The AutoTone command in the Library Module and the Develop Module are much improved in Lightroom 2…to the extent that I’ve gotten in the habit of selecting everything in a shoot that I’ve just downloaded, de-selecting anything that I very carefully test-shot and then exposed to get a particular in-camera result so that those photos won't be affected. Then I just click the AutoTone button in the Library Module. At least 80% of the shots…and usually all of them…are at least instantly presentable to a client or give me a good starting point for where I might want to go from there.

Here's a screen shot of a group of images as they were downloaded (yep, I'm only showing you the picks):

Here's how they looked after I selected them all and clicked Auto Adjust:

I don't have to stick with the result of the auto-toning, when I really have time to process that image. All I have to do to "start from scratch" is click the Reset button (or the As Shot button if I'm already working in the Develop Module).

Since I'm probably at the stage where I'm motivated to be really picky if I'm going to take the image through step-by-step adjustments, I'll want to see the Auto adjustment along side the final adjustment. So, I’ll first make a Virtual Copy (right click and choose Virtual Copy…unless you’re one of those “yesteryear” Mac users who still uses a single-button mouse). Then I can compare the original and the AutoTone/Auto versions side-by-side and try adjusting each from there. Sometimes I get a pleasant surprise. I don’t usually keep all those extra VC’s though…even though they don’t use up much disk space. Maybe it’s just me, but unless I feel strongly that a version has some potential, I’d rather reduce the clutter and show only the good stuff…even to myself.

One more “parting thought” on this subject: I find auto-toning particularly helpful when I’m putting collections of similar subjects together (see last week’s blog here)…especially of “abstract” things such as clouds and backgrounds. I find it’s easier to know what I can do to modify them to fit their “new surroundings” when I put them into a composite photo if I’m seeing something close to the full range of tones and colors that are available to me.

One more "parting thought" on this topic: The above is a little bit exaggerated. There are almost always at least half a dozen shots in a 200 shot travel shoot that need manual adjustment because what was important to me wasn't automatically recognized as being what my mind's eye saw. I can put up with having to adjust three-tenths of them manually before initial presentation.