Luminar 4-My Top 11 Tools

[@chiangmaicharlies]

Clearly and accurately described - a very good subjective tutorial that many will agree with. I go with your first seven choices, less so for the remaining four. There are just so many Luminar tutorials now and everyone seems to be talking about it. I still say that one app does not do everything, but boy, is Luminar close! I'm loving it.

[@stevestefani6683]

Love the tutorial, thank you. I am a real estate photographer and bought this solely for the AI Sky Replacement as a LR and PS add-on. This tool has already exceeded my expectations after only a week and your tutorial provided me with more tools for my tool belt!

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

Thanks Steve.

[@viviennenoonan5534]

Just purchased Luminar 4 after being recommended by a friend. What amazing software, looking forward to getting started, it looks so simple to use compared with PhotoShop

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

You will love it.

[@tdcrom]

Great video Dave!

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

Thanks Tom.

[@christiaanbiesheuvel1779]

Thanks, Nice helpful information!

[@achaiyang]

Nice presentation! Thank you for sharing!

[@Ksu465]

Love it!

[@JayBVideos]

Crisp tutorial in a short time. My kudos to you!!!

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

Thanks Jay.

[@daveeverett9341]

Thanks for adding to my Luminar 4 experience. Each video tutorial I find opens up new knowledge of how to use this immensely versatile tool! I plan to keep coming back. Thanks!

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

You're welcome Dave and thanks for viewing.

[@triplewinlin5576]

Nice explanations! Subbed :)

[@heying2142]

Nice and clear explanation 👍

[@fenraven]

Mystical was called Radiance in Luminar 3. :) I like it too.

[@Ilene1020]

Great one Dave. I’m enjoying exploring the capabilities of L4

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

Thanks Ilene. It is amazing software.

[@adrianvanleeuwen]

Thanks. Excellent tutorial on Luminar 4. Explained a lot. Just starting using it and this helps! Mystical and Orton effect are somewhat similar but both have different options it seems. I have used Orton of portraits, will try on Landscapes. A lot of time the 100 percent is bit heavy as my images so backing off on effect a bit gives it the right amount. I also have Landscape Pro software (from the guys who make Portrait Professional Pro). Both softwares - Landscape Pro and Luminar 4 have their pros (and cons, not many) but feature lots of build in sky replacements with software. Have a great day!

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

You're welcome Adrian.

[@epiendless1128]

This is a very useful quick start guide to the features I might need. Since other comments are addressing reliablity, I'm running a high-end PC with updated drivers and clean registry, and versions 4.3 and 4.2 force-reboot my PC moments after opening any image. Forum shows others having the same trouble, and Skylum don't seem to have a solution. But to be fair, the program seems stable since support finally got round to offering me 4.1, and I have no reason to suppose Dave is having any trouble with his copy. :-)

[@jameshakizimana9831]

Thank you, very good and on point tutorial. Learnt a lot. Thank you, and happy new year. More Luminar 4 tutorial please.

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

You're welcome James, more on the way.

[@jameshakizimana9831]

@@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly looking forward to more of your insightful tutorials pal

[@petermarshall5450]

Well done, Dave; thank you. Luminar 4 is simply amazing....I say that with a 19 year background of Adobe products (still love those too).

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

I agree Peter. I love Luminar 4.

[@robertmeyerson1618]

Thanks, Dave !!

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

You're welcome Robert.

[@barmalini]

majority of tools appear to leave too much colour in shadows, looks kind of goofy if not utterly unnatural, the sky replacement though seems interesting. Thanks for the video, will try to play with that software when have a spare minute. Any idea if it can be used as Lightroom plugin?

[@zekekropf6802]

It can

[@pedroluisgodoy]

Hi Dave,I found your youtube channel by chance, your videos are really very interesting, you explain very clearly and quickly and your voice is clear and calm, thanks for your videos. Skylum should hire you, you are much better than their videos, thanks to you I bought Luminar 4

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

Thanks for the kind words Pedro and thank you so much for viewing.

[@tirnovo3]

Hi, I like your videos, but they are only for landscape photography, but I mainly shoot portrait photography. I'd also like to see some clips of facial treatment.

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

Thanks Malin. I will do one on portraits in the near future. Thanks for viewing.

[@tirnovo3]

@@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly Thanks. I will look forward to your post.

[@peterjones474]

Just downloaded Luminar 4 after what seems like a lifetime with P/S.

[@tommynikon2283]

6-2-2020: Roger that, did the same last week. I was using Photoshop BEFORE digital cameras existed! But this L4 stuff is.....magic! LOVE it.

[@Del-Canada]

@@tommynikon2283 Same. Been using PS since it made its debut in 1990. In the eighties I use a bunch of different softwares. Amiga Paint, AmiPaint, etc.

[@thodorissiorikis8791]

PERFECT!!!!!

[@versalles2042]

Excellent tutorial.

[@D800Lover]

I just wish we could get more skies as the selection that comes with Luminar 4 will only go so far. On their website, they have some that are 25 for 42 bucks. Hope others will have some of their own that they are willing to share. But don't take this as a complaint against Luminar 4 itself. Was one of the early adopters that got it a week before others did. Will continue to support it.

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

That sounds like a good idea about the sharing. 25 skies for 42 bucks seems a bit steep. Thanks for the feedback and for viewing.

[@D800Lover]

@@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly - Thanks Dave, maybe somebody could make a 'bank' where we can all put skies into and share? It's such a great feature and the more the merrier.

[@julieaitken8840]

I took my own sky pictures. You can add those to it

[@charlesmargrave4214]

All the years of my dig collections I had a ton of spectacular sky's that I incorporated into Luminar. Works perfectly.

[@kimberp847]

n00b here: Should I be setting my Nikon D40 to be taking RAW photo files? I just got the camera from my grandparents and it's set on JPEG normal. Would NEF (RAW), or NEF (RAW) + JPEG basic be better options? I'm afraid I don't know the difference.

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

Hi Kimber. I would recommend the NEF(RAW), this gives you the highest quality and is also best for editing.

[@kimberp847]

Thank you!!

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

@@kimberp847 You're welcome Kimber.

[@stefanschubert1747]

How good is the RAW development? Would this be as good as C1 or LR? If not does it make sense to develop the RAW´s in C1 or LR, save as *.Tiff and load the Tiff into Luminar 4 for further edit? I dont have any problem with crashes etc. on my Mac and Luminar 4 runs very stable. But it would be good to know what the optimal workflow will be in order to get the best possible output quality from Luminar 4 in comparison with C1, LR or PS?

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

I am planning on doing a video that will use Luminar 4 as a Stand Alone Product. I haven't yet tried a RAW file. I work through Photoshop and use Luminar 4 as a plugin. Thanks for the feedback Stefan.

[@SkYjAcKeR666]

It handles RAW image files yes, but the Sky replacements are only jpeg, you cannot add your own RAW skies only jpegs

[@beverlybasden2648]

Thank You!

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

You're welcome Beverly.

[@e.m.72]

Thanks for the nice video! I am a newcomer in Luminar (come from Lightroom), so very helpfull. I didn't understand why you choose another layer for a new look - it makes it just more complicated, doesn't it? Is it possible to get a quick copy of the file, to be creative with a new file without touching the original one? (in Lightroom it's called "virtual copy") It would be helpfull if you write the 11 favourite tools im the video describtion. Best regards from Berlin, Elmar

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

You're welcome Elmar and thanks for viewing. I like to use a new layer when adding a Look because it keeps everything all neat in its own layer. But most importantly , if you have added a bunch of adjustments and you add a new look, you will lose all of the adjustments you previously made before adding a Look. If you add a new adjustment layer before adding a Look then the original adjustments will be in tact and you can go back and readjust them if needed. I have been examining Luminar 4 and searching for a virtual copy but have been yet to find the ability to make one. Thanks for the tip. I think it is a great suggestion and when I get some time I will do that.

[@W3junkie]

@@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly When you open any picture from Lightroom, you automatically get a copy of the original and you can choose whether to keep existing LR adjustments or start from the original file from the camera.

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

@@W3junkie That is correct. When you choose Edit in Luminar 4.

[@chiangmaicharlies]

Every picture I take is duplicated once I've moved it to the computer. One set remains in my ORIGINALS folder, and one set goes into an ENHANCED folder. That way, regardless of what editing software I am using, I will always have an original to go back to and I don't have to worry how the software treats my 'enhanced' copy.

[@damayoclinic]

Their is three different versions of Luminar 4, what version do you recommend?

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

I always update to the latest version James. You get free updates thru the year until the next Edition of Luminar comes out. They usually release a new edition every year. Right now we are on version 4.2. If you purchase Luminar 4 now you will get that version.

[@damayoclinic]

The Joy of Editing with Dave Kelly Their is the Instiration Edition, Plus Edition, and the Max Edition?

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

I see what you mean James. All of the Editions contain the latest version of Luminar 4. They are just bundling other things with Luminar 4. The Inspiration Edition gives you 25 extra skies other than the ones that come with Luminar 4. The extra skies are basically free and you still get an additional $10 off of the $89 price when you use my coupon code davekelly. The Plus Edition gives you Luminar 4 plus the 25 extra skies and Planets to be used with the new Augmented Sky Tool for $99 but you can still apply my coupon and get that for $89. Thats a nice deal if you think the planets would be something you would use. The Plus edition gives you Luminar 4, the 25 extra skies and the Planets for the Augmented Sky Tool and it also gives you the Aurora HDR Program Skylum are famous for, it you do any HDR. So basically each Edition is giving you the same Luminar 4 Program with extra content if you feel you need it. The Inspiration Edition is basically the base price for Luminar 4 with 25 extra skies thrown in that you can use with the Sky Replacement Tool. I hope this helps James.

[@claudelaroche7811]

Thank you, very helpfull

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

You're welcome Claude.

[@rjrezagholi8925]

HOW TO UNDO IN LUMINAR 4

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

Command Z mac or Control Z Windows

[@ilianokosta2832]

My wife bought this program , and is having problems , with the dark interface, the small gray titles, the upgrade into professional terms and designs. I'm afraid luminar has lost non-professional or the visually impaired with this software.

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

I am sorry to hear this Iliano. I wear glasses myself for reading and without them I would have a hard time with the interface. The reason I do these videos is to help users of Luminar to really understand the product. Hopefully these videos will help you wife. Thanks for viewing.

[@findinghouses]

Great Tutorial and really helped me. I'm a real estate agent and wanted a software that would allow me to do more detailed edits on my listing photos that I load up to my MLS system. Although I use professional photographers, I don't like to put my listings online without photos and sometimes the photographer isn't available when I first list the property. One of the main reasons I purchased Luminar 4 was due to the Blue Sky Replacement and AI tools. I've been using Luminar 4 for about two weeks and while I'm very pleased with the product, I"m having an issue with AI Blue Sky replacement tool. There have been several instances where the AI Blue Sky replacement option is grayed out. I've sent a support email to Skylar and they responded back that they are swamped with customer service requests but promise to get back to me...that was a week ago. I've searched online and on Skylar's blog and website but can't seem to find a straightforward answer or reason. Would you happen to know if I"m doing something wrong? I'm using a PC with the latest Windows 10 software and using Luminar 4 as a stand alone. Thanking you in advance :)

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

Thanks Vicky. I have had a few of the issues you are speaking of. These were images that had an unusual background. Does this seem to be the case for you? Maybe the Ai hasn't learned certain backgrounds yet. Another issue I experience is when I am replacing a sky with clouds in it, the original clouds bleed through and I have splotches in the sky. I am amazed how good the sky replacement works but it isn't perfect.

[@findinghouses]

@@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly Thank you so much for getting back to me so quickly. The day was very overcast and everything was very grey. It was the type of day that everything looked grey and gloomy. I also played around with the lighting settings when taking the photo trying to get more light into the photos so perhaps that might have cause it also? I'm glad that it just wasn't me having these issues. I am very pleased though overall with the product and plan to watch more of your tutorials. Thank you again.

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

You're welcome Vicky.

[@SkYjAcKeR666]

Luminar 4 has a very clear memory management problem. This is the whole reason I cannot commit to buy this software, great software but totally marred by this. It's way too slow even with my powerhouse of a PC, They say they will sort it out in the next update, So does that mean we have to pay for another update? So they can rip us off, or will that massive problem they have be fixed for free? They have something very cool in this product but this should have been tested properly, and clearly it was not. , so glad i didn't buy it.

[@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly]

I agree it is great software. I use L4 as a plugin so I don't see the memory management problem. Do you use Photoshop John?

[@SkYjAcKeR666]

@@thejoyofeditingwithdavekelly I do use PS yes, Was wondering the same actually, if the memory leak was also while it used PS, but I do use others now as well, Affinity, ACDSEE, On1 and ON1 is the same slow and clunky.

[@andersistbesser]

I own luminar 3 and my experience is the same. Slow and many crashes. Adobe products run fast and smooth on the same pc. I heard lum 4 is the same ao i wont buy it. I wonder if buying luminar is the right route at all. You pay 89 and you own it ok but they never fix bugs so you have to buy the next version which has also bugs.. you also dont have the cloud storage you have with adobe so the rent model of adobe dont looks so expensive anymore because you get updates and bugfixes automatically. Skylum does no bugfixes at all, all the resource go to new versions, its a shame

[@jleitten9460]

Computers

[@BluesImprov]

I have a Windows computer. . .I hear it doesn't offer everything in the Windows version. . .If that's true then forget about it. . .They lose a customer. . .I know, I know. . .Who Cares? I'm sure that will be the attitude, but I wish it made sense for me to buy it. . .But it doesn't.