Lightroom classic or Lightroom?

conanthewarrior

conanthewarrior

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133
Name
Conan
Edit My Images
Yes
Hi everyone.

I have managed to budget so I can now use Lightroom, but am unsure which version is best for me to go for.

Lightroom classic sounds good as my files are stored locally on my SSD's and hard drives, and it seems that classic also offers apply preset on import, prints and photo books and a few other things.

I do want to print my photos, and prefer local storage to the cloud, so is LR Classic a better choice for me?

Or am I misunderstanding this, and the current Lightroom allows me to store my files at home too and I can also make an image ready for printing from it as well?
 
If you're focussed more on editing on the desktop, then go for LR Classic. This will still give you 20Gb of cloud storage which is more than enough, as you can still sync your entire LR catalog to the cloud without using the 20Gb storage.

Although Adobe don't advertise it much, all of the cloud functionality exists in LR Classic as well as the new Lightroom. I use a hybrid Classic and cloud based workflow like this. You must use collections in LR Classic for this to work.

1. Import to LR Classic, apply import preset, rename the files etc etc etc. Add the photos to a collection at this point, and make sure the Generate Smart Previews box is ticked. When creating the new collection, there will be a box saying "Sync with Lightroom CC". Tick this box too.

2. Depending on how many images you're importing and how fast your internet connection is, go and have a brew while Lightroom does the import and sync with the cloud.

This will store all your files locally and allow you to work on them on your desktop PC as normal. It will also sync the Smart Previews to the cloud. The beauty of this is that Smart Previews don't count towards your cloud storage limit. I have nearly 20,000 images synced to the cloud and I'm using absolutely nothing of my 20Gb allowance. You can then cull, edit and do anything else with your images on your phone or tablet, and everything still syncs back to LR Classic.
 
Adobe have made the naming of the options for Lightroom highly confusing.

Lightroom Classic CC is the desktop / laptop version which is the evolution of the 'traditional' Lightroom - files are primarily help locally, either on your PC's HD, or on an attached external drive.
Lightroom CC is the 'simplified' version, intended to have a common interface on desktop, table or phone - files are primarily held in the cloud.

So you then have 3 options on which 'package' to get;
For ~£10 / month
1) LR Classic CC + 20Gb Cloud Storage
or
2) LR CC + 1Tb Cloud storage
For ~ £20 / Month
3) LR Classic CC + 1Tb Cloud Storage

All 3 options bundle the Phone / tablet version of LR CC, as well as Photoshop, Bridge and a few other bits & pieces.
As mentioned above, there are ways to work around the 20Gb limit if you want

I would also recommend the LR Classic CC option.

The Cheapest way to buy is to get it as a 1 year purchase via Amazon on Black Friday / Prime Day deals - this prime day, for example, 1 year of LR Classic CC + 20Gb was £69.99 - if you have already sighed up to a subscription plan, you can still buy the 1 year pack, and then just add it to your subscription - Adobe will then credit you with an additional 365 days, and it will be a year before they next take a monthly payment. Repeat the pack purchase annually :)
 
I will say that if Adobe would give Lightroom feature parity with Lightroom Classic I'd move over to the newer software. It's so much faster and just nicer to use, there is just too much missing from it at the moment to make it viable for me. And if you're interested in printing your work as the OP is it's a non-starter. A shame really as the basis for a much better LR experience is there, they're just being incredibly slow adding some basic features to it
 
conanthewarrior said:
Hi everyone.

I have managed to budget so I can now use Lightroom, but am unsure which version is best for me to go for.

Lightroom classic sounds good as my files are stored locally on my SSD's and hard drives, and it seems that classic also offers apply preset on import, prints and photo books and a few other things.

I do want to print my photos, and prefer local storage to the cloud, so is LR Classic a better choice for me?

Or am I misunderstanding this, and the current Lightroom allows me to store my files at home too and I can also make an image ready for printing from it as well?
Click to expand...


Ask yourself this: Do you want to buy an encyclopedia and keep it at home, or do you want to keep visiting the library and use their encyclopedia?

If you want to buy and keep at home, then go for Lightroom Classic, but if you want to visit the library and use theirs, then go for Lightroom CC.

Lightroom Classic is usually more suited for anyone who prefer to have their photos and catalogues on their desktop. If they're going somewhere, like going out, on a train journey, etc., they would rather take a break from using LR, leave it for some other time. Or it suits anyone who wants a laptop, but rarely take the laptop with them, and if they did, they rarely work on LR while out and about. (You would rather leave your encyclopedia at home, just go and enjoy yourself.)

Lightroom CC is more suited for those who are working at any time and anywhere. They're on a train and want to access their photos to do some editing, they're borrowing their friend's computer and want to access their photos to show off to friends, they're at a meeting and need to access the photos on the computer at work. They want to use the Internet and access their photos from any smartphones, tablets, laptops, desktops, anywhere. (You want to keep visiting different libraries in different towns, and keep reading the encyclopdieas that are there at the libraries.)
 
Major Eazy said:
Ask yourself this: Do you want to buy an encyclopedia and keep it at home, or do you want to keep visiting the library and use their encyclopedia?

If you want to buy and keep at home, then go for Lightroom Classic, but if you want to visit the library and use theirs, then go for Lightroom CC.

Lightroom Classic is usually more suited for anyone who prefer to have their photos and catalogues on their desktop. If they're going somewhere, like going out, on a train journey, etc., they would rather take a break from using LR, leave it for some other time. Or it suits anyone who wants a laptop, but rarely take the laptop with them, and if they did, they rarely work on LR while out and about. (You would rather leave your encyclopedia at home, just go and enjoy yourself.)

Lightroom CC is more suited for those who are working at any time and anywhere. They're on a train and want to access their photos to do some editing, they're borrowing their friend's computer and want to access their photos to show off to friends, they're at a meeting and need to access the photos on the computer at work. They want to use the Internet and access their photos from any smartphones, tablets, laptops, desktops, anywhere. (You want to keep visiting different libraries in different towns, and keep reading the encyclopdieas that are there at the libraries.)
Click to expand...
Never before have I read an explanation of the differences so well expressed. :plus1::ty:
 
RichardC27 said:
Except it's not quite true as you can have it both ways using LR Classic
Click to expand...
Yes, that of course is true. But the post was comparing using one variant with the other. Personally I use only LR Classic - always have, always will. I don't trust having my photos lodged on someone else's server (I HATE the term "Cloud"!).
But others have different views and needs. That's fine.
 
RichardC27 said:
Except it's not quite true as you can have it both ways using LR Classic
Click to expand...

Yes. It is true that you can use Lightroom Classic CC both ways.

But Lightroom Classic CC is really more suited for stay at home, while Lightroom CC is more suited for on the go.
 
@RichardC27 , thank you for explaining to me how to do the workaround so I can use cloud storage. Sorry to sound dense, what is a Smart preview? I've only so far been using it on my MBP, but as it doesn't go towards the 20GB cloud storage sounds great.

@Faldrax , thanks for letting me know of the best time to get deals. I don't have Prime, if I have the extra cash around Black Friday sales I will try and grab an extra year for a saving.
 
conanthewarrior said:
@RichardC27 , thank you for explaining to me how to do the workaround so I can use cloud storage. Sorry to sound dense, what is a Smart preview? I've only so far been using it on my MBP, but as it doesn't go towards the 20GB cloud storage sounds great.
Click to expand...

A Smart preview is a small image file Lightroom creates when you upload to the cloud. They can also set to be created when you import into LR Classic. They are 1920 x 1280 in size for a 3:2 photo and around 1Mb each, rather than a full Raw file. They are editable and any edits you make to the smart preview are then synced back to the Raw file. You can also set LR Classic to use the Smart Preview instead of the Raw in the Develop module for increased performance.
 
I wish they'd bring in custom crop ratios on the CC version. I use Classic CC on the iMac which works great, but if I'm writing a blog post on the Macbook away from home and want to crop a photo to be a page banner etc, I'm stuck with their standard sizes. Drives me nuts! Seems like such a fundamental thing to be missing.
 
Been wrestling with this question myself lately.

Only been doing photography for the last couple of years and never used Lightroom Classic so went straight for the new "cloud" version. Nice simple interface and I like that it uploads my photos to the cloud straight away, although I've set Lightroom to store all photos locally as well, and have an external hard drive that I back everything up to.

However, I'm finding Lightroom Cloud is becoming more and more limiting. Doing local adjustments with the brush tool is "quirky", lack of print options means I have to take stuff into Photoshop, not being able to attach a watermark on export is becoming an issue, being able to add meta-data on import rather than export would be nice etc. The cloud version just doesn't have all the bells and whistles and the more advanced my needs become the more I'm noticing the stuff that's not there.

However, 2 years and 20,000 photos in, not sure what my options are as regards now going Classic? I tried firing up Classic and told it to synch, but it downloaded and saved a 2nd, different, local copy of all the photos I already had a local copy of in Lightroom CC, plus edits and other stuff don't seem to carry over.

I think it's an important question, because I suspect you'll be stuck with the answer once you've decided.

Given my time again, I'd go Classic and use a 3rd party cloud backup service.
 
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