If you don’t print your images, you may not have spent much time in Lightroom’s print module. The thing is, though, the print module is actually quite a useful and relatively easy to use layout tool, that can be used for more than just printing. A little while ago I posted about how to use it for framing your images to post to instagram, but that’s just the start.

Non framed Instagram Posts

In the last post on this subject (and if you haven’t read that one, go read it now!) I talked about how to use the print module to create images in the right aspect ratio for instagram but with a white frame around the edges. This isn’t something I would normally do myself, but I see it a lot on instagram.

For those who don’t like this approach, another option is to create a version specifically for Instagram, and crop it to the right aspect ratio to maximise the display on the social media platform. In this case, you can of course just use the crop tool, but if you don’t want to fill up your library with multiple virtual copies for different versions, you can do this with the print module too.

Once again, you would start by setting up a custom paper size, and make sure to set the margins to zero. If you have a printer selected, it may not let you do this, so you may need to select “any printer”. Here’s what to do:

Setup - Create Custom Paper Size

I covered this in the previous article, but incase you missed it, here it is again!

Step1

Go to the print module and at the bottom left of the screen, click on Page Setup.

Step 2

Now we need to create a custom page size. Select “Any Printer” from the printer selection from the list of printers. You don’t actually need to have a printer attached for this to work. The example I’m using here is on a Mac, and so the layout of the dialog boxes might be a little different on Windows, but the tools should be the same.

Step 3

In the Page Setup box Select the Page Size Pop-Up menu and Then Choose Manage Custom Sizes…

Step 4

Use the Plus button at the bottom of the dialog to create a new custom size (again, the interface or this may be different on Windows). You need to create the custom size before setting the settings (yes, stupid - I know) - Just make sure to create the preset first.

Step 5

You need to create a custom page size with a 5 X 4 aspect ratio. Because we use the metric system here in Ireland, my options default to mm. I created a page size of 40mm X 50mm. Set the Non-Printable area to user defined, and then set the margins all to zero. This is important

Step 6

Click OK to exit, and now in the Page Set up box you can select either landscape or portrait orientation. You will need to repeat the rest of this procedure to create one of each. For the moment we will stick with portrait orientation. Click ok to exit the dialog

Step 7

In the print dialog you should now have a 4X5 frame with the image probably filling the width of the frame. You now need to set a few more settings from the settings on the right hand side of the screen.

Under Image Settings, Make sure Zoom to fill is off. Leave “Rotate to Fit” unchecked. This will allow you to crop horizontal images to the vertical orientation for example.

Under Layout, set all the margins to zero. Set the width and height sliders in the Cell Size section to be their maximum

Under Print Job, set “Print To:”to Print to File. Set File Resolution to 900ppi. This is based on using the dimension I set above. You could use any dimensions really, so long as the aspect ratio is correct. For example if you used 400mm X 500mm then you could use a smaller ppi (around 90). You may need to experiment to make sure the resulting resolution is high enough, but for 40mm X 50mm, 900ppi will work fine.

I also have Print Sharpening set to Low, but this is optional.

Step 8

You should now save these as a template. From the Template Browser (on the left hand side of the print module) click the + button to create a new template. (You can also create a new group if you want), and call it something like Instagram Full Vertical. You should then repeat these steps but change the orientation in the Page Setup dialog to create a horizontal oriented template and save that too.

In use

You can now use this template to frame your images. In the print module main view you can slide the image left and right (or up and down) to adjust the positioning within the frame. Once you have your image set, just press the “print to file” button.

Note, you may see a white line around the edge of the frame in the Print Module viewer, but this is just in Lightroom. If you have the settings set right, it shouldn’t be there when you export.

You can batch export images this way too.

At the bottom of the print module’s main window, you can set it to work with just the selected images, or everything in the film strip. Set this to which ever version you want, then go through the images and frame them. Once you’re finished, if you have this “Use” button set to use “Selected Photos” then select the photos you want to export and hit the “Print to File button”. If you have Use set to “Filmstrip Photos” it will print everything in your film strip, so this might be better suited to working with collections. You can filter images in the film strip too, so if you filter by picks for example, it will only export your picks. It basically works with every visible image on the film strip.

Instagram Stories

If you want to prep images for instagram stories, you can again use the print module as a basic layout tool. I recently wanted to create posters for my “Virtual Spring” exhibit, and I wanted to share these on my Instagram stories. I used the contact sheet options to create a poster with frames from he exhibit, which I could then export and share in my stories on instagram. But this is just one example, you can use any combination of layout for creating images.

Here’s what to do:

Step 1: Again, you need to create a custom page size using the instructions from above, but this time, it needs to be 9:16 ratio.

Step 2: Set your page layout options. This is where you can experiment to your hearts content. If you want to do a contact sheet, Under Layout Style, choose: Single Image/Contact sheet and change the “Page Grid” options by dragging the Rows and Columns sliders. You can also adjust the margins and cell size options here too, until you achieve the style you want.

For example, for this 5 panel wide poster from the example screenshot above, I set the options as follows:

You can also do more free form layouts by choosing “Custom Package” and dragging the photos in and adjusting the width and height and arranging them on the image. Here is another example.

A few more tips:

To change the background, set the “Page Background Colour” in the Page panel.
When working in the Custom Package mode, hold down the command key to one the image within the frame.
Use “Photo Border” if you want to outline your photos in the sample above.
When you get a layout you want be sure to save the template by clicking on the big + at the top of the Template Browser on the left hand side of the print module.
You can also use this to create layouts for any other social media platform, such as facebook for example.
You can add additional elements by opening the resulting file in an image editing application such as photoshop to add text etc.

Once you’re finished, choose print to file as always, and this will save your image.

Here are some of the exported images from the examples above (Click to view Large)

Conclusion

The layout options in the print module are surprisingly flexible, and it doesn’t have to be used just for printing. It provides a great way to lay out your images for various social media platforms, and even if you don’t use this as your finished image, its a great place to start.

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