Significance of Open as Smart Object in Photoshop

I'm struggling to see the significance of the "Open as Smart Object in Photoshop" feature in Lightroom 2 + CS3? I can't see how this is any different/better than just using the "Edit in Photoshop CS3" option?
Can someone please explain the difference and why I would want to use one over the other?

[email protected] wrote in
news:[email protected]:
> I'm struggling to see the significance of the "Open as Smart Object in
> Photoshop" feature in Lightroom 2 + CS3? I can't see how this is any
> different/better than just using the "Edit in Photoshop CS3" option?
>
> Can someone please explain the difference and why I would want to use
> one over the other?
I believe there is one reason. With a file opened as a smart object, you
can go back to ARC and change something. You cant do that when opened as a
regular file.
John Passaneau

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LR4.1 : "Edit-In" "Open as Smart Object with Photoshop..." feature doesn't work with 32bits

Hi there,
I am running LR4.1/CS5/ACR6.7 on a Win7 64bits system.
The feature "Edit-In" > "Open as Smart Object with Photoshop..." does work Ok with raw files (.NEF).
However, when i do try to use the same feature with 32 bits .TIFF files (which are output of the LR4.1's "Edit-In" > "Merge to HDR Pro in Photoshop..." other feature), nothing does happen (the Photoshop application windows does open but w.o the image that i've just selected).
I've used search engines and Adobe online help to see if there was any limit preventing the usage of this feature with 32 bits .TIF files but couldn't see such note.
Thanks for your help !
Albert

Thanks Rikk,
That did work with a DNG file :-)
I am working with very huge .TIF files (400MB), so i am wondering if size could be the main issue (although my PC has lots of HW resources).
I will explore the DNG way, a format which seems anyways to be very promising now with LR4.
In case anyone has an idea why it doesn't work the .TIF files, please shoot !

Why does the Amount slider of Camera's RAW Detail Panel revert to 0 when opening a Smart Object in Photoshop?

I use CS6 on a Mac running 10.6.8. I edit images in RAW, then covert to a Smart Object for final editing in Photoshop. I've noticed the image in Photoshop is not sharp, and when I check by returning to RAW, I can see that just the Amount slider (Detail Panel) has reverted to 0, but the other sliders are as I have set them.
Does anyone know what may cause this problem and how to solve it?

This behavior happens only on Mac desktop computer, not on my Mac laptop running the same CS6.
After I've edited an ACR file (including sharpening in the Detail panel), I change the file into a PSD Smart Object to complete my edit by clicking on "Open Object". I immediately notice this PSD file is not sharp. If I click on the bottom right of the image icon to return to the RAW file, I find the Amount slider in the Detail Panel has changed from the sharpening amount I gave it, to 0.
If I do the exact same thing on my laptop (running a duplicate of the same Photoshop CS6), this behaviour does not happen. The image remains sharp as a PSD file, and if I check by returning to ACR, the Amount slider has maintained its setting.
Anything more you need?

Open as Smart Object as Layers in Photoshop?

I apologize if this has been addressed already, but I am looking for a way to open Smart Objects as LAYERS. I do compositing work and would like to retain as much information as possible by using Smart Objects PRIOR to going into Photoshop. My current workflow is to highlight the photos in Lightroom CC > Open as Smart Object in Photoshop CC > Manually Drag layers from each open file in Photoshop to main PSD.
Edit - Opening as Layers in Photoshop then applying the Camera Raw Filter is not a good work around, information is lost.

davepinminn wrote:
I must still be doing something wrong here..............
You have the wrong expectation—namely because you don't grasp the concept. A smart object is not a linked file. It's a new file all on its own (in PSB format) with no connection to the original file at all.
davepinminn wrote:
…I can open my raw (.dng) into Photoshop as a smart object. And in PS, I can open the smart object into ACR. Works fine. And I can change stuff. For example, if I change the exposure from -.25 to +.20, it changes perfectly in PS, as I'd expect. But, I'm still not getting the changes back to the original raw (.dng) file…
There is no reason why the changes made to a Smart Object oject should be refleftef to a totally unrelated file.
davepinminn wrote:
…Do I need to do something different to get the changes back to the original file…
Yes. you have to go back to that original file and apply the changes directly to it. In a previous post, Jeff Schewe told you of a shortcut to achieve that:
Jeff Schewe wrote:
When you are in the Camera Raw SO with ACR open, go to the main flyout menu and select Export settings to XMP. This will write the new image settings from the SO to the xmp metadata. Then in Lightroom, select Read metadata from file in the main Metadata menu. That will bring in all the settings of the raw SO back into Lightroom. So, while not automatic, it's not as bad as writing down the settings and entering them by hand.

Problems launching Bridge from Photoshop and opening files as smart objects in Photoshop from Lightr

I am running Photoshop CC (up to date as of today) and Lightroom 5.2. I am hitting 2 major problems. In Photoshop if I select File/Browse in Bridge I get the following message
"Could not complete the Browse in Bridge command because Photoshop was unable to find the JavaScript plug-in".
However if I simply launch Bridge as an application it works ok (now I have reset the default application for all the appropriate file extentions to Photoshop CC rather than Photoshop in Bridge preferences) and opens the file in Camera Raw 8.2 in Photoshop when a Raw file is double clicked.
The second problem is associated with opening raw files in Lightroom 5.2, editing and then trying to "photo/edit in/Open as smart object in Photoshop" . In this case Photoshop opens with a blank screen and nothing happens Eventually about a minute later this message appears in Lightroom 5.2
"The file could not be edited because Adobe Photoshop CC could not be launched."
Rather strange message as the first thing that happened was that Photoshop CC opened!!
Same thing happens if try "photo/Edit in/Edit in Adobe Photoshop CC" except that having shut down photoshop I see a message from Lightroom 5.2 saying
Lightoom was unable to prepare the selected file at ..... for editing. It will not be opened.
When I click the OK button on this message low and behold the tif version of the RAW file opens in Photoshop. ready for futher editing with all the Lightroom edits applied.
Can anyone help me in sorting out this problem please
Operating system is Windows 8 64 bit and I am running the 64 bit Adobe applications.

Solved the problems by uninstalling Bridge and Photoshop then going into Creative Cloud App and re-installing both.

Open as smart object malfunction

A strange thing occurred. "Open as smart object in Photoshop" does not work for one photo from photo session.
It works for all the other but for this one it is clickable but nothing is being opened.
It's like nobody has selected it.
Lightroom 2.5
Photoshop CS4
OS Snow Leopard
Any clue?

This hack: http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/401/kb401629.html?
Is Edit in Photoshop CS5 enabled?

Open as smart object problems

Hello,
Im having some problems with Lightroom 4 when using "Edit In" -> "Open As Smart Object in photoshop..."
Image open fine in CS6, i can make my edits & save. But when i close the image, an dialog box pops up with the following;
Error 2: photoshop is undefined.
Line: 1
-> photoshop.notifyLightroomDocClosed ('lightroom-2.0', '49071FF0-A8C4-4F2F-B0BB-B28B76F494E6', '');
The image is saved to the correct place, link to lightroom is not. Need to manully syncronize the folder to get the image in the catalog.
Running Lightroom 4.4, CS6 (13.0.4) on OS X (10.8.3)
Anyone know whats wrong?

This hack: http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/401/kb401629.html?
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Hi :) Problem opening a smart object in PS CS4.

Hi I'm struggling to open a smart object in Photoshop CS4 from Lightroom 5. It gives me the option in LR, opens PS, but the image doesn't open. Just wondering if I need to alter any settings to get it to work?
Thanks,
Lou x

No way. You are using two incompatible versions, art least where Raw processing is concerned. You would need Photoshop CC to establish such a workflow using LR 5.
Mylenium

Opening a smart object (photoshop cc layer) in camera RAW?

Opening a smart object (photoshop cc layer) in camera RAW? I have opened a processed RAW file from lightroom into photoshop cc, then done various processing and created a merged layer. I've then convered this layer to smart object (it displays the smart object layer icon). When I double-click this layer thumbnail it opens up in a seperate photoshop tab and I want to go back to RAW. I've tried this on various files and I can't seem to reopen smart objects back in RAW. I have file handling preferences set to "prefer adobe camera raw for supported raw files" and have done a fair amount of 'googling' but not getting anywhere. Thanks for any help

Try the Filter menu item then select Camera Raw Filter. it should then open in ACR for further editing. No it is not the RAW image but the smart object you have.

Lightroom 4 - Open Smart Object in Photoshop (or rather do not!)

Opening a PV2012 image as a smart object into Photoshop works ... except that all Lightroom adjustments are ignored.
No doubt this will be fixed when Adobe releases Photoshop CS6 and ACR 7.0 ... but that the latest version of Lightroom does not work properly with the latest release of Photoshop is nothing short of dreadful.
(Pretty smart marketing though, cause every time I upgrade Lightroom I also have to upgrade Photoshop! I for one will be waiting to see if Adobe have the decency to release ACR 7.0 to run on CS5 ... and if not then my decision will be based on how good CS6 is as I do not see that LR4 has anything that I can't do with some plug-ins (like geoencoding and reverse geoencoding). Of course if you want to write a book or do some trivial video editing then maybe LR4 will appeal to you.)
Very disappointing, when you consider that new cameras now have features like built-in HDR processing and Lightroom does not even have this - so that Photoshop or third-party software is required.

Jeff Schewe: Yes, Jeff, I'm well aware of that, having had to buy multiple versions of Lightroom and Photoshop, right up to LR4 and CS5.
In fact, the only reason for not releasing ACR 7.0 (or whatever) with LR4 has nothing to do with integration or functionality and everything to do with money: Adobe do not want to give away anything for free. So if you open an ACR object using ACR 6.7, what you get is all of the functionality of Camera Raw, with the exception of the Basic Highlights/Shadows/Whites and Blacks sliders. Everything else works just fine. And this is opening a PV2012 Smart Object, not a PV2010 Smart Object.
What Adobe have done is simply to grey-out these sliders: not because they would not work, but because if they had not greyed them out then they would be giving free additional functionality to CS5 users.
HOWEVER ... as I have purchased LR4 which supports PV2012 (and therefore has the full Camera Raw support for PV2012) I should NOT have to buy Photoshop CS6 just in order to get ACR 7.0. Adobe needs to find a way around this - and it would seem fairly simple to me for Photoshop to use the Lightroom raw engine if both Photoshop and Lightroom are present on the same machine (this is not rocket science). This would mean that we would not need to use Camera Raw at all: the raw processing functionality would be provided by Lightroom.
Alternatively, Adobe could release a version of Camera Raw 7.0 (say ACR-LR4-7.0) that would only work if Lightroom 4 was also present. Again this is not rocket science.
Or Adobe could release Camera Raw as a separate chargeable product (at a reasonable cost of let's say $25) so that they could make some money out of it without forcing people who do NOT want Photoshop CS6 to buy it JUST for ACR 7.0.
I'm pretty amazed the people aren't screaming about this ... cause it REALLY annoys me!

AP2-Photoshop CS3 - Open as "Smart Object"

Good evening,
Users of Adobe Photoshop CS3 will know that there is a possibility in Adobe Camera Raw to open a RAW file as "Smart Object" (by holding down the shift key). This way one can easily copy the Smart Object, go back to Camera Raw, tweak the settings, and blend the two objects together.
I am wondering whether anyone has found a solution in Aperture 2 to open an image in Photoshop as smart object...
Thanks,
Philipp

you can't open a file from aperture as smart object in photoshop. but as you can assign your own shortcuts to all menu commands and functions in photoshop, why not create a shortcut to convert any image layer into a smart object? (photoshop menu: layers - smart object - convert to smart object). this way, it only takes you a press of a key, and you have your smart object.
having said this, keep in mind, there is of course quite a different to raw files opened as smart objects through camera raw: if done with cr, the smart object lets you change the raw conversion again. aperture however renders a psd or tiff before sending it to photoshop. so even if you convert this to a smart object, you will not have access to the original raw file.

Open as "Smart Object" from ACR to PS questions.

I have 2 questions associated with opening from ACR as a Smart Object in Photoshop. I'm using CS4.
1. Is there a way to retrieve the original filename (complete with path) using a script or a setting somewhere to do this? I'm currently using Bridge Talk to ask Bridge what the active folder is then adding that to the document's .name property and taking off the " as Smart Object-1" part. Then I add a .psd extension to it and then I have to save it to retain that name unless there's an answer to #2 below.
2. Is there a way to change the Document's name as described above from "Filename as Smart Object-1" to "Filename.psd" without actually saving it?
It seems to me there would be a simple way that I might be overlooking here.
Thanks
Mike

Sorry, I guess I need to explain better.
I wrote a script to do this, but here is this portion of the workflow:
1. Open CR2 file in ACR and make adjustments.
2. Open as Smart Object in PS.
3. Script Events Manager activates this script on Document Open, checks to see if it was opened as a Smart Object. We'll assume it did.
4. The script asks me if I want to make another layer. I pick yes. The script copies the SO layer, sets an inverted mask, and opens to edit settings in ACR again.
5. I adjust the settings for that layer in ACR and click OK.
The script will keep looping between 4 and 5 as long as I pick YES.
This gives me more local control of areas. If I want to bring out eyes a bit, I can up contrast, saturation, sharpness, brightness, exposure, or whatever looks best for the eyes in ACR, then unmask the eyes as much as I want on that layer in Photoshop. There is more data to pull from in the RAW file vs trying to do the same thing within Photoshop.
Opening as a regular image file then converting to a SO doesn't give me the same control. I would have to reopen the file separately, make the adjustments in ACR, open to PS then copy that document and paste as a new layer in the original.
Duplicating the document might work also, but I can also just save as .psd at that point since I'd have to know the path name by then anyway. I'll give that a try, though, and see if it might work better. The only catch with the save part is it slows me down waiting for it to write the file and if I have 5+ SO layers, it takes awhile. Once I unmask where I want, I flatten to a rasterized layer and continue.
Thanks

Open as Smart Object is Grayed Out

The open as smart object, Merge to HDR, Merge to panorama are all grayed out in Lightroom 3.2.
I reinstalled CS5 and Lightroom but that did not help. There must be a registry hack for this.
Windows 7 64 bit

This hack: http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/401/kb401629.html?
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LR 2.1 Unable to Open as Smart Object in PS CS3 due to swedish characters in folder name

When I try to open a raw file from Lightroom 2.1 as a smart object in Photoshop CS3 and the folder contains swedish characters, like åäöÅÄÖ, it will not open at all -> PH starts up and presents a "Open As" dialog.
It works fine when I open images that is in a folder only having english characters...
As I read that some apostrophe-related problems were fixed in the 2.1 release I hoped that it included all special characters allowed in folder names... The same problem occurs in version 2.

My problem might be of a similar origin.
I have also posted it on a different thread http://www.adobeforums.com/webx/.59b6903c
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Shai

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Significance of Open as Smart Object in Photoshop

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