Adobe Lightroom Beta Version

This is an interesting new editing software, from a very interesting company called Adobe.
I came across it while looking for some new Photoshop techniques and I started exploring Adobes new idea! This software is advertised from photographers to photographers and more likely they are referring to the professional photographer who has a big volume of work, but wants snapy and professional results. Another cool feature of Adobe Lightroom is that it will make Raw files (or Digital Negatives) a pure little game to play and just as easy to edit like the famous jpeg files!

But while I was reading all that, thinking that this would be a dangerous area to step into, since I am not a pro in photography, I realized that this would help do the normal editing stuff into Lightroom, leaving Photoshop CS2 and Adobe Bridge for the hard ones! So, yes why not try out? After all this is a free beta version and it is even interactive through its forums. If you have an idea or you don't like something, you might as well express your opinion to Adobe.

Now, one of the reasons I decided to post about it is because I want to suggest it to my friends who might be a bit into digital photography, or others who would not be able to download Photoshop or simply because they cannot be bothered to do so. However, I would only recommend it to the brave ones, since it is always risky to install a beta software. Even if it is signed by a giant company as Adobe. There might be bugs and flaws. Note that the windows version was released after Macs and is still being improved to reach the latter...So all in all, try it if you can take the risk to experiment. Personally, I am going to search for some more info before I decide to register to install it.

Here is the link, where you can play the short, introductory video, get some initial or more thourough info about it etc. : http://labs.adobe.com/technologies/lightroom/

Last but not least, I would like to mention the name which has striked me great time...Light-room. Historically speaking, or even for the traditional photographer (if there is anyone out there...) The developing room for the analogue negatives, was dark and spooky, full of expensive and to some degree dangerous chemicals. Hence called Dark-room.

Nowadays, we have digital photos and digital software to process them, while sipping our coffee and having a cigarette. Out of the danger of the chemicals. The expensiveness of films and printing them. Nowadays we have the so-called digital darkroom. Or at least some say. But the work light room, is more eluminating and bright and warmly white and safer. Light-room! Don't you find it a wee more optimistic? Brilliant idea, I say. So, I go a bit further with my idea to meet past and present, old and new and the way we Europeans perceive the world and our obsession with new...
Past=darkroom
Now=lightroom
____________
old= dark
new= light

Are we forgetting the past, scorning it or just brightening it up. And if so why? Do we need to brighten our "dark" past? Do we need to name or past as dark and our future as light?...Just a few thoughts to contemplate on, in order to arouse yours on the topic ;-)

Anyway, if you want to take the risk of the beta version and joing the light-room and leave the dark-room to the past, you can always use the link. If you don't, and prefer to dwell in the darkroom, you can always express your opinion here, instead of clicking the link!

enjoy

PS: This is now the 26th of July and it appears that this software is being seriously reviewed by other serious photography websites as well. As I was going through my Gmail RSS feeds today, I found out that another respectable photography review website, dpreview.com has another and more thorough preview of the new software and some more information; so I thought I should let you know.

And here, because it's beta version it is free, it is adobe and it is userfriendly. Hence, I am downloading it first thing tomorrow!!

14 August 2006,

The beta version is working well, no crashes. Yet again, I don't seem to be able to save photo edits. Note: This software will expire at some stage.

So here is the link for you: http://www.dpreview.com/news/0607/06071901adobelightroomwindows.asp