What's your poison - LR plugins, LR presets, PS actions etc

[pete_s.]

<p>Maybe five years ago photoshop actions where all the rage amongst wedding shooters to get a certain look or B&W conversion. Since then lightroom have entered the scene and ofther softwares and plugins as well. I was wondering what's popular right now and what you guys are using to help you get a certain look when post processing a wedding.</p>

<p>Do you use lightroom plugins, lightroom presets (your own or others), photoshop actions (your own or others), something else or perhaps you don't use anything but hard work?</p>

<p>Thanks in advance,<br /> Pete</p>

[ricd]

<p>Hi Pete S,<br>

Though you asked about LR, my software of choice is Apples' Aperture; yes, LR is a wonderful product. Also, maybe because I shoot film then scan the negatives it is ever so rare I would use Presets. Horses for courses. :-)</p>

[pete_s.]

<p>Hi Ric, sorry I forgot to mention Aperture and film of course :-)<br>

I use Capture One myself but only to get a good neutral starting image. Retouching and the creative parts I do in photoshop with some actions I've made.</p>

[savagesax]

We use LR and Bridge.

[markonestudios]

<p>Used to be PS. Now mostly LR3 with my own flavours :)</p>

[mariosforsos]

<p>LR for 90% of the things, Silver Efex Pro for all my B&W conversions, PS CS3 for all the rest.</p>

[jdarko]

All of the above. LR presets most of the time, LR plugins for some effects and PS for advanced masking etc.

[maira_sharron]

<p>I have not converted to LR, although I should. I still spend hours tweaking each photo in PS4. I do use actions - and have only paid for one set -- that would be Topaz. I use actions at varying percentages to bring in detail, reduce noise, or add pop. There are occasional photos that I bling it out to achieve a particular look. Free sets I use are Pioneer Woman and the Totally RAD. </p>

[tom_mann1]

<p>Maira - I did not know that Topaz sold actions. I thought their products were all plug-ins.</p>

<p>Tom M</p>

[maira_sharron]

<p>Tom - I stand corrected :-)</p>

[richardsnow]

<p>Nikon Capture NX2 for RAW conversions, lens correction, and minor adjustments.</p>

<p>After exporting from NX2, I edit in LR3 mostly, but for B&W, HDR, or special treatments I use NIK plugins, usually in Photoshop. Major touch ups and reconstructions are all done in Photoshop CS5</p>

<p>RS</p>

[tom_mann1]

<p>I rarely do weddings any more, and when I used to do them, it was before the advent of digital photography, so perhaps I shouldn't even respond to this question, but I do a reasonable amount of impromptu people work (with poorly controlled lighting) for my employer and have many of my images currently in glossy brochures and other print publications they put out, so I'll answer w.r.t that activity.</p>

<p>In the last year or so, 100% of all my shots have gone through LR3 as the first step. I use LR as a tool for culling, keywording, and cataloging, as well an faster-to-operate version of ACR. I use no plugins within LR, however I have developed many LR presets for myself based on location or subject matter. I'll often develop a few new LR presets just for a particular shoot. </p>

<p>Once through LR, I probably continue to work on 10 to 20% of the keepers for a particular shoot with PS CS5 to get to a decent "base image", ie, one with decent (normal) color, tones, shadow/highlights, contrast control, lighting ratios, deal with mixed lighting, etc.. </p>

<p>Once an image has got to the Photoshop stage, I use a large number of it's built-in tools on every image. I also have a large number of plugins available for Photoshop, but only use these for say 50% of this 10-20% to help get to the "base image" stage quickly. For this, I rely on just a handful of the efx from NIK Color Efx Pro and Topaz (primarily "Adjust"). Occasionally, i.e., as needed, I will also use other highly specific tools such as Topaz DeNoise, Neat Image, Focus Magic, Color Mechanic, and other plugins from Topaz and NIK, etc.. to get to my "base image" stage.</p>

<p>Very rarely (ie, only a few % of my keepers) do I need to give a specific, non-straight "look" or "style" to a set of images the way many wedding photographers do. However, when this task comes up, I tend to use Tiffen DFX pro on the "base" images developed as described above. I especially like Tiffen's ability to save a stack of effects, each with their own parameters as a user-defined preset. I have developed a number of these presets (mostly in the misty / soft focus area) that I prefer over other approaches. For "looks" and "styles", I also have onOne's effect plug-in package, but use it only occasionally for a change-of-pace. </p>

<p>I would add that without having a "base image" to work from, IMHO, it would be impossible to get a consistent overall "style" without endless tweaking of the effects you are applying. With a "base image" to work from, achieving a consistent style becomes vastly easier.</p>

<p>HTH,</p>

<p>Tom M</p>