Raw editors for your photos Round-up – Introduction
We photograph more than ever before, not only with ‘traditional’ cameras, but especially with smartphones and since a few years also with drones. The latter two of course have a much smaller lens and sensor, but if you photograph in ‘raw’, there is still quite a lot to be done. Most products support this. That means that you have to edit your photos with specialized apps or software packages.
After adding a filter and some manual adjustments the photo looks a lot better.
The left side of the image shows the original, on the right the edited version
Among (amateur) photographers Lightroom has been very popular for this purpose for years. This workflow package guides you through the process of importing your photos and videos, editing them and then exporting your selection again. Not only is that a logical method, the software is also user-friendly. After all, you do not have to climb into the menu for specific editing options, but you can simply move sliders, after which you immediately see the result. The latter can be done to your heart’s content, because the operations are non-destructive, you can always go back to the original.
The problem of Lightroom, Classic CC or CC is that this now works on the basis of an annual subscription, for 145 euros per year, instead of with a one-time purchase. It is no coincidence that a lot of new competitors have joined since last year, in addition to existing ones. Examples include Capture One Pro 11, Corel AfterShot 3, DxO PhotoLab, ON1 Photo RAW and Skylum Luminar 2018. There are also free open source alternatives, such as Darktable.
That’s why we wanted to see how Lightroom and these alternatives work together to relate. Not only for serious photographers, but also for editing smartphone and drone photos.