jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

I have stand-alone versions of Lightroom and Photoshop, and they're fine for my needs. Although you can no longer buy them, you can sign up for the Adobe subscription plan - $10/month.

I find LR to be frustrating at times. For example, most programs let me open a folder and find the file I want. Lightroom can't do that. You must first import the file into LR and then select it. If you move the file to a different folder but don't use LR to make the move, it won't be able to find it later. Fortunately, there are alternatives - for free and low cost. A lot depends on what you want to do. Cropping, adjusting exposure, contrast, and color are basic, and any program can do those things.

Affinity
https://www.dpreview.com/reviews/software-review-affinity-photo-1-5-2
http://www.shutterbug.com/content/affinity-photo-software-review-has-photoshop-met-its-match#d1c5lY5EQ03QoLjh.97
http://www.diyphotography.net/affinity-photo-can-give-adobe-run-money/
https://www.tomsguide.com/us/affinity-photo-1.5,review-4257.html

Others
http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/best-lightroom-alternatives
http://digital-photography-school.com/a-beginners-guide-to-choosing-the-right-post-production-software/
https://www.pcmag.com/reviews/photo-editing
https://www.reviews.com/photo-editing-software/
https://www.tomsguide.com/us/best-photo-editing-software,review-1972.html
http://www.redmondpie.com/best-adobe-photoshop-alternatives-for-windows-and-mac-list Affinity
http://www.shutterbug.com/content/affinity-photo-software-review-has-photoshop-met-its-match#d1c5lY5EQ03QoLjh.97
http://www.diyphotography.net/affinity-photo-can-give-adobe-run-money/
https://photographypro.com/photo-editing/

Free -
https://www.darktable.org/
https://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/59324818
https://www.lightstalking.com/how-to-edit-rawtherapee/
https://www.lightstalking.com/free-photography-software/
http://www.techradar.com/news/the-best-free-photo-editor
http://fieldguide.gizmodo.com/the-best-photoshop-alternatives-that-are-totally-free-5974500
http://lightzoneproject.org/

mborn Loc: Massachusetts

Great answer. Way back when LR 3, I took a class, learned the basic, and as the versions updated kept on learning. Tried other programs but always back to LR. Now, I am with LRClassic and PS 2020

lamiaceae Loc: San Luis Obispo County, CA

I could not seem to get into Lr. But I had already been learning Ph (Photoshop CS6), so I was already using a pixel editor so Lr would only be of use to me as a cataloging program (if I could live with it's peculiarities).

pappleg

I teach photography at a senior center near me and have been struggling with the very powerful but also complex Lightroom/Photoshop in trying to teach it. My excellent local Photo Shop- Service Photo in Baltimore recommended Luminar 4. Tried it and found it much simpler but still powerful enough for most folks. It is a regular purchase (not a subscription model like Lightroom) and you can get it for $59-69.

gvarner Loc: Central Oregon Coast

I use PS Elements. If you’re familiar with LR, you can easily figure it out. It has two components, the Organizer and the Editor. The Organizer is it’s database similar to LR's that keeps track of where your photos and edits are and allows you to add tags. The Editor can do RAW files plus other formats like JPEG. It has Quick, Guided, and Expert modules that provide an easy learning curve. It’s about $60.

DavidPine Loc: Fredericksburg, TX

Lightroom and Photoshop are supreme programs. I'm 76 and I use them all the time. I use other applications as well. I love photography and part of that is editing. There are hundreds of tutorials that are free and many that are paid. Learning keeps your mind young.

cjc2 Loc: Hellertown PA

A few years ago, I was determined to learn Lightroom properly, I have, and since then I like it more every day. It has significantly speeded up my Post Processing process AND made it better. When I begun, I purchased Laura Shoe's videos (about $ 100, less on sale) and I am VERY happy I did that. I had been a Photoshop user for many years but relatively new to lightroom. For $ 10 per month I get THE latest versions. That's LESS than my Amazon Prime subscription! Best of luck.

DVZ Loc: Littleton CO

You will find question after question here on UHH about Lightroom in part because so many people use it but also because Adobe has a talent for overcomplicating the simple. I've used ACDSee for years and years because it's simple, fast and yet very effective at photo management, RAW processing and even pixel editing. This is not a bash at all on Adobe (except the overcomplicating part) but I really appreciate the value that ACDSee brings to my workflow.

Jack 13088 Loc: Central NY

Gene just said what I was about to say, probably better than I would. Hopefully, the same thing in different words would be helpful...

LR’s library module is at the same time it’s most important feature and it’s biggest stumbling block for new users. The way you asked the question indicates you are one of those who have been taken down by it. It was created to ease management of your image files as you organize and edit your images. The library is a significant improvement over the traditional rigid file structure organization methods. That is, however, after you have had the “ah, ha” moment to understand the catalog. Unfortunately, it would help to get past that step before you get to the good stuff in the develop module and beyond.

The develop module is an interface to Adobe Camera Raw which is the leading “parametric” post processor for not only for raw but camera processed jpeg files. It is exactly the same ACR available in Photoshop. The LR interface to ACR offers multiple image synchronizing so is a bit slicker than PS’s one at a time operation. ACR performs all of the usual basic edits and includes many “advanced” edits that you may find useful. Some features work only with raw files and many work better only since raw files are inherently more “editable” the the compressed files.

It is important to realize that your out of camera files are NOT IN LR. They are exactly where you put them and are never modified your LR. It I were king I would banish the words Import and Export to some obscure location. So if you want to abandon LR without keeping the edits you made there do nothing but look where you put them.

I have carefully avoided mentioning the Adobe subscription issue because that discussion is not helpful and will disappear in time. But if you have the subscription version you also have PS so maybe you can easily skip the library module and try ACR in PS one at a time. Then when you like it learn the advantages of marrying the pair as nature intended. Sort of like living together before marriage.

joelbolden

I maintain my LR/PS subscription, but recently purchased Serif Affinity Photo ($50-one time) and find it very comfortable to use. They've sort of combined the functions in LR/PS into one easy to use program. I'll maintain my subscription to Adobe for a while longer at least, although I find myself using it less and less as I learn more about Affinity.

Micdaro

Take a look at Affinity Photo. I've tried it and seems to be user friendly. Not as competed as lightroom. No monthly fee, if you purchase it the cost is a one time fee of 49 bucks.

DWU2 Loc: Phoenix Arizona area

I think if you stick with Lightroom, you'll learn to like it a lot. A book I found very helpful was Scott Kelby's The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic Book for Digital Photographers. It cover all the basics and will help you get up the learning curve.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

What you're overlooking is that Lightroom is actually only half (or less) of the package.

What commercial photographers use is Lightroom AND Photoshop. The two programs are actually designed to complement each other. Neither is truly "complete" without the other. You cannot do some things in LR that you can in PS... and vice versa. (Granted, some photographers only need one or the other.... folks who only shoot for online display and do a fairly high volume probably can get by with LR alone. And photogs who do low volume, but intensive work on their images might only need PS. But, those are the exceptions. Besides, if you have paid for a subscription, you are entitled to both.)

Further, Lightroom is by far the simpler and easier of the two.... Be prepared for a MUCH steeper learning curve with Photoshop. It makes Lightroom look like a walk in the park.If you are finding LR "more than you need and mystifying" you would be completely underwater with Photoshop.

I would recommend you look into Adobe Photoshop Elements 2020. At it's core are a lot of the same things as LR and PS, but it's an "all in one", costs less, has TONS more support for less experienced users. Adobe offers a free 30-day download trial.

Before embarking on any trial I recommend buying a "how to" book to have in hand so that you can get the best out of the trial period. I see several Elements 2020 books on Amazon. I'm familiar with author Scott Kelby from other books and recommend him, but some of the others may be fine, too... read the reviews.

Note: Adobe "Photoshop" Elements 2020 is for still photography. Adobe "Premiere" Elements 2020 is for video. If you need both, they can be bought in a bundle for a reduced total cost.

DWU2 Loc: Phoenix Arizona area

You do not need to retrieve your photos from Lightroom. Those photos on your computer and the originals are untouched. All you need to do is open them in whatever software you choose and proceed.[/quote]

If you are satisfied with the edits you have made to your photos in LR, you would have to export them in order to have, post-Lightroom, the photos as edited.

Jeffers

Photoshop Elements should be a consideration. First, it's not an annual license. You buy it and it's yours forever. While they come out with a new version each year, these versions mostly have more gimmicks for novices. Expert Mode remains virtually unchanged. Adobe products are more keyboard centric than menu centric. That may be one reason for your frustration with Lightroom. Whether you stick with Lightroom or move to a different Adobe product, you'll master it much quicker if you look up and write down the keyboard commands, especially for setup, and control (like zoom, moving images around, changing brush size, making layer masks). If you use a non-Adobe product, those aren't in my scope of expertise.