jlg1000 Loc: Uruguay / South America

As I stated before, I'm a big fan of free open source software.

But I wanted to give a try on commercial software, so I tested and even purchased some products in the last couple of months.

Based on that, I'd like to share my experience.

1) Lightroom Classic CC / Photoshop CC

Right, It is a solid package but I felt it somewhat "domodeè": You get Lightroom, which is pretty fast, but it lacks many modern editing features like masks, layers and so on. The main idea is that you do basic developing and then go to Photoshop for some of the shots.

As an amateur photograph with THREE kids and THREE jobs, I don't have the time for that, so I let the try time wear off, and uninstalled the software.

2) Luminar 3

Whatever you do, DO NOT BUY THIS SOFTWARE.

REALLY, DON'T

EVER

It is buggy, very buggy... what is worst, Skylum believes that bugs are "features".

For example: lens correction doesn't work for Sony cameras, geometric transformations (horizontal level, perspective, etc.) don't affect masks (WHAA...!?), switching from a photograph to the next can take MINUTES, RAM can get exhausted and the whole PC can crash, etc.

I couldn't finish a single workflow... it crashes, hangs, freezes, goes to sleep, does strange things, etc.

Maybe, in a couple of years, Skylum will succeed in making work Luminar just right... or not.

3) ON1 2019.2

This package is great! It has everything you could want: layers, masks, AI, masks, preset, a damn good DAM, HDR merge, panorama merge, focus stacking... etc., etc., etc.

And etc.

And then, etc.

Only drawback I've found: it's a little slow... it takes about 2 - 3 seconds to switch photos. (Note: I have a high end engineering workstation with an i7-7200 CPU, 32 GB GDDR3 RAM, 2 TB SSD and a nVidia GTX 1060 GPU)

Nevertheless I've purchased ON1, and I'll be using it for most of my workflow.

Price: (limited time) $69 for 5 PC.

4) Capture One Pro 12

This software is FAAST!

Let me rephrase that... it is GODDAM F*K#NG FAA-AST !!!

I've found my self switching photos from a folder and doing micro adjustments to give them the same look, and there is no delay... NONE WHATSOEVER It is so natural that I even noticed that I was going back and forth with the photos from the same shootout.

As a test, I've done a 200+ photos PP (culling, adjusting, cropping, exporting) in less than ONE hour!

The export quality is also excellent.

Also the color adjustment features are unique.

Drawback: the DAM lacks HDR, Pano, etc...

I've also purchased this software, because of it sheer performance and color adjustment features!!

Tip: the Capture ONE Pro 12 for Sony is only for $109 for a limited time.

So from now on:

a) I'm using ON1 when I need to merge shots (HDR, Pano, etc.) and do fancy filter effects.
b) I'm, using Capture One when I want to develop develop a shootout very quickly with excellent results.

Hope this helps.

Best regards.

jaymatt Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

I have Luminar running on a Mac and have had no problems whatsoever with it. I belong to its website, and the folks complaining about it all seem to be running older PC’s. Maybe the older machines just can’t handle it.

tainkc Loc: Kansas City

Nope. Evidently you are like most people on this forum when it involves lightroom.. There is absolutely no insult intended. I have said this several times, Lightroom is a "compliment to", not an "instead of" photoshop. It is very powerful in its' own right and there is so much more that it can do between computers that is not possible using the ACR in photoshop or elements. This ability comes in handy for magazine photographers and similar. 99% of the people on UHH don't need it, yet many use it as their primary photo editor. I do a LOT of batch editing and lightroom is very handy for this.

However, you nailed it as far as your needs are concerned when you mentioned 3 kids, 3 jobs. The only thing I can say is that once you get past the learning curve, (like you have the time, right? I understand this) You can usually zip through a photo in mere seconds and then slam it over to photoshop. Since I learned photoshop and lightroom many years ago, it is now second nature to me. Once again, you do not seem to have the time. That is o.k, since I hardly have the time to go on UHH let alone do photo editing (which I happen to hate with a passion, but almost all photos need some sort of attention).

This is why, if people on UHH can handle Adobe, all they need is Elements since it includes 80% of lightroom through the use of ACR.

Being an owner of many Sony cameras, I know about junk software and I too, have ON1 which does work very well but just not powerful enough for my needs and desires. I like the idea that it is free (basic) with Sony.

Each individual out there has their own needs, capabilities and budget. I do not have the luxury of time either. I only have 6 1/2 hours off from work, per week and that is on a Sunday. I have to take time off just go grocery shopping or to the bank. I am also on call 24/7 It sucks, but the money is good. If I were just starting out in photo editing, I would probably be in the same boat as you and would be totally lost even with Windows editing features.

So, overall, your observations pretty good.

tainkc Loc: Kansas City

I was just corrected. I meant to say capture 1 is free with Sony. I have this and, ON 1. So, thank you!

JD750 Loc: SoCal

Jig, thanks for taking the time to share that review. User reviews are always useful often more so than magazine reviews.

I tried several softwares circa 2014 when Apple announced they were going to let Aperture die on the vine. I settled on the Adobe Photographers plan. I don't have a speed problem with LR or PS, they are both fast on my MacBookPro. And they have included LR CC, which I am liking more and more as time goes on. They also include other mobile apps., and the portfolio, and Bridge. Quite a bit is included in the package. I tend to use LR Classic for editing, and cataloging, and sharing, and PS for re-touching.

Anyway thanks for the review, things have certainly changed since 2014.

OH! What the heck does domodeè mean? You got me, and google, on that one. All that comes up is

(Download)

rjaywallace Loc: Wisconsin

jlg1000 - Thank you, thank you for your refreshingly helpful first hand review of four major post-processing applications. So much better than the usual “Well I emptied my wallet on this $4,000 camera outfit because my girlfriend liked the salesman at Best Buy, gave up on reading the manual after the first half hour and now they tell me I should buy post-processing software. So many programs out there, it’s too confusing.” Your take was honest and straightforward. Thanks again! /Ralph

JD750 Loc: SoCal

OMG ROTFLMAO!! I met that guy. I the locker room at work, bragging about the camera he bought his girlfriend. He did not have a clue about the camera itself.

rook2c4 Loc: Philadelphia, PA USA

The more I delve into GIMP and discover all the features hidden beneath the surface, the more I realize there's no need for Photoshop. At least not for me. In editing, GIMP does at least 95% of what Photoshop can do. If I add to it freeware editors which have unique features such as Chasys Draw IES, PhotoDemon and Deep Paint, the possibilities are practically endless.

johneccles Loc: Leyland UK

That's a very good summary, on the whole I agree with you. US software is probably the worst value for money and as you state usually very slow and they are all memory hoggers.
The European software is far better value for money and is much faster, they also do not use huge amounts of memory.
However, there is another European software you did not include, Zoner Photo Studio, why not try it out and compare it, and when you have done this let members know what your opinion is.

https://www.zoner.com/

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

I use all of the above products on a fairly regular basis and I agree with a lot of what you state. But raw converters are not intended for precise local editing, so even Capture One, which is the best and fastest raw converter I have ever used, is lacking as far as photo-finishing capability. There is no good substitute for the combination of LR and PS. I suppose you didn't try DXO PhotoLab+Nik - another very powerful combination which I also use, though I find myself using On1 more than Nik.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

Photoshop has layers. You can also get Photoshop and Lightroom for about $10.00 a month.
I taught myself Photoshop with an excellent book called "Teach yourself Visually Photoshop CC". It is very easy and very good. By Mike wooldridge and Brianna Stuart. Trust me, it is that good.

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

I'm a Lightroom/Photoshop user. I don't have time to try out other software because (1) LR/PS works for me and (2) it generally takes me more than a 30 day trial to get me familiar enough to evaluate some piece of software.

No, LR does not have layers and pixel level editing. It comes close with some tools but it's not PS. PS has a significant learning curve.
LR also has a learning curve, but (in my opinion) the editing part is pretty intuitive (for what it does). The reason I use LR is for the organizational aspect of the software. Once I exceeded 10,000 images in my photopile I found it necessary to have help in locating things I wanted to go back to. LR makes it easy to add keywords for searches and allows you to group photos in collections without duplicating files.

If you're an amateur with a low frame rate, it's probably not necessary to have the organizational tools. But with age, my memory becomes more completely digital.

ltj123 Loc: NW Wisconsin

I'm using Luminar 2018 with very good results, don't know if will upgrade any time soon, app does what I need as just touch up mildly if at all my pics.

brooklyn-camera I Loc: Brooklyn, NY

I say use whatever floats boat. What is great for one could spell disaster to another. You know your needs and go with it..... I shoot 99.9% hockey, football, lacrosse, etc. LRCC works fine for me. Good luck to whatever program you like and decide to purchase.
I would say to always try for free before you get separated from your money.

wds0410 Loc: Nunya

Me, too. I think the PC version has issues but from my experience, the real culprit is Windows.