How To Cull Images Quickly In Lightroom

The word cull or culling just means to make a selection from a large quantity or obtain from a variety of sources.

Culling images after a photo shoot is an important step in creating a successful set of images. It can help to ensure that only the best images are used in post-processing and to keep the workflow moving quickly. There are two popular software programs used for culling images – Adobe Lightroom and Photo Mechanic. This guide will provide step-by-step instructions on how to use both of these programs to quickly cull images after a photo shoot.

Using Adobe Lightroom to Cull Images

Adobe Lightroom is a powerful software program that is used for managing, editing and processing digital photos. It can also be used to quickly cull images after a photo shoot. Here are the steps for using Lightroom to cull images:

  1. Import images into Lightroom. Select the folder where the photos are located, and then click “Import”. Lightroom will begin to import the images into the library.
  2. Create a new Collection Set. Select “Create Collection Set” from the menu, and then name the set. This will help organize the photos and make them easier to find.
  3. Create a new Collection. Select “Create Collection” from the menu, and then name the collection. This will be used to store the photos that are selected for further processing.
  4. View the images. Use the “Loupe” view to view the images one at a time. This will allow you to quickly review each image and decide if it should be included in the collection.
  5. Flag or rate the images. Use the “Flag” or “Rate” options to quickly mark the images that should be included in the collection. Images that are not flagged or rated will be automatically excluded.
  6. Move the images to the collection. Select the flagged or rated images, and then move them to the collection. This will put them in a separate folder for further processing.

Using Photo Mechanic to Cull Images

Photo Mechanic is a popular software program for quickly browsing, tagging and culling images. Here are the steps for using Photo Mechanic to cull images:

  1. Import images into Photo Mechanic. Select the folder where the photos are located, and then click “Import”. Photo Mechanic will begin to import the images into the library.
  2. View the images. Use the “Grid” view to view the images in a grid format. This will allow you to quickly review each image and decide if it should be included in the collection.
  3. Flag or rate the images. Use the “Flag” or “Rate” options to quickly mark the images that should be included in the collection. Images that are not flagged or rated will be automatically excluded.
  4. Move the images to the collection. Select the flagged or rated images, and then move them to the collection. This will put them in a separate folder for further processing.

Summary

Culling images after a photo shoot is an important step in creating a successful set of images. Using either Adobe Lightroom or Photo Mechanic can help to quickly and efficiently cull images, ensuring that only the best images are used in post-processing.

In this case we have a video from Adorama where we learn how to cull images quickly in Adobe Lightroom.

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