Lightroom Tutorial Series, The Map Module.

Hello, and thanks for visiting my blog.  Today I am going to be doing another Lightroom tutorial. It seems I am stuck in Lightroom mode as of late, so I hope you guys are liking these tutorials.  Personally, I live in Lightroom, well, that is when I am not behind the camera.  Lightroom, particularly Lightroom 4, has so many cool features, I just cant pick a favorite.  When I find something in Lightroom that I really like, for example, the incredible noise sliders or the clarity slider, Lightroom offers up yet another cool feature. In this case it’s the Map Module.

There are so many ways users choose to group images in Lightroom. For example, some like to sort by who they shoot (group by people), like the name of the model or by dates (year, or day).  Well, now you can group your images by location in Lightroom 4.  That’s right by location. If you head over to the Map Module, you can use GPS data to group your images. You might be thinking the same thing I was, “crap, more gear to buy” but you just might already have all the gear you need.

So as I have found, there are many ways to sync GPS information with your DSLR captured images. You can buy a GPS module and hook it to your camera, but this solution can cost some serious money. For Canon there is the Canon GP-E2 GPS at $245 and for Nikon there is the Nikon GP-1 for right at $200. In my opinion both solutions are a rip off.  First off I don’t need more crap hanging off my camera. Secondly, for a device that just sits on the camera with no display and no way to use it other than attached to the camera, those GPS units are way too much money. You see, I like to do more with less so I have learned how to sync GPS location information with my images via a “track log”.

If you choose to use the track log method your options open up greatly.  You can capture a GPS track log on your smart phone via an app For Free. I tried an app called, “My Track” on my Android EVO 4G lte and it works great, despite some negative reviews, I love it.  Similar apps are available for the iPhone, just remember you need a .gpx track log file, so if your app doesn’t offer that file type, it’s no problem, you can use several free solutions to convert a track log to .gpx.  Here is an app called GPS Visualizer.  Also, you can find older GPS units for ultra cheap on Craigslist or a pawn shop. I got lucky a few months back and picked up a Garmin eTrex Legend CX for $20 at a local pawnshop. Now I just throw the GPS in my backpack and now I have all the track logs I ever need.

I must admit using the new Map module in Lightroom 4 is really fun. I hesitated to even learn that module, but now I want to load all of my new images with a track log.  I hope you have as much fun with this, as I did. Watch the video below to see how I use a track log in the new MAP module of Lightroom 4.

Thanks for taking time to visit my blog, and have a great day. Thomas Shue