Camera Raw in PSE 15 and PSE 2021, what are version numbers and where do I find "Help" and videos?

[mike160304]

That's it, really, searching in the 2 PSE versions I cannot find much mention of the included ACR apps?

Mike

[Glenn 8675309]

Two steps:   Just open any image using the "open in camera raw" menu choice, then click on the gear in the raw window.

ABOUT THE HELP AND VIDEOS: Do you mean camera raw specific or PSE help in general?

[mike160304]

Thanks Glenn,

I meant help and videos specific to ACR-in-PSE 15 and ACR-in-PSE 2021.

Mike

[Phil Pickering]

Hi Mike,

In the Photoshop Elements Editor you can go to Help > About Plug-In > Camera Raw to show the Adobe Photoshop Camera Raw splash screen which includes the version number.

When you have Camera Raw open, there is a Help button in the bottom left of the dialog window. If you click that button it will open up this page from the Elements User Guide:

Process camera raw images in Photoshop Elements

George Peirson demonstrates how to use Camera Raw in PSE 15 in this video on YouTube:

Photoshop Elements Camera Raw Tutorial

Hope that helps 🙂

[mike160304]

Thanks Phil.

This is Eccentrics' Corner (aka the Welsh Borders) and I don't shoot RAW and I process my JPEGs mainly in ACR-in-PSE because it is simple amd powerful . . . whereas PSE is powerful . . .

You can rely on me to want to do something that no-one else does.

But I am guessing that processing JPEGs in ACR-in-PSE is similar to procesing RAW files, but with a whole lot of stuff left out.

A specific question:

ACR-in-PSE 15 had "Auto" and "Default" as alternatives (I liked that). ACR-in-PSE 2021 only has "Auto", no "Default" (I don't like that but I guess it is called "Progress"). So I guess I just hit "Auto" and it toggles between "Auto" (sliders not at zero) and Default (sliders at zero) . . . Is that right?

Thanks,

Mike

[Phil Pickering]

Hi Mike,

The Adobe Default settings are zero for everything (i.e. no changes made) when you're working with non-raw images. The Auto button is the one-click, solve-all-problems button... and a lot of the time it does a very good job 🙂 

To get back to the Default settings, instead of a button as in earlier versions, just hold down the Alt key and you'll see the Cancel button at the bottom turns into a Reset button. Can't remember which key to hold down? Click the three little dots at the bottom of the Toolbar and select the Reset to Default menu option instead.

If you're working with raw or non-raw images in Camera Raw then you'll get the same 14 different settings to play with; but if you're working with raw images then you'll get about 20 more built-in Profiles to choose from - around 50 for non-raw images and 70 for raw images. You'll also get less options for adjusting the White balance if you're working with non-raw images.

Hope that helps 🙂

[mike160304]

Ah, thanks Phil, I'll follow all that through.

I have just put 6 JPEGs through the Auto function of ACR-in-PSE 15 and ACR-in-PSE 2021 to compare them.

If you are interested, the results are here:

https://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/4581219

Best regards,

Mike

[Phil Pickering]

That's a really interesting comparison. I definitely think that the newer version of ACR does a subtly better job with the Auto function than the older version. Except image #12 where it looks like it's trying too hard to eke out some exposure/highlights. That's probably down to the fact that the source image is the poorest in the set in terms of exposure to start with. You can always use the Auto function as a starting point and then tweak it back a bit with the indiviudal sliders if you feel it has gone too far though.

Thanks for sharing 🙂

[mike160304]

Thanks, yes, I do find that going "Auto" and then tweaking it is a good way to go. Even in editing in Faststone Image Viewer this 2-step plan works well, indeed better than anything else I have tried.

The Photo #12 is weird cos it has made no attempt to deal with the blown highlights. I am not obsessive about blown highlights and sometimes tolerate a few, but here, it is a blatant case of "action required, and ACR/PSE 15 has done it but ACR/PSE 2021 has ignored it.

[mike160304]

Phil DC -

Re "To get back to the Default settings, instead of a button as in earlier versions, just hold down the Alt key and you'll see the Cancel button at the bottom turns into a Reset button. Can't remember which key to hold down? Click the three little dots at the bottom of the Toolbar and select the Reset to Default menu option instead."

It seems that there is a 3rd way to get back to Default settings:

When "Auto" is clicked and the Auto adjustments appear, if I click on "Auto" again, it goes back to Default settings with all sliders at zero.