Archive notice: This article was originally published on June 8, 2010. Links and embedded videos are preserved as part of the historical record.
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 for Windows and Macintosh is available now. Lightroom 3 includes a completely redesigned performance architecture that makes growing image collections easier to manage. The significantly improved Raw engine contains new tools for noise reduction and sharpening. Lightroom 3 is 64-bit capable and also offers new functions for optimising existing workflows, creative presentation options, support for video from DSLRs and integrated tethered shooting for selected camera models.
Lightroom 3 was rebuilt from the ground up to improve the application’s responsiveness and performance. Performance has been increased throughout the application to enable photographers to work even more smoothly. Images now load almost instantly. The import system has also been made more intuitive, enabling users to sort and find their images more quickly through new previews and presets. To optimise photographers’ changing workflows and adapt to their requirements, Lightroom 3 now supports importing and managing video from DSLRs, as well as tethered shooting for selected Canon and Nikon camera models.
Tools for reducing luminance and colour noise help give greater clarity to photos taken at high ISO settings or underexposed shots while retaining image detail. Automatic lens correction also makes it possible to achieve significantly better results with any lens. Users can apply profiles that correct unwanted geometric distortion, chromatic aberration and vignetting. They also have access to a straightening tool for correcting vertical and horizontal perspectives, additional presets for applying further photographic adjustment styles, three new contemporary vignetting styles, and a film-grain effect that gives images a more natural appearance.
Expanded Presentation Options for Digital Images
The options for outputting digital images have been expanded in the new version. Collections of photos can now be published to online-sharing sites. Flickr® users can synchronise their accounts with Lightroom with one click. Integration with additional online-sharing sites is possible through third-party plug-ins. Customisable print layouts provide precise control over how photographers present their finished images. The new watermark function, with options for adjusting text, size, position and style, allows professionals and amateurs to label their images flexibly. Slideshows can also be exported as video files and supplied with music and title screens.
Prices and Availability
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 for Windows and Macintosh is available now. The software costs EUR 249 plus VAT; existing users can purchase an upgrade for EUR 99 plus VAT. Recommended system requirements are Mac OS X version 10.5 or 10.6 with an Intel processor, or Microsoft Windows 7, Windows Vista Home Premium, Business, Ultimate or Enterprise, or Windows XP with Service Pack 3, an Intel Pentium 4 processor, 2 GB RAM and a screen resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels.
