Ask Tim Grey

Today’s Question: During your presentation on calculating depth of field with PhotoPills you seemed to estimate distances to the subject rather accurately. Were you just guessing at the distance, or is there some way to measure the distance?

Tim’s Quick Answer: For the closer distances I was estimating based on my recollection of the situation. But for the larger distances I cited, I used Google Maps to calculate the distance from my position to the subject I was focusing on.

More Detail: During my presentations as part of my GreyLearning Ultimate Event on “The Power of PhotoPills”, I shared some examples where the distance to the subject was a factor, such as when calculating depth of field. For smaller subjects that I was positioned close to, I estimated the distance to the subject to the best of my ability. But for the larger scenes with greater distances to the subject I made use of the measurement feature of Google Maps.

To get started in your web browser, go to Google Maps (https://www.google.com/maps). Search or otherwise navigate to the area of the map you want to measure a distance for. As an example, during one of my presentations I talked about photographing an area of the small town of Steptoe from the top of Steptoe Butte. So in this case I would navigate within the map to the town of Steptoe.

You can then right-click on the subject you want to measure the distance to (in this case it was a set of grain elevators in the town) and choose “Measure distance” from the popup menu. You can then navigate on the map to the location you captured the image from and click to set that as the other end of the range to measure. In my example that was from Steptoe Butte, and the distance was about three miles away.

For this type of measurement, it can be helpful to use the satellite view option rather than the standard map, so you can see a view of the actual objects in the area.

If you missed my presentations as part of the GreyLearning Ultimate Event on “The Power of PhotoPills”, recordings are available with the course found here:

https://www.greylearning.com/courses/greylearning-ultimate-event-the-power-of-photopills-june-2023

Today’s Question: I have six images that I want to open as one new PSD file with six layers. The only way I know how to do that is to open all six images, pull five of them off the dock, and copy those layers onto the first one. Is there some way to open all of these images as layers in a single PSD?

Tim’s Quick Answer: Yes, you can open all the images as layers in a single document by using the “Load Files into Photoshop Layers” command in Adobe Bridge or the “Open as Layers in Photoshop” command in Lightroom Classic.

More Detail: While you can certainly drag image layers from one document to another in Photoshop to create a composite with multiple image layers, it is much easier to automate that process from either Bridge or Lightroom Classic, depending on which software you’re using.

In Adobe Bridge you can select the images you want to assemble into a composite, and then go to the menu and choose Tools > Photoshop > Load Files into Photoshop Layers”. If you’re using Lightroom Classic to manage your photos, you can select the images and then from the menu choose Photo > Edit In > Open as Layers in Photoshop.

With either command all the images will be opened into a single document, which each image being a layer in that composite. On the Layers panel each layer will be named based on the filename for the source image. You can then rearrange, resize, mask, or otherwise work with all the layers in that composite document. Save the result as either a Photoshop PSD or a TIFF image so you can preserve the layers for future modification as needed.

Today’s Question: I often capture composite panoramas, and in many cases I will create these in HDR [high dynamic range]. Currently, I assemble an HDR for each frame of the panorama, and then assemble those HDR images into the final panorama. Is there a way to automate this process, such as with an action in Photoshop?

Tim’s Quick Answer: Yes, you can assemble an HDR Panorama very easily in a single step using either Lightroom Classic or Adobe Camera Raw with the HDR Panorama option for Photo Merge.

More Detail: With Lightroom Classic or Adobe Camera Raw you can assemble bracketed exposures into a high dynamic range (HDR) image, you can assemble individual frames into a composite panorama, and you can also assemble an HDR panorama.

With an HDR panorama instead of capturing individual frames across a scene that you’ll stitch together into a seamless panorama, you would capture bracketed exposures for an HDR image for each frame of the panorama. Assembling the result used to mean that you first needed to create an HDR image based on each frame, and then assemble those HDR images into the final panorama. Now, however, you can process the images in a single step.

To get started in Lightroom Classic simply select all images captured for the HDR panorama, which would include all bracketed images for each frame of the panorama. For example, if you bracketed each image with five exposures, and the panorama consisted of four frames, you would have a total of twenty images to select. After selecting the images go to the menu and choose Photo > Photo Merge > HDR Panorama.

For Photoshop users you can start by selecting the raw captures in Adobe Bridge, then double-click one of the selected photos to open them in Camera Raw. On the filmstrip select all the images, and then click the “more” button (the three dots icon) that appears at the top-right of the thumbnail when you hover your mouse over it. From the popup menu that appears choose “Merge to HDR Panorama”.

In the dialog that appears you can configure the settings for the panorama. Note that when using the HDR Panorama option the Align option is automatically enabled and you can’t turn it off. Deghost is disabled, and can’t be enabled. After configuring the other settings click the Merge button and the full HDR panorama will be assembled.

Today’s Question: In a recent Ask Tim Grey response you described the capabilities within Lightroom Classic to create compound masks [for targeted adjustments]. Does Photoshop have these same capabilities and, if so, how does one use them?

Tim’s Quick Answer: Yes, Photoshop does support building composite masks for targeted adjustments (or composite images), through the use of multiple layer masks in conjunction with layer groups.

More Detail: In Lightroom Classic you can use one or more components to define a mask that determines which portion of an image will be affected by a targeted adjustment. This consists of adding to or subtracting from an initial mask using various other mask shapes. For example, you could create a mask for the sky, and then subtract the adjustment from the lower portion of the sky using a linear gradient.

In Photoshop you can create much the same type of effect, using a series of layer masks combined through the use of layer groups.

Of course, you could get started with the same basic concept by using selection tools. For example, let’s assume you had a photo showing three hot air balloons in the sky. You could create a selection of the first balloon, then use the “Add to Selection” option to create a selection of the second balloon. By then using the same “Add to Selection” option to select the third balloon, you would then have a selection that represented all three balloons. You could then add an adjustment layer based on that selection, for example, so that only the three balloons would be affected by the adjustment.

Layer groups provide a bit more flexibility. Let’s assume the same example of an adjustment that affects the sky, but in a gradient fashion. This can be accomplished with a composite mask created by combining multiple layer masks using layer groups. To get started, add two layer groups by clicking the folder icon at the bottom of the Layers panel, and then clicking that folder icon again.

Next you could select the sky by choosing Select > Sky from the menu. Then click on the thumbnail for the lower of the two layer groups on the Layers panel, and click the Add Layer Mask button (the circle-inside-a-square icon) at the bottom of the Layers panel. If you then add one or more adjustment layers to this layer group, those adjustments will only affect the sky in the image.

To refine that mask so that the sky is affected in a gradient fashion, click to select the upper layer group. Then click the Add Layer Mask button, choose the Gradient tool, and draw a white-to-black gradient from the upper portion of the sky to the lower portion. At this point the gradient mask layer won’t have any impact on the image because there is nothing inside that layer group. However, you can drag the lower layer group into the upper layer group, and now both layer masks will affect all adjustment layers in the lower layer group.

This is just one simple example, but it illustrates the possibilities of creating compound layer masks in Photoshop through the use of nested layer groups.

Registration is now open for my next live online GreyLearning Ultimate Events, focused on “The Power of PhotoPills”. The live online event will be on Wednesday, June 21st, from 1pm to 5pm Eastern Time.

The PhotoPills app for iOS and Android mobile devices provides photographers with a variety of powerful planning tools. With this app you can calculate equivalent exposure settings, such as when adding a solid neutral density filter. You can calculate depth of field with precision, including being able to take into account the effect of hyperfocal distance. You can plan for the specific position of the sun and moon, both for planning for light and for including the sun or moon in the frame with a key subject. And there is so much more to explore in PhotoPills beyond these powerful features!

All GreyLearning Ultimate Events are included at no additional cost in my GreyLearning Ultimate Bundle (http://timgrey.me/atg99bundle). Recordings of all presentations will also available, so you can watch even if you can’t attend live, or review the presentations at any time.

If you’re not a GreyLearning Ultimate Bundle subscriber, that’s OK! Non-subscribers can attend the live online event and access recordings of all presentations for just $20.

You can get all the details of this upcoming live online event here:

https://www.greylearning.com/courses/greylearning-ultimate-event-the-power-of-photopills-june-2023

I look forward to helping photographers make the most of the remarkable PhotoPills app with this upcoming GreyLearning Ultimate Event!

Today’s Question: I will be taking a photo trip this fall and will only be taking my iPhone. I would like to know if it’s possible to also backup my phone images onto a LaCie Rugged during the trip?

Tim’s Quick Answer: Yes, you can download photos from an iPhone directly to an external storage device by exporting them via the Files app that is included with the iOS operating system.

More Detail: While it is possible to transfer photos directly from an iPhone to a hard drive without using a computer, the process can be slightly cumbersome if you’ll be transferring a large number of photos. This can be compounded if you’ll be transferring batches of photos over time, such as downloading each day’s photos at the end of the day.

You can connect an external hard drive to your iPhone using a Lightning-to-USB adapter (https://timgrey.me/lightningusb). However, I find it more convenient to use a flash storage device, such as the SanDisk iXpand (https://timgrey.me/lightningdrive), which features a Lightning connector for plugging direcly into an iPhone as well as a USB connector for transferring to your computer.

After connecting the storage device to your iPhone you can go to the Photos app and browse your photos. Tap the Select button at the top right, and select the photos you want to transfer. Next, tap the Share button (the icon is a rectangle with an arrow pointing out of the top) and scroll to find the “Save to Files” option. Tap “Save to Files”, at which point you will most likely need to tap the Back button at the top left so you can browse all available destinations.

Tap the name of the storage device to initiate the transfer. When the process is complete you can disconnect the device. That storage device can then be connected to your computer to download the images from there.

I do recommend testing this process out before departing on your trip to make sure all the components are compatible with your configuration.

Today’s Question: You referenced your use of “fake keywords” in the answer about protecting collections in Lightroom Classic. What do you mean by “fake”? Aren’t these just normal keywords?

Tim’s Quick Answer: I use the term “fake keywords” to describe keywords that are used for a purpose other than the “normal” way keywords are traditionally used. These “fake keywords” are indeed keywords you add to your photos just like any other keyword, just used for a somewhat different purpose.

More Detail: Keywords can be tremendously helpful, and I think of keywords as working in two directions. You can use keywords when you want to search for an image that contains a particular subject, for example, but you can also use keywords to remind yourself what subjects are actually contained in a photo.

Some time ago I realized that my workflow would benefit from the use of keywords that go beyond these more typical uses of keywords. For example, as I mentioned in yesterday’s Ask Tim Grey eNewsletter, I use the keyword “PixologyCover” to identify photos that I have used on the cover of an issue of my Pixology digital magazine. This helps me identify which images I’ve already used on the cover, but also makes it easy for me to locate photos I haven’t yet put on the cover.

The keywords I refer to as being “fake” keywords are very much normal keywords added to my photos in the usual way. I just use the term “fake” to make these keywords stand out as being useful beyond the normal way keywords are used.

Today’s Question: Is there any way to lock or save a collection [in Lightroom Classic] so that it cannot be changed without a verifying question?

Tim’s Quick Answer: There is not a way to lock a collection in Lightroom Classic, but you could use other metadata to help preserve the status of photos that belong to a particular collection.

More Detail: Collections are a great way to group photos together for a purpose that goes beyond the folder structure you use to organize your images. For example, I use collections to group photos together for various projects, such as when I’m going to be presenting at an event or for photos I share to my Instagram feed, for example.

Once you’ve finished adding all photos to a collection for a particular project, it would be nice to be able to lock a collection so you can’t add or remove photos without unlocking the collection. Unfortunately, that feature is not currently available in Lightroom Classic.

However, you could use metadata to help identify photos as being part of a particular collection, so that even if the collection were lost or changed you would still be able to identify the images that were originally included in the collection.

For example, I use a concept I refer to as “fake keywords” to identify the status of certain images. I use “InstagramShare” as a keyword for photos I’ve shared to my Instagram feed. Similarly, I use “PixologyCover” as a keyword for images I’ve used for the cover of an issue of Pixology, my monthly digital magazine. You could similarly use keywords to identify photos that you’ve included in a particular project, such as “Book-Palouse” for a book featuring photos from the Palouse.

Once you’ve finalized a collection featuring photos for a particular project, you could select all the images in the grid view (not the loupe view) and then add a keyword referencing the project. You could even use a smart collection rather than a regular collection to automatically group photos that contain a particular keyword.

Using “fake keywords” in this case doesn’t provide a perfect solution. Just as you could remove a photo from a collection (or inadvertently remove a collection altogether) you could also accidentally remove keywords from one or more photos. But in my view, there’s a little more protection afforded by this approach, because I feel like it is less likely that you would remove keywords accidentally compared to removing a photo from a collection. And if you’re using a normal collection (rather than a smart collection) then you have the added advantage of having a somewhat redundant system. If you accidentally removed a keyword, the applicable photos would still be in the collection. And if you accidentally removed a photo from the collection, it would still have the keyword. So as long as you don’t perform both of those tasks by accident, you would still be able to determine which photos belonged in a particular project.

Note that I covered the use of “fake” keywords starting 12 minutes and 39 seconds into the lesson “Keywording Photos”, which is Chapter 2 Lesson 3 of my “Mastering Lightroom Classic” course. You can learn more about this course here:

https://www.greylearning.com/courses/mastering-lightroom-classic-2023

Today’s Question: When you use a circular polarizer filter is there anything you do special to make sure it’s easy to remove? Most of my polarizer lenses are the screw on type that screw directly into the front of the lens. However, those can sometimes be problematic when removing since the piece with the threads can be quite small.

Tim’s Quick Answer: I use magnetic filter adapters for my filters, so they can be very easily attached to or removed from a lens.

More Detail: Screw-on filters can be a real challenge to attach to or remove from a lens. If the threads don’t actually engage when attaching the filter you might assume it is attached when it isn’t, resulting in dropping the filter and possibly damaging it. Removing the filter can be a hassle because the filter is so thin it is difficult to get a good grip.

The best solution I’ve found is to use magnetic filter adapters. I had been using Xume adapters for a long time, but they were acquired by Manfrotto and then somewhat recently discontinued. I loved these filter adapters and wish they were still in production.

Fortunately, another solution exists in the way of magnetic filters and adapters from Kase. They offer both a Wolverine and Revolution lineup, with the latter being the newer and overall more expensive options.

With these Kase filters (https://timgrey.me/magneticfilters) and adapters (https://timgrey.me/magneticadapters) you screw the adapter onto the lens once, and never really need to remove it. You can then attach a Kase magnetic filter simply by placing it onto the adapter. This is very similar to the Xume products I originally used for this purpose, with the difference being that with the Kase system you use a magnetic filter rather than a screw-on filter.

I strongly believe that any photographer who uses a magnetic filter adapter system will immediately agree that this is an ideal solution for attaching and removing filters.

You can learn more about the Kase Wolverine filters and adapters here:

Filters: https://timgrey.me/magneticfilters
Adapters: https://timgrey.me/magneticadapters