Why do Lightroom Library and Develop show different color and exposure?
Asked 1/18/2016
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2 answers
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In Lightroom CC 2015.2.1, my RAW Canon CR2 files often look different between the Library and Develop modules before I make any edits. In Develop, the image appears noticeably darker and shifts toward red compared with Library, especially on low-light images. This makes it hard to know which version is accurate before sending the file to Photoshop. I’m not knowingly applying any import presets or adjustments. What causes this mismatch, and how can I fix it?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
10y ago
2 Answers
4
It looks from your example images as though it could be a colour management issue. Lightroom uses different colour spaces for the Library and Develop modules, as explained here. (Key excerpt below)
Lightroom primarily uses the Adobe RGB color space to display colors. The Adobe RGB gamut includes most of the colors that digital cameras can capture as well as some printable colors (cyans and blues, in particular) that can’t be defined using the smaller, web-friendly sRGB color space.
Lightroom uses Adobe RGB:
- for previews in the Library, Map, Book, Slideshow, Print, and Web modules
- when printing in Draft mode
- in exported PDF slideshows and uploaded web galleries
- when you send a book to Blurb.com (If you export books as PDF or JPEG from the Book module, however, you can choose sRGB or a different color profile.)
- for photos uploaded to Facebook and other photo-sharing sites using the Publish Services panel
In the Develop module, by default Lightroom displays previews using the ProPhoto RGB color space. ProPhoto RGB contains all of the colors that digital cameras can capture, making it an excellent choice for editing images
Unfortunately, there doesn't appear to be any way to set Lightroom to use the same colour space for both the Library and Develop modules.
To help you adjust your photos correctly for printing, Adobe suggest:
In the Develop module, you can also use the Soft Proofing panel to preview how color looks under various color-managed printing conditions.
and:
When you export or print photos from Lightroom, you can choose a profile or a color space to determine how the colors you see in Lightroom will appear on the device you’re sending the photo to. For example, you can export using sRGB if you’re going to share photos online. If you’re printing (other than Draft mode), you can choose a custom color profile for your device.
Originally by user48070. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user48070
10y ago
0
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This is most likely a color management/display profile issue rather than Lightroom randomly changing your RAW files.
Lightroom uses different rendering paths/color spaces in Library and Develop, so a bad or incompatible monitor ICC profile can make the same image look different between those modules. The symptom you describe—Develop appearing darker and more red—is consistent with that.
A practical fix reported by others is to check your monitor color profile in Windows and set it to a standard sRGB profile to test. If Library and Develop then match much more closely, the monitor profile was the problem.
In short:
- the file itself usually isn’t changing
- the display/profile pipeline is the likely cause
- test with an sRGB monitor profile or recalibrate/profile your monitor properly
If this resolves it, you can then create/use a correct calibrated display profile for more accurate editing and printing.
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