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1. How long have you been using RPG Keys and/or Kubota SpeedKeys and what was your previous setup before moving to RPG?
I have been using RPG keys for a year now. Before RPG keys I used a lot of actions, but RPG keys is much faster.
2. What is your primary editing system (Mac or PC), and most common client type (i.e. weddings, portraits, architecture, etc.)?
I use a PC. We photographs weddings, events, portraits, babies, and Nature.
3. Can you estimate or quantify the amount of editing time you’ve saved (if any) with RPG Keys and/or Kubota SpeedKeys?
RPG keys saves an enormous amount of time. Even just the “next” key and the “apply previous settings” key save hours of post-processing time. After implementing the RPG keys I can now process a portrait session in less than 10% of the time that it used to take me. For weddings the time savings is not as dramatic (because the lighting varies much more) but it is still very significant.
4. Do you customize the keys or use the default layout of the keys?
I mostly use the default layout. I have modified a few keys.
5. Is the RPG Keys/Kubota SpeedKeys more useful/beneficial for a particular type of editing (weddings, architecture, portraiture, etc.)?
I find the RPG keys most useful for Studio work because the lighting is similar for a series on images. We can now turn around many of our sessions very quickly, versus weeks. We also use it for weddings and events and they are very useful there too, but because the lighting changes more it takes longer to process than a Studio session. The presets also allow you to be very creative very fast. I generally provide 1-3 virtual copies of each image, including a B&W version of almost every image for portraiture. The act of creating a virtual copy and then applying a B&W preset is done to usually 5-10 images at a time and saves enormous time while also allowing for very creative images.
6. Do you use the Keys with any programs other than Adobe Lightroom?
No, but I am interested in using it with Kubota’s awesome Dashboard in Photoshop!!
7. Do you take the RPG Keys and/or Kubota SpeedKeys with you on shoots or when you travel?
No, our post-processing is all done at home.
8. How easy was it for you to setup the RPG Keys/Kubota SpeedKeys?
Very easy!
9. How long did it take you to adjust to using the Keys and get up to speed with the new tool?
Instantly!
10. What type of photographer do you think would most benefit from the Keys?
Any photo session that results in a large number of images! If you only provide one or two images for your client then the benefit is not great. But we recently photographed 30 separate 2-4 hour model sessions with about 500 images per session and were able to turn around the photographs very quickly because of the RPG keys. This would have been an ordeal without the Keys!
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1. How long have you been using RPG Keys and/or Kubota SpeedKeys and what was your previous setup before moving to RPG?
I haven’t used the regular RPG Keys, but I have been using Kubota SpeedKeys for about 18 months. Prior to owning Kubota SpeedKeys, I had a 58-key self-programmable keyboard called X-keys. I’ve edited about 40 weddings in Lightroom with the SpeedKeys.
2. What is your primary editing system (Mac or PC), and most common client type (i.e. weddings, portraits, architecture, etc.)?
Macintosh – 90% of my work is weddings
3. Can you estimate or quantify the amount of editing time you’ve saved (if any) with RPG Keys and/or Kubota SpeedKeys?
Sure can! I estimate that I’ve shaved one hour off processing each wedding. What had previously taken me 3 hours to cull and edit now takes only 2. Since I’ve edited at least 40 weddings with it, I guess that means I have saved myself 40 hours…maybe I should take a week’s vacation!
4. Do you customize the keys or use the default layout of the keys?
You might be able to describe me as a SpeedKeys power-user (or just a workflow maniac) -- I have highly customized the keys. One of the big advantages of using Kubota SpeedKeys is that they’ve figured out a way for you to apply your favorite presets to photos with the touch of one button. You can also easily adjust the exposure and recovery sliders in Lightroom. These are both things that my X-Keys could not accomplish.
5. If you use the Kubota SpeedKeys, do you switch out the keys or keypads often, or general stick to one?
I stick to only one. I have my keypad memorized, and I think changing it would be counter-productive. Plus, one keypad gives me more options than I need. I think I still have a key that is unused and ready to be programmed in case I find use for it!
6. Is the RPG Keys/Kubota SpeedKeys more useful/beneficial for a particular type of editing (weddings, architecture, portraiture, etc.)?
I intended to use the SpeedKeys product primarily for weddings, but I now use it on everything I process in Lightroom – from personal projects to small portrait sessions. And I didn’t feel the need to program the keys differently for each type of photo session either – one keypad works just as well for my outdoor-adventure photos as it does for weddings!
7. Do you use the Keys with any programs other than Adobe Lightroom?
Only Adobe Lightroom. I don’t believe Kubota SpeedKeys will work with any other program, and even if it did, another program would require too many modifications to the keys. I do still use my X-keys for Photoshop and other programs outside Lightroom.
8. Do you take the RPG Keys and/or Kubota SpeedKeys with you on shoots or when you travel?
Never. SpeedKeys would be easy to travel with, but I am a minimalist when it comes to traveling and I rarely edit on the road, so I leave my computer gadgets home. But if I do end up editing on the road, I miss it!
9. How easy was it for you to setup the RPG Keys/Kubota SpeedKeys
I was impressed with how simple the SpeedKeys was to configure. It was easy to replace keys in the keypad itself, and the software has helpful visuals to match the keyboard. On the computer you just drag a key into place, and select the preset or shortcut you’d like the key to run. I didn’t need to read any instructions (Yay!).
10. How long did it take you to adjust to using the Keys and get up to speed with the new tool?
I use the keypad with my left hand because my wacom pen is always in my right hand. It took a couple hours for me to memorize my most-used keys and get accustomed to using my left hand for something that actually requires some coordination. But, by the end of processing my first wedding, I had it down!
11. What type of photographer do you think would most benefit from the Keys?
The type of photographer who wants to spend less time sitting at the computer! Or the type of photographer that doesn’t look forward to editing and retouching. Before using any kind of workflow keyboard, I had dreaded editing weddings only because it was just such a big time-consuming task. For me, the SpeedKeys helped turn the monotonous retouching tasks I dreaded into something quicker and much more fun. I now enjoy editing almost as much as I enjoy the bit of extra free time the Speedkeys have given me!
12. How long do the batteries last? Would you say it’s efficient or prefer that there was a USB option?
I have only replaced the batteries once, so I think they’re incredibly efficient. I would hate to have a USB option actually…I have little desk real estate, and I love that I can just stick the keypad in a drawer for a while if I need to.
13. How long would you estimate that it took you to get fully up-to-speed using the RPG SpeedKeys?
I had it down after I edited my first wedding with the SpeedKeys – it took me about 3 hours to edit that wedding, and after that point I had 90% of my key combinations memorized. I do find that if I go a couple weeks without using the SpeedKeys, it takes me another 15-20 minutes to get into the groove of editing and I may need to double check myself on key combinations.
14. Do you principally use the keys for presets or do you find it equally as helpful or more helpful with general/global adjustments?
I find them equally as helpful - The top things I use the SpeedKeys for:
#1 – Exposure, Temperature, and Recovery sliders
#2 – Clarity, Saturation, and Vibrance sliders
#3 -- Presets
#4 – The undo button…I use this just as much as I use preset buttons
#5 – Picking the crop tool (sometimes I use the keyboard for this, depends on where my hand is at the time)
One thing I do not use the SpeedKeys for specifically is for Picking/Rejecting photos – I like to use the p and x keys on the computer’s keyboard instead because I am faster and more accurate that way.
15. Did you own/use Kubota actions or LR presets prior to purchasing the SpeedKeys?
I owned Kubota’s Artistic Action Pack’s I and II prior to owning the SpeedKeys. The Action Pack II’s Photoshop actions are a regular part of my workflow. Getting his Lightroom presets with the SpeedKeys was a great bonus, and I find that I use his “Default” photo presets the most.
16. Do you ever have trouble with the keyboard being out-of-range or not responding well when the batteries begin to get low?
No, the one time the batteries were dead for me was after the keyboard unit was sitting for a while in my off-season, so I didn’t notice any difference in the keyboard. One easy way to tell that the keyboard is not communicating with the computer is that the lights on the USB dongle don’t turn on when you press a key.
17. Would you use the SpeedKeys with other applications if possible? Would that be worth an additional monetary investment?
I would use them with other programs if it were easier to swap the keypads to show which keys perform which function in each application. I have a hard enough time memorizing the keys for Lightroom, and if I were able to use the keyboard in other applications, I would need the functions listed on the keys. It would definitely be worth an additional monetary investment, especially if the other programs work as well with the keyboard as Lightroom does.
18. Have you dropped the keypad ever? If so, did you notice any issues with its functionality or other imperfections following?
I haven’t ever dropped it, and I don’t think I want to put this one to the test. The keyboard seems like it’s durable enough to withstand being dropped on carpet, but I don’t think I’d want to risk dropping it onto something like a hard tile floor.
19. Do you ever edit on a laptop or strictly on a desktop setup?
Strictly Desktop (iMac with external monitor).
20. Would there be any appeal in a board with light-up keys? Do you visually identify the keys or just memorize their position and navigate by feel?
No appeal for me -- I have the keys memorized by their position. If the keys did light up, I’d imagine it would be a feature I’d turn off just like I do on my macbook’s keyboard.
21. Have you had the unfortunate experience of spilling anything on the keypad?
Nope, after learning my lesson prior to owning the SpeedKeys, I instituted my own rule of “No more food/drink on the desk!”.
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