Review of Totally Rad’s Rad Lab!

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I knew Rad Lab was likely to be a great product. Why wouldn’t it be? I have had Totally Rad’s action sets for years and they are some of my favorites.  I also love Dirty Pictures for applying textures.  But, there is always a BUT… did I really NEED Rad Lab? I already had all their actions. Why couldn’t I just manually apply them like I have been for years? Why not just save my money and skip Rad Lab?  Well, because that would be nuts!!  It has such an intuitive interface that you will fall in love with it the minute it is opened. I did.

Some of you may think Rad Lab is another Photoshop action.  Nope, not at all. It’s a Photoshop filter. This means you can edit your pictures in a non destructive manner.  As you are using Photoshop smart filters and smart objects  you can make changes to your pictures even after running Rad Lab and returning to Photoshop. Need to mask off some areas?  No problem.  Once you are back in Photoshop you can adjust your images.

Is it easy to use?

At first I was a little concerned.  I had never even used smart objects or smart filters previously. Was I going to be able to navigate this?  The answer is YES!! It is easy peasy!!

The interface is ingenious!! You open it up and it is similar to how you see your images in Lightroom if you’re familiar with Lightroom. In Lightroom, when you roll over your presets you see a preview of how your image is going to look.  RadLab is very similar to this but even BETTER!! In fact it is kind of like Lightroom and Photoshop merged together as one.  And, this is the part you are going to love, it is going to save you TIME. Lots of time. No more going into Photoshop only to play an action then change your mind, delete it and move through your other actions. This takes time and we all know photographers are BUSY!! That is why I do not use half of the actions I own. I do not have time to play each action to see the effect.  With Rad Lab, I can see the effects immediately. I can layer my effects and adjust them all in a second. I do not have to go through my action list one by one looking for that perfect effect!

Let me show you how it works.

You start with your SOOC image.

Then you open up Rad Lab. Remember, this is a plug in, not an action so you will not find Rad Lab in your action palette. You will find it in your toolbar under FILTER>Rad Lab.

This will open up the interface. On the left will be your image and on the right will be your stylets. You can hover over them and it will show you what your image will look like. It basically gives you a super fast preview of your image with the effect applied without ever having to actually apply the action. Plus, you can layer, layer, layer until you achieve your desired look.

If you click the stylet it will add the effect to the right. This is where you can do your adjustments. I choose  “Oh Snap” and decided to decrease the strength to 75%. Next, I hovered over the other stylets and “Claire-ify” looked good. I added that and decreased it to 55%. I could have been finished but I was playing around. See? It’s that easy. You can just glide your mouse over the stylets and see the new effects on your image. Once I hovered over “Vanilla Kiss” I knew I had to add that too. It gave it a nice warmth. So I added it and lowered the strength to 55%. So now I can see my changes with a click of the mouse. Do I want to see it without “Oh Snap”? Easy, I just uncheck it. I can make other changes here too such as increasing the strength over all, or increasing/decreasing specific layers in the effects….all in this awesome interface!!! Another great thing is that you can have your histogram showing to make sure you are not blowing your highlights or clipping your blacks while working. When you are satisfied with your choices you hit finish and it will bring you back to Photoshop to continue your work.


If you have chosen to open Rad Lab by the filter method above it will remember your last used recipe and will apply that when you open a new image. You can delete that by hitting reset down in the far right hand corner.

If you have CS4 or CS5, you can open RAD LAB by using the panel. It will already be installed so to make it show up you will have to choose Window>Extensions>Rad Lab. This will open it as a palette and you can dock it just like your other Photoshop palettes.

 


I preferred using it in this manner. It was already docked on my screen and I could open it with one click and it started out with a blank recipe. I could apply my desired recipe, hit finish and it would bring me back to Photoshop where I could adjust my layers as needed using masks, etc.

My SOOC image again:

My final image using RadLab:


So that is it! Pretty Rad, huh?!

The pros? I love the interface. So easy to use and FAST! I mean REALLY fast..no waiting for an action to load. Just open it up and you can edit an image in seconds. I love how I can try out loads of new recipes with a click of a mouse. Just roll over the images and you can see the effect and I can save those recipes easily for future use.  Another cool feature is that each time I add a new effect it also shows the effect on all the other stylets. I can also record an action using Rad Lab which is perfect if I need to do some batch editing. I think Rad Lab is a very effective tool and will definitely be saving me some editing time!!

And for all of you Abode Photoshop Elements users?  Wait for it………..RadLab is totally compatible with Photoshop Elements 7 and above!  Squeal!

The cons? There has to be something not so rad, right? I tried to come up with some and truthfully, it was hard. I do wish it had an option to apply texture -that would be cool.  I wish it was possible to incorporate actions into the interface – other vendors or even just TRA’s.   It would be amazing if if worked with Lightroom. I do my basic edits there so to pop over to Rad Lab from there would be nice. (I did have a little birdy tell me that this may be in the works..or even a stand alone program…so we will have to keep our fingers crossed!)

That’s it!! I love this product and I think you will too!!!! I HIGHLY recommend it!!

Thanks so much for such a fantastic, in-depth review Monica!  RadLab looks awesome!

You can learn all about the awesomeness that is RadLab on Totally Rad’s website.

AND…. being that they are, in fact, totally rad, Totally Rad is giving away RadLab to one lucky ClickinMoms blog reader!!

Leave a comment and you’ll automatically be entered to win.  Winner will be chosen randomly and announced both here on this post as an update and on our ClickinMoms Facebook Page on September 6, 2011 so make sure to get your comments in by midnight PST on September 5th.  Good luck!  Thanks to Totally Rad for a rad giveaway!

 UPDATE:

Thanks so much for all of your entries!!

Winner of RadLab is Krista Lund!  Congratulations, Krista!  You can contact me at Kathryn {at} clickinmoms {dot} com to claim your prize!

About the Author
Latest Posts

Monica Wilkinson

Armed with both a Nikon and Canon set up, Monica focuses on children and newborn portraiture in the Seattle, Washington area, despite her disdain for the rain. And although Monica is a Mac girl, she is madly in love with her Microsoft employed husband, their two young daughters and the family’s Maltipoo, Scout. She enjoys kickboxing and DIY crafts but would much rather spend her day off “laying on a hot, sunny beach reading a magazine while sipping a fruity beverage.”

See more from Monica at www.monicawilkinson.com.

Recent Posts by Monica Wilkinson

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194 thoughts on “Review of Totally Rad’s Rad Lab!”

  1. Leah {paperboutique}

    What an amazing idea! I would love to have somewhere to house all of my TRA actions and easily see each of them all at once!! Thank you for this review and the opportunity to win!

    Reply
  3. Annika

    Even if I don't win a copy of RadLab, it'll be next on my list of PS add ons. LOVE that you can preview what your final image will look like. Genius. This will reduce my editing time immensely!

    Reply
  4. Iris Hicks

    Reading this makes me really want Rad Lab. I'm so visual when I edit that this sounds like a God send. Hope I win Mr. Random number picker.

    Reply
  5. Ali Smith

    WOW. I've been hearing about this, but didn't really understand what it was. What a great review! I would absolutely love to win this…here's to hoping!

    Reply
  6. celestejones

    Monica that was a beautiful image to begin with but the action took it to another level. I like it!

    Reply
  7. Lindsay Branch

    Oh….I saw RadLab online the other day and I want it SOOOOOO bad!! It would be awesome to win it!!! Thank you for the review, I always like to hear others opions b/f I make a purchase!! Glad to her RadLab is as RAD as it sounded!!!

    Reply
  8. Amanda Janzen

    This is amazing and would be a great time saver. I do wish it would work with all actions in my pallete!! What a great idea, thanks Rad Lab and Monica for this review!!

    Reply
  14. Sarah S.

    I'm struggling to get my lightroom edits to look exactly the way I want them to… RadLad sounds so easy! I love that it edits nondestructively. Thanks for the rad giveaway!!!

    Reply
  15. Carrie Duwelius

    Thanks so much for the review! I was somewhat interested before, but now I'm dying for it! A-MAZ-ING!!!!

    Reply
  22. Kathee M

    SOOOOOO excited about RADLAB!!! Thank you so much for the review. It has totally talked me into purchasing! (if I don't win that is 🙂 )

    Reply
  24. Kim Bauer

    I saw RadLab when they first announced it, and totally fell in love. It's so awesome that you get to give one away! I would LOVE to win this, thanks for the opportunity!!

    Reply
  25. Jaime P

    Sounds amazing! I was in LR101 where Doug did the Q&A, and it's just awesome to hear all the nitty gritty details now! 😀

    Reply
  26. Kasey

    This looks fantastic! I am one of those who puts the action on and changes my mind a lot and go through a few other actions. I love Totally Rad actions as it is. So this looks like such a huge timesaver and FUN!

    Reply
  28. Kelley Yenias

    I have been going back and forth on whether to get this (I have the actions already). Thank you for the review !! It sounds awesome!!

    Reply
  29. Clare Telford

    What a great product and great giveaway………I would love love love to win this. If not I suspect it may be on my santa list!

    Reply
  31. Cindy Boes

    Looks like a great product and it would be great to win this!!! It looks to be very user friendly and I just love the preveiw screens.

    Reply
  32. Sarah C.

    Thanks for the great review. Being an Elements user, I haven't been able to use Totally Rad before. RadLab will be my way in!

    Reply
  40. Kelly

    Oh, I was just talking myself out of getting this yesterday. I just hate spending so much time processing photos. To the point of dreading to take photos anymore. All that to say, I'd love to win this!!! Great review too, by the way.

    Reply
  43. Julie B

    Another fantastic product from the Boutwells! RadLab would save me so much time. It's on my "Honey-I-Really-Want-This-For-insert occastion here-List."

    Reply
  50. Nicole diGIorgio

    Not entering the contest because I broke down and bought this yesterday. Can't say enough great things about it after tinkering until 1:00 AM. 🙂 I was naysaying because I have a bunch of Lightroom presets. This is so much better!

    Reply
  52. K. SUllivan

    I am soo excited about this program. I dont know if I will be able to wait out the contest though and may just have to buy it unless I can stop obsessing:))

    Reply
  53. Michelle Pierce

    Thanks Monica for such a fabulous review and thank you CM and Rad Labs for this fantastic giveaway!

    Reply
  54. Pam Beamon

    This product looks so amazing! Would LOVE to be able to utilize it and see for myself how user-friendly it is.

    Reply
  58. Alis in Wnderlnd

    I've been thinking about getting this, but would much rather win it! This was the clearest review I've seen of it so far. Thanks! I already own the TRA actions, but I also use MCP actions. It would ROCK if it could be used with other actions, or even our own. And I'm going to keep my fingers crossed for the lightroom version!!!

    Reply
  61. Robin Bishop

    Thank you soo much for your awesome review on this!! I could really use this as I desperately need editing help! It took me 6 hrs yesterday to edit 23 photos and that is not healthy! Lol

    I would love to own this program!!! Crossing my fingers!!!!

    Reply
  65. Jen Reese

    Sounds like Totally Rad has done it again! I would love to have this! Thanks for this contest. 🙂

    Reply
  66. Janine

    Great review … I love the way it previews and allows you to remove something you added "in the middle", which is great for those of us who like to change our mind. 🙂

    Reply
  68. Jen Dale

    I would love to have this!! And even better to win it!!! Thanks for the review, and the opportunity to win!

    Reply
  71. dee perrin

    I really, really want this and have been hoping I'll be able to buy it after a few more fall photo sessions!

    Reply
  72. Melissa

    I'm sure glad I read all the way to the end, otherwise I wouldn't have learned it's compatible with PSE. Squeal indeed!

    Reply
  86. Tiffany

    I abandoned PhotoShop when I started using Lightroom. This is the only thing that has come close to making me want to go back! Awesome.

    Reply
  89. janelle

    I've been following the hype leading up to the launch of RadLab and I would absolutely LOVE to win this. It looks incredibly fun and efficient; it would save me so much time editing!

    Reply
  95. Haley B

    Great review! I'm very interested in testing out RadLab now! I would love to speed up the editing process.

    Reply
  97. Dot Rutherford

    Wow! What an amazing product. So happy to see that it's compatible with PSE! Fingers are crossed that I'm the lucky winner! 🙂

    Reply
  111. Jeannette

    wow, this sounds really interesting….this is a great review! and now of course it makes me want it!

    Reply
  112. Maggie

    Thanks so much for the thorough review! I've been eyeing this since it came out and am lusting for it even more now.

    Reply
  115. Christina

    What a nice giveaway. I have all of the TRA's. I don't use actions as much as i'd like to, only because it takes a while to load each, and then not knowing if you'll even like it on that particular photo. What a brilliant new way to use the actions!

    Reply
  121. Jennifer

    OMG! I would die to win this. I've been scouring the internet for the past two weeks looking for reviews. If don't win I will definitely buy it. 🙂

    Reply
  131. Nikki Westbrock

    I had seen their site and thought it was a really neat product and then was totally bummed because I have PSE9 and didn't think it was compatible. So excited now that I know it is!

    Reply
  132. Emily Morgalis

    This looks really awesome! I love that you can see so many different looks without even having to run an action on the photo. I would love to win this….keeping my fingers crossed.

    Reply
  134. Gabby

    Looks fabulous!! Do I really need it…. perhaps not…. but do I really want it?? OF COURSE!! 🙂

    Reply
  137. Kylie d

    Ohhhh have been watching and waiting and would Soooo love to win this! Everything crossed… 🙂

    Reply
  139. Ellie A.

    I would just pass out . SERIOUSLY. since the moment I saw this I have been drooling & dreaming. Unfortunately we are in a Super budget crunch w/less hrs for my Hubby & being a SAHM has made me the ult.budget queen so I have been biting my lip each time I see someone share their photo edits. It would be beyond awesome. Thanks for the chance.Off to cross my fingers & wish BIG!

    Reply
  141. bananasandrice

    I Love Totally Rad actions, and sure wish I could get my hands on some RadLabs. I couldn't have waited a few months to buy though, I needed some RAD right then!

    Reply
  142. Bailey Nobles

    I would LOVE to try this product. My husband is in the Army and we are currently stationed out in Germany so I would be able to use this to my advantage on any traveling we might do before he deploys!

    Reply
  145. Lucy Browse

    I want this soooooooooooooooooo badly it hurts! I've been looking at some of the images other people have been creating using Radlab and they are stunning, and it looks so streamlined and easy to use, it really is the future. Sadly being on maternity leave = tightened purse strings, so at the moment my only hope of getting my hands on a copy is by blind luck. Fingers crossed I am the CHOSEN ONE! x

    Reply
  149. kristin

    I'm totally tempted. I'd more of a LR user since CS5 still confuses me, but this just might convince to make the leap and start using CS5 a bit more. I'd really love to give it a try and see what it's all about.

    Reply
  151. Kodi

    I was getting ready to purchase my first set of actions and came across a review on Rad Lab. I've totally changed my mind now! So, to win this would be amazing!

    Reply
  161. Ashley

    I am so excited about this giveaway, I have been reading reviews of RadLab all day but just can't afford it right now. Fingers crossed!

    Reply
  166. Vickie Whaley

    I have just started checking into this and it looks amazing! Thanks so much for giving one of these away, whoever wins will be super excited!

    Reply
  171. Angie Z

    I NEEEEED this. I would love to be able to process this way. I love you Totally Rad, and even if I'm not picked this willl be one of my next purchases.

    Reply
  174. Isabelle

    You wrote such a great review that now I feel like I am totally missing out on something very cool!

    Reply
  182. shelly

    This is the second place I've seen this reviewed. Both were great reviews…I want to win so I can try it!!

    Reply
  188. Michele Gonzales

    I have been stalking Totally Rad for years! But I have elements and they weren't available before. So very excited that this is available.

    Reply
  191. Trina

    After reading this post I just had to buy this. I saw this post too late to enter the giveaway. I will tell you that I LOVE this filter! My workflow on my last editing session went so smoothly and took me about half the time.

    Reply
  192. Maria

    Great review! I hope to try a trial version of RadLab before buying it. I'm still dilly-dallying between buying the 2 sets of actions (because they offer more options in terms of stylets than RadLab currently offers) or RadLab but your review really makes RadLab seem much more user friendly.

    Reply
  194. Jill

    omg! i am using the trial right now and am amazed! so easy and fast. my last session was edited in half the time! the only thing i am noticing is that the images when in rad lab are so clear and crisp but when i bring them back into ps, they lose the clarity. anyone else have this issue or know how to keep the clarity. if i can figure that out, i will definitely be buying!

    Reply

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