Lightroom CC 1.1 Adds Curves, Split Toning

The first update to Lightroom CC has just been released, adding a few features that should please folks. The changes mostly focus on additional ways to edit images, but there are a few other nice features that affect how you work with the application. Look for a notice in the Creative Cloud app on your computer.

As a quick reminder, I’m talking about the new Lightroom CC, introduced in 2017, which is built around cloud synchronization of your photo library. Lightroom Classic CC, which was also updated today, is the latest version of the application photographers have been using for years. (Adobe is developing both of them in tandem.) You can read more about them in an earlier post, “Meet the New Lightroom CC.”

And don’t forget that I’ve just published a book that’s all about Lightroom CC! Take Control of Lightroom CC is a 133-page ebook that covers everything you need to know about the new application (for Mac or Windows), and also includes a chapter on how to make Lightroom CC and Lightroom Classic CC work together.

Tone Curves

For people who prefer to edit tones using curves instead of sliders, the new Tone Curves tool is a compact and powerful option. It has two modes: the Parametric Curve identifies lights, darks, shadows, and highlights as you move the mouse pointer over the curve, and limits adjustments to only vertical movements for any point you specify. The Point Curve mode lets you add multiple points along the line. Of course, you can independently edit the red, green, and blue channels using the Tone Curve tool, too.

Split Toning

Split Toning, found in the Effects panel, applies colors to highlights and shadows for stylized effects.

Sensei Auto

The Auto setting in the Light panel is now powered by Adobe Sensei, the same neural network technology that powers search. When you click the Auto button, Lightroom CC uses data gleaned from “tens of thousands of professionally edited photos to create a beautiful, pleasing image,” according to Adobe. I often use Auto as a starting point, and so far in my testing, the results have been impressive. (The new Auto feature applies to all of the Lightroom products, from Lightroom Classic to Lightroom Mobile.)

Before:

After:

You’ll also see a new toggle switch for the Tone Curves and Split Toning controls that temporarily turns the effect on or off. You can also just click the tool’s title.

Full Screen View

It’s a small convenience, but one I’ve missed from Lightroom Classic: when you’re viewing a photo in Detail view, press the F key to view the image full screen. You can also choose View > Detail – Full Screen. It only works from the Detail view, though; you can’t invoke full screen when looking at your photos in one of the Grid views.

Change Capture Time

Lightroom CC is still fairly rudimentary when it comes to metadata, but this is a handy tool (perhaps necessitated by the recent switch out of Daylight Saving Time in the U.S.?). In the Info pane, click the Edit Date and Time button (a pencil icon near the Captured field) to change the data. To edit multiple photos, select them in the Grid view. Although the date and time for only one photo appears, making the change adjusts them all relative to that one.

I’m working on updating Take Control of Lightroom CC to include these new changes, and we’ll get it out as soon as we can. (Anyone who owns the book gets the update for free.) If you don’t yet own a copy, be sure to pick one up at the Take Control bookstore.

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