In the Darkroom: Editing in Lightroom (quick post on leveling)
![In the Darkroom: Editing in Lightroom (quick post on leveling)](/content/images/size/w2000/wordpress/2018/03/HDRimagenearRPlaceintersection281of129.jpg)
I have to make this a quick post. Most of you who work regularly in Lightroom or Photoshop already know about all of the leveling features in the Develop module. I thought I had a pretty good grasp of those features, but I find with Lightroom and Photoshop I learn something new every time I open them. It’s also easy to forget things once learned but not used regularly.
I don’t always get my photos level. I think I get pretty close, but sometimes things look a little off kilter. (Does anyone use that expression anymore?) I recently turned on the LCD level guide in my XT2, but I don’t think I like it. I spend more time trying to get that lined up than I do thinking about the shot. Sometimes photos are leveled correctly, but they look a little off because of the terrain.
Lightroom has some easy to use leveling features in the Develop module. You can do all sorts of things there to rearrange the perspective. I like using the Level feature to compare my image to the software’s thoughts on what makes for a well lined up photo. I don’t always use the program’s advice. But I realized recently that Level affects the horizontal layer, whereas Vertical will take a shot at…you guessed it…correcting the vertical lines.
Here’s a comparison of two nearly identical images (one is the JPG version, the other the RAW version). The first one uses the Level feature; the second uses the Vertical feature. The differences are subtle. Next time I’ll use either the JPG or the RAW and make a copy. The Fujifilm film simulation in the JPG version makes it even more difficult to spot the differences. I wouldn’t say one is better than the other. Maybe they’re both bad. But it’s a quick resource to add to the editing toolkit. (Note: The featured image for the blogpost is a separate HDR version.)
![Capitol Hill, Seattle, March 2018.](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5a71229df9a61eb777aa9262/1520453153603-95ZMUWU67XLWSAT2308H/ke17ZwdGBToddI8pDm48kA_SSaoz4elkj-HsZd8gX3Z7gQa3H78H3Y0txjaiv_0fDoOvxcdMmMKkDsyUqMSsMWxHk725yiiHCCLfrh8O1z5QPOohDIaIeljMHgDF5CVlOqpeNLcJ80NK65_fV7S1UWPwZyNcweDIvdeL5kotwkIXjs9g0WibSO_cU-Ijy4Pwg6poS-6WGGnXqDacZer4yQ/Capitol+Hill+leveling+example+%281+of+1%29.jpg)
Capitol Hill, Seattle, March 2018.
![Capitol Hill, Seattle, March 2018.](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5a71229df9a61eb777aa9262/1520453265757-4TA0WC64AM5F08FS2UP9/ke17ZwdGBToddI8pDm48kA_SSaoz4elkj-HsZd8gX3Z7gQa3H78H3Y0txjaiv_0fDoOvxcdMmMKkDsyUqMSsMWxHk725yiiHCCLfrh8O1z5QPOohDIaIeljMHgDF5CVlOqpeNLcJ80NK65_fV7S1UWPwZyNcweDIvdeL5kotwkIXjs9g0WibSO_cU-Ijy4Pwg6poS-6WGGnXqDacZer4yQ/Capitol+Hill+leveling+example+2+%281+of+1%29.jpg)
Capitol Hill, Seattle, March 2018.