Emily SW wrote:
I wonder why they would get rid of that slider.
Lr3's fill light was indeed a hard act to follow (in my opinion). Often after I get done with multiple adjustments in PV2012, the net result is about what Lr3's fill light did.
But the bottom line is you can accomplish "filling" with PV2012 too, and usually the results are better, even if somewhat different.
Hint: if you try and try to make a photo look as good in PV2012 as it did in PV2010, but it seems like you can't, try sleeping on it - sometimes in the morning the PV2012 one will look better. The moral of the story: sometimes we're attached to a particular look, and anything different is perceived as inferior. Lr3 fill had a characteristic look which was sometimes very "charming" (for lack of a better word), but PV2012's controls maintain truer color and more accurate tonal relationships (when properly adjusted). Some people built their entire photography style around the unique quality of Lr3 fill, and absolutely freaked out when it was not reproducible in PV2012. But if your objective is to fill shadows and brighten a photo, in the best quality fashion - there is no contest: PV2012 wins (again: that's my opinion).
Another secret to PV2012 "fill": don't be afraid to use -highlights even if the highlights weren't over-bright to begin with. PV2012 often requires +exposure along with +shadows to properly brighten the darker areas, which usually must be accompanied by -highlights to keep from over-brightening the lighter areas. If you find yourself using too much -highlights and +shadows, try turning contrast down, and maybe add clarity/vib/sat to maintain the punch (and/or drop the blacks).
Cheers,
Rob