P: Enable Zoom with Crop Tool

[defaultcqa9r4726x9k]

This may have already been suggested, but it would be nice if the zoom feature in Lightroom 4 could be enabled while using the crop tool to make refined adjustments to the crop area. At present, there is only a clumsy work-around using the secondary display for refined crop adjustments.

[Ian Lyons]

As @JohanElzenga has already indicated, it's not possible at present but is a popular request. There's a thread in 'Ideas' with 126 votes. I'll merge your thread with that one.

Remember to vote

[Palm Equipment]

Is it still not possible to zoom while cropping in 2024?

[Ian Lyons]

As of  3 April 2024, it's still not possible to zoom while cropping. 

[Paul Click]

So, as a wildlife shooter, I am sometimes too far from my subject for my liking. In post processing these "too far away" images, I would like to be able to zoom to 100%, move the image around to get what I want on the screen, then just crop the image to what I see on the screen. So I'm trying to create a 100% crop to what I see on the screen, without doing trial and error with the selection tool. What is the easiest way to accomplish this? I would think that having a way to instantly crop images to what is displayed on screen would be useful and straightforward to implement. 🙂 What do I know—I'm certainly not a programmer!

Thanks!

[JohanElzenga]

I don't think there is an easy way. The crop tool always switches the view to 'Fit', so your image will zoom out to the full image as soon as you activate it.

[Rob_Cullen]

My workaround is to keep my finger hovering over the keyboard [R] and -

1) Press [R]

2) Make a tentative crop

3) Press [R]

4) Review my cropped image (which fits screen),

5) Repeat 1) - 4) until satisfied.

[Conrad_C]

I would think that having a way to instantly crop images to what is displayed on screen would be useful and straightforward to implement. 🙂

By @Paul Click

It’s possible enough that Apple already does it, in the Photos app on iOS: If you zoom in to any magnification higher than Fit, there is a “Crop” button in the top right corner that crops to the currently visible image on screen.

A big issue with it happening in other software is that there are always hundreds of requests for things that are relatively simple to do, so any company still has to prioritize which simple things to do first out of that long list. How quickly an idea like this gets implemented depends on things like whether it’s already been requested on the Ideas page for Lightroom Classic, whether it’s gotten a lot of user votes and discussions, and how far up that has pushed it on the Ideas list. If this idea makes it up to the top 10 or 20, that raises a chance that Adobe might change that idea’s Status to “Under Consideration” or even “Released”.

One major disadvantage of cropping to screen is that the aspect ratio can be inconsistent. It is always whatever space is left over from the aspect ratio of the display in use minus how the panels are set up. So on one computer it would produce one crop shape, and on another computer it might be taller or wider. On a phone, like in the Apple Photos app, “crop to screen” always makes it the aspect ratio and orientation of the phone screen.

I can’t think of a good workaround because they seem to depend on being able to crop at 1:1, which Lightroom Classic cannot do because (very very unfortunately, and unlike Photoshop) selecting the Crop tool always goes into Fit magnification and as long as the Crop tool is active, the magnification cannot be changed.

[Kearneyimages]

Hi,

I was in contact with Glyn Dewis who does work for Adobe, Scott Kelby etc and he says he will raise the issue directly with Adobe so. fingers crossed that this simple issue will be finally resolved.  

[Jeffrey36412156g0qa]

Hi. Sometimes when you're looing at an an image, and you click the image to zoom in, you can end up nailing a composition with that one click and maybe some panning. I would love to have a button that would make a crop with that result. Or perhaps add a zoom feature to the crop tool. It would be much easier than taking a screenshot of that result and trying to match it with the crop tool. Thank you! You guys rule!

[johnrellis]

Moderators, @Rikk Flohr: Photography, @Rick Spaulding -, please merge with this Idea:

https://community.adobe.com/t5/lightroom-classic-ideas/crop-to-zoom/idi-p/14664069

[C.Cella]

Using the SDK I created a plug-in that allows to enter precise Dimensions.

 

 

Yet another basic feature that has been longly asked and SHOULD have been implemented alongside the ability to crop when zoomed.

.

[JBedfordPhoto]

I work on photos at 25% viewing size because I find LRCC performs more quickly. Whether this is true or just my imagination, I've noticed that while working at this view size, initializing the crop tool, my view changes to "Fit" (the photo takes up more real estate on the screen). Once I finish cropping, my view returns to the % view I was originally working at. The switch between view sizes is sort of jarring.

I propose allowing the crop tool to function at a viewing % lower than "Fit". 

Does that make sense?

[Jérôme38315681v2nr]

Yes, it make sense...  We ask for it in 2012 and we are still waiting...

[Scott_Martin_]

Respectfully, this thread isn't about performance, it's about the need for accuracy when cropping. When one is working with 150+ megapixel files the crop tool, as is, is horribly innacurate. We need to be able to zoom in and see the entire image so that we can crop accurately.  

[richardplondon]

To be clear, cropping is dimensionless so IMO selecting particular absolute pixel zoom factors such as 1:1, might be a bad usability fit in principle. Because when we sync a given crop across two photos of different resolutions, the sync is purely of pictorial composition and has nothing to do with individual pixels. 

But one might nonetheless, without doing any violence to the underlying 'dimensionless' concept, want to magnify / reduce by a certain relative amount compared with Fit view. Say, go to 50% of Fit or to 200% of Fit. As noted already, that is a matter of achieving compositional accuracy not of achieving pixel accuracy. 

[JBedfordPhoto]

@Scott_Martin_  I posted this as a new topic but an admin merged it with this thread

[Russell Proulx]

I just updated to the latest versions of Bridge, ACR and Lightroom and continue to be disappointed that there is no native ability to zoom in on images while cropping in Lightroom whereas the zooming while cropping in ACR works perfectly. After cropping using Bridge/ACR I then need to use Read Metadata from File to update it in LrC. That has me wondering if there's a way to use ACR to perform edits (such as Cropping) while within Lightroom.

This would be a feature request to allow users to edit original images (not Virtual Copies) displayed in the Library using ACR in the same way as from within Bridge. While Lightroom's Develop Module is built on ACR the crop behaviour is nowhere near as precise (one can enlarge up to 1600% while cropping with ACR). For some workflows it might be useful to have temporary access to ACR and Read Metadata from File would be automatically applied when returning to LrC. Just a thought .... 

Or just fix the crop tool in LrC 😉

R

[C.Cella]

@Russell Proulx 

If you need to crop when zoomed then you can use the "Adjust Crop" command provided by "Any Crop" Plug-in: https://johnrellis.com/lightroom/anycrop.htm

The author is @johnrellis 

No need to journey to ACR.

[Scott_Martin_]

Agreed everyone. I have a thought - and maybe this is easier than Abode realises. You know how the magnification Loupe comes up ajacent to the cursor when using The Guided Tranform? That's what we need for cropping. A loupe option that allows us to see the whole image but also full res detail for precise crop placement. If we could mouse around with this loupe and check placement with the existing crop that would be ideal. Thanks for listening!

[Russell Proulx]

I'll have a peek again at that plugin but I seem to remember it was nowhere near as good as what ACR provides.

But we should not have to use a 3d party hack to provide something as basic as being able to view cropping at a higher magnification. If it works so well then why doesn't Adobe just pay the author for their efforts and add it to a LrC update?

Just keeping this thread alive 😉

[C.Cella]

@Russell Proulx 

ACR demands users to drag handles to cop.

Adjust Crop instead uses sliders ( a limit of the SDK that does not allow any control on the LrC UI)

This said those sliders offer many advantages.

For instance you can crop and zoom in /our and crop without having any distracting UI to deal with AND only visualising the current crop.
ACR doens't allow that.

If you think that's not good you can then spend your time to open the image in ACR just to crop.

This request has been standing for 12 years now.

@johnrellis provided a solution tha tis only limited by what the SKD allows.

.

[Bob Somrak]

@Scott_Martin_ 

I agree.  The same magnifier tool that is in transform would be great. Adobe hass definately been ignoring this feature request for a LONG time.  

[SteveOToole]

In develope mode, I often get the image perfect @ they way I want the crop before I do any editing.  Great if when entering crop mode, there's a button to press that crops to what I made before entering crop mode.  Kinda like a screenshot of exactly where I zoomed and centered.  This happens so often, wish there was a magic crop button to what I alreadys see on screen.  Of course, can still change the crop when in crop mode, but it's a great starting point. Otherwise, I have to begin the creative vision of how  want it cropped all over again...that's doing it twice.  (For wildlife photog, I'm cropping all day long).

[abstract_Gem98BC]

Bumping this thread up. It's been almost 13 years since the thread was started, and we're still squinting when cropping.
Most phone apps zoom in to fit as you crop. This needs to be a thing in LrC!

[marvinaustin]

This company is the single player in the market for users who develop and process photos. Well, almost the single player.
I assure you - Adobe will never change anything. Knocking on the door is useless.
I read this thread. Is there no answer? -"the end".