Thoughts on C1
I have used LR since version 2 and, after switching from Pc to Mac, Aperture also. About 2 years ago I began using C1 as my primary raw converter/DAM.
I am now a convinced C1 user.
The results from C1 are in my opinion far and away the best.
I also read much of the comments posted at the various major photo sites. Based on my own experiences of these other software solutions and my general impression of the comments of others C1 is highly regarded for the image quality it renders but is most often criticised for being weak on the cataloging side and “clunky†in its functionality.
For my own purposes the DAM aspects of C1 are more than adequate but I can understand that for people who deal with much larger numbers of images this aspect of C1 may be limited. As for being “clunkyâ€; I do think there is some validity in these criticisms.
I have tried to set out below some points which may improve both the smoothness of workflow and the functionality of C1.
I would appreciate any input from other C1 users or for that matter additional items.
I know this is a user-to-user forum but other than here there seems nowhere else to air such thoughts.
I am using the latest version of C1 on an iMac running the latest version of Yosemite
Screen Views:
Hopefully I am correct in saying that C1 behaves as follows;
Switching to full screen from browser mode leaves the Tool tabs visible on screen and the Menus and Toolbar as “sliding†open.
Subsequently toggling to viewer mode brings the browser “filmstrip†into permanent view but not the viewer modes or zoom control.
To view the image only, one must exit and return to full screen from viewer mode or hide the tools and browser individually.
Switching to full screen from viewer mode leaves the Menus, Tool bar, Tool tabs and browser as “sliding†open. The viewer modes and zoom control disappear.
Upon Exit C1 exits full screen mode.
C1 always opens in window mode.
The functionality on my Windows laptop differs in that the only difference between “window†mode and full screen is that the menus and Toolbar become “sliding†from the top of the screen. The viewer modes and zoom controls are retained whatever the screen mode.
Also on Windows C1 opens in the mode it was last closed in, be it “window†mode or full screen.
The Mac functionality needs reworking to be simpler and more similar to the Windows approach with a single keyboard shortcut to hide both the Tool tabs and the browser simultaneously.
Filter options:
At present any particular filter shows the number of images with that property and a button to isolate those images. Could a second button be added to exclude images with that property ?
Library Tool Tab:
I think it would be useful to separate the Catalog collections tool from the User collections tool as I do not use the Catalog collections other than for the “all images†option.
This option could be added to the Catalog label shown in the Folders Tool or to the top level folder ?
Styles and presets:
Presently these expand out from the menu system which causes the menus to obscure the preview of the style or preset. Would not these options be better placed as a Tool tab so as not to obscure the image ?
Vignette Tool:
Could a “radius†and “feather†control be added ?
Sharpening:
Could the focus tool display the mask being applied for sharpening and some control of that mask be added ?
Print Module:
Could the print to .pdf be extended to allow a print to .jpg option ?
Could the watermark scaling function be linked to the paper size rather than the cell size ? This would facilitate the use of an image as an image border.
regards
IanW
I am now a convinced C1 user.
The results from C1 are in my opinion far and away the best.
I also read much of the comments posted at the various major photo sites. Based on my own experiences of these other software solutions and my general impression of the comments of others C1 is highly regarded for the image quality it renders but is most often criticised for being weak on the cataloging side and “clunky†in its functionality.
For my own purposes the DAM aspects of C1 are more than adequate but I can understand that for people who deal with much larger numbers of images this aspect of C1 may be limited. As for being “clunkyâ€; I do think there is some validity in these criticisms.
I have tried to set out below some points which may improve both the smoothness of workflow and the functionality of C1.
I would appreciate any input from other C1 users or for that matter additional items.
I know this is a user-to-user forum but other than here there seems nowhere else to air such thoughts.
I am using the latest version of C1 on an iMac running the latest version of Yosemite
Screen Views:
Hopefully I am correct in saying that C1 behaves as follows;
Switching to full screen from browser mode leaves the Tool tabs visible on screen and the Menus and Toolbar as “sliding†open.
Subsequently toggling to viewer mode brings the browser “filmstrip†into permanent view but not the viewer modes or zoom control.
To view the image only, one must exit and return to full screen from viewer mode or hide the tools and browser individually.
Switching to full screen from viewer mode leaves the Menus, Tool bar, Tool tabs and browser as “sliding†open. The viewer modes and zoom control disappear.
Upon Exit C1 exits full screen mode.
C1 always opens in window mode.
The functionality on my Windows laptop differs in that the only difference between “window†mode and full screen is that the menus and Toolbar become “sliding†from the top of the screen. The viewer modes and zoom controls are retained whatever the screen mode.
Also on Windows C1 opens in the mode it was last closed in, be it “window†mode or full screen.
The Mac functionality needs reworking to be simpler and more similar to the Windows approach with a single keyboard shortcut to hide both the Tool tabs and the browser simultaneously.
Filter options:
At present any particular filter shows the number of images with that property and a button to isolate those images. Could a second button be added to exclude images with that property ?
Library Tool Tab:
I think it would be useful to separate the Catalog collections tool from the User collections tool as I do not use the Catalog collections other than for the “all images†option.
This option could be added to the Catalog label shown in the Folders Tool or to the top level folder ?
Styles and presets:
Presently these expand out from the menu system which causes the menus to obscure the preview of the style or preset. Would not these options be better placed as a Tool tab so as not to obscure the image ?
Vignette Tool:
Could a “radius†and “feather†control be added ?
Sharpening:
Could the focus tool display the mask being applied for sharpening and some control of that mask be added ?
Print Module:
Could the print to .pdf be extended to allow a print to .jpg option ?
Could the watermark scaling function be linked to the paper size rather than the cell size ? This would facilitate the use of an image as an image border.
regards
IanW
0
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Hi IanW,
Thank you for your comments. Could open a fruitful discussion here with other users. However, since this is a user-to-user forum, I suggest you contact Phase One directly in a support case titled 'feature request'. This will ensure your requests are logged and passed on to R&D.0 -
Thanks for the reply Paul. I've done as you suggest but I'm also interested in the thoughts of others pertaining to these and/or other suggestions.
regards
Ian0 -
[quote="IanW" wrote:
Thanks for the reply Paul. I've done as you suggest but I'm also interested in the thoughts of others pertaining to these and/or other suggestions.
regards
Ian
The feather and radius controls on the vignette tool sound an interesting idea.
Ian0 -
[quote="IanW" wrote:
At present any particular filter shows the number of images with that property and a button to isolate those images. Could a second button be added to exclude images with that property ?
Funny I'm reading this here today. I spent all day yesterday going through a big shooting, actually the biggest batch of pictures I have been going through so far since migrating from Aperture to C1 some weeks ago. When I was finished I had a thousand ideas noted in my head for improving the workflow of C1 and one of them was this exact issue: you should be able to include and exclude in the filter section at the same time, this would save a lot of work.0 -
My workaround for irritating browser/viewer/tools/full-screen navigation, is assigning a single letter keyboard shortcut to everything i can, then it is actually quite fast and easy to navigate the interface 😊 0 -
[quote="Ian3" wrote:
The feather and radius controls on the vignette tool sound an interesting idea. ...
+1 and a centering option as well (choosing your own center of the vignette).0 -
Since starting this post I have been thinking about other aspects of C1 and it would seem to me that the emphasis in the development of C1 is first and foremost IQ followed closely by versatility.
However there are times when that very versatility creates an unnecessary level of complexity. I am thinking here of the "edit primary/edit all" variants control.
It would appear that not all functions can be applied to a selection of multiple images, some functions only act on the primary variant even when "edit all" is chosen. This begs the questions as to how the user is to know which functions act on all variants and which on the primary only?
To further complicate this matter some functions act differently if applied via the interface controls as opposed to the menu options or indeed via keyboard shortcuts!
All this throws me into confusion and causes me to wonder if this approach to applying adjustments, ratings, tags, keywords, or metadata input helps or hinders the efficiency and speed of dealing with a large number of images?
Would it not be far more efficient and faster if all functions could be applied to all images selected, be it a single image (primary) or all variants.
I have read many comments on forums bemoaning the keywording and metadata input functioning in C1 and can concur with such criticisms having tried to add location info to the images in my catalog recently. This proved so time consuming that I eventually decided the ability to filter by location was not that important to me and promptly gave up.
I would be very interested in any opinions from other users and certainly interested in any information which might help me better understand these issues or point me to faster/less onerous working methods.
Is there for instance any straight forward way of knowing which functions can be applied to multiple variants and which cannot?
Is there any straight forward way of knowing the differences incurred by input through the interface/menu/shortcuts?
Regards
Ian0
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