Adobe just released their fall update with a host of powerful features that we’ll cover extensively in the coming days. Today’s video from the PHLOG Photography YouTube channel takes a deep dive into Lightroom’s new Variance tool that one expert says, “easily fixes a BIG problem in seconds.”
Instructor Christian Mohrle is a highly acclaimed German landscape photographer and someone we often rely upon to evaluate new post-processing tools and techniques. Be sure to download his demonstration Raw file with a link beneath the video so you can follow along and make the adjustments yourself as the simple steps are explained.
The Variance tool can be found by navigating to Lightroom’s Color Mixer panel, and then choosing the Point Color menu where you’ll find the new slider. Mohrle’s overview begins by using the eyedropper to pick a color—in this case, a blue spot in the sky. Now you can use the familiar sliders to modify hue, saturation, and luminance as always.
But there’s also a Variance slider that works like this: “If I push it up the different blue tones in the sky become a little more separated. On the hand, all of the blue colors appear closer together as I move the slider in the opposite direction.” As you’ll see, the simple Variance slider can be particularly helpful useful when there’s a polarizing filter on your lens.
Mohrle is a firm believer in applying a few basic adjustments to prepare the original shot as much as possible to prepare it for the masking magic that follows. He starts this edit by changing the profile to Adobe Landscape for an immediate boost in overall saturation. Mohrle then carefully increases exposure, being mindful of retaining details in the highlights. He separately deals with some shadow clipping in the darkest areas within the frame.
Other preliminary enhancements include warming up the shot, increasing texture and clarity, and boosting midtone contrast. He then turns his attention to Lightroom’s Details panel and eliminates a bit of unwanted noise.
The reminder of this eye-opening workflow is devoted to selectively using the Variance slider to refine the sky and applying other masks to fix problem areas that still exist. The impressive transformation concludes with final color grading, sharpening, and cleanup. There’s much more to learn on the PHLOG Photography YouTube channel for beginners and experienced Lightroom users alike.
Outside my window, the city is bathed in autumn rain. That damp chill is in the air, and it feels as if the water has washed away all the warm colors from yesterday’s palette, leaving only the cold ones behind. No, I’m really not tempted to go outside today.
As a nature photographer, I am often absolutely captivated by the subjects I photograph. One of the clearest examples of this occurred during a trip, which I would define as a pilgrimage, at high altitude in the Alps. I was on the trail of the Bearded Vulture, a winged giant whose presence tells the story of an ecosystem’s rebirth.
