Digital Darkroom
by Michael Frye | Jun 27, 2018 | Digital Darkroom

The latest update to my ebook, Landscapes in Lightroom: The Essential Step-by-Step Guide, is now available! This new edition is revised and updated for Lightroom Classic CC, and includes a brand new example where I take you step-by-step through processing a Milky Way photograph, plus six new videos about the Range Mask, the Profile Browser, fixing coma, removing color fringing around stars, and more.
I’ve also completely revamped the video about the tone controls – the most important part of processing any image – that covers their image-adaptive behavior, how each tool works, why you might consider changing your default settings, and how to approach processing both high-contrast and low-contrast images. The ebook now includes 17 videos altogether, totaling 3 hours and 45 minutes of runtime.
For a limited time this new edition is available at the old price of $26.95, but after July 9th the price goes up to $39. I know it seems like you have plenty of time, but you’ll get involved with other things, and before you know it the price will go up. So you may as well just jump on it now so you don’t forget. 🙂 Click this link to learn more about all the features of this new edition, see sample pages, or take the course:
Landscapes in Lightroom: The Essential Step-by-Step Guide
I hope you enjoy this new edition!
— Michael Frye
P.S. If you purchased a previous version of Landscapes in Lightroom you’re entitled to a free upgrade to the new edition. Look for the email I sent out yesterday with instructions about how to get your free upgrade. Thanks again for purchasing the ebook, and many thanks to all of you who have written so many kind words to me about Landscapes in Lightroom – I really appreciate that! (Note that the email was sent to the address you used when making your original purchase. And if you don’t see it, try checking your spam folder.)
Related Posts: Processing Autumn Landscapes; Big Lightroom News; Lightroom’s New Dehaze Control
Michael Frye is a professional photographer specializing in landscapes and nature. He is the author or principal photographer of The Photographer’s Guide to Yosemite, Yosemite Meditations, Yosemite Meditations for Women, Yosemite Meditations for Adventurers, and Digital Landscape Photography: In the Footsteps of Ansel Adams and the Great Masters. He has also written three eBooks: Light & Land: Landscapes in the Digital Darkroom, Exposure for Outdoor Photography, and Landscapes in Lightroom: The Essential Step-by-Step Guide. Michael has written numerous magazine articles on the art and technique of photography, and his images have been published in over thirty countries around the world. Michael has lived either in or near Yosemite National Park since 1983, currently residing just outside the park in Mariposa, California.
by Michael Frye | Apr 25, 2018 | Digital Darkroom
In my last post I cautioned about updating to Version 7.3 of Lightroom Classic CC (released in early April), as many people were experiencing problems. Yesterday Adobe released an update (v. 7.3.1) to address those issues. Here’s a link to the release notes.
From what I can gather so far, this latest update seems to be working, and people are reporting that most of the problems have been fixed. That means presets are now ordered and sorted correctly, and, for the most part, profiles are no longer being inadvertently changed when applying presets. (Profiles are still sometimes getting changed when I apply a B&W Mix preset to an image. This may not be a bug, however, but an inherent problem with the new implementation of profiles.) And most of the crashes and other performance issues people experienced should be fixed.
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by Michael Frye | Apr 23, 2018 | Digital Darkroom
Earlier this month Adobe released an update to Lightroom Classic CC (v. 7.3). If you haven’t already installed this update I would wait, as many people are experiencing problems. It’s not unusual for a software update to have some issues, but this release has more problems than usual.
Most of the issues relate to presets, so if you never use presets you’ll probably be fine. If you use presets I would definitely wait until the next update. If you’ve already updated and are experiencing problems, it’s actually pretty easy to revert to the previous version (7.2) of Lightroom Classic.
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by Michael Frye | Oct 26, 2017 | Digital Darkroom

I used the new Range Mask tool in Lightroom Classic CC to improve the green colors in this photo from Rabbit Ears Pass in Colorado
Adobe announced two new, different versions of Lightroom last week. And, unfortunately, the names have created a lot of confusion. Here are the essential things you need to know:
No More Perpetual License
Adobe will no longer make new standalone versions of Lightroom with a perpetual license. That means new versions of Lightroom will be available by subscription only. Lightroom 6 is the last non-subscription version that you can purchase outright. Lightroom 6 is still available for now, but won’t be updated to support new cameras. (You can still use Adobe’s free DNG converter to convert Raw images from new cameras into the DNG format, then import those DNG files into Lightroom 6.)
New Lightroom Classic CC
The new version of the program we’re familiar with is called Lightroom Classic CC. This is the traditional, folder-based version of Lightroom. It is essentially the same as Lightroom CC 2015, but with performance improvements and a new Range Mask tool that allows you to make more precise selections with the Adjustment Brush, Graduated Filter, and Radial Filter.
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by Michael Frye | Oct 2, 2016 | Digital Darkroom, Yosemite Photo Conditions

Sunset clouds over North Lake, autumn, Inyo NF, CA, USA
Claudia and I are back home, but we had fun photographing on the east side last week. Every day we saw more color in Bishop Creek Canyon, and the high-elevation aspens were looking great when we left yesterday.
I made this photograph Friday evening. We had been photographing intimate scenes along the south fork of Bishop Creek for a couple of hours, but there were some clouds hugging the crest of the mountains, so I headed to North Lake where I could get a wider view if the clouds turned color at sunset.
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by Michael Frye | May 11, 2016 | Advanced Techniques, Digital Darkroom, Yosemite Photo Conditions

Spring sunrise, Gates of the Valley, Yosemite, Sunday morning
First, to my subscribers, thanks for your understanding about the email glitches yesterday. I really appreciate all the supportive emails so many people sent. Your kind words turned a frustrating day into a great one.
I haven’t posted anything new on the blog for awhile because I was teaching a workshop, and then working on our new website. The new site is still a bit of a work in progress, so if you find any broken links or other issues please let me know. But the new site better integrates the blog with the other content, makes it easier to add and update portfolios, and will work much better with phones and tablets, so I hope it will be a better experience for everyone.
Meanwhile we had a great workshop, with flowing waterfalls, fresh spring greenery, dogwoods, and some interesting weather and clouds. And the cool, showery spring weather has continued, which I love. I’m not ready for the summer heat, and always happy to have clouds and mist to photograph.
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