CanonTom Loc: Birmingham

Have been study lightroom, etc. I have seen posts here indicating it is one of the best if not the best software available and I do not doubt that.

My question does not have to do with what the programs are capable of. It does not relate to what anyone thinks about their pricing plans.

My question has to do with live support. As a newbie to this software am I going to be able to to go online and actually talk to an expert who will take time with me when I cannot understand how something works? From several posts on this forum, I seem to be getting the vibes that I will have to figure out most things from either reading, or asking folks like you. It would be great to be able to have an expert from Adobe to get involved when needed.

If you are an actual Adobe user, I would value your experiences. Thanks, tom

brucewells Loc: Central Kentucky

Adobe is not going to teach you how to post-process your images. They don't have your vision of what you want the image to look like. Their role in this is simply to provide the tools that allow you to create the image and process it to your passion.

They provide instructional videos that tell how the tools work, as do lots of other sources, but the impetus is on you to learn it.

I will tell you that the number of sources out there for learning the Adobe tools is phenomenal. And every user has their personal choices of those sources.

I chose the book, "Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classroom in a Book", available from Amazon and others. Start at page one and by the time you get to the end of the book (about 2 weeks for me), you'll have a viable knowledge of HOW the tools work. After that, it's up to you to provide the creativity.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Based on my limited experience with live phone support, it can be hit or miss. If all goes well, fine. If you can't understand the person, or if they can't find a solution and keep putting you on hold to get more info, well, that's a waste of time. I prefer email or chat.

via the lens Loc: Northern California, near Yosemite NP

Actual Adobe user and have called Adobe on a couple of occasions. Something to know, if you call during the work week you will most likely get a technician from within the states, but not always. Calling in the off hours means you will get a technician from somewhere else, it seems most often India. The only issue with this is being able to understand what the technician says to you but they are very patient. The technicians I've had are great and incredibly helpful and very nice. At one point a while ago, due to my stupidity, I was on the phone with Adobe for an hour, with the technician taking over my Mac, and together we solved a problem that his technical guys, whom he consulted with, said could not be solved...we were both excited by this (it was my entire photo catalog at stake). Another time, more recently, I called and the tech took over my computer to solve a problem, although he misunderstood, most likely my fault, and set the program back to an older catalog (luckily I know the program well enough to correct most problems and I corrected what he did). They have always been great at helping me when I needed it and they are, as I've said, always nice and good to work with. The Adobe user manual, which many people seem to forget about, is very helpful too when first starting out; read the manual first when having a problem and you might be able to trouble-shoot on your own for the most part. I like the Martin Evening book on LR, you can get it in digital form or hard copy. He is very organized in his approach. I'm not a video user but others seem to be and will most likely tell you about some videos. I like to get into great detail on the program and books allow me to do that. As a result, I'm Adobe certified and teach LR at a local college. I love the program and it allows me to manage my many images quickly and easily. Study the Library Module, again the manual, in-depth since you will need to understand that module completely in order to take advantage of the program.

CanonTom Loc: Birmingham

Thanks Bruce.

CanonTom Loc: Birmingham

But you do get a viable helpful response? That is good to know. Thanks jerry.

CanonTom Loc: Birmingham

Thanks. Good input and advice.

rgrenaderphoto Loc: Hollywood, CA

Adobe tech support is for program installation and operational errors, not how to do stuff. Plus, if you have sufficient time to sit on hold with Adobe support, you can look it all up on the YouTubes.
Which is really your best source of learning the ins and outs of photo editing software.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Tom, I was at Nikon, Melville yesterday getting some camera gear serviced. At the counter were two young ladies. The first was insisting that they expend every effort to rush a repair, because she had a job coming up this weekend and needed her camera. The tech was trying to be accommodating, but told her that without an NPS membership, there was little he could do but mark the repair as a "RUSH" and she might consider renting or borrowing a camera for the job. She walked away in a huff, not happy with the response. The second was complaining that the camera was faulty because she could not focus her D5600 using live view at night. Clearly a case of inflated expectations, and the tech was most accommodating and gave her a quick tutorial on how to use live view. In the meantime, I had to wait about 25 minutes until they were done. I participate in NPS - but since I was not in a hurry

The moral to the story is that what first lady really needed was a backup camera and lens, and not rely on Nikon service for situations like this.The second lady needed a basic course in camera operation and capability. In both cases they tried to rely on a repair tech to help them through their issues.

How do these two stories apply to your concerns?

When you buy software, the same rules apply. You buy it, but if you can't figure things out on your own, or search the internet for specific answers to your questions, you should buy training and/or books to help you. Alternately you could join a local photography club where you will find lots of people in your situation and lots of people with the expertise you seek and the desire to help you. One thing you cannot (and should not) do rely on live tech support, which is intended to deal with very specific configuration-based issues, as a substitute for the above. The cost of software rarely includes training, which is considerably more expensive than the software in most cases.

dcampbell52 Loc: Clearwater Fl

Adobe's job is not to teach but to provide technical support. There are plenty of people or companies that provide how-to support for the programs. Anthony Morganti has free how to videos on his website for anyone that wants to watch. There are many others (both free and paid) available.
http://www.anthonymorganti.com/category/lightroom-training/

Scott Kelby and Laura Shoe provide Pay for Support or classes too.

Notorious T.O.D. Loc: Harrisburg, North Carolina

I had trouble installing CC on my computer and used the chat to get help from Adobe. It took about an hour but we were able to get it successfully installed. So, that experience was good. As far as learning how Lightroom and Photoshop functions I use the internet, YouTube and a video training I purchased from Laura Shoe. I can highly recommend Laurs Shoe's training. It has been very helpful to me.

Best,
Todd Ferguson

CanonTom Loc: Birmingham

Thank you to everyone who commented. I guess I gave the impression that I expected them to do my PP for me. Not in the least, but I have read of many cases where someone had trouble getting their collections setup correctly for example. Seemed to me that they needed assistance in how to navigate the programs, possible some additional support in getting the installation setup correctly and how to understand the methodology in use, primarily because we are not all computer experts.

My concerns are primarily in that once I get it installed or if I have a problem with installation and navigation of the programs, could I get good, professional technical assistance. The answers I got here indicate that I can.

I am not interested in them "developing" my pictures. That is based on what I want them to look like as it should be.

Tom

PhotoTime Loc: SW Ohio, USA

Can you tell me what a "NPS Membership" is?
Thanks, Joe

DWU2 Loc: Phoenix Arizona area

The only time I've ever called Adobe was about a billing issue. From the various well-written books, web sites, support forums, and Youtube, I've found everything I ever needed about Adobe products. The thing about Adobe is, they're so ubiquitous in use that help is readily available.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

Part 1: Assuming skilled employees cost about $100 an hour and you pay $10 a month for Lightroom, how many minutes of telephone help does each customer get per month? Unlimited telephone support is a business model that does not work.

Part 2: Adobe provides user forums that work much like UHH. Users ask questions and other users answer them. After awhile I got to where I was very comfortable with Premiere Elements and somewhat comfortable with Lightroom. I began being one of the users that could answer some of the questions. I fell into a habit of trying to find someone that I could help about once every day or so. My reward was the joy of helping someone and that I usually learned something by researching answers.

A few months ago, I got an email that I thought was spam. It was repeated and I continued to think it was spam. Finally I paid attention. Adobe invited me to be what they call an "Adobe Community Professional" or "ACP". I was asked to continue my habit of answering questions and, for their part, they would give me an annual subscription to the full package.

The point regarding this topic posted by CanonTom is that there are LOTS of people like me scattered around the world that, for the joy of it, provide direct support for Adobe products in a forum format just like here. The difference is that the Adobe forums are much more focused. Each product has a separate forum.

The Adobe forum for Lightroom (now called "Lightroom Classic CC") is https://forums.adobe.com/community/lightroom/lightroom-classic-cc.