One of the most common questions that I get asked by beginning photographers is, “What do you use to edit your photos?” I use Lightroom and Photoshop. The best way that I can explain the difference is that Lightroom is my General Practitioner and Photoshop is like a specialist; I really only go to Photoshop when I need to perform major surgery.
Of course, the follow up question is, “How did you learn Lightroom?” Honestly, much of what I learned about editing from from a photographer in Paris named Serge Ramelli.
Serge Ramelli has some excellent YouTube videos that he has shared, but those are just introductions into what he teaches. In order to get the full benefit of his tutorials, you really need to purchase his tutorials. Not only does he do a good job of explaining what it is that he is doing, but he includes a copy of the photo that he is working on so that you can follow along and learn how he achieves those effects during post processing.
Of course, as a photographer, when you have a vision of what you want the end result to look like and you know what is needed in post-processing, you can better plan your shot when you are on location. I find that many times, I am walking backward through my shot starting with what I want as the end result and then it is up to me to capture what is necessary in order to produce that finished product.
Without a full understanding of Lightroom, I would not be able to connect the dots from what my vision is to what I take with my camera. This is where I believe Serge Ramelli’s tutorials will become a great tool and help you learn lightroom, I know that I learned a lot from them.
Follow the link below to check out his tutorials
