Choose Edit > Preferences (Windows) or Lightroom Classic > Preferences (Mac OS).
Last updated on
May 30, 2023
- Lightroom Classic User Guide
- Introduction to Lightroom Classic
- Lightroom and Adobe services
- Lightroom for mobile, TV, and the web
- Import photos
- Workflows
- Apply Masking in photos
- Export and save your photos as JPEGs
- Export and watermark your photos
- Import your photos
- Adjustment Brush: the basics
- Adjustments with the Tone Curve
- Advanced video slideshows
- Control white balance
- Create a contact sheet
- Enhance your workflow with Lightroom Classic
- Adjustments with Lens Blur
- Edit and Export in HDR
- Workspace
- Viewing photos
- Manage catalogs and files
- Maps
- Organize photos in Lightroom Classic
- Process and develop photos
- Develop module basics
- Create panoramas and HDR panoramas
- Flat-Field Correction
- Correct distorted perspective in photos using Upright
- Improve image quality using Enhance
- Work with image tone and color
- Masking
- Apply local adjustments
- HDR photo merge
- Develop module options
- Retouch photos
- Cure red eye and pet eye effects
- Use the Radial Filter tool
- Use the enhanced Spot Removal tool
- Export photos
- Work with external editors
- Slideshows
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- Keyboard shortcuts
- Troubleshooting
You use External Editing preferences to specify the file format and other options for editing camera raw and DNG files in Photoshop Elements and external image-editing applications that cannot read the mosaic sensor data in camera raw files. The options that you specify in External Editing preferences are also used by Photoshop when you save camera raw and DNG files from Lightroom Classic in Photoshop. Finally, you also use External Editing preferences to select external image-editing applications.
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Click External Editing.
Set preferences for working with camera raw files in external editors
Lightroom Classic opens camera raw and DNG files directly in Photoshop CS3 (10.0.1) or later. However, Lightroom Classic must send either TIFF or PSD copies of camera raw and DNG files to Photoshop Elements and to other external editors that cannot read raw data. In the External Editing preferences, you specify the file format, color space, bit depth, and compression for the TIFF and PSD files that Lightroom Classic sends to these editors. To best preserve color details in photos sent from Lightroom Classic, 16-bit ProPhoto RGB is recommended. If you open camera raw files from Lightroom Classic directly into Photoshop and save them there, Photoshop uses the settings you specify in Lightroom Classic External Editing preferences for the files that it saves.
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In the External Editing preferences dialog box, choose options from the following menus:
Photoshop version
Lets you select a specific version of Photoshop while using an external editor to edit your photos.
File Format
Saves camera raw images in either TIFF or PSD format. See Supported file formats.
Color Space
Converts photos to the sRGB, AdobeRGB, or ProPhoto RGB color space and tags them with the color profile. See How Lightroom Classic manages color.
Bit Depth
Saves photos with a bit depth of 8 bits or 16 bits per color channel (red, green, and blue). Files that are 8 bit are smaller and more compatible with various applications, but do not preserve the fine tonal detail of 16-bit files.
Compression
(TIFF only) Applies either ZIP compression or no compression to photos. ZIP is a lossless compression method that is most effective for images that contain large areas of single color.
Template
Uses the template you specify to name the file. Select a template and specify custom text or the start number of the filenames. See The Filename Template Editor and Text Template Editor.
Choose an external editor
You can designate an application to be used as an external editor in the External Editing preferences dialog box. After you choose an application, you can always use Preferences to change to a different application.
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In the External Editing preferences, click Choose in the Additional External Editor area.
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Navigate to and select the application to use, and then click Open (Windows) or Choose (Mac OS).Note:
You can also select an external editor by choosing Photo > Edit In Other Application from the Library or Develop module. You'll be prompted to navigate to and select the application to use. After you choose an external editor, the name of the application appears as Edit In [Name of Application] in the Photo menu.
Note:
In Windows, different versions of a product having the same major version is shown only once. For example, if Adobe Photoshop 2023(Beta) and Adobe Photoshop 2023 are installed in the system, the preferences dropdown will show Adobe Photoshop 2023.
In this case, the workaround is to select Preferences > External Editing > Additional External Editor and select the desired version.
Create an external editor preset
You can create presets for external editors in the External Editing preferences dialog box. External editor presets allow you to specify multiple applications as external editors and create different photo-handling options for multiple uses with one or more external editors.
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In the External Editing preferences, choose an application and specify camera raw file options.
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Choose Preset > Save Current Settings As New Preset.
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Type a name for the preset and click Create.
Lightroom Classic adds the new preset to the Preset menu.
Edit an external editor preset
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In the External Editing preferences, choose an external editor preset from the Preset menu.
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Change the application or camera raw file options.
Lightroom Classic appends "(edited)" to the end of the preset name.
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Do one of the following:
Choose Preset > Save Current Settings As A New Preset to create a new preset. Type a name for the new preset and click Create.
Choose Preset > Update Preset "[preset name]" to overwrite the existing preset with your changes.
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