Do I need to upgrade from LR3 to LR4?

Been using 3 for about a year and starting to feel comfortable, do I need to upgrade? Is it that much better? BUT if I don't upgrade to 4 can I upgrade to 6 when it comes out?

My exact question too. I'd like to hear from some people as well, especially wedding photographers.

I'm happy with LR3 and probably won't jump to LR4. There are some nice new features in LR4, but I doubt I would touch them (GPS tracking, Book module via Blurb Books only, and some finer adjustment brush options).

Adobe offers an upgrade to CS5.5 from CS3 or CS4, so I'd assume when LR5 comes out, you can upgrade from LR3 as well.

Staszek wrote in post #14034045
Adobe offers an upgrade to CS5.5 from CS3 or CS4, so I'd assume when LR5 comes out, you can upgrade from LR3 as well.

Don't assume they will stick to that. They wanted to change the upgrade policy for CS6 so that you had to have CS5 in order to elligable for the upgrade but they changed / postponed that after massive protests.

I really dont know at the moment. All I can find thats new is some changes to highlight/shadow recovery, location based organisation and some video editing (oh and something about creating a photo book as well?? - surely the myriads of online services will have this covered if not beat).

The video may be tempting as the wife uses LR primarily to organise videos so some basic editing tools would be handy. The recovery tools are so-so, if I'm properly editing then I wont be doing it in LR anyway. They do look better than the LR3 versions though.

So at the moment I would say if you don't do video its not worth it. However I am a bit surprised that this is all I can find. Hopefully give it a few days and there will be more improvements that will come to the surface.

I was most of the way through a 30 LR3.6 trial coming from CS3 using ACR/PS, when I downloaded the LR4 Beta. The improvement from ACR6.4 to the converter in 3.6 was stunning, going back over old shots (RAW & some JPG's from a 300D) I might have had a camera upgrade from the improvements in LR3.6. The improvement from 3.6 to 4 Beta was almost as good again! Images that I had given up getting a usable result from in ACR6.4 now became quite usable and with very little work.
I have been reworking most of my old air show pictures, the new shadow control is absolutely superb for that, as it allows me to easily lift the details that are in heavy shadow on the undersides of the aircraft. I have to say this works well on images that have been exposed to the right, I find that using the shadows at 100% can work without introducing much noise at all, or at least at ISO400 with at worst as much noise in the shadows as I would have got if using ACR6.4 without lifting the shadows at all. Fortunately I have a Daughter in High School, so it is looking like £59.09 (GBP) for an academic license, roll on payday. And free delivery on the disks if ordered before 31 March.

Alan

In my opinion LR4 is worth the 79 upgrade and I did so already. Adobe switched its process version to 2012 from 2010 and I can say there is a noticeable difference. Its new algorythms really do a better job of pushing pixels around just like the difference from LR2 process version of 2003 to LR3's 2010. The clarity slider doesn't totally destroy photos now either. Using the new highlights and shadows sliders I can now increase the dynamic range better than with LR3. I've found that I can hold highlights of a wedding dress and shadows of a tux better in a couple of tests that I have done. Noise reduction is the same in LR4. Also LR4 has tons of controls when using the adjustment brush and the graduated filter like the ability to adjust color temperature, tint, exposure, contrast, clarity, highlights, shadows, saturation, sharpness, and noise. The tone curve panel now has a RGB adjustment mode so you and adjust channels separately as well. Also, the chromatic aberration correction feature has been greatly improved and simplified as well. It's now a simple check box in the Lens Correction pannel and it does seem to work alot better I must admit, I could never get LR3 to work quite the way I wanted for removing CA.

Those differences were all in the Basic module. Now you have basic video editing available, geotaging, a photo book module, and the print module has a few changes like being able to adjust the brightness of an image for print while not actually editing the photo like you had to before in the basic module.

Everyone wont use all of the new features and improvements they made but I think that everyone will defiantly enjoy the ones that they do use. My 2 cents.

This is a MUST upgrade. Period.

The 2012 process is absolutely phenomenal. Plus now I can geo tag my damn photos without some pay for plug in.

I must admit I knew nothing of the "process version", what it is or what it does. However after the last few comments I have been studying. It does appear to be a significant upgrade to version 2012. I didnt realise it went so far into the whole workings of lightroom and the way RAWs are converted/tweaked. Its now looking more like a decent upgrade. Why isn't this stuff plastered all over Adobes site rather than having to dig it out of various review sites?

gh patriot wrote in post #14034428
In my opinion LR4 is worth the 79 upgrade and I did so already. Adobe switched its process version to 2012 from 2010 and I can say there is a noticeable difference. Its new algorythms really do a better job of pushing pixels around just like the difference from LR2 process version of 2003 to LR3's 2010. The clarity slider doesn't totally destroy photos now either. Using the new highlights and shadows sliders I can now increase the dynamic range better than with LR3.

+1
For me the book module is better then anything I've used for free from the photobook manufacturers.

Anybody know when it'll be released?

Pete

Pete Gl wrote in post #14034893
Anybody know when it'll be released?

Pete

Now!
http://blogs.adobe.com …om-4-0-now-available.html

rusty.jg wrote in post #14034811
I must admit I knew nothing of the "process version", what it is or what it does. However after the last few comments I have been studying. It does appear to be a significant upgrade to version 2012. I didnt realise it went so far into the whole workings of lightroom and the way RAWs are converted/tweaked. Its now looking more like a decent upgrade. Why isn't this stuff plastered all over Adobes site rather than having to dig it out of various review sites?

Can you expand on what the "2012 process" is? I bought the upgrade, but want to see where the biggest improvements are by eye and by knowledge.

Does anyone know if network-stored catalogs are available now? I would LOVE to get my catalog onto my corporate network for reliable back up.

http://www.photoshopus​er.com/lightroom4

These free videos from Scott Kelby really help explain LR4. Highly recommend.

If you decide to download it, watch out for the VAT amount.

It was showing 23% a few minutes ago. I’ve informed Adobe and they say they are going to look into it.