Lightroom was designed to make the basic adjustments most photographers need. But the approach and workflows used by most photographers do not properly address the complex processing problems that are found in most photographs. Lightroom has an achilles heel that makes more advanced processing challenging. To solve these problems, we need to “reimagine” how to apply the tools Lightroom gives us.
Rich has done an intense evaluation of the work he does for museums and gallery exhibitions, quantifying what kind of processing decisions are most needed to make professional quality work. The common approaches to using Lightroom will not achieve these results. Most processing requires masking, and approaches that go beyond Lightroom’s “Basic” adjustments. What is needed is a new workflow and application of Lightroom’s tools…a way to mix Lightroom’s ingredients with a recipe that gives better results.
Approach processing like a master, giving you better results
You’ll learn the core problems that need solving in every photograph, and the fundamentals that will help you diagnose and solve both simple and complex problems. Through this knowledge, you will understand processing and photography better, which will help you work more effectively in the field and behind the monitor. Rich will teach you proven approaches that produce fantastic results. But this class is more than just tutorials—it is about developing a vision for what a photograph can be, and learning how to make the software work for you to achieve that vision.
Getting the most from the software sometimes requires going deeper than the labels on a slider or tool, and learning to see what they actually do. Other times it requires turning the software inside out, so to speak. Rich has made a career out of using software in ways the developers didn’t intend or foresee so that I could get the fine art results I expect. He will show you how he does it!
If you are ready to transform your processing, sign up today so you can start getting more from your photographs.
(Four 2 hour sessions online.) *Each session will begin at 8 PM EST. It will be recorded and made available to registered participants for 60 days.
Workshop Tuition: $299.00
Course outline
Session one
We'll learn Rich’s novel approach to using Lightroom. This approach lets you "reinvent" Lightroom and get results previously unobtainable.
Session two
Part Two will explain Lightroom's latest feature of using curves with masks. This is one of the most important additions to Lightroom ever and is a must-know tool. Learn how to use this new Lightroom feature to transform dull and murky photos into clear, crisp tones that communicate clearly. Curves are one of Rich’s most powerful tools and he will show you how he uses them.
Session Three
Part Three shows you how to see and correct color and how white balance and tint aren't always enough. Learning to see the difference between “good” and “bad” color is the key to the fine tuning that makes your photographs come alive. Rich will show you how to evaluate and correct the most common problems.
Session Four
Part Four will explain masking, which is the key to really fine tuning your photographs. Most photographic problems require local corrections to solve, and to achieve the fine tuning that turns a good photo into a great photo. In fact, this is where Rich spends most of his time when processing. Learn how to decide between local and global corrections, and how to make these corrections with refinement.
Meet your instructor
Rich Seiling
Rich Seiling’s passion for capturing light and beauty with photography has led him on a series of adventures that have shaped his vision and view of the craft. From a stint at The Ansel Adams Gallery in Yosemite as an assistant curator, to his pioneering work in digital printmaking, founding of a leading fine art printing studio, and 22 years living in and photographing the Yosemite region of the Sierra Nevada, Rich has deeply explored the vision and craft of photography while continuing to express his own vision.
He learned photography in the darkroom, seeking to make prints with the rich tonal scale exemplified by the West Coast traditions of photography. But his frustration with color processes lead him to explore digital photography starting in the early 1990s.
Combining his darkroom knowledge with digital tools led to a process for making color prints of museum quality that pushed the process to new heights. His reputation for making vibrant yet realistic digital prints allowed him to help photographers like Michael Forsberg, Galen Rowell, Jack Dykinga, Robert Glenn Ketchum, and many others, make the transition to digital fine art printing. With his team at West Coast Imaging, he has helped produce numerous museum shows, supplied prints for leading galleries, and done prepress for art books from publishers like Taschen and Houghton Mifflin.
His simple yet powerful Photoshop workflow, tested on tens of thousands of prints at WCI, is in use by many top professionals, and has been taught to countless students across the country through workshops and lectures.
Working in both black & white and color, Rich strives to capture the profound beauty of nature and communicate it through vibrant, and sometimes large, prints. He considers himself a student of light, discovering its qualities and how it communicates the inherent realities of a subject, often seeking out fleeting moments of rare light that make the landscape sing its own voice.
Driven by the belief that each photographer has a unique story only they can tell, Rich teaches the art of photography through workshops and articles. His goal is to help students unlock their potential to tell their own stories by helping them gain control of the craft, expand their vision, and most of all, to experience the enrichment and joy that photography brings.
Rich lives just outside Nashville with his wife and creative partner Susan, and his three children.
You can see more of his photography at richseiling.com and read his blog for photographers at craftingphotographs.com.