For this Head-2-Head Review, we’re going to report our performance results in two groups: the results of our objective testing, and the average quoted results of the professional photographers we conferred with throughout the course of our evaluation period.
The professional wedding photographers we interviewed indicated RPG Keys and SpeedKeys increased their editing efficiency by 33-200%. We found it curious that the users of the RPG keys quoted greater efficiency than those professionals using the SpeedKeys; however, there was little overlap with those shooters – meaning photographers that actually use both the RPG Keys and the SpeedKeys.
It should be noted that the degree of efficiency that you are able to gain from these products is largely individualized, and dependant on a host of variables from the specific user’s editing habits, general learning curve, and dexterity.
Our testing for this H2H Report was done over the course of two weddings that had already been culled. Each wedding consisted of roughly 1,100 images that we processed in Lightroom. We edited each of the weddings manually, using RPG Keys, Kubota SpeedKeys, and a standard Mac keyboard to try to “time” the difference.
The keys essentially take the place of the sliders, and all the keyboard and mouse strokes that are attached to them. It’s worth noting that editing in Lightroom is significantly faster in the Library module than the Develop Module, as has been reported. This is something you cannot do without the keys.
The Kubota keys were quicker to adapt to, though at the end of the second wedding, we were saving a bit more time with the RPG Keypad. While editing the first wedding, we were able to shave 38 minutes off our time with the RPG Keys and roughly 42 minutes with the Kubota SpeedKeys, compared to the standard Mac keyboard. By the second wedding, the time jumped to 61 minutes saved with the RPG Keys and 53 minutes saved with the SpeedKeys, compared to the standard keyboard and mouse setup.
We acknowledge that this data is far from scientific. It is experiential, and as close to objective as we could get. However, sequencing alone (editing material for the second, and third time), along with a host of other uncontrolled variables beyond the scope of our evaluation, can surely impact and skew those numbers.
To help glean a bit more insight into the performance differences of these two products, we looked to the professional photographers that use these products over the course of years and jobs. In their collective responses, we found that both RPG Keys and Kubota facilitated a more efficient workflow for every photographer we interviewed.
Here’s how the results broke down, on average:
RPG Keys: 105% more efficient than standard keyboard
Kubota SpeedKeys: 85% more efficient than standard keyboard
*Click here to read more from the Photographers themselves
