I’m visually oriented. Give me a well-designed UI and I’m happy. I have a limited memory for keyboard shortcuts. One keystroke is ok. Two is pushing it. Three or more… forget it. I especially like keyboard commands that follow some logic. Like “T” for toolbar. Maybe I’m getting old, but my brain is filling up and it takes a while for keyboard commands to stick. After using Lightroom for quite some time now, here are a few keyboard commands that have finally stuck:
1. G takes you to the Library Grid mode. (G for “Grid”. Get it?)
2. D takes you to Develop module. (D for Duh, I mean “Develop”.)
3. T turns the toolbar off and on. (T for Toolbar. Easy, eh?)
4. Left and Right arrow keys takes you sequentially through the images in the filmstrip. (Totally logical.)
5. Esc deselects the Target Adjustment Tool (TAT) in the Develop Module. (Kind of logical… and much easier than moving your cursor over the TAT icon and clicking on it, or clicking on Done in the toolbar.)
6. Command + left/right bracket rotates an image left or right. (No logic, but worth remembering.)
7. L dims the surrounding area, finally leaving the image in its full glory. (L for “Lights’. Easy to remember and a great crowd pleaser.)
8. V turns the image to grayscale in all the modules except Print and Web. (( No logic, except “v” for “very” simple?)
Recycled Keyboard commands Follows logic burned in memory from years of Photoshop use
1. Tab cycles the left and right panels off and on.
2. Command C in the Develop Module copies Develop settings from selected image.
3. Command V applies copied settings
4. Command A select all the images in the Grid mode
5. Command D deselects all the images
6. Ctrl + Click brings up a contextual menu for those without a two button mouse.
Editing in the Library Module
1. Numbers 1-5 logically selects stars.
2. X and P sort of logically select Reject (X) and Pick (P).
Keyboard commands I’ll never remember
1. Shift/alt(option)/command/T selects the TAT tool in the Tone Curve pane.
2. Etc.
Keyboard command I can purge from my memory banks
1. Command +S. This one dies hard. But there is no reason to “save” changes. Lightroom automatically does it.
Got some simple, useful keyboard commands you want to share? I have room in my brain for a few more…
PS. The first few photos shown above were taken this week at the Alhambra in Spain, and the close-up is of an African princess from Timbuktu that I met at a photo opening in Madrid.
Hi
Thanks for the roundup
Do you (or anyone else) have an idea why the copy/paste shortcuts do not work on the windows version of lightroom?
I mean, it makes so much sense, so much more then right click -> settings -> copy settings. cumbersome!
Ditto to the question about Amazon saying the book is delayed. I ordered a week or two ago and got a mail from Amazon today saying that your book wouldn't be available until the end of September - two months! (I think they'll cancel it automatically unless I tell them otherwise.)
Regarding Jakob's Command + S: You made a very good point. I won't retire that keyboard command after all!
Regarding my Lightroom book: My editor Colleen Wheeler sent me this information in an email: "Our date from the printer for Bound Book Date is July 20; the in-stock date is 7/25 which I believe is the day they get to the warehouse."
Of course I'm bummed because now I am competing directly with the new Harry Potter book... whew, can't win there!
Amazon sent me an email to say your book is delayed?? Any news.
Re-shortcuts, I am playing with Steermouse, to which you can assign some shortcuts to various mouse buttons. Good for some of the multi-key ones too.
"Keyboard command I can purge from my memory banks" - on the contrary, I find Cmd-S as necessary as ever. Lightrooms suboptimal handling of automatically updated sidecars (or DNG:s) means a Cmd-S is necessary after basically every metadata change, if you want the in-file metadata to reflect current reality.
I like to know that all data about a photo is safely stored _with_ that photo instead of just in a more or less proprietary database somewhere, so...
Handy post, Mikkel. How is your book coming along? Any idea on the release date?
Thanks - I will try adding a couple of these to my memory bank.
One I use frequently is U in Library Module which will unflag a pic (u for unflag - not too bad!)