Adobe website.

More Detail: You can initiate the process of installing Adobe Bridge by clicking the “Download app” button on this page on the Adobe website:

https://www.adobe.com/products/bridge.html

Note that as part of the process of installing Bridge you will need to create an Adobe Creative Cloud account if you don’t already have one. You do not, however, need a paid subscription. You can create an account and install Bridge completely free of charge.

My recent mention of Adobe Bridge as a free product was in the context of making photos including metadata available to others. If there are friends or family that you want to provide photos to, along with the metadata you’ve added to the images, Adobe Bridge is a good solution that is free. Granted, Bridge may be a little complex for some users, but it does provide an effective way of browsing and reviewing photos, as well as reviewing the metadata details for the images.

Today’s Question: I’m scanning old photos that have detail on the back. I’ve been entering everything into the Title and Caption fields in Lightroom Classic. Last night it dawned in me that unless a future generation has Lightroom, the details I’m adding to the Title and Caption fields will be lost. Is there a way to add these details into a file type so it doesn’t get lost?

Tim’s Quick Answer: You can absolutely preserve the updates to the Title and Caption fields (as well as other fields included in the various metadata standards) by saving the metadata to the source files in addition to the catalog, or by exporting copies of the photos with metadata included.

More Detail: By default, the metadata updates you apply in Lightroom Classic are only stored in the catalog, not the source images on the hard drive. That would create a potential challenge for others to be able to access the information you’ve added to metadata at a later date, unless they had access to and were familiar with Lightroom Classic. Fortunately there are a couple of things you can do to ensure the information is available.

First, you can enable the option to automatically write metadata updates to the source files. To do so, go to the menu and choose Edit > Catalog Settings on Windows or Lightroom Classic > Catalog Settings on Macintosh. Go to the Metadata tab and turn on the “Automatically write changes into XMP” checkbox. Note that this will only cause metadata fields in established standards, as well as Develop module settings, to be saved to the source images. For proprietary raw captures the information will be saved to an XMP “sidecar” file, and for other supported file formats the original file will be updated.

Another option is to export copies of photos in a more widely supported format with the metadata included. You can select the images you want to export copies of, and then click the Export button at the bottom of the left panel in the Library module to get started.

In the Export dialog, you can specify the location where you want to save the exported copies and choose among a variety of other settings. In this context I suggest exporting the images as JPEG files. In terms of the metadata, I suggest choosing the “All Metadata” option from the Include popup in the Metadata section. You can adjust the other settings based on how you want to create copies of the selected photos, and then click the Export button.

Once the metadata is included in the images, that information can be accessed through various software applications (including Adobe Bridge, which is free for anyone to use), or even by browsing the file info in the operating system using the Get Info command on Macintosh or the Properties command on Windows.

Today’s Question: I’ve discovered that Backblaze has not backed up my Lightroom Classic catalog files (.Ircat). I have this problem on several desktops running Windows 10/11 and have multiple Lightroom Classic catalogs on each that have not been backed up!

Tim’s Quick Answer: Backblaze will back up the Lightroom Classic catalog files by default. You just need to make sure you don’t have an exclusion or file size limit, and that you’ve allowed enough time for the backup.

More Detail: With the default settings, Backblaze will back up all your Lightroom Classic catalog files to their servers, providing an offsite backup of those files. However, there are some settings that can limit which files are being backed up.

Note, by the way, that some of the files associated with the Lightroom Classic catalog are “container” files and therefore will appear as a subfolder when browsing via Backblaze even though they appear as individual files on your computer.

The first thing to do is make sure that there isn’t a file size limit affecting the files you’re not finding in your backup. Bring up the Backblaze Preferences dialog by clicking on the icon for Backblaze and choosing “Backblaze Preferences” from the popup menu. Then click the Settings button and go to the Exclusions tab. At the bottom of the tab, make sure the “Do no backup files larger than” popup is set to “No Limit” (or an adequately high limit for your needs if you do want to exclude very large files).

The other thing to confirm is that the file type exclusion list doesn’t include file types you want to back up. In this case, for example, you would want to be sure that “lrcat” is not listed in the text box associated with the “The following file types will not be backed up” label.

In this case you are obviously backing up at least some of the files in the folder containing your catalogs, so obviously there is not a folder exclusion. But it is worth noting that you can also exclude specific folders on the Exclusions tab as well.

Assuming everything is configured so that the catalog files will be backed up, it is just a matter of allowing enough time for the backup to complete. Files are processed from smallest to largest, and so your largest files won’t be backed up until all smaller files have been backed up successfully. It can take considerable time to complete the initial backup, so if that has not completed yet it may simply be a matter of more time being required for the backup to complete.

Today’s Question: When scanning photos is it best to scan to TIFF format?

Tim’s Quick Answer: While the TIFF format is arguably the best choice for saving scanned photos in terms of image quality, that doesn’t make it the best choice for all situations.

More Detail: The TIFF file format enables you to save images with maximum quality, which can be helpful in terms of providing the best quality when the scanned images are printed. However, TIFF files will also be considerably larger than other formats such as JPEG. Depending on your priorities for the images, in some cases you may prefer to save as JPEG rather than TIFF.

If image quality is your top concern, I recommend saving scanned images in the TIFF file format. I also recommend scanning from a slide or negative rather than a print whenever possible, as the latter contains far less information than the original film.

However, if you are simply trying to digitize photos so they can be reviewed and shared more easily, it may not be necessary to preserve those images with maximum quality with TIFF files that will consume considerable hard drive space. For example, an image scanned from an 8″x10″ print and saved in the TIFF format would produce a file size of around 40MB, while a JPEG image even at maximum quality would result in a file size of around 3MB.

The primary issue with saving as a JPEG image is that there will always be some degree of compression artifacts that can appear as a grid pattern that is visible when viewing the image closely. If you are simply digitizing images for easier review and sharing, the JPEG compression artifacts may not be a concern. If quality is your top concern, the saving TIFF files will achieve that goal, though with considerably more storage space required.

Today’s Question: Can you get the original capture from an iPhone shooting in Raw to your computer by using AirDrop? That is what I have been doing so hope I haven’t been losing quality.

Tim’s Quick Answer: You may have been losing quality. In some cases, you will need to manually choose the option to share the original file format to ensure the image is not converted to a JPEG, for example. In other cases you may need to revert adjustments first.

More Detail: The iPhone Camera app offers several possible capture format options, including JPEG and HEIC, along with Apple ProRAW for compatible iPhone models. The default option when sharing images via AirDrop is “Automatic”. However, in some cases this will cause the file to be shared with a different format than the original on your device, such as a JPEG image.

If you want to be sure to copy the photos with the same file format as they were captured in, I recommend setting the Format option to “Current” rather than “Automatic”. To do so, select the photos you want to send via AirDrop, and tap the share button. At the top of the sharing screen click the Options button. Then, in the Format section, choose “Current”.

However, there’s an additional potential issue if you’re capturing in Apple ProRAW on a compatible iPhone model. If you have edited the image on your iPhone with the Photos app you’ll need to revert the adjustments in order to send the original capture via AirDrop.

In this case I recommend creating a copy of the original ProRAW capture. To do so, tap on the photo, tap the “More” button (the three dots) at the top-right, and choose Duplicate. Then go to that duplicate photo and tap the Edit button, then tap Revert. You can then share this copy of the image using AirDrop to retain the original file format in the process.

Needless to say, Apple hasn’t made it particularly easy to ensure you always retain the original file format when sending photos via AirDrop. I therefore recommend instead connecting your iPhone to a computer via a USB cable and then using an application such as Adobe Bridge or Apple Image Capture to download the images in their original file format to your computer.

Today’s Question: I rarely use the “sky replacement” feature in Photoshop. But, on occasion, I just need to do “something”. I just realized that I can actually take my own photos (of the sky) and use them if I’m so inclined. While I haven’t done this (yet), I like the idea of not having to use and re-use the same, finite skies that Photoshop offers. Can you offer any suggestions for taking and using my own sky photos for this purpose? Would Photoshop be able to use a raw image or would I have to save it in some other format?

Tim’s Quick Answer: For sky replacement images I recommend capturing photos where the sky fills the frame, and with a variety of different configurations and conditions. And yes, you can use a raw capture or other image formats for this purpose.

More Detail: The Sky Replacement command (Edit > Sky Replacement) streamlines the process of replacing the sky in the current image using a different photo that includes the sky. For photographers who are inclined to use this feature, it can be helpful to assemble a library of photos that feature the sky.

There are a few things I would tend to focus on if you set out to capture photos for a library of sky photos to use with the Sky Replacement feature. First, to the extent possible, I recommend filling the frame with the sky, so you don’t have to worry about non-sky areas of the image you’re using showing up in the sky area of the photo you’re applying the adjustment to.

I also recommend capturing a variety of images, both in terms of the overall composition and the sky conditions.

In terms of composition, I suggest having photos captured at various focal lengths, from wide angle to telephoto. You can also vary the angle, such as pointing the lens more toward the horizon versus perhaps straight up. The key is to try to ensure that you have a sky photo that matches the perspective of the sky you’re replacing. You can consider your typical photography habits in this regard to get a sense of whether you should focus on specific focal lengths or perspectives.

It can also be very helpful to have photos that feature the sky with various weather conditions and times of day. It is quite common, for example, to replace a dreary sky with a more dramatic sky. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that you want to focus exclusively on beautiful and colorful sky conditions. If you are replacing the sky in a photo captured during overcast conditions, for example, it won’t look very realistic to replace the sky with a beautiful sunset with scattered clouds, as there will be a mismatch between the color and contrast for the sky versus landscape. You could obviously apply adjustments to the non-sky portion of the image, but even then there may be a clear mismatch.

Keep in mind, by the way, that after replacing the sky using the Sky Replacement feature, you’ll still be able to modify the replacement sky, such as by using the Free Transform command (Edit > Free Transform) to alter the shape and perspective of the sky you’ve added to the image.

Today’s Question: The new landscape masking feature in Lightroom Classic includes the ability to detect the sky in a photo. Is there any reason to use this rather than the existing Select Sky option?

Tim’s Quick Answer: The only reason to use the new Select Landscape feature instead of the Select Sky feature when applying a targeted adjustment with the masking adjustment is if you also want to create a mask for other portions of the image, such as water, vegetation, or mountains.

More Detail: If you use the Sky option with the Select Landscape feature, you’ll get the same mask shape for the sky in the image as you would if you used the Select Sky feature. You can therefore create a mask for a targeted adjustment for the sky in an image using either option.

If you only want to apply an adjustment to the sky, and not any other areas that could be masked using the Select Landscape feature, then it is slightly more efficient to use the Select Sky feature. But either option is perfectly fine and will result in the same mask shape for the sky.

Of course, one of the advantages of the Select Landscape feature is that you can select other portions of the image beyond the sky. For example, the Select Landscape feature can identify areas of mountains, vegetation, water, natural ground, and more. If you want to apply a targeted adjustment for multiple areas that the Select Landscape feature can detect, it is more efficient to use Select Landscape to create a sky mask in addition to the other masks you want to create, rather than using Select Sky for the sky and then Select Landscape for other portions of the image.

If you’d like to learn more about the AI-powered masks in Lightroom Classic, be sure to sign up for my free webinar on the subject, which I’ll present live on Friday, May 30th, starting at 12pm Eastern Time. You can sign up to join me or to get access to a recording of the full presentation after it concludes by filling out this form:

https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/sl/fL9XlHa/aimasks

Today’s Question: When exporting from Apple Photos to Lightroom Classic by choosing File > Export from the menu, what options do you recommend selecting? The size is a question I am wondering about. I would guess Actual Size but that of course takes much longer and I would imagine requires more space. But if the goal is to get the best quality to edit in Lightroom Classic, what is the best way to proceed?

Tim’s Quick Answer: If you’re exporting from Apple Photos to import into Lightroom Classic, I recommend using the File > Export > Export Unmodified Original command so you can import a copy of the original capture into Lightroom Classic. You could also import directly from your iPhone to Lightroom Classic to bypass the export process.

More Detail: When importing photos into Lightroom Classic that are being managed by another workflow, such as with Apple Photos, I recommend importing the original capture exactly how it was saved by the camera into Lightroom Classic. You can import directly into Lightroom Classic, such as by connecting a smartphone to your computer, or by downloading photos from the smartphone to your computer using other software so the images can then be imported.

I don’t recommend making a copy of the original photos in a different file format, as there will generally be some disadvantage to doing so. For example, exporting to TIFF files won’t provide an improvement in image quality, and will dramatically increase the size of the file for each image.

In Apple Photos you can export copies of the original image in the original capture format using the File > Export > Export Unmodified Original command. This will enable you to import into Lightroom Classic copies of the original images exactly as they were captured by the camera.

If you had been using the JPEG format for capturing photos on your smartphone, for example, then you’ll be getting copies of those original JPEG images, complete with the risk of potentially visible compression artifacts in the images.

If you want to optimize image quality in this context, the key is to use the optimal capture format at the time you take the photo. For a smartphone, the best option would be to use a raw capture format, which could include using the option to capture images as Adobe DNG images in the Lightroom mobile app. If you want to capture images with smaller file sizes, I suggest using the HEIC option rather than JPEG. But whatever format you’re using when the photo is captured, I recommend importing that same file into Lightroom Classic.

Today’s Question: What is your take on using an external NVMe [Non-Volatile Memory Express] drive for image/backup storage, as opposed to traditional hard drives or SSD storage? Are they sufficiently dependable?

Tim’s Quick Answer: An NVMe (NVM Express) storage device can indeed be used effectively for storage or backup, typically providing considerably faster performance than other storage devices.

More Detail: Technically, NVMe is an interface specification for storage devices, not an actual storage device. In other words, an NVMe device is typically an SSD drive, just like the SSD internal drive on many computers or an SSD external drive. An NVMe device connects directly to a PCI Express bus in a computer, which enables it to achieve considerably faster speeds than an external drive or even an internal drive using a SATA connection.

Therefore, overall I’m completely comfortable using NVMe devices for storage or backup, with two caveats.

First, an NVMe device connects to a PCI Express port, which means it is located inside your computer. That does create the risk of excessive heat buildup, which can reduce the lifespan of an NVMe storage device. As long as your computer has a good ventilation system with temperature monitoring, this shouldn’t be a significant issue. It could even be argued that the risk of overheating is less likely to cause a failure compared to physically damaging or losing an external storage device.

The second caveat relates to best practices when it comes to backing up data. One important rule of a good backup workflow is that the backup should not be stored on the same physical device as the source data. If you use an NVMe device as primary storage and back up that data to an internal SSD drive, the data is on two different storage devices, but they are both contained within the same computer. Therefore, there is a risk that a major issue with the computer such as a power surge could cause both storage devices to be lost.

So, while I would be perfectly comfortable using an NVMe for storage or backup, I would also want to be sure to use a backup workflow that ensures the source data and backup data are on different devices. For example, I would suggest using an external hard drive and perhaps an online backup service to back up the NVMe drive so that the redundant data is stored on separate drives.