And Apple Photos is insanely fast! Far faster than Lightroom Classic, and I believe Apple Photos is even faster than Adobe Lightroom CC (the new one for Desktop). 2.Easy to favorite and pick photos. When looking through photos, I just press the little heart (favorite/pick) icon in the MacBook Pro Touch Bar, and it is a joy to use! Easily edit your photos anywhere with the all-new Lightroom. Create incredible photos on your mobile devices, the web, and your desktop with powerful editing features in a easy-to-use interface. Your photos and edits are securely backed up to the cloud, and organization and search are a snap. Share and showcase your favorite photos in fun ways.
Whenever new photo software appears, it triggers a round of evaluation for photographers. Should you investigate the new app, or is what youâre using now working well enough for your needs? I suspect many Mac users are using the Photos app in macOS and iOS, along with iCloud Photo Library for syncing among multiple devices. (Iâm sure there are plenty of people still using Aperture and iPhoto too, but if thatâs you, think seriously about switching to something thatâs supported before it gets too hard.)
Adobe recently made a significant shift in its Lightroom ecosystem thatâs worth considering. âLightroomâ now exists as two separate applications: Lightroom CC is an entirely new app that Adobe built around cloud synchronization, whereas Lightroom Classic CC is the new name of the photo editor and organizer that recently marked its 10th year on the market. (If youâre confused, itâs not you: Lightroom Classic was previously named Lightroom CC.) This move has implications for both existing Lightroom users and those looking to step up their photography without jumping into the pro end ofediting and organizing images.
Especially for the latter group, Lightroom CC deserves a look. In fact, I believe Adobeâs change is so significant that I just wrote an entire book about the new app. The 133-page âTake Control of Lightroom CCâ goes into detail about how to import, edit, and synchronize your photo library in Lightroom CC. It also includes a chapter devoted to making Lightroom CC and Lightroom Classic work together, for folks who currently use Lightroom Classic and want to give Lightroom CC a try.
A Modern Approach â Weâve seen this before. Apple developed Photos for Mac because it needed an application that put iCloud Photo Library at its center and made it possible to access oneâs entire photo library on any Apple device. iPhoto wasnât designed for that, so the company chose to start over rather than bolt on its iCloud vision.
The difference in Adobeâs approach is that Lightroom users arenât faced with an all-or-nothing choice going forward. Apple not only stopped work on iPhoto, it also abandoned its pro-level tool, Aperture. Since many Aperture users switched over to Lightroom, Adobe learned from Appleâs unpopular move. Lightroom Classic remains the full-featured, pro version of Lightroom, and Adobe is still actively developing it. Lightroom CC includes most of Lightroom Classicâs core features and is designed to be able to access your entire library from any device.
Iâve used Lightroom Classic for years, but I have to admit that Lightroom CC is less intimidating. For example, one of the features I love about Lightroom Classic is its capability to apply metadata during import, because it can save a lot of time later. You can also rename files, make backup copies, and apply edits (and save all of those options in dedicated presets) during the same operation. But cramming all of that into the Import window makes some photographers wonder what theyâve gotten themselves into. Lightroom CC focuses just on selecting which photos to import, with the option to put them into an album at import. Itâs less capable than Lightroom Classic but much more friendly to people who arenât looking for powerfeatures.
Or consider some of the modules in Lightroom Classic, which enable you to create sophisticated slideshows, Web sites, and book layouts. Those are great features, but how many people really take advantage of them?
Lightroom CC is a streamlined appeal to the sort of people who use Appleâs Photos (and Google Photos): those who want to store and edit their photos with a minimum amount of friction.
Of course, the term âstreamlinedâ is often used to mask shortcomings. âThis car isnât missing wheels; itâs just streamlined!â And Lightroom CC is starting out at version 1.0 with some holes to fill. It cannot print. It can currently share only to Facebook or by exporting images. The search feature, which is powered by Adobe Sensei technology, employs machine learning to identify objects and scenes in photos; however, itâs entirely server-based, so you need an Internet connection to perform a search of your photo library. Adobe has said itâs working on incorporating features such as the HDR and panorama merge tools found in Lightroom Classic, so I suspect others will also appear as the application moves beyond its initialrelease.
Adobe is already starting to fill those holes. Lightroom CC 1.1 added a Tone Curve editing control, a Split Toning tool, and improved the Auto feature by basing it on Adobe Sensei neural network technology.
So what does Lightroom CC bring to the game for someone taking stock of their photo system? I see two main areas that are appealing: the capability to perform local adjustments within an image and the way Adobe has built the cloud synchronization.
Photo Editing Advantages â When you edit an image in Appleâs Photos, the adjustments you make apply to the entire photo. Increasing the exposure, for instance, makes everything in the image brighter, not just objects in the foreground. Sometimes thatâs what you want, but it can also mean the sky becomes entirely white and loses definition as a consequence.
Lightroom CC includes a trio of tools that let you apply settings to specific areas. The Linear Gradient tool defines a broad area where you can apply adjustments. Do you wish the colors in a sunset photo looked more like the moody hues you remember? Creating a linear gradient over the sky gives you a canvas on which to boost saturation, clarity, contrast and the other editing tools; since itâs a graduated selection, the effect fades gently into the rest of the image.
The Radial Gradient tool does the same thing but within an oval shape. If a personâs face is dark in an image, you can add a radial gradient that increases the exposure and shadows values to brighten it, with the effect blended into the surrounding pixels so it doesnât pop unnaturally from the overall photo. I often add radial gradients to subjectsâ eyes to subtly brighten them and enhance the saturation.
If you need more precision, the Brush tool lets you paint adjustments to individual areas.
The Brush also paints or erases areas of gradients, such as when you want to add contrast to a sky, but want to exclude foreground elements like boat masts or distant hills that stick up into the linear gradient area.
For still other adjustments, you can send any Lightroom CC photo to Adobe Photoshop, which excels at more complicated edits. The Healing Brush in Lightroom is pretty good, for instance, but Photoshopâs healing tools are much better.
If you use Photos, these types of local adjustments arenât built in, but they also arenât entirely out of reach. The editing extensions framework in Photos allows you to open images in third-party apps. And in macOS 10.13 High Sierra, Photos now includes an Edit With command that doesnât depend on the extensions. That means you can hand off a photo to be edited in Photoshop, Affinity Photo, Pixelmator, RAW Power, or other apps. When youâre done there, the edited version appears in the Photos library.
Photos Everywhere â In 2015, shortly after Apple released Photos and Adobe released Lightroom CC 2015, I noted, âWhat may seem a minor convenience â look, you can take a picture with your iPhone and it appears on your Mac! â is the start of a notable shift in how we treat digital photosâ (see âPhotos Everywhere with Lightroom CC and Photos for OS X,â 11 May 2015). Lightroom CCâs very existence is the result of that realignment.
When you import photos into Lightroom CC, it uploads your originals to Adobeâs Creative Cloud, where they become available to your devices running Lightroom Mobile or Lightroom CC on one other computer (you can use Lightroom CC on two computers at once). That multi-device support also includes Android phones and tablets, and Windows computers, platforms that Photos ignores.
Lightroom Classic can also sync with Creative Cloud, but itâs limited to just those collections that you mark for syncing, leaving you to deal with the particulars of creating or choosing collections and enabling them for Lightroom Mobile.
What about photos you capture using your iPhone or iPad? Appleâs advantage in owning the default Photos app removes the friction of importing photos as a separate step. Lightroom can do that, too. Lightroom Mobile offers an option to auto-import images from the Camera Roll. Lightroom Mobile even has an advantage here, because its built-in camera feature can capture raw images, something that iOS allows for third-party apps but Apple hasnât implemented in the Camera app.
I also want to spotlight the way Lightroom CC handles the image files in a library. Like Photos, the default approach on the Mac is to create a package file, which is actually a folder, and store everything there. Our disks are filling up quickly, however, especially with large photo files. A decent-sized photo library quickly gets too big for 256 GB or 512 GB of laptop storage, for instance.
Appleâs solution is to use iCloud Photo Library and give you the Optimize Mac Storage option in Photos, which replaces large original files with small thumbnails to conserve space. Photos then downloads full-sized images from iCloud as needed. If you have a large internal hard disk, thatâs usually not an issue.
However, if you have a smaller drive, such as found in a MacBook or MacBook Pro, or if your photo library is particularly large, this option becomes a limitation: you have no local copy of your originals. You could choose to store your Photos library on an external disk, but when that disk isnât connected â such as when youâre traveling â you lose access to those photos. Plus, relying on just iCloud itself isnât a solid backup plan. My workaround is to run Photos on an old Mac mini with a large external disk attached, and with the option to Download Originals to This Mac turned on. But thatâs not feasible for a lot of people.
Lightroom CCâs approach is more sensible. Like Apple, Adobe considers the Creative Cloud copy of your images as a backup, so Lightroom CC will delete image files in the background to free up space; when you need to work on one, itâs re-downloaded. But, again, thatâs not a reliable local backup.
To work around this issue, Lightroom CC lets you specify an external hard disk as the location to store the original photo files, while the database that Lightroom CC uses to keep track of everything remains on your computerâs internal drive. When that external drive is unavailable â such as when youâve taken your MacBook Pro on a trip â Lightroom CC downloads any shots you need to edit, even if the original file isnât available locally.
New images you import are stored on the internal disk. Once the Mac is reunited with the external disk containing the local originals, Lightroom CC automatically moves all the new files to the external location. With this setup, itâs easy to maintain a separate backup of the external drive and your photo library stored on it.
If youâre concerned that youâll end up in a situation where you need to edit photos in your library and wonât have the Internet access required to download originals on the fly, Lightroom CC 1.1 added an option to store a copy of the images as Smart Previews â lower-resolution versions that are fully editable.
Cloud Costs â Price, of course, is a factor. Lightroom CC requires one of Adobeâs Creative Cloud subscription plans, which start at $10 a month. Apple includes Photos in macOS, which is free.
The next consideration is cloud storage, since in both ecosystems, youâre going to end up paying for additional storage as you add more digital photos to your library. Hereâs a breakdown of Adobeâs subscription plans and associated storage:
Surprisingly, Appleâs storage upgrades are a better deal, though you donât get Adobeâs applications as part of the mix (note that these are U.S. prices; Apple gives worldwide pricing on its Web site):
Iâd like to see Adobe reduce their prices to be more competitive.
Unfortunately, these are separate clouds floating on their own wind currents. I would love to see an option where I could store Lightroomâs library at iCloud (or Dropbox, or elsewhere) and not have to pay more for Creative Cloud storage tiers. However, with a lot of the machine learning and services being hosted on Adobeâs cloud infrastructure, I donât see that happening.
Looking at Now to Prepare for the Future â Regardless of how serious of a photographer you are, itâs good to reevaluate how you manage our photo libraries every so often because weâre dealing with memories, not just files. What you donât want to do is hang on to something too long and then discover an abrupt shift is needed. Aperture and iPhoto users, for example, are living on borrowed time. If you find Photos to be sufficient for your needs, carry on, and weâll likely chat about this again next year.
But if you wish you had more editing control over your photos, or if youâre already in the Creative Cloud ecosystem because you use another Adobe product, I suggest you give Lightroom CC a try. Although I still use Lightroom Classic, I now open it far less often than I used to, because Iâve been using Lightroom CC instead. Itâs fast, uncluttered, and is working well for the types of photography Iâve been doing lately, which includes nearly 3000 images shot during a workshop and two family photo shoots.
And if you do take Lightroom CC for a spin, I hope youâll consider doing so with my book at your side. âTake Control of Lightroom CCâ is available now for just $15. And if, despite everything Iâve just said, you plan to stick with Photos, Iâd encourage you to pick up Jason Snellâs just-updated âPhotos: A Take Control Crash Course.â
Adobe Lightroom has made itsreputation as the best editing software for many professional as well asenthusiast photographers around the world who love shooting in RAW format. Thesoftware has all the bells and whistles you could want from an advanced photoeditor. Everything from basic exposure and contrast control to advanced maskingand selective editing is present in Adobeâs photo editing giant. Combine thatwith a robust cataloging system and you have a winner as far as mostprofessionals are concerned.
However, during recent years, a lot of excellent photo editing software has been released which offers the same, if not better in some cases, level of control that Lightroom does. Many such editors also come at a lower, one-time, price unlike Lightroomâs recent move to a monthly subscription model, making Lightroom a less attractive offering to people who are new the photo editor software.
Why Lightroom AlternativesAre Important
You may be wondering, ifLightroom does all that you need it to do, why should you even consider using adifferent program? A lot of it boils down to the fact that Lightroom asks usersto pay a monthly fee to use it. This kind of a payment model may seem okay at first,but when you consider that youâd be paying potentially thousands of dollars touse it over a lifetime when you could instead buy something for under a hundreddollars once and be good with it, then it starts seeming unnecessary. Sure,most one-time payment options ask for a small additional price to upgrade tothe newer models but you may not always need to upgrade, and even if you do,the price still remain well under what Lightroom would cost over a number ofyears.
So, without furtherdeliberation, letâs take a look at some of the best Lightroom alternatives,either because of their lower price or better usability, that you should knowof.
1. Luminar
The first and closest Lightroom alternative anyone can start using in an instant is Luminar. This program started off as a Mac photo editor, but later started supporting Windows as well. As soon as it had launched, it was praised for its amazing ease of use, highly intuitive interface with unique elements like customizable workspaces, and very affordable price tag.
Now, the newest version of Luminar has also added a library system which might just be the one thing that Lightroom had and Luminar didnât. With this new addition, Luminar has become one of the best photo editing software that you can use without paying an immense price.
2. Aurora HDR
Admittedly, Aurora HDR is more of a specialized HDR software that focuses on creating HDR images. However, if you do need to create HDR photos, then you must already know that Lightroom just canât do it very well.
With Aurora HDR as a Lightroom alternative, you will have access to advanced tone-mapping algorithms, various presets, and a whole host of advanced tools that help create the best possible HDR photos. Whatâs more, it also comes as an actual plugin for Lightroom itself which means you can enhance Lightroomâs capabilities without needing to jump into another program!
3. Capture One Pro
Capture One is a software that is already used by many as an alternative to Lightroom. It offers almost all the controls that Lightroom offers to pro users, with some of its own as well. The interface is fairly clean, however not very easy to get used to. There are presets, selective adjustments, masks, and everything you could want to create great photos. Capture One also has a cataloging system, which is why many use it as a Lightroom alternative. However, Capture One is quite expensive as well even despite its one-time payment model. But if you donât mind paying the high price, itâs one of the top Lightroom alternatives available today.
4. Apple Photos
If you want a free Lightroom alternative in the form of a photo editor for Mac, then Apple Photos is a solid choice. This photo editing software comes bundled with Mac computers and offers a lot of control over photo editing. It can handle exposure, contrast, white balance, highlights, shadows, colors, and more with ease. Itâs also not a slow program and runs very well on Appleâs systems. You wonât get very advanced features like selective editing or layers, but if you want a semi-advanced image editor, this one is a good alternative to Lightroom.
5. Affinity Photo
If youâre looking for a cross-platform photo editor for pc and mac as a Lightroom alternative, then Affinity Photo is also a good choice. Itâs a fully-featured photo editor that not only does photo editing but also boasts some Photoshop-like features such as digital painting tools, layer control, focus stacking and more. For photo editing, Affinity Photo can handle RAW files, make HDR photos, stitch panoramas, and much more that could appease any professional looking for the best Lightroom alternative. However, for new photographers, this might be a little too complicated and full of tools to use comfortably.
6. DarkTable
Perhaps the best free Lightroom alternative on this list is DarkTable. Its layout is similar to Lightroomâs with many sliders hidden away under different sections. This Lightroom alternativeâs free nature, however, may not be obvious once you actually start using it. It has so many features and tools that it can easily confuse even seasoned photographers, let alone beginners. This particular trait of this photo editing software makes it both amazing and potentially frustrating at the same time.
7. RawTherapee
Another free alternative to Lightroom, RawTherapee might fit the bill for the beginners among you. Its one and only focus is to provide photographers the ability to process their RAW files. It doesnât have too many fancy bells and whistles, or even advanced features like a cataloging system, but it is free and can help beginner photographers edit their RAW files with ease.
8. Exposure X4
Exposure X4 is the newest version of the software that aims to become an alternative to Lightroom. Its strength lies in the fact that it has a strong library feature and can import images from various sources in parallel to one another. This import process makes it easier to quicker for photographers to add multiple images to their library. The RAW editing features here are strong too.
Exposure control, color corrections, high-quality presets â everything is present. However, what makes Exposure X3 not the best Lightroom alternative is the fact that it has noticeable lag while working with RAW files from certain cameras.
9. Corelâs AfterShot Pro 3
Another photo editor for PC, Corel AfterShot Pro 3 is considered one of the best Lightroom alternatives by many. While it can be used for all basic edits to exposure, color, white balance, noise, sharpness etc., its true strengths lie in its UI design that is suitable for widescreen displays, its very competent batch editing, and its easy integration with Photoshop allowing you to send your photos directly to Photoshop for final touches. On the flip side, however, AfterShot Pro 3 suffers from lackluster localized editing, and a high price tag especially for extra presets that you might want to use.
10. Cyberlink Photo Director 10
If you would like a photo editor software that can do all that Lightroom can do, then Photo Director 10 might be the choice for you. Itâs one of the most capable Lightroom alternatives out there because of an easy-to-use interface, later control, and a lot of help to get used to the various features. Itâs aimed more at people who may be new to photo editing software and its new focus on AI tools helps such users make better photos. But if you have an older, slower computer, then you might want to look elsewhere or be okay with slow performance.
![]() 11. Gentlemen Coders RAW Power
For those looking for a strong photo editor for Mac, RAW Power is one of the very good Lightroom alternatives for the purpose. As many users of Appleâs computers would know, the company replaced its excellent Aperture editor with the new Photos app which comes as a pre-installed Mac photo editor. To fill the gap between Aperture and Photos, RAW Power is here with a solid reputation. It can either be used as a standalone RAW editor, allowing you to do most of the stuff youâd want from such a software, or as an extension to Photos. This combination of RAW Power with Photos is what can be the best photo editor software as a Lightroom alternative on Mac.
12. Zoner
Zoner is a Windows photo editor that aims to help make great photos with ease. It boasts features like automatic editing, easy selections for localized editing, layer control, a Filter Brush to give you creative freedom, batch editing, Smart Sharpen and Smart Blue, and advanced noise reduction among many more. Itâs clear from these claims that Zoner can be a good, if not the best, Lightroom alternative for people using Windows. It may not have Lightroomâs presets but it does have enough to help enthusiast photographers. But, like Lightroom, Zoner also has a subscription-based payment model which is something that puts many users off.
13. GIMP
An open-source photo editor that is hailed as the best free photo editing software by countless around the world, GIMP has all it needs to be a free Lightroom alternative. GIMP has everything from basic exposure editing to advanced layer controls and brushes to make your photos look like pieces of art, just like Photoshop. It also has a vast online community thatâs always trying to help others and make GIMP better every day. Despite all of that though, the software remains a very complicated one to get used to and requires quite some time to understand. It may be Lightroomâs free alternative like youâve never seen before, but be ready to spend a lot of time learning to use it properly.
14. Topaz Studio
Topaz Studio is yet another photo editor that does most of the things youâd expect such software to do. Some highlight features of the editor are over thirty filters, healing capabilities, slider controls to edit exposure, contrast, and highlights, and color correction tools. Topaz Studio also has a similar interface to most editors so itâs easy to start off with. While it may not be the best alternative to Lightroom unless you donât need advanced controls, it still is a capable editor for getting started with editing.
14. ON1 Photo Raw
Getting back to possibly the best Lightroom alternatives, On1 Photo RAW is a great all-in-one editor that aims to find its way into the hands of seasoned photographers. It has all the tools you could want, including great masking tools, quick rendering of final images, a very quick panoramic preview option, and newly added HDR features that help create very good HDR images, unlike in Lightroom. However, despite these great additions, On1 Photo RAW remains a little sluggish at times which is something that needs to be improved for it to become the best alternative to Lightroom.
15. DxO Photo Lab
Dxo Photo Lab is deemed by many as the best photo editing software because it is easy to use, has a ton of editing features, and a RAW conversion system like few others. Why people would consider this as the best Windows photo editor is because of the amazing lens correction algorithms it has.
The software is known for its automatic control over chromatic aberration, distortion, and vignetting for a multitude of cameras and lenses. The only thing that really keeps this Windows and Mac photo editor from being the best alternative to Lightroom is its lack of selective adjustment capabilities.
16. Photo Pos Pro
If you donât want what is necessarily the best free photo editing software but rather Adobe Lightroomâs free alternative that lets you edit photos and do other fun stuff like making posters and business cards too, then you should take a look at Photo Pos Pro.
It is Adobe Lightroomâs free alternative but only if you want basic functionality. It is not slated to the the best editing software or the best of Lightroom alternatives, but rather a quick and easy way to edit your photos. The Pro version of the software isnât free though, so make sure to try it out first to see whether itâs worth your money or not.
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Vs Classic
And with that, we conclude our list of the best Lightroom alternatives you can use to get your photo editing done. All of the program listed here have their own strengths and weaknesses, but the software that becomes a Lightroom alternative for you really depends on what you use Lightroom for.
Adobe Lightroom Vs Apple Photos
If you want to give up using Lightroom because of the monthly fees, then the best alternative to Lightroom would be something like Luminar that offers similar control for a low, one-time price. If you want something completely free, then DarkTable might be the Lightroom alternative for you. And if you want your Lightroom alternative to do much more than just RAW editing, then programs like GIMP will be worthwhile.
Adobe Lightroom Vs Apple Photoshop Elements
But before you spend yourmoney on any of the mentioned programs, be sure to give them a try once becausewhat might look good on paper as the best alternative to Lightroom might notfit your style of editing or have that one tool you canât live without.
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