ADOBE LIGHTROOM ON A DISC (Page 2): I think BurkPhoto (who I always respect for his wisdom) answered it as well as anyone could. I think any semi or serious photographer who has any...

AzYooper Loc: Sun Lakes AZ (Almost Phoenix)

burkphoto wrote:

Just don't do it! It is a SCAM.

The Adobe activation server that was used to license that product is no longer online. So if you buy it, you're stuck with a useless piece of plastic waste.

If you are a Mac user, forget it. It won't run on any Mac model introduced after November, 2020, because it requires an Intel processor. Apple ditched Intel for their own ARM-licensed processor designs.

The subscription is worth it if you think it is.

I think it is. It's a serious professional production tool, the hub of a digital imaging workflow that includes Lightroom Classic (actual successor to Lr 6.14), the full Photoshop, and the new Lightroom (relatively new application that shares your images with multiple devices via Adobe Cloud servers), plus Bridge, a little bit of Adobe Cloud storage, and some other goodies, for $9.99/month (more, if you want more Adobe Cloud storage).

There are all sorts of technical reasons why using old computers and using old software just don't make sense. The only reason that makes any sense at all is that you don't or can't prioritize expenditures on computing. If being frugal is that important, there are other options. Dark Table is one. Mac Users are probably fine with a combination of the free Apple Photos, plus $40 for Raw Power, plus $70 for Affinity Photo.

I look at it this way. My wife spends about $225/month on Spectrum cable services (Internet, low-mid tier cable, plus two receiver rentals). Then she subscribes to Netflix, Apple TV, Britbox, and Prime, another big chunk of change. So I couldn't care less about $9.99 plus tax per month for the Adobe Photography Plan.

A decent bottle of wine costs more than ten bucks. A movie ticket for a new release costs more than ten bucks. An edible LUNCH in most places costs more than ten bucks. A music CD or a "full album digital music download" costs more than ten bucks. A vinyl LP often costs $40. A full tank of gas in my Prius costs $30 to $40. If you drive an F-150 or Suburban...

This thread will go on for 20 pages of horse hockey about how unfair a software subscription is. I have no sympathy. Software is the intellectual property of its creator company. It is LICENSED, not sold. We never "bought" or "owned" any software. Don't believe it? Read the EULA (end user license agreement). It's that fine print you have to agree to by checking a box during installation.

Adobe makes their professional grade software for professionals. Anyone and everyone who pays for it can use it, but the professional community is their target customer base.

Professionals generally use up-to-date computers and software, to make their businesses run as efficiently and creatively as possible. The subscription plan includes all the updates, upgrades, and improvements Adobe adds to it over the course of the subscription. If you use it, it just keeps getting better all the time. But you have to support it with hardware that meets the minimum requirements, and an Internet connection so it can phone home frequently to make sure you paid your bill (and for updates, and to use that Adobe Cloud Server, if you choose to use that).

As I tell my young adult kids often, "Life isn't cheap. Study hard. Work hard. Play hard, but save and invest wisely. Your future you will love you for it." They usually respond with a complaint about Boomers wrecking the planet... [sigh].

Just don't do it! It is a SCAM. br br The Adobe a... (show quote)

I think BurkPhoto (who I always respect for his wisdom) answered it as well as anyone could. I think any semi or serious photographer who has any significant investment in picture taking equipment understands that what comes out of the camera is never really worthy of hanging on a wall. It needs processing, and while there are many processing programs out there to subscribe or buy, they all usually eventually have upgrades needed, or available, as the art and technology of photography continues to constantly advance.

We buy new gear, and we buy newer computers for a reason. Why would one think that the processing is a buy-once-and-keep-it-for-years proposition. Processing is changing as fast as the rest of the art of photography. Like many others, I tried many choices of everything photographic from bodies to lenses to tripods, camera bags and camera straps, ad infinitum. The same for processing programs.

Eventually you decide on the right camera and lens combos that meet your personal needs...you FINALLY buy a good tripod, bag and strap that you like, and then we get to processing. Having tried many programs over the years, I finally concluded that sticking with the leader, Adobe, was the best choice for me. You are subscribing to a constantly improving processing tool and you get the changes instantly, not once a year.

For me, Adobe and Topaz give me everything I need to process my images and they absolutely keep making them better. I think the Adobe LR/PS subscription for $10 a month gives the best ROI of anything I spend in pursuit of my photography hobby...hands down. I can't wait to see the next advancement.

ecblackiii Loc: Maryland

SIMIBILL wrote:

I am thinking about getting lightroom.
Version 5 and 6 are for sale on Ebay on a disc for about $120.00 one time purchase.
Subscription for lightroom only is $10.00 per month.
What are your thoughts about buying it on disc that adobe stopped selling in 2019.
Are the updates and lmprovements that good to pay the subscription price forever?

You may be buying a fraud. Lightroom requires registration with identification and password. I had an old disc with all that, but Lightroom cancelled the registration so I would have to buy a subscription. The disc was worthless once they cancelled the registration.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

AzYooper wrote:

I think BurkPhoto (who I always respect for his wi... (show quote)

Thanks for your kind words. I love the quote from Jim Richardson in your tag line. I still remember the night his simple, black-and-white slide show, "Reflections from a Wide Spot in the Road," a story of Cuba, Kansas, won the Crystal AMI at the Association for Multi-Image convention in Orlando, FL, August, 1983. We had seen 123 slide shows that week, many using 15 or more projectors. Jim's tasteful photojournalism and his careful editing made about 800 of us cry on command. So that tag line means a LOT!!!

I could not do what I do efficiently without the Adobe suite. Just yesterday, I camera-scanned a roll of Tri-X I exposed on the Fourth of July, 1972, as a rising senior in high school. I'd printed two frames off that roll at the time. The subject was a "Hillbilly Fourth" celebration in Travelers Rest, South Carolina. I used Lightroom Classic (LrC) and the Negative Lab Pro plug-in (NLP) to convert those raw files of black-and-white negatives to positives, then crop, adjust tones, spot, and export these files. I've digitized thousands of B&W and color negatives and slides using just LrC for the slides and the combination of LrC with NLP for the negatives.

I'd never seen these images look this good. They are posted in the Black and White Photography Section here:

https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-803858-1.html

AzYooper Loc: Sun Lakes AZ (Almost Phoenix)

[quote=burkphoto]Thanks for your kind words. I love the quote from Jim Richardson in your tag line. I still remember the night his simple, black-and-white slide show, "Reflections from a Wide Spot in the Road," a story of Cuba, Kansas, won the Crystal AMI at the Association for Multi-Image convention in Orlando, FL, August, 1983. We had seen 123 slide shows that week, many using 15 or more projectors. Jim's tasteful photojournalism and his careful editing made about 800 of us cry on command. So that tag line means a LOT!!!

I could not do what I do efficiently without the Adobe suite. Just yesterday, I camera-scanned a roll of Tri-X I exposed on the Fourth of July, 1972, as a rising senior in high school. I'd printed two frames off that roll at the time. The subject was a "Hillbilly Fourth" celebration in Travelers Rest, South Carolina. I used Lightroom Classic (LrC) and the Negative Lab Pro plug-in (NLP) to convert those raw files of black-and-white negatives to positives, then crop, adjust tones, spot, and export these files. I've digitized thousands of B&W and color negatives and slides using just LrC for the slides and the combination of LrC with NLP for the negatives.

I'd never seen these images look this good. They are posted in the Black and White Photography Section here:

https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-803858-1.html[/quote

Very nice BW set. Great JR story. Not familiar with his work, just his quote. I saved my D850 when I converted to mirrorless. It's the only camera I know that will convert negatives and slides to positives in the camera. Lots of good used ones available now, if interested.

topcat Loc: Alameda, CA

bsprague wrote:

What you get on a disc will be many versions behin... (show quote)

I haver 6.0 and I just installed it in a new computer, no problem.
It can't get the upgrades that I had on my old computer, I don't know that I can copy them from my old computer, I don't think that I can.

Darktable is a free Lightroom clone. Rob Shea has IR apps that download to it.
It is a bit of a learning curve, and I am well behind the curve, but it is an option.

jamesl Loc: Pennsylvania

SIMIBILL wrote:

I am thinking about getting lightroom.
Version 5 and 6 are for sale on Ebay on a disc for about $120.00 one time purchase.
Subscription for lightroom only is $10.00 per month.
What are your thoughts about buying it on disc that adobe stopped selling in 2019.
Are the updates and lmprovements that good to pay the subscription price forever?

-----
If you have never tried it, download the latest version of Darktable and try using it. It is free and is a very good program.

btbg

SIMIBILL wrote:

I am thinking about getting lightroom.
Version 5 and 6 are for sale on Ebay on a disc for about $120.00 one time purchase.
Subscription for lightroom only is $10.00 per month.
What are your thoughts about buying it on disc that adobe stopped selling in 2019.
Are the updates and lmprovements that good to pay the subscription price forever?

Biggest changes are the masking tools in the newest version of lightroom and photoshop, plus you get the use of both products instead of just one. Lightroom and photoshop together are $10 a month and at least from my perspective a very good buy. I used to pay $500 for a copy of just photoshop, then it went up to $700 and I would need to update every three years or so. Now the updates come automatically and I spend less money then I did before. But, the choice is yours. If all you want to do is catalog and a few basic edits then the older version might be OK. In addition to masking the new version is much better with sharpening and noise reduction, has better tools for adjusting color, and when you add photoshop then you get the benefits of layers, so at least to a point, you get what you pay for. If you need a little, then pay a little. A word of caution though. If you are buying an older version be very careful that you actually have the key code so that you can use the program. That is not a given.

topcat Loc: Alameda, CA

I mostly use elements. Giv es me most of what I want to do,