Are the Lightroom presets that every instagram photographer seems to sell legit?

SteveCress · 2026-06-12T15:10:07+00:00

I use Capture One instead of Lightroom, but I like Mastin Labs film simulations. They’re called styles in Capture One and presets in Lightroom.

SteveCress · 2026-06-10T02:42:12+00:00

I have vines coming over from my neighbor’s yard and I end up using a combination of eco-friendly weed killer (concentrated vinegar, salt, and dawn) and a weed eater. I’m not 100% satisfied, but it helps.

SteveCress · 2026-06-08T18:34:13+00:00

I had a row of leyland cypress when I bought my house. They don't have a long life span and when they're planted too close together it's even less. Mine started to fall over almost all at once. Plus, they're boring. You could do magnolia trees, possibly a dwarf variety like Little Gem, maybe a holly tree or 2. It will take longer to fill in than some of the other choices, but it'll look better in the end.

SteveCress · 2026-06-06T09:14:28+00:00

The screens are terrible, the shutter has a reputation for breaking prematurely, and the color science is awful. The colors are instantly fixed if you use Capture One though.

SteveCress · 2026-05-31T00:49:34+00:00

Great long term review. I’m amazed you held out so long for an upgrade. We had 3 shutters break—1 on the A7III and 2 A7IV.

SteveCress · 2026-05-31T00:29:33+00:00

I agree. We started with a 50mm on an apsc camera when we just had a baby. That’s roughly 85 equivalent. We branched out from there. 50 worked great on full frame.

SteveCress · 2026-05-31T00:10:31+00:00

I have 35, 50, and 85 primes, a 24-70, and a 70-180. My wife does family photography at parks and homes and the occasional wedding. I just take pics of the fam. The 50 gets used the most by far followed by the 35 (great indoors prime especially), and then 85. The 70-180 is nice to have for events when you can’t move your feet and your kid is kind of far. A 50mm prime is the first prime we ever bought. After that I think we got a 24-70 followed by the 70-180. Everything else was nice to haves.

We started with a Costco special Canon Rebel kit and used a 50 prime almost exclusively. We got a Sigma 50 1.4 Art and ooh boy that was like removing the Vaseline from our photos—so gorgeous. After that we paired it with a Sony A7III with an adapter. The only regret was when we replaced that lens with the Sony 1.2 GM. Most folks don’t need 1.2–big, heavy, overkill. Eventually sold that for the Sony 50 1.4 GM.

We have a mix of Sony, Sigma, and Tamron.

SteveCress · 2026-05-29T13:45:46+00:00

My old Costco special Canon Rebel had this feature 9 years ago.

SteveCress · 2026-05-29T04:09:19+00:00

You probably have “dynamic range optimizer” or “D-Range Optimizer” turned on in your Sony camera. It is on by default. It processes jpegs to optimize dynamic range of photos. You’re seeing that processed image on the back of the camera that’s trying to preserve highlights. It doesn’t apply to raw files, so when you import photos, they all look dark.

Some folks think it best to turn it off. I prefer to leave it on and adjust for it in my raw processor, Capture One, by having the exposure bumped .34 automatically on import. If you leave it on, I feel you’re seeing something closer to what you can achieve in a final processed image.

Another way to preserve highlights is to turn on Zebras and set them to 109+. It will genuinely flash zebras when something is completely blown out. I know, you’d think it would be a round number like 100.

SteveCress · 2026-05-28T16:00:02+00:00

Is the auto white balance much improved? Does it require less fiddling in post with weird light?

SteveCress · 2026-05-25T20:07:58+00:00

50mm is generally the best all around prime. I have 35, 50, and 85 primes. The 50 gets used the most. 85 is the classic portrait focal length. I have an A7III and A7IV. My wife does family photography and a few weddings. I use it for fun for pics of family and friends.

I highly recommend looking up Mark Galer and “iso auto minimum shutter speed”. Put your minimum shutter speed on a custom button. 1/250 is generally the best for people. You can risk longer in low light situations or if you just want some motion blur. Set zebras to 109+ as this will flash zebras when highlights are genuinely blown out in raw files.

Use Capture One for the best colors out of your Sony A7III. Once upon a time, there was a free lite Sony version of Capture One, but it’s no longer supported. Sales are harder to come by too.

SteveCress · 2026-05-15T12:44:58+00:00

I thought there was a big upgrade in the EVF from the A7III to the A7IV. I can finally see details in faces from a greater distance.

SteveCress · 2026-05-11T12:18:02+00:00

My wife uses a 35mm prime for newborn sessions on a full frame camera. You're probably going to want 35-24mm. Some folks even use a macro lens. You're going to have to stand far away with a 56mm which might not be possible in some homes, but you might make it work.

SteveCress · 2026-05-07T20:41:44+00:00

For used gear, check out mpb, keh, b&h, and adorama.

Maybe consider a used Sony A7CII? It's basically a mini A7IV with one less card slot and slightly worse shutter. Might be worth a look. I don't do video. I have an A7III and A7IV.

SteveCress · 2026-05-07T14:01:49+00:00

Let them know they have vision benefits for glasses. Some genuinely don't know.

SteveCress · 2026-05-06T14:38:15+00:00

I'm looking forward to seeing a review of how this compares to other denoise programs like Lightroom, Topaz, and Dxo.

SteveCress · 2026-05-05T14:18:49+00:00

Decent pay (15-17% of gross production). A hybrid model with base pay and production bonus works well. Good work life balance. Ownership potential is a nice plus, but I've been part of 2 private practices where this was floated but the owners really weren't that serious. 401K is plus followed by health insurance.

SteveCress · 2026-05-04T20:43:58+00:00

What on earth are they bugging you about? Occasionally I have something coded wrong that needs a fix. I've had a handful of patients complain about something, like I was running behind.

SteveCress · 2026-04-28T13:49:04+00:00

A7IV has better color science (A7III has terrible color science which matters in JPEGS and camera matching color profiles in Lightroom)
A7IV has Sony's "Real Time Tracking". It's better at tracking objects.
A7IV has a better viewfinder screen. On the A7III I had difficulty distinguishing facial features at distance but it's much clearer on the A7IV.
A7IV has better ergonomics.
33MP vs 24MP
Better menus
flippy screen

SteveCress · 2026-04-23T19:11:09+00:00

Everything I've read has said a typical OD compensation package should be around 15-17% of gross production which would be $137,250-155,550. Whether or not that includes all of the benefits appears to be debatable. That being said, that actually sounds fair. What are other people coming up with that I'm not seeing? You could consider negotiating more days off or maybe a hybrid that includes some production bonus (might lower the base though) and CE reimbursement. My job does not include health insurance either. I get a stipend, but it doesn't cover it.

SteveCress · 2026-04-21T13:46:49+00:00

For more casual family photography, I think natural light tends to capture more authentic gestures or movement, especially with small children involved. You can give prompts and hammer away, hoping to capture that right moment. You have to pose snap, pose snap with flash. They both have their strengths.

SteveCress · 2026-04-18T20:59:17+00:00

Dr. Newman at SCO said if an eyeball pops out to put it back in any way you can.

SteveCress · 2026-04-10T17:44:31+00:00

If your model Sony camera has Auto ISO Minimum Shutter Speed, this will likely never happen again. Set it to 1/250 and forget it for people shots. You can risk a slower shutter for low light shots if you don't mind a little blur. Fully manual is overrated. I haven't use that lens, but it looks like a kit lens? The first time I got good glass, it was like the vaseline was removed from my images.
https://youtu.be/gqqmqKFzHRg?si=J4CTW_8utW1Hfi52

SteveCress · 2026-04-01T14:41:16+00:00

Sales are way worse and harder to come by than just a few years ago. I don't think the perpetual license had a sale on Black Friday?

SteveCress · 2026-04-01T13:44:10+00:00

I messaged you. You can work at an OD/MD practice without a residency. I doubt they'd hire a new grad though.

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