burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Adobe DNG Converter is a free, simple, downloadable solution to opening LX-100 raw files. Convert raw files to DNG, so Photoshop or Lightroom can open and adjust/convert to other formats.

I can understand people thinking they don't want to "rent" software... But guess what? You never, ever owned it, even if you "bought" a package with a disc! You just licensed it. The license was never a guarantee of suitability for use, performance, etc. You were simply paying for the privilege to use it.

Adobe and others update and upgrade software frequently. The industry also loses BILLIONS every year, as people illegally sell hacked and counterfeit versions of their licensed intellectual property.

It is NOT safe to buy Adobe Creative Suite or Creative Cloud software on a disc in 2018. It is obsolete, or worse, counterfeit.

Do NOT buy downloads of older Adobe software, unless they come DIRECTLY from Adobe.com.

CS5 and CS6 applications are ancient history. I'm pretty sure they no longer come from safe, reputable sources. I would not be surprised if your machine is now hacked and riddled with malware.

The software world changes at least on a quarterly basis. That's about how often Adobe updates its Creative Cloud applications, and notifies users to download and install the updates.

A lot of people don't get this. The world of computing is not like the rest of the world. Computers — the hardware side — are not expected to have a useful life much longer than THREE YEARS. With care, they'll last five years, but much beyond that, you're getting into a danger zone for safety, support, and function.

Microsoft operating systems are upgraded about every five years. They are updated with "service packs" more often than that. They are usually supported for ten years (Win XP was an exception; Win 7 mainstream support ended in January, 2015. Monthly OS patches are issued to CURRENTLY SUPPORTED versions of Windows on Patch Tuesday — the second, and sometimes fourth, Tuesday of each month in North America.

Apple usually upgrades its operating system every year. They issue minor quarterly updates, and other updates in between. An new major revision comes out this month.

Adobe tends to issue major upgrades to its professional apps about every 18 months to two years, and updates either quarterly or sooner, as required.

WHY DO THEY DO THIS? They're always fixing bugs, patching security holes, and tweaking the code to support something that doesn't work for some of their users. Occasionally they add features in between major releases. Of these actions, bug fixes and security patches are the most important.

Perhaps the most important reason to stay up to date is security. A PC isn't a wrench, a toaster, or even a TV. You don't just buy it and use it and never or seldom maintain it. Cyber crime is very real, and there is a constant battle to keep systems safe from intrusion, corruption, ransom, and remote disablement.

For all these reasons, Microsoft, Adobe, and others have gone to a subscription model. It makes a LOT of sense, especially since you have an up-to-date system at all times. It just works, is safe, and they notify you whenever a newer version is available. The same monthly fee keeps you up to date, safe, and free from major interruptions, year after year.

COMPANIES love this. CFOs like predictability. If, suddenly and unexpectedly, the director of marketing says she needs 24 seats of CS whatever upgraded, because her four year old version won't work with the OS on the new PCs they just bought, and those upgrades cost $249 each, then the CFO is going to blow a gasket! But if the cost for a seat of software is constant, he can budget predictably for that. If the marketing department lays off six people, they quit subscribing to those six seats, and save that much money each month.

I love it, too. I used to upgrade my Mac at home every other time Adobe upgraded its apps. It was always a painful, lump-sum expense on my credit card. Every now and then, I'd have to upgrade Photoshop because my old version would not run on the new Mac OS. Now, I'm confident that everything is in sync, safe, and just works. I've even done the math, and found that my long run costs to use it are the same or less. I can discontinue my subscription at any time, for any reason, then pick it up again when I need it. My files are intact. I can use the apps on two different computers, like a desktop and laptop. And I never go through the angst of incompatibilities, so long as I keep the operating system current.

saxman71 Loc: Wenatchee

When I see posts such as this I wonder what the cost was to download CS6. Years ago I downloaded CS5 and I believe it cost $300 (half off the original $600 price). If that number is still somewhere in the ballpark, that would equal 30 months (2 1/2 years) of the best bundle of photo processing programs on the market. I don't get it. The $10/mo I spend for the Adobe bundle of programs is pretty much the best $10 I spend each and every month.

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

The answer is really simple - return your software and get the $10/mo subscription to Photoshop and Lightroom.

Converting to DNG is only a temporary solution, and you will still want to keep your raw files in the event you want to edit your files in software that does not recognize dng.

It's time to come to terms with the irrational aversion to a payment option, and the totally rational benefit of having excellent, up to date software and never being left out in the cold with software that doesn't (and will never) work with newer cameras. If you don't want to pay it monthly, then pay it annually. There is no advantage/disadvantage to doing an annual payment - if it makes you feel better.

When my kids were very young, they had a similar, unfounded aversion to Broccoli. They wouldn't touch it in any way shape or form. They got over it and lived to tell the tale.

sidpearce

Perhaps I am fortunate but I have CS6 64 bit on both Windows 7 and 8 and could download Raw from both Lumix FZ100 and latterly FZ1000.
perhaps I am lucky for once.

blackest Loc: Ireland

Wow,
Amazing, I hope I have this figured right , but it looks like Bridge has Adobe Raw built in. If so it has pretty much the same sliders as Lightroom and you can save a raw file as a 16bit psd file which you can open in anything from bridge. You can keyword in bridge too. This seems to be pretty much the develop module in Lightroom :) or just the ACR Filter in Photoshop.

If so it's a perfect companion to Affinity Photo :) if it isn't picking up ACR from elsewhere of course, even so it does a fair bit of asset management. That will be a welcome addition to many third party photo editing applications.

I need to check to see what it is actually bringing to the party but if it is as much as it appears ... wow.

zaidy

For PP of .RW2 files from my Panasonic FZ-70 I'm using free LightZone (www.lightzoneproject.org).

flferg Loc: Driftwood, TX

Get the dng converter from Adobe. This works for my newer Nikon in CS6. Good luck.

rwarnerjr

Is it a bought legitimate version or something someone hacked off of the net. Just asking not accusing.

Good luck

blackest Loc: Ireland

it seems for the raw editing in bridge you need to have a qualifying product , the rest of it works thou.

David in Dallas Loc: Dallas, Texas, USA

I looked up Affinity Photo and it does appear interesting. It says it does non-destructive editing, which I interpret to mean that it (like Lightroom) only stores the changes made and leaves the original photos unchanged. Is there then a method of directly exporting images or groups of images directly to photo hosts such as Flickr? Or is it necessary to export the enhanced versions to the hard drive and upload from there?

speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

Should have went with PS CC everything would be working fine. CS6 does not have mini bridge anymore, Adobe did that once before, I have no idea, why they did that crap again, but at least Bridge itself is still available!

PeterBergh

I'm no longer very young, but I have a similar, unfounded aversion to broccoli ;-)

Clapperboard

If you are using Photoshop & Bridge you can download (free) a later version of Camera Raw. Camera Raw 9.1.1 is the latest version that is compatible with CS6. Camera Raw 8.7 was the first version to accommodate the Panasonic LX100 so any version from 8.7 to 9.1.1 will interpret your camera files.

pendennis

I've been using Affinity for around two years, and it does have some advantages over Adobe Photo Elements 2018. I haven't yet bit the bullet and subscribed to CS6. I'm running Win 10 on both laptop and desktop PC's, and it runs flawlessly. It has some editing features that are superior to Adobe, some that are on a par. I especially like the algorithms for clearing up "dirt" on the image.

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

My kids would run, screaming, like their hair was on fire at the mere sight of broccoli on the cutting board. Until I put it on some homemade pizza with lots of garlic. They instantly changed their tune. Now they are 29, 31 and 36 and they love broccoli. Who can resist bread, garlic, cheese and broccoli?