Lightroom 4 vs. Lightroom Classic 9.2.1

[maggiemole]

I have 2 books by the Lightroom Queen, The Missing FAQs (Lightroom 4) and Edit Like a Pro. I've been using these for some years and have always found an answer to my problems. But now I made the mistake of updating from whatever LR version I was using last week first to LR 9.4 but rapidly backtracking to LR 9.2.1 and life has gone haywire.

First I had to update Camera Raw as well, and found how horrible the new ACR UI 12.4 is, so I have uninstalled that and gone back to ACR 12.2.1 - again not really knowing what version I was using earlier, but knowing it worked OK with PS 21.0.3, unchanged. After all, it is meant to work with PS.

Then I tried using LR 9.2.1 with the adjustment brush and Radial Filter, and find that Flow, Feather and Invert are missing from the panel. I can control Feather with the Shift[ keys but what can I do about the others? I used to use Invert to change from having the effect inside or outside the Radial area but I get weird results now, unexpected changes and I simply don't know what's happening. And of course my books don't help.

I suppose there is no way I can get back all the way to LR 4? Is there any text on- or off-line I can consult?

Any help is much appreciated.

Maggie

 

[davidedric]

I have 2 books by the Lightroom Queen, The Missing FAQs (Lightroom 4) and Edit Like a Pro. I've been using these for some years and have always found an answer to my problems. But now I made the mistake of updating from whatever LR version I was using last week first to LR 9.4 but rapidly backtracking to LR 9.2.1 and life has gone haywire.

First I had to update Camera Raw as well, and found how horrible the new ACR UI 12.4 is, so I have uninstalled that and gone back to ACR 12.2.1 - again not really knowing what version I was using earlier, but knowing it worked OK with PS 21.0.3, unchanged. After all, it is meant to work with PS.

Then I tried using LR 9.2.1 with the adjustment brush and Radial Filter, and find that Flow, Feather and Invert are missing from the panel. I can control Feather with the Shift[ keys but what can I do about the others? I used to use Invert to change from having the effect inside or outside the Radial area but I get weird results now, unexpected changes and I simply don't know what's happening. And of course my books don't help.

I suppose there is no way I can get back all the way to LR 4? Is there any text on- or off-line I can consult?

Any help is much appreciated.

Maggie

A couple of things.

If you were using 9.2.1, for example, to re-edit a photo you previously edited in 4, the new tools in the later versions aren't available until you update the Process Version, which you can do photo by photo or for everything in your Catalogue. Could this be the explanation?

I'm not sure why you had to update Camera Raw as well, but what you saw was the newly designed LR-like UI. Much hated by many Photoshop users!

 

[dj_paige]

I have 2 books by the Lightroom Queen, The Missing FAQs (Lightroom 4) and Edit Like a Pro. I've been using these for some years and have always found an answer to my problems. But now I made the mistake of updating from whatever LR version I was using last week first to LR 9.4 but rapidly backtracking to LR 9.2.1 and life has gone haywire.

First I had to update Camera Raw as well, and found how horrible the new ACR UI 12.4 is, so I have uninstalled that and gone back to ACR 12.2.1 - again not really knowing what version I was using earlier, but knowing it worked OK with PS 21.0.3, unchanged. After all, it is meant to work with PS.

Camera RAW is not needed to use Lightroom Classic. Furthermore, with Lightroom Classic working properly with Photoshop, you wouldn't need to go through ACR.

However, a mismatch between your Lightroom Classic version and the currently installed version of Camera RAW can prevent Lightroom Classic from working properly with Photoshop.

Then I tried using LR 9.2.1 with the adjustment brush and Radial Filter, and find that Flow, Feather and Invert are missing from the panel. I can control Feather with the Shift[ keys but what can I do about the others?

I have not heard of this problem, I don't have this problem in any recent version of Lightroom Classic. Maybe you should show us a screen capture.

I suppose there is no way I can get back all the way to LR 4? Is there any text on- or off-line I can consult?

I think this is a poor decision, as Lightroom 4 is so old that you would be giving up a huge amount of features, bug fixes, new camera and lens support, and stability to run the software in newer operating systems. The better decision, in my opinion, is to figure out what is wrong with your Lightroom Classic and fix it, as most people do not have the issues you have.

--
Paige Miller

 

[Zeee]

I have 2 books by the Lightroom Queen, The Missing FAQs (Lightroom 4) and Edit Like a Pro. I've been using these for some years and have always found an answer to my problems. But now I made the mistake of updating from whatever LR version I was using last week first to LR 9.4 but rapidly backtracking to LR 9.2.1 and life has gone haywire.

First I had to update Camera Raw as well, and found how horrible the new ACR UI 12.4 is, so I have uninstalled that and gone back to ACR 12.2.1 - again not really knowing what version I was using earlier, but knowing it worked OK with PS 21.0.3, unchanged. After all, it is meant to work with PS.

Then I tried using LR 9.2.1 with the adjustment brush and Radial Filter, and find that Flow, Feather and Invert are missing from the panel. I can control Feather with the Shift[ keys but what can I do about the others? I used to use Invert to change from having the effect inside or outside the Radial area but I get weird results now, unexpected changes and I simply don't know what's happening. And of course my books don't help.

I suppose there is no way I can get back all the way to LR 4? Is there any text on- or off-line I can consult?

Any help is much appreciated.

Maggie

You can go back to LR 4 but like stated I'm not sure that would be the best choice. I'd say try to work with LR9 or get some other modern software. You can contact Adobe and if you have a valid licence they will provide you the LR4 download. Keep in mind that you installed LR9 so it would have created a new catalogue and merged your L4R catalogue into it. You should have two catalogues. The old LR4 one and the new LR9 one. The LR9 catalogue will not be compatible with with LR4. You'll have to use the LR4 catalogue.

Not that there aren't knowledgable here but this might be a good question to ask at the Lightroom Queen forums.

 

[Simon Garrett]

As others have said, there are a ton of new features in LR since LR4, and it's probably worth figuring out what's going wrong, as the latest version should work OK.

See this Lightroom Queen post for what's new just since LR6: https://www.lightroomqueen.com/whats-new-lightroom-classic-since-version-6/ and for new features in LR5 and LR6 see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adobe_Lightroom .

 

[Zeee]

As others have said, there are a ton of new features in LR since LR4, and it's probably worth figuring out what's going wrong, as the latest version should work OK.

See this Lightroom Queen post for what's new just since LR6: https://www.lightroomqueen.com/whats-new-lightroom-classic-since-version-6/ and for new features in LR5 and LR6 see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adobe_Lightroom .

A few bigger ones where new colour profiles, range masking, local hue adjustments, Texture adjustment, Auto is now very usable, Process Version 5 which stopped making blacks look purple at high ISO's, ISO dependant presets (a big one), customizing develop panels, hiding unused presets, presets are now .XMP files so they can be shared with PS and whole bunch of other things that are listed in that link.

 

[surrealalex]

There is a arrow in the brush tab in ACR that can be clicked on. Once you click on it, it expands and gives you all the options you are looking for. See screenshots (unfortunately only in german).

 

[surrealalex]

Sorry. Disregard my last post. You meant the radial filter, not the local adjustment brush.

The radial filter should have all the options available that you mentioned. Maybe you have a faulty installation.

 

[EliezerDinur]

The radial filter should have all the options available that you mentioned.

The OP is mistaken. The Radial Filter could never have a Flow control which controls the strength of repeated brush strokes applied one on top of the other. Opening a Rad Filter is a one-time job (although you could put separate filters on top of each other.)

IIRC, brushes within filters was introduced in a later version than 4.

 

[surrealalex]

Yes, the basic radial filter was merely introduced in LR 5. It still could not do the additional brushing or removing of the radial mask. That came WAY later.

The OP mentioned the radial filter together with the regular adjustment brush, which confused me. The adjustment brush has no invert option, it never had.

 

[graybalanced]

First I had to update Camera Raw as well, and found how horrible the new ACR UI 12.4 is,

But what they did with ACR is make it work more like Lightroom, so if you like how Lightroom works, the new ACR should be somewhat of a relief. They're more consistent now.

You might be comfortable with Lightroom 4, but if you commit to the future you will find that the current versions of Lightroom and ACR are light years ahead of what Lightroom 4 could do. Don't let unfamiliarity intimidate you. Treat it as you would a new set of professional fine art paint brushes: It may be different and harder to use than what you were using before, but if you can just put in a little patience and effort to master it, you will be capable of much more than you were before.

 

[Victoria Bampton LRQ]

Then I tried using LR 9.2.1 with the adjustment brush and Radial Filter, and find that Flow, Feather and Invert are missing from the panel.

The disclosure triangle in that panel is likely turned the wrong way. Look for a triangle near those sliders.