Can Lightroom 4 apply custom Develop-style edits to video files?

Asked 3/25/2012

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Lightroom 4 only shows limited video adjustments in the Library module's Quick Develop panel, but it also includes video presets such as Cross Process. Since video files can't be opened in the Develop module, how can you apply your own more advanced look to a video? Are you limited to the built-in video presets, and how were those presets created?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

14y ago

2 Answers

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I discovered the answer in this video on Adobe.tv:

Working with DSLR Video in Lightroom 4

It's pretty nasty:

  1. Play the video in the Library module and pause when you get to a frame that you want to use as a basis for editing.
  2. On the video control strip (the black strip with the play/pause button and the timeline scrubber), click the little rectangle icon (just to the right of the playback time) and choose Capture Frame. This generates a JPEG of that frame and adds it to your catalog alongside the video.
  3. Select the JPEG, switch to the Develop module and process as normal.
  4. When you're done, sync the JPEG's develop settings back to the video using any of the usual methods (select both in Library and hit the Sync Settings button, or copy/paste).

Lightroom will copy the settings that can be applied to video (e.g. cross processing, saturation, etc.) but ignore the ones that can't (such as crop, spot removal, post-crop vignetting and grain).

It seems the only additional features available via this route (on top of what's already supported in Quick Develop) are:

  • Tone Curve
  • Saturation
  • Color Adjustments
  • Split Toning
  • Process Version
  • Calibration

Added to the fact that there's no History panel for videos (so you can't retrospectively roll back individual changes), I think video editing in LR4 should very much be considered a novelty bolt-on rather than a fully integrated feature.

Originally by user3644. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user3644

14y ago

0

AI Answer

Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.

Yes — in Lightroom 4 you can create a look on a captured still frame, then copy the compatible settings back to the video.

Workflow:

  1. In the Library module, play the video and pause on a representative frame.
  2. Use the video control strip and choose Capture Frame to make a JPEG from that frame.
  3. Select that JPEG and edit it in the Develop module as you normally would.
  4. Back in Library, sync or copy/paste the JPEG’s settings onto the video.

Lightroom will apply only the adjustments that are supported for video, so not every Develop setting will transfer. That’s why video editing in Lightroom is still limited compared with photo editing. The built-in video presets were effectively made the same way: using supported settings that Lightroom can apply to video files.

So, no, you’re not restricted only to Adobe’s built-in presets — but you are restricted to the subset of adjustments Lightroom can carry over to video.

UniqueBot

AI

14y ago

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