Why Lightroom instead of photoshop?

Can some one please explain what is the difference about lightroom?
I have a very old version 6 photo shop which I hardly use these days and elements v7.And if I process raw I use raw therapee.
what is lightroom going to allow me to do with digital images that the other programs will not?
Alistair

Lightroom covers so good as any part of photography and the program is comparable to RAW converters out there but some have other feature that Lightroom has not and vice versa.

Photoshop is an image editing program, you have layer option and all fancy kind of filters and more things you probably hardly use with photography... photoshop is for the more creative artist where lightroom is aimed to get make a good photo instead of an image. They say it very simply.

You've a trial period for both software and for many other raw converters it's the same. The ones to look at as well are Silkypix and Phase One but there are others out there as well so try them out and pick the one you like the most.

You can try LR version 3 for FREE until March !! Just download from Adobe. Once you've used it for a while you'll wonder how you ever managed without it It's built around the ACR, so you won't need an additional raw convertor and it's a great organiser, so u can forget Elements !!

You may want PS on occasion though, for the clever stuff but u already have that !

Give it go !

As Stefan says, Photoshop is an image editing program with very sophisticated features. One of it's primary advantages is the use of layers etc. You cannot open a raw file directly in Photoshop, it has to pass through ACR. Lightroom, on the other hand, has ACR built-in but with more features plus it catalogues your images. Once you have processed a raw file, you can edit it using Photoshop if you wish, and on saving the edited file you are taken back to Lightroom where the saved file is added to the catalogue alongside the original. It also allows you to create and modify a variety of web galleries. The galleries on my website were all uploaded direct from Lightroom. It really is a one-stop-shop for me and has a very user friendly and elegant interface. Version 3 will add more refinements though I've not yet got around to playing with it.

Cheers
Chris

If LR's image editing capabilities are enough, LR is a far better choice, because far more user friendly. And I feel 90% of us LR is more than enough. IMHO.

Lightroom vs. Photoshop

http://www.outdoorphotographer.com/columns/digital-horizons/lightroom-vs-photosh...

http://www.outdoorphotographer.com/columns/digital-horizons/lightroom-vs-photosh...
They only talk what's better in lightroom but not what's better in Photoshop, that's a shame though.

Btw you can work non-destructively in photoshop right, simply use layer and save as PSD or is that too simple?
Lightroom does have the upper-hand in here though, since the modifications are saved in a log instead of on the photo meaning that the original file is left untouched and that it saves space.

I use Lightroom most of the time and drop into CS3 for some things. For example, I find the cropping easier in Lightroom and cloning easier in CS3. I guess 90%+ of my edits are in Lightroom and less than 10% in CS3. Using lightroom makes RAW conversion seamless and largely invisible and although some claim that other programs do a better job (e.g., silkypix) it seems fine to me.

Cheers, K.

Lightroom is a complete digital photography package. It'll accept raw images, convert them to compressed (lossless) DNG if you prefer, manipulate them in just about any way you want, produce slideshows, and print them in a variety of ways. I use Lightroom for 99% of my work, PS-CS4 for any really clever stuff, which is mostly beyond me anyway.

Yes, it's a bit one sided, there is another one, it is a bit more balanced, though a bit old...

http://www.oreillynet.com/digitalmedia/blog/2007/07/photoshop_vs_lightroom_1.htm...

I like LR but I do find it very memory hungry and if I leave it open and view a munber of images, before long it seems to grind to a halt. Not a problem i have with PS

You can optimize your catalogue, try this:

1. Back up your Catalog.
2. Choose Catalog Settings from the Lightroom menu on a Mac or the Edit menu on a PC.
3. Under the General tab, click the Relaunch and Optimize button.
4. Click the Relaunch and Optimize button to start the process.
Lightroom will quit and restart automatically, and you should see a progress bar letting you know that your catalog is being optimized. If you have a large catalog, the process could take a while, so sit back and relax.
5. Once the process is complete, you’ll see a dialog box telling you that Lightroom has finished optimizing your catalog. Click OK to open Lightroom and enjoy your (hopefully speedier) Catalog.

Edit: This also helps.

Can you actually clone in Lightroom?
It's the one thing that stops me using it 100% of the time.

Thanks Stefan

Interested to try lightroom. Prefer not to try the beta 3. Went for a trial version of 2 and then discovered I would have to agree for my web address to be spread around the globe and to also agree to receiving 'offers' from Adobe. Is there a way around this? I am sick of Company's sending me 'offers' of their latest software.

regards Thoramay

I hope it helps, it did help a bit for me but they have address some of the slowness that comes with a lot of photos with version 3.

Wanted to say you can unsucribe with a link they provide at the bottom of the e-mail but that's not what you meant.

I don't see anywhere that you need to agree they send your e-mail address over the globe, where did you read that?
There is something about them providing your information to third party but they ask you if you want that, if you don't say yes they aren't allowed to do that.