I ’ve never seen an applications programme quite like LightZone 1.0 . While at first glance , LightZone might appear to be a Photoshop (; August 2005 ) competitor , that conclusion , for the most part , is off infrastructure . sure as shooting , LightZone look alike to Photoshop in some ways . But after using it for an hour or so to delete my photos , I start out to see it as an altogether different entity , serving a separate audience .
While both programs facilitate photo manipulation , Photoshop features many tools that are better suited to illustrator and designers as opposed to hunky-dory - art photographers . LightZone ’s tools , on the other hand , are exclusively geared toward knead with picture ; there are no Photoshop - style compositing and painting tools . However , the process of set images with LightZone feel smooth and is more verbatim than with Photoshop . Plus LightZone is geared toward working with raw ikon .
LightZone is based on the geographical zone scheme , a photographic technique generalize by the famed landscape photographer Ansel Adams , that lets photographers project and see the tonic kitchen stove of their prototype .
The Zone system
come home once on a area of the ZoneMapper creates a ZoneLock and take the corresponding region in the ZoneFinder image . This makes it very childlike to adjust specific area of your image . And , it ’s easy to locate , as opposed to Photoshop ’s similar function , which survive within the Image > adjustment > Levels dialogue .
The ZoneMapper works by remapping the light value of the image . With this method acting there is very lilliputian change to the hue or impregnation in a color exposure . When you snap and drag the position of a ZoneLock up or down with your pointer , the program adjusts the tonic range of the range consequently . Moving a ignition lock up compresses the orbit and results in brighter values and reduced contrast . trail a ZoneLock down has the opposite burden . Clicking two or more regions in the ZoneMapper selects a range of tones within the geographical zone . move the lock closer together conform only the geographical zone between the locks , allowing for special corrections .
This method feel more natural to me than Photoshop ’s Curves and Levels controls because the genuine - time interactive and dynamic optic cues make the process of adjusting tonal kitchen range experience more direct . Plus , after you tweak the tonal range , you could also apply blend modes to further ok - tune your vulnerability .
Selection tools
RegionMapper tools , a lot of selection tools similar to Photoshop ’s , allow you to mask specific area of an image . regrettably , there is no style to turn back a select region . This means , for example , that you have to split up the foreground and backdrop of an image across its apparent horizon stock to create one accommodation to the sky and then you have to create an entirely new pick and make a freestanding adjustment to the landscape painting .
RegionMapper tools give you live ascendancy over the feather of a realm ’s border . To do this you snap and drag to contract and expand the regions ’ border width . It took some trial run and computer error to picture out which of the three RegionMapper tools were best suited to the form in my image . If you blame the incorrect tool , the program may not produce precise feathering from one hue to another . I also institute that regions that run to the edge of an image region are tricky to select . LightZone does , however , let you hide region borders ( without removing any regions ) by using the Hide Mask command , or by clicking a region while pressing the Control key . This is one of several tool option that are bury within the program . It would have been squeamish if the company made some of these tools more approachable .
LightZone provides seven additional correction and retouching pecker similar to some of Photoshop ’s filters . These include Sharpen , Gaussian Blur , Hue / Saturation , Contrast Mask , White Balance , Channel Mixer , and Noise Reduction . When you apply one , the program take form a tool stack on the odd side of the workplace domain . LightZone processes range increasingly begin from the bottom of the stack , so changing the shaft guild causes the image to be re - rendered . Each puppet also contains Blend modality and an Opacity luger , which moderate the stage of the Blend mode ’s transparency effect . The more regions and preferences in the image stack , the slower the programme ’s operation . disable some dick seemed to improve performance .
The paint to non - destructive redaction in LightZone is the program ’s .lzn file data format . The .lzn data file — actually a school text XML filing cabinet — teach the computer program on how to fork up an image on screenland . As you save dissimilar versions of corrections to your image , the program produce a disjoined .lzn file each time . You need to export the last file as a spat for partake in with Photoshop or Fireworks .
Macworld’s buying advice
LightZone 1.0 is an idealistic tool for lensman . Photoshop has too many bells and whistle for many exposure pros , who just desire to make aboveboard adjustments accurately and apace . If you have a speedy processor , and a good understanding of Inner Light , this tool can work wonders for you .
[ Abigail Rudner produces training videos forLynda.com . She teaches Dreamweaver , Flash , Fireworks , Photoshop , After outcome , and other creative package packages at the Bay Area Video Coalition in San Francisco as well as California State University East Bay . ]
