A question I hear frequently is: “which is better, photoshop or lightroom?” Everyone seems to have a different view. Of the countless articles debating this topic, each author tends to have a strong opinion that leans completely one way or the other. And to someone who is new at photography, all answers sound accurate and convincing – clearly making their decision that much harder.

If you are new to photography and do not want to spend hours comparing these editing softwares, here is my answer. To the Photoshop vs. Lightroom question I say:

Both!

Use Photoshop and Lightroom jointly. They each have their benefits and create a beautiful workflow when used together.

When I bought myself my first DSLR a couple years ago, I started with photoshop straightaway. Having heard that it was the most difficult but professional software – and being the perfectionist that I am – I decided that I should just start with the best. Overall, I am happy that I did so.

A lot of people begin with Lightroom and then never even touch Photoshop because they are intimidated by its many functions. So I am certainly glad that I tackled this editing software from the get-go. That being said, there are, however, many functions of Lightroom that I wish I had taken advantage of sooner.

Although Photoshop has all of the capabilities that Lightroom has (and more!), there are many ways in which Lightroom can be both faster and easier to use with certain tools. If you would like to know what those are, keep reading! 🙂 The rest of this post will give you all the details of when and how I like to use each of these editing programs.

And, if you would like to see what my photography looks like (you know, so you can decide if I am actually good at editing and worth listening to ????), feel free to check out my instagram account! Like a true millennial, I always put my favorite images there.

How I Use Photoshop:

Though there are many functions of Photoshop that I like to use on different photography projects, for the typical photo there are three tools that I mostly use Photoshop for. Those tools include the Spot Healing Brush Tool, the Clone Stamp Tool, and the Polygonal Lasso Tool. All three of these are essential for editing portraits, but also come in handy for most of my travel photography.

For photos of people, I start out by using the spot healing brush tool to remove blemishes from a persons face and fly-away hairs. Next, I typically use the clone stamp tool to fix messed up parts of a persons hair or to get rid of wrinkles and undergarment lines on a persons clothing. And, finally, I use the polygonal lasso tool to open someones eyes if they are starting to blink.

Travel photos are typically much easier and quicker to edit. Sometimes, if I am lucky, I only have to use Lightroom to edit the color and contrast levels of my photos. However, I would still hate to be without Photoshop. The clone stamp tool is fantastic for helping me get rib of unwanted objects such as trash cans, certain tourists, shadows, etc. And I cannot even begin to tell you how often I have to use the healing brush tool to remove dust from my pictures.

Now, if you are familiar with Lightroom, you might be wondering why Photoshop’s healing brush tool is necessary since Lightroom has a spot removal tool as well. But trust me, Photoshop’s healing brush is much better than Lightroom’s. So, so, so much better.

How I Use Lightroom:

As afore mentioned, the reason I use Lightroom is because it saves time and is easier in some respects. Well, the biggest way is in regards to its sync function. Though Photoshop allows you to batch edit your photos, this process can be extremely slow. If you edit a photo in Lightroom, however, and want the rest of the photos from that shoot to have the same feel, you can sync all of the settings in a matter of seconds. The sync function is literally a God-send for editing a shoot.

Moreover, I also like how easily you can combine functions in Lightroom. While I have to paint on each correction individually in Photoshop, Lightroom’s adjustment brush allows me to apply all of my adjustments together. This means I can paint on sharpness, contrast, tint, and exposure adjustments (and more!), all at the same time. Talk about handy!

Anyways, thats my opinion on the Photoshop vs. Lightroom debate. What about you? What do you use to edit your photos? Or, if you are a new photographer, was this post helpful for you? Let me know in the comments!

xo, mikéla