A quick look at the new features and fixes for Lightroom and Lightroom Classic
It's mid-August, which means another round of Lightroom updates are upon us, taking the app versions to Lightroom 5.5 and Lightroom Classic 11.5. While we wait for the much bigger updates that usually roll out with the Adobe Max conference each October, let's take a quick look at what's new.
These are minor updates, so there's no supporting video (in case you were wondering). If you're behind on the bigger updates that came in June, be sure to check out my What's New in Lightroom: June 2022 blog post, and/or my Top 5 Big New Updates for Lightroom video over on YouTube.
CONTENTS
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What's New in Lightroom Classic
You may want to grab a favorite drink or snack and get comfortable because there's... well, not much, actually. We're in the gap between the bigger summer updates and the large Adobe Max announcements, so these August rollouts are typically reserved for bug fixes, and that is indeed the case for the cloud based Lightroom desktop app.
That said, there are a couple new - and convenient - features for Lightroom Classic that are worth exploring.
Those first two items sound interesting but, unfortunately, when you click on the Learn More button when you're presented with this update splash screen when launching Lightroom Classic you're taken to an Adobe page where you don't really learn much more.
THE NEW KIND FILTER
This probably falls under the "Huh, that's cool" category. I'm not sure how often I'll use it, but the new Kind filter available in the bottom filmstrip lets you quickly filter by media type within a folder or collection.
I use Virtual Copies a fair bit, and sometimes I don't want to see them - or I only want to see them - so having the ability to quickly filter the filmstrip to show only Originals or Virtual Copies, or Videos, will come in handy here and there.
Conveniently, since it's in the filmstrip filter options, it's available across all modules.
NOTE - If you don't see the filter icons next to the word "Filter" above your filmstrip, simply click on Filter to unhide them. For whatever reason, they were all hidden after I upgraded to Lightroom Classic 11.5.
ADD LEFT COLUMNS FOR LIBRARY FILTERS
For this one you'll need to be in the Library module using Grid view. When there, above the grid, you have a few different Library Filter options you can activate to help filter your images. With Lightroom Classic 11.5, you now have the ability to add columns on both the left and right when using the Metadata filter panels.
To add (or remove) a column, simply click on the tiny dropdown menu that appears in the upper right of any column when you hover on its top bar:
Previously, you could only choose to add a column and it always defaulted to adding it to the right of the selected column. Again, nothing groundbreaking, but a nice convenient update.
To learn more about using Library filters, check out Adobe's written guide here.
ALLOW PERMISSIONS TO OPTIMIZE PERFORMANCE ON macOS
This may actually be a fairly helpful update for macOS users. Since Apple added new privacy enhancements in macOS 10.14, Mojave, some Lightroom users were encountering issues accessing files. There's now a warning dialogue that will appear if Lightroom Classic detects any permissions issues:
By clicking on Learn More, you'll be taken to a handy Adobe page that walks you through the steps to provide the needed permissions to avoid running into issues (they also provide guidance on when to ignore the warning). You can find those macOS steps here, as well.
Annnnnd... that's all for the August updates. Below, I share some of the more significant bug fixes that have been addressed in both Lightroom and Lightroom Classic.
New Lens & Camera Support for Lightroom & Lightroom Classic
I'll keep the new camera support short and sweet: The Samsung Z Fold4 cameras are now supported, as are the cameras on the Sony Xperia. You can find all the details around Raw file extensions and Camera Matching Profile availability on the Camera Raw info page (keeping in mind Lightroom and Lightroom Classic run on the Camera Raw engine).
As for new lens support, there are few bigger additions that are worth calling out on their own:
The following are affiliate links, which you can use to help support my photography - at no added cost to you - if you're looking to make a purchase.
Head to the Camera Raw supported lenses page for the complete list of newly added lenses in the August 2022 updates.
Bug Fixes in Lightroom & Lightroom Classic
Many of the bug fixes included in any given update for Lightroom or Lightroom Classic are rather obscure, to the point that most users may never encounter (or notice) them. Below are the ones I've personally run into, ones that others are likely to have encountered, or ones that were the most impactful to workflows.
FIXED BUGS IN LIGHTROOM CLASSIC
DNG files have a pink cast in preview and thumbnail
Library previews are not updating
Import is creating OS-level duplicate file names
Graphic watermark with opacity below 100 turns grey upon export
Boundary Warp in panoramic merges fails
Unable to enter Copy Name
FIXED BUGS IN LIGHTROOM (CLOUD BASED APP)
Error: "Some photos were not added. Unable to copy file."
Grid overlay missing in Geometry/Rotate, Horizontal/Vertical
Filmstrip not visible in Compare view
You can find the complete list of bug fixes below:
Parting Words
As noted at the start, there's nothing to get too excited about with these August updates, although I'm pretty happy to see some of those bugs addressed.
As always, if you have any questions, drop them in the comments below!
Until next time, take care.
-MR
