Lightroom can be CONFUSING to say the least.
I know that when I first started using it I had to watch Youtube video after Youtube video to figure out what all of the different elements of the program were.
It took me a while to feel 100% comfortable with the program. When I learned how to use quick keys, it made my post processing so much smoother. I was able to double up on the amount of work I could complete in a shorter amount of time.
To make all of your lives easier, I put together a list of shortcuts.
Unfortunately, I am not a PC user, so this list is for Mac users only. If you know the PC Quick Keys, feel free to comment those below!
Without further ado, the quick keys:
G – This key allows you to jump from your develop module back to the library grid view.
D – This allows you to hop on back over to the develop module showing a single image that you are working on editing
Shift+Tab – Hides all side panels and shows you a larger view of the overall edited image. You can still access the side panels by hovering over the desired side.
F – This brings the image into a full screen mode. You can only zoom in and out in this mode. The side panels are not accessible.
J – Allows you to show black and white point clippings and see where you are losing details in your image.
Command+Shift+I – Import photos in to Lightroom
Command+] or [ – Rotate image
V – If you want to quickly check out how your image will look in black and white, try out this quick key.
\ – My personal favorite key ever. It allows you to toggle between the before and after of the edited image.
Y – My second favorite. This allows you to compare the before and after of the edited image side by side.
R – Crop image.
Shift+M – Add radial filter to image
Command+’ – Create Virtual Copy. This key combo is great and makes it super simple. I often deliver images in color and B+W so this makes it super simple to do that.
Command – or + – Zoom out/in
J – Spot healing brush
E – Eraser
R+Command – Crop
L – I just discovered this tool and it is the best thing since slice bread if you ask me. It is the lights out tool and it basically dims the surrounding screen to allow more focus on the image.
O – This key reveals the area the a filter or mask overlay is affecting.
CAPS LOCK – I continue to cull for another round once my images are in Lightroom. I rank my images in order to know which ones I am keeping once I am finished editing. If the Caps Lock key is selected, the program will automatically advance to the next image once a rating or color is applied to an image. This speeds up the culling process.
N – Another one of my new FAVES. This key allows you to select multiple images and then compare them side by side. It’s called survey mode and helps when you have multiple images that look the same and you are trying to choose which one to keep.
P – Flag photo as a pick
X – Reject photo. This greys out the image.
Command+Delete– allows you to delete the rejected photos.
Check out these other websites for easy access downloadable guides for Lightroom quick keys:
This is no where near all of the quick keys available in Lightroom, but they are definitely my favorites, and the ones I find most useful. If you have any others you might recommend, comment below! I’d love to learn some new ones that I am unaware of.
