processing software? what do you use?

[Skeptic14]

When I got home, I downloaded ON1 and gave it a try. I found it to be almost as good of a RAW processor as C1 and it did all of the other things (image stitching, exposure blending & focus stacking) that I didn't get with C1. I have not found anything that it could not do that the combination of LR/PS could do. It is a powerful all in one editing suite that (for me) is the most intuitive one I have used to date.

@Hoag This is intriguing.

I don't love paying a monthly fee forever for PS and LR so being able to buy SW once that works just as well is enticing.

I only recently began using LR over some way more antiquated sw but do find the quick edits for highlights, white balance etc to be very good. And I basically only use PS to remove bits of backscatter as needed.

How do you remove backscatter with ON1? Is there an equivalent in ON1 for "quick editing" of wb and exposure?

THanks

 

[Hoag]

@Hoag This is intriguing.

I don't love paying a monthly fee forever for PS and LR so being able to buy SW once that works just as well is enticing.

I only recently began using LR over some way more antiquated sw but do find the quick edits for highlights, white balance etc to be very good. And I basically only use PS to remove bits of backscatter as needed.

How do you remove backscatter with ON1? Is there an equivalent in ON1 for "quick editing" of wb and exposure?

THanks

To remove backscatter, ON1 has a "Magic Erase" function that will work. It also has spot erase and healing functions that work similar to those in PS. It also has a clone tool. As with any image, removing backscatter is a pain and the more precise you want to remove it, the bigger a pain it is, but that has been true with any software I have used. In large areas of open water, a quick method id that you can use a Blur mask to soften the effect.

 

[Darnold9999]

I ran into a similar problem as the OP. I bought a new camera that wasn't supported by the version of Lightroom that I was using so I had to find an alternative. For a little while, I was willing to convert my images to DNGs and then continue to use Lightroom/PS, but that was more work than it was worth so I looked for alternatives.

I downloaded some of the major editing software: Capture One Express, Capture One Pro, and Luminar, and gave their 30 day free trials a workout.

I ruled out C1 Express pretty quickly. For basic editing, it was excellent, but there were things such as layers that it couldn't do, so for me, it wasn't suitable.

Then, I tried Luminar, hoping that the AI would save me a lot of work, but I found that the AI was extremely "resource intensive" and I spent a lot of time looking at the "Apple Spinning Beach Ball of Death".

Next was the full version of C1 Pro. It was arguably the best RAW processor, and it did almost everything I wanted. (It did not stitch panoramas, do exposure blending or focus stacking.) It was extremely powerful as an editor, however, I did not find it intuitive at all. I found that I could do the vast majority of the things I wanted, but I did it with all the grace and finesse of a bulldozer.

I used C1 Pro for almost a year, then I ran into a pro photographer teaching a workshop in Death Valley. He recommended ON1 Photo RAW. When I got home, I downloaded ON1 and gave it a try. I found it to be almost as good of a RAW processor as C1 and it did all of the other things (image stitching, exposure blending & focus stacking) that I didn't get with C1. I have not found anything that it could not do that the combination of LR/PS could do. It is a powerful all in one editing suite that (for me) is the most intuitive one I have used to date. Another thing I like about ON1 is that they offer significant discounts to teachers, students, active duty military, veterans, police and firefighters, with some of those groups actually getting it for free. (If you do have to pay full price, it is reasonably priced at $99.99USD.)

ON1 does everything I need it to do. I have not found anything that I couldn't be done in it that could be done in LR/PS. For the way my mind works, I find ON1 to be extremely intuitive. I recommend that if you are looking for photo editing software, that you at least download ON1 and take advantage of the 30 day free trial. See if it works for you.

Thanks for this, I too am on the last version of LR. It supports my camera but that has to end at some point.

 

[Storker]

Couple years late on this thread but I’m trying to get some advice on editing UW RAW pics on LR Mobile and Classic. Would like to find some presets that come close to what Dive+ provides. Or, maybe a set of presets that will do the basic cleanup before i start editing. I use a TG5 - Thanks,

Pull the blacks down to 0,0,0 for the darkest parts. Raise the whites to 255,255,255 for the brightest parts. Add some clarity (10-20%). Work from there.

If you go that way, you don't need any presets. Besides, presets are "one size doesn't fit all".

 

[arew+4]

If you want some thing Extremely Powerful, Very Affordable(Totally Free), Infinitely Customizable, Image-J aka Fiji.

 

[tarponchik]

Then, I tried Luminar, hoping that the AI would save me a lot of work, but I found that the AI was extremely "resource intensive" and I spent a lot of time looking at the "Apple Spinning Beach Ball of Death".

I've found that to use a soft with AI you need a comp with at least 32 GB RAM.