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Image Presets
One of the features that LightRoom users miss in Aperture is image presets.
Aperture has it's 'per brick' presets which are quite handy, but LightRoom will save pretty well all types of adjustment as a single preset that can be applied to an image, or even set as the default settings for new images that are imported.
Aperture doesn't have these 'whole thing' presets. Or does it?
It does, sort of, via Lift-n-Stamp. What I've suggested in the past is to set up a small project containing multiple Versions of an image, each with their own adjustments. Then use Alt/Option-click to open up two Browser panes at once, allowing you to see thumbnails of your preset Versions next to the Project you are actually working on.
Then it's simply a case of copying and pasting adjustments from one to the other, which is easier in Aperture 2 given the new 'Lift Adjustments' command.
This is a suggestion that has got me all sorts of varied responses in the past, mostly positive but a few 'we don't want no stinking workarounds here' mixed in there as well.
Is it as integrated as LR's presets? No.
Is it as handy as having presets applied on import? No, definitely not.
Does it work? Sure!
Anyway, if you fancy giving it a try, I've updated my presets download for Aperture 2, and included the Master file so that you can easily add your own. Oh, and this one has a few new presets compared to the previous version...
http://aperture-assistant.com/freebies
Ian
Thanks Ian!
It would be a great addition to Aperture if they add global presets.
It's really a different way of going about the same thing. Most of the time, the presets in the bricks are all I need. And from what I can tell, a lot of people aren't taking advantage of those.
I like your "Presets Project" idea a lot, and I think it's a nice addition to power processing with this app.
And don't overlook that Aperture is scriptable via AppleScript and Automator.
What a brilliant idea! This is a perfect example of how a well designed systems enables "flowers to bloom" in unexpected ways. I actually prefer this to how lightroom does it - even though it is "baked in" - since you see a real preview of the kind of effect you're applying. Bravo.
derrick-
i am using presets in the bricks, but you can only apply one at a time, and only to one photo at a time (as far as i can tell). this isn't the same as what lightroom can do, or ian's workaround.
and while setting up apple scripts or automator actions is nice to have, very few people know anything about doing this. me included.
isn't the most elegant way to get this done found in lightroom? how hard would it be to introduce this functionality into aperture?
Good tip!
I'll be trying it out in my workflow. I tend to go back to the last similar project and lift/stamp from there ... so close it woulda kicked me in the head if I'd thought about it any longer. Having a "library" of settings groups is a great idea.
What a great tip to share, and thanks for the presets. I already tried a few. More! More!
Great tip Ian. A smart work-around that works like a charm.
Let's hope that Joe Schorr and the Apple Aperture team bake this into the next release.
Thanks everyone!
Unfortunately AppleScript & Automator don't help in this case, as there's no scripting access to image adjustments. :-( If scripting support gets added in that area I've got a whole bunch of ideas ready to implement...
One thing I particularly like about Versions as image presets is the ability to categorise and organise them like any other image, eve down to putting comments in the Caption field or keywording them.
Ian
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