Adobe has enhanced Lightroom’s landscape masking capabilities in the most-recent update, and there’s a new-and-improved way to achieve precision results. Pro Austin James Jackson brings you up to speed on these important developments in the thorough tutorial below.

Jackson is highly esteemed landscape photographer, specializing in imagery of the western U.S. He also a popular educator who shares weekly beginner-friendly tutorials on shooting techniques, post-processing tips, gear reviews, and more.

You may have explored Lightroom’s  landscape masking option in the past and decided they didn’t meet your needs because there are times when results may be inaccurate and “look weird.” Some of these concerns were addressed in a recent update that included provisions for Sky, Snow, Architecture, Vegetation, Natural Ground, Artificial  Ground, and Mountains.

Jackson admits that the aforementioned enhancements have served him well when employed in moderation and he demonstrates the step-by step process he recommends. But here’s the problem: These new tools may still deliver unsatisfactory selections in certain situations unless your follow Jackson’s straightforward advice.

He begins in the develop tab, opens the masking panel, and clicks on the Landscape button near the top. Lightroom then employs AI to analyze the scene and determine the most appropriate landscape masking option(s) for the specific image at hand. Lightroom recommends  a number of masking possibilities for enhancing Jackson’s sample photo—with the selection indicated in white and other areas in black.

So far, so good, but it turns out that there’s a new Lightroom sky-selection hack that Jackson says “works even better” than the process outlined above. The remainder of the video is devoted to this under-the-radar trick  that provides sharp, refined edges between your mask and adjacent areas within the frame.

Once you learn how easy this is to do, make sure to visit Jackson’s popular YouTube channel where there’s a wide selection of how-to shooting and editing videos for photographers of all skill levels.

And make sure not to miss the earlier tutorial we featured with another post-processing expert who demonstrates how to unlock Lightroom’s latest Curves tools and create spectacular photographs indoor or out.

If you overlook Curves when editing your images you’re missing out on one of Lightroom’s most powerful tools that can easily be mastered, even by inexperienced users. Today’s beginners guide from the Adobe Lightroom YouTube channel explains how to get started today.

The goal of Instructor Kenneth Hines Jr. is to help you spend less time at the computer and more time behind the lens by offering straightforward tutorials on topics like color grading, new tools and techniques, the benefits of presets, and more. Today’s four-minute episode reveals the basics of using Curves to apply precise enhancements to brightness, contrast, and color.

Kenneth is an accomplished photographer, Zeiss Ambassador, and respected educator who kicks of the lesson like this: “There are two ways  you can adjust the tonal values of a photo with Curves in Lightroom—using the Point Curve or the Parametric Curve,” and he begins with the latter.

He pulls up an indoor photo of NY’s dramatic Oculus building with its wide range of light values. He then demonstrates how the Parametric Curve is the perfect choice for balancing out the shot. It’s a simple matter to drag up or down anywhere on the Curve to either lighten or darken the image.

You’ll notice a few sliders in the panel for making similar adjustments, but Kenneth explains why the Curve itself provides you with far more accuracy and control. And Kenneth’s effective workflow is super simple to emulate. Next on the list is Lightroom’s Point Curve and Kenneth explores situations in which when this option is a more appropriate tool, and he illustrates exactly how it works.

This time his example is an overly dark outdoor shot captured at the iconic Lincoln Memoria in DC. You’ll see how to employ multiple control points (up to a maximum of 16) to make super-precise adjustments to the Curve. Kenneth recommends starting with three points: one for shadows, another for midtones, and the third for correcting inaccurate highlights—either up or down.

Lightroom also includes a targeted adjustment that enables you to make on-screen modifications to the Parametric or Point Curve. This trick lets you selectively determine which part of the tonal range is adjusted—whether you’re perfecting contrast or another key attribute.

Be sure to visit Kenneth’s instructional YouTube channel for more great editing advice. And don’t miss our earlier tutorial from another post-processing expert who reveals a “secret” Lightroom masking technique for nature and landscape shooters who want to create spectacular natural-looking photographs.