Help with selecting a new DAM program
Apr 20, 2021 18:27:22 #
Hello Hoggers:
I work on a Mac and had been using Lightroom 5 for years, first for cataloging and organizing as well as editing. For the last couple of years I've been using it mainly as a DAM while using Luminar 4 for editing. I recently upgraded my OS to Catalina which disabled some of the functions on my old version of LR. I have uninstalled LR and figured I'd use Luminar 4 as my cataloging program. It leaves a lot to be desired in that respect. So, I'm looking for an alternative. I do not want to go to the subscription for Adobe creative cloud as I have never used and don't wish to learn Photoshop and you can't get LR alone. I've been doing some internet research and have looked at Capture One (rather expensive) and ON1 Photo Raw (a little more reasonable). Both of these also have editing capabilites - not necessary for me but a nice bonus. Reading about various programs on the internet is one thing but hearing real photographers experience with these programs is better. The ability to use keywords is important to me. Any advice and suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
I work on a Mac and had been using Lightroom 5 for years, first for cataloging and organizing as well as editing. For the last couple of years I've been using it mainly as a DAM while using Luminar 4 for editing. I recently upgraded my OS to Catalina which disabled some of the functions on my old version of LR. I have uninstalled LR and figured I'd use Luminar 4 as my cataloging program. It leaves a lot to be desired in that respect. So, I'm looking for an alternative. I do not want to go to the subscription for Adobe creative cloud as I have never used and don't wish to learn Photoshop and you can't get LR alone. I've been doing some internet research and have looked at Capture One (rather expensive) and ON1 Photo Raw (a little more reasonable). Both of these also have editing capabilites - not necessary for me but a nice bonus. Reading about various programs on the internet is one thing but hearing real photographers experience with these programs is better. The ability to use keywords is important to me. Any advice and suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Apr 20, 2021 18:33:22 #
When you've had the best in Lightroom, how long do you think you can live without it? The 'for purchase' software represent what Adobe was previously, large annual / semiannual purchases to keep up with software rather than a modest monthly payment to keep up with the software.
You might ask yourself how tightly you're wedded to Mac? It was Apple that torpedoed your LR5, not Adobe. A valid license for LR5, Windows install files, and a Windows computer might just put LR5 back in your toolbox.
You might ask yourself how tightly you're wedded to Mac? It was Apple that torpedoed your LR5, not Adobe. A valid license for LR5, Windows install files, and a Windows computer might just put LR5 back in your toolbox.
Apr 20, 2021 18:58:53 #
Apr 20, 2021 19:18:39 #
BooIsMyCat
Loc: Somewhere
The Adobe subscription is approximately $10/month.
You do NOT need to install PS... It is NOT required to download/install both LR and PS.
You can install the initial download and then uninstall anything you won't use... i.e., PS.
I use both Windows and Apple (BigSur). I switched from Windows because of all the freebies (viruses and crashes).
I don't push one over the other as I believe the user needs to decide.
You do NOT need to install PS... It is NOT required to download/install both LR and PS.
You can install the initial download and then uninstall anything you won't use... i.e., PS.
I use both Windows and Apple (BigSur). I switched from Windows because of all the freebies (viruses and crashes).
I don't push one over the other as I believe the user needs to decide.
Apr 20, 2021 19:32:53 #
There are a lot of software packages out there that claim to have DAM now. You have come across one that does not fit your requirements. All of them have a shorter history than Lightroom does in the DAM category, so LR is probably well ahead of the rest.
I did not want to go to the subscription route when Adobe first started it, but I eventually decided that it was the best way to go for me. It was cheaper than my previouse use of Lightroom since updates are included. It is cheaper than my impulse purchases and gives me more value for my money than most of them.
If you're a pro, you can pass the cost along to your customers. And the cost is not large. If you're not a pro, you have a hobby, and there are very few hobbies that you can indulge in with no cost. The cost of LR and PS (even if you don't use PS) is really small compared to everything else. A decent camera will cost you 10 years worth of subscription. And just think about the cost of those other hobbies. Fishing? (Boats, gear, travel). Golf? (Equipment, greens fees, bar tabs). Stamp collecting? Who uses collectable stamps these days?
If you are used to LR for your DAM there will be a learning curve to get into a different one. Not to mention that a "one-time cost" for a program is not a real thing. All software gets updates, and most of them incur additional cost.
While I always say that it's good to be in danger of learning something new, it's not necessary to learn something new when your old system works.
I did not want to go to the subscription route when Adobe first started it, but I eventually decided that it was the best way to go for me. It was cheaper than my previouse use of Lightroom since updates are included. It is cheaper than my impulse purchases and gives me more value for my money than most of them.
If you're a pro, you can pass the cost along to your customers. And the cost is not large. If you're not a pro, you have a hobby, and there are very few hobbies that you can indulge in with no cost. The cost of LR and PS (even if you don't use PS) is really small compared to everything else. A decent camera will cost you 10 years worth of subscription. And just think about the cost of those other hobbies. Fishing? (Boats, gear, travel). Golf? (Equipment, greens fees, bar tabs). Stamp collecting? Who uses collectable stamps these days?
If you are used to LR for your DAM there will be a learning curve to get into a different one. Not to mention that a "one-time cost" for a program is not a real thing. All software gets updates, and most of them incur additional cost.
While I always say that it's good to be in danger of learning something new, it's not necessary to learn something new when your old system works.
Apr 20, 2021 20:01:52 #
If you are looking for an independent asset manager, Digikam is a pretty powerful tool that is designed to handle very large catalogs. It is highly customizable with regards to importing, tagging, , rating and creating different groups for individual needs.
My setup is one group for all RAW imports with a sidecar XMP file written so I can import into Darktable with all tags and such, then a second group that searches for all exported (usually jpg) files that come out of my post processing.
I am not sure of how well it runs on MacOS, but the devs seem to keep all platforms up-to-date.
https://www.digikam.org/
My setup is one group for all RAW imports with a sidecar XMP file written so I can import into Darktable with all tags and such, then a second group that searches for all exported (usually jpg) files that come out of my post processing.
I am not sure of how well it runs on MacOS, but the devs seem to keep all platforms up-to-date.
https://www.digikam.org/
Apr 20, 2021 20:21:42 #
Pytrouble wrote:
Hello Hoggers: br I work on a Mac and had been usi... (show quote)
False economy. For $10/month you get Lightroom and do not have to use Photoshop. Adobe cloud apps are the gold standard.
Apr 20, 2021 21:37:02 #
Pytrouble wrote:
Hello Hoggers: br I work on a Mac and had been usi... (show quote)
Who says you have to use Photoshop if you don't wish to? Look at it this way - Lightroom costs just $10/month. Why don't you try it for a while - what do you have to lose?
Apr 20, 2021 23:01:33 #
DWU2 wrote:
Who says you have to use Photoshop if you don't wish to? Look at it this way - Lightroom costs just $10/month. Why don't you try it for a while - what do you have to lose?
$10 per month
To some that's a lot, and to others it's a drop of water in the proverbial bucket. But why incur a recurring cost for something that is available for one-time purchase or even no cost?
Apr 21, 2021 06:10:48 #
johngault007 wrote:
$10 per month
To some that's a lot, and to others it's a drop of water in the proverbial bucket. But why incur a recurring cost for something that is available for one-time purchase or even no cost?
To some that's a lot, and to others it's a drop of water in the proverbial bucket. But why incur a recurring cost for something that is available for one-time purchase or even no cost?
Because ongoing software development and support costs $$. Someone has to pay for that. Software licensing fees is the mechanism of choice for mass market products. With one-time purchase products eventually the end of life point is reached where you can no longer get support, updates, etc. With free products support can be iffy at best, and they do have a habit of coming and going. You get what you pay for, and you don't get what you don't pay for. Someone who has spent hundreds, if not thousands of dollars should budget for software maintenance. It's like buying a car - you need to consider the interest (if getting a car loan), the cost of regularly scheduled maintenance - tire rotation/replacement, shocks, brakes, oil and fluid changes, cost of gas etc. It would be wonderful if all of those ongoing expenses were bundled into one price, or better yet, completely free, as well as the car - but sadly they are not.
Apr 21, 2021 06:55:40 #
tcthome
Loc: NJ
You can always make your own library. It won't be as detailed as LR, but you can do a scaled down version like pictures/year/sports, family, wildlife, etc. You could separate wild life or sports into something like birds, deer , baseball or, football, etc. if wanted. If it is not in your pp software???
Apr 21, 2021 08:08:33 #
tcthome wrote:
You can always make your own library. It won't be as detailed as LR, but you can do a scaled down version like pictures/year/sports, family, wildlife, etc. You could separate wild life or sports into something like birds, deer , baseball or, football, etc. if wanted. If it is not in your pp software???
I assume you are referring to a folder structure that categorizes your images by subject.
While that is possible and even in some cases desirable (and not inconsistent with a database system like LR), it has limitations. Meaningful file names and folder names can help others locate photos of interest if they don't know how to use a DAM, but in order to place an image into more than one category it has to be duplicated. And duplicating photos leads to problems when it comes to re-editing an image. You have to remember all the places it is stored so you can update them all. Otherwise you have a mixture of up-to-date and obsolete images.
With a database system you can use many different categories to describe one image located in one file.
Keywords (tags) are very useful in searching for images. You can include the names of individuals in an image so that when you are looking for an image of a particular person you search for that keyword. This can be done in either a database system or a folder system (with current operating systems) but applying keywords is much simpler in a database.
I think you should use both systems. The database is more flexible and gives you a lot of options. The folder based system allows others to search for things. That is important when it comes to family photos.
Apr 21, 2021 08:36:51 #
ACDSee: https://www.acdsee.com/en/products/photo-studio-mac/
Lifetime license on sale now for $60.
I dumped Lightroom 6 for ACDSee (Ultimate version) years ago, and find ACDSee preferable in nearly every way. HedgeHoggers have a real blind spot for it for some reason, so you won't see much reinforcement of this recommendation here.
30 day free trial.
Lifetime license on sale now for $60.
I dumped Lightroom 6 for ACDSee (Ultimate version) years ago, and find ACDSee preferable in nearly every way. HedgeHoggers have a real blind spot for it for some reason, so you won't see much reinforcement of this recommendation here.
30 day free trial.
Apr 21, 2021 08:38:18 #
DirtFarmer wrote:
...I think you should use both systems. The database is more flexible and gives you a lot of options. The folder based system allows others to search for things. That is important when it comes to family photos.
Yes!
Apr 21, 2021 08:46:58 #
Bayou wrote:
Yes!
Beg to differ. Why do something / anything twice in complete duplication? Embedding complex logic into a folder that could be as simple as YYYYMMDD <Description> and then repeating more effort to add keywords and categories in your DAM is unnecessary. Name your folders simple. Invest your time and effort inside your Digital Asset Manager. Do it once. Do it in the right place. Do it right the first time. In your DAM, retain the ability to redo it too, if you change your mind.
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