What Version of Lightroom Are You Using?

Answering Lightroom Help Desk questions for KelbyOne has gotten more challenging since Adobe dropped the “CC” from the names of all Lightroom products last month. Just about every conversation I have with fellow Lightroom users involves a bit of back and forth out of the gate to ensure we are on the same page about which product they are using. A good percentage of conversations still begin with the questioner stating something like, “I have LR CC” which has meant a few different things over the years.

Evolving Names

2015 is the year Adobe released Lightroom 6, available through a perpetual license, and Lightroom CC 2015, the same product available through a Creative Cloud subscription. Over the next couple of years Lightroom CC 2015 did gain a couple of new features, but on the whole it was the same program as Lightroom 6. During that period of time we also had a product called Lightroom Mobile for iOS and Android which could sync with Lightroom CC 2015. While there were a few different products in the Lightroom family, they each did have a unique name, so it wasn’t too hard to have a discussion about which one you were using. Those were also the good old days when they also displayed the version number on the splash screen (how quaint).

Then October of 2017 came along and what we knew as “Lightroom CC 2015” became “Lightroom Classic CC”, and we learned that Lightroom 6 was the last version available through a perpetual license. Oh, and what we knew as “Lightroom Mobile” was now going to be called “Lightroom CC” and we gained Mac and Windows versions to go along with the existing iOS and Android versions, and an “ecosystem” was born. Referring to your Lightroom software as “Lightroom CC” got a bit more complicated.

Now, a month after Adobe dropped the “CC” bit from the names of both Lightroom products because there is no longer a perpetual license version to differentiate from, we are left with “Lightroom Classic” and “Lightroom”. However, due to all of this history and product name evolution, just saying “Lightroom” alone begs the further clarifying question of, “which version of Lightroom are you using?”

Finding the Version Number

The main point of this mini-rant is to help anyone seeking assistance with a Lightroom family product question to get that help as easily as possible. I spend a fair amount of time on various forums, blogs, Facebook groups, and even talking to people face to face, and see the same confusing conversations happen over and over again. So, unless you are one of the few people still using Lightroom CC 2015 because it is the latest version supported by your operating system (or you just like the good old days), the rest of us can simply stop referring to any version of Lightroom as “Lightroom CC” at all.

Instead, do yourself and everyone seeking to help you a huge favor and use the complete name and version number of the software you need help with. To find this important nugget of information, go to Help > System Info (same on both Mac and Windows) and you will see the product name and version number right at the top of the System Info window that appears.

You can even select that bit of text and copy/paste it right into whatever email, forum, blog comment, Facebook group, etc. that you are asking your question in and you will cut right to the chase and eliminate all confusion over product version. Throw in your operating system version while you are at it and you’ll avoid that question too.

Note, if your question is about Lightroom on one of the mobile platforms you can find the version number by going to the Settings screen within the Lightroom app, then tap About Lightroom. You’ll definitely want to include your OS too when asking your question.

This way even if the naming saga continues to evolve further (perhaps an unpronounceable symbol is next?) you now know the secret to finding out exactly what version of Lightroom you are using.

ps – I had a great time at Photoshop World Orlando, and want to thank everyone who came to my classes or dropped by the Lightroom Help Desk. Already looking forward to doing it all again at Photoshop World Vegas!