Loupedeck reached out to me and offered to send me their flagship editing console to try out - the Loupedeck CT. I jumped at the chance, as I'd had my eye on Loupedeck devices since their first console was launched about five years ago. They sent me their console via UK distributor Holdan.
The Loupedeck CT arrived direct from Finland after about a week, and the first thing I noted was the excellent packaging that the controller came in. It was almost like a nod to the way Apple products are presented to you, and a joy to open. When you open the box, you get a moment akin to when John Travolta's Vincent Vega opens Marsellus Wallace’s missing briefcase in Pulp Fiction. A nice iridescent part of the box along the sides, with the console nicely tucked in and protected. A USB type C cable sits underneath, along with an older USB 2.0/3.0 adapter and a quick start guide.
My initial impressions of the console were that it felt very premium in terms of build quality, with a very nice aluminium cover and tactile dials that give a soft click when rotated. This isn’t a cheap device, though, so you’d come to expect that when paying out over £450 for an input device to help speed up workflow/productivity.
Before plugging in the console, I downloaded the Loupedeck software, created an account and logged in on the app. I connected the Loupedeck CT to my laptop, and it picked it up straight away. A very quick and easy process. Next came the part of figuring out what some of the buttons and dials did with the default settings. This is an incredibly impressive and clever bit of kit. It detects which app you have open and switches automatically to display the custom buttons/icons every time you change between apps. For example, it can also detect which module you are in whilst in Lightroom Classic and display the settings/buttons for use in that particular module, brilliant. It also has buttons and sequences mapped just for using Windows or Apple OS. The functions for things like launching Whatsapp, your favourite internet browser, controlling Spotify, or other basic tasks make this controller such a useful addition to my desk.
I knew that it would take me quite a while to set up the console and customise it so that it performed the way I wanted it to in my workflow. For me, I initially only wanted to concentrate on mapping the console with Adobe Lightroom Classic in mind, since that is the piece of software I use most within my editing workflow. I went through the menus/ buttons but barely ended up changing many as the default setup was already mapped out in a very intuitive way. That’s not to say that with more time spent with the console, I won’t make changes, but knowing how easy it is to do has made using the console a great experience thus far.
Customisation
It might seem like a daunting task to customise the controller, but doing so via the nicely designed software is a fairly intuitive process. Within the Loupedeck software, you can simply click on a button/dial and choose to assign it with another function. It really is quite a straightforward process. The hardest part for me was deciding which buttons I wanted to change and which I used most. The controller has many uses aside from controlling pretty much every function in Lightroom Classic. The Loupedeck CT is also mapped with functionality for Capture One, Photoshop, Illustrator, Premier Pro, Final Cut Pro, After Effects, Ableton Live and many more making it a very appealing package for most creative professionals. You can also download profiles, plugins and icon packs to customise your console even more, with new ones added all the time to the Loupedeck marketplace.
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| The Loupedeck software |
Conclusion
Having spent quite a bit of time learning how this clever
bit of kit works and trying to get the most out of it in order to speed up my
workflow, I've found that I need to have it alongside my keyboard and mouse
instead of replacing them outright as what I initially thought might be the
case. It's a neat piece of equipment that doesn't take up too much desktop real
estate and fits in nicely as its very pleasing on the eye, so having it
alongside my mouse is fine. I love the tactile knobs, buttons and large dial. I
also like that the console has some sort of haptic feedback when certain
"touch" functions are activated. The compact size of the console and
the high quality, lightweight materials used make this a very transportable
addition to any content creator's gear bag should they need to take it away
from their desktop. At this time, whether the Loupedeck CT has sped up
my workflow is difficult to say as each project I shoot is unique and with that
brings about slightly different adjustments during the editing process, so it’s
not like I can put a time on each project and how long it took to finish the
editing and compare it to the next. I feel that I still need more time with it
to allow my muscle memory to build so that most of the functions become second
nature to me like using a mouse or memorising keyboard shortcuts for certain
Photoshop/Lightroom tools or actions but so far my time with this cool device
has been very enjoyable. I will definitely say that it has sped up using
certain adjustments/functions in Lightroom as I now have a shortcut button for
something which could be a few clicks of the mouse, so this alone will save me a
considerable amount of time and effort in the long run. Also, I am now able to make more than one adjustment at a time in Lightroom while turning two dials at the simultaneously whereas I can only alter one slider at a time using my mouse, so this also makes the editing process considerably quicker.
Thanks for reading!
For more information on Loupedeck products, please take a look at their website - loupedeck.com.
If you're based in the UK, then check out UK Loupedeck distributor Holdan. Special thanks to Holdan for arranging to send this product to me to try out.
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