Which photo editing program/service?

[10acres]

I am not much for editing pics, but my wife wants to be able to edit the pics if she wants to. I am shooting in JPEG format not Raw right now. Should I be shooting in Raw?

The main question is what photo editing program does everyone recommend. I have been looking at Lightroom and don’t mind paying $10 a month for a subscription. Just looking for some recommendations for an easy program to use. Trending towards Lightroom but I know zero about photo editing. Thanks in advance.

 

[smoke665]

Save RAW it gives you more options.

I've used Adobe for years, and don't mind the ongoing subscription because I get more than just Lightroom plus ongoing automatic updates with the latest and greatest. I realize not everyone wants that, there are some other alternatives out there. Most camera manufacturer's have a free basic software you can download. Then there are other purchase options, here's a link to a list for 2024 Best Photo Editing Software Of 2024 I used Corel several years ago, nice software, with a lot of features but it had a tendency to crash in the middle of an edit. Also be aware that some of the software companies are getting sneaky about their price, they claim it's a purchase license but when you get into it you find that the license will expire at some point requiring you to purchase an update. Also editing software is like taking a wife, you look at it, talk about it, even try it out, but as soon as you take it home it's yours, not many will interchange non destructive edits.

 

[JoeW]

I am not much for editing pics, but my wife wants to be able to edit the pics if she wants to. I am shooting in JPEG format not Raw right now. Should I be shooting in Raw?

The main question is what photo editing program does everyone recommend. I have been looking at Lightroom and don’t mind paying $10 a month for a subscription. Just looking for some recommendations for an easy program to use. Trending towards Lightroom but I know zero about photo editing. Thanks in advance.

Jpeg uses less space and if you do minimal edits, that's a reasonable options. However, if you shoot in low light or color matters (say, you're shooting fall foliage) then RAW is absolutely the smart way to go. If you do sophisticated post-processing, RAW is the way to go. If you're going to shoot architecture and doing some post-production tilt-shift work, RAW is the way to go. So it depends upon what you shoot and how much editing you plan on doing in most cases. If it's just cropping, maybe straightening an horizon, some dodging or burning, maybe cloning out a coke can in the foreground or some bird poop on the bench, you can do that easily with a jpeg file.

As for programs, I refuse to pay a monthly rental fee--especially since I've been using post-production software for 2 decades and plan to keep doing so for 2-3 decades in the future. So I use Affinity Photo. I'm extremely happy with it--it provides a very sophisticated editing option that meets my needs.

But what you use depends upon what type of editing you're planning on doing and if you need to trade files. If you're going to be sending files to a Creative Director or a client, then Light Room or some Adobe Creative Suite option is the way to go. Capture One is much more effective with extreme light situations (where you're trying to save a washed out background with an underlit subject).

Ask your wife what type of editing she wants to do, how many photos you're talking about and look at the type of photography you do. If it's just cropping and adding some brightness or saturation then you could probably use Photos (which comes on every MacBook and iPhone). If you are shooting mostly landscapes than HDR software will probably work for you. If you want to play with layers and composites, than you'll need to do something like ACS or Affinity or Luminar.

 

[RVT1K]

I have NX Studio that you can download from Nikon for free. I've been very happy with it.

 

[SunriseAvenue]

Shooting in RAW is recommended because it gives you more editing opportunities. However, do as you please, and most photo editors are supporting both formats, so it's not a problem. If you're just getting started, I'd recommend Photoworks, it's a pretty simple software that also doesn't require a subscription.

 

[paigew]

Lightroom is the best and what most people use. I wouldn't bother with anything else, personally.

I'd continue using jpeg for a while, raw takes up a lot of storage space on your computer and if you are shooting properly, as a beginner, there isn't really a need for a RAW file.

 

[Strodav]

Recommend you start shooting RAW + jpg. That gives you more options when you start using a Post Processing tool like LightRoomClassic or Photoshop, which can elevate you photography to the next level. I have had the Adobe monthly subscription for quite a few years now and the tools like LrC and PS have served me well. Don't buy it unless you are going to spend the time learning how to use it. LrC is not difficult, but does take some time. It's amazing what you can do with LrC, especially with the new auto masking features. PS is at a whole different level of difficulty, but the Beta version includes and AI feature, which is just amazing, and is well worth the time.

 

[RacePhoto]

It's a choice and yes, if you want to do detailed fine art and have more control and like the hands on, sure. If the argument is space and someone is shooting RAW, they might as well shoot RAW+JPG because now you have the best of both, should you need something. What I mean is, if you want a fast and smaller image, you have the JPG. If you need to do some detailed editing, you have the RAW.

If you see that your RAW images aren't necessary, for what you do, you can always turn it off?

I don't shoot RAW, I don't use the files or need them. Personal choice for what I do.

Affinity Photo is a very capable software. I bought the first version, because I just wanted to see how I liked it. Lifetime updates, which I don't get, because they are on version 2 now. But still, it's a good one. CANVA just bought Affinity, I don't know what that means for the future or the price.

I own Photoshop Elements and that's what I use. Just in case someone doesn't need all the fancy parts of Photoshop, it's really a good tool. Most everything you can do in Photoshop, you can do with Elements, just that if you are going into deep editing and alterations, it will not be as easy, because less features are automated. Here's the point. If you are editing photos, Elements is just fine. You buy it, you own it, no CC charges.

Advantage to Adobe CC, your software will always be up to date, automatically, all the time. Features and fixes. $10 a month for Lightroom and PS, is $120 a year. I'm not sold on subscription, but how much did the software used to cost? So what if I owned it, I had to update every couple of years, which might be $350 or $700? The subscription is less, in the long run.

But being a stubborn old person, I buy Elements every few years for $79 and I'm happy. A bit of irony in all of that? I have a free photo CC subscription for LR, PS and some other photo applications, and I don't use them. I'm very happy with Elements.

After all of that, Affinity Photo does many more things than Elements, and has many more features. It edits more like LR in that you have non-destructive editing and working versions of files, that you can save Afphoto versions, and can go back. To create a JPG, or any other raster image, you export the image. Your originals are unaltered.

My vote is Affinity Photo, unless you like Adobe and only need photo editing, then Elements.

PS No one should be without Irfanview on their computer. Just for the filing and quick and easy features, renaming, resizing, basically everything except serious "photo editing". Crop, auto color, make thumbnail sheets, make websize versions, convert file types... and if necessary, quick photo editing, with minimal features. But Irfanview is an amazing tool for photographers, that's often overlooked.

 

[jeffashman]

If you are looking for a one-time purchase, here's another vote for Photoshop Elements, it's a good piece of software and does most of what is needed, and has the added benefit of automated processing, as well as tools for making the images fancy/artistic. I have the PS/LR subscription right now as part of my workflow, but once I retire, I will do away with most subscriptions, including PS/LR. Some no-cost options are Darktable (similar to Lightroom), RawTherapee (for managing/cataloging the images if you don't want to use the programs provided by your OS), and Gimp (Similar capabilities to Photoshop, but it has a steep learning curve). The nice thing about the no-cost software is you can try it, and if it isn't for you, you can uninstall it, and all it cost was a little time.

 

[greybeard]

If you shoot Nikon then NX studio is a good place to start. First of all it is free and works best (imho) with Nikon cameras as it implements your camera settings and lens corrections automatically with NEF (RAW) files. It doesn't modify the RAW files but adds a correction file that adjusts these corrections within the display. These corrections and your modifications are only added to the files you convert to jpeg, tif, or whatever. NX doesn't work with any RAW files from other cameras brands other than Nikon. The standard of the industry is Lightroom/Photoshop which works with most cameras RAW files. No matter what you are trying to do, there is a video on youtube explaining just how to do it. I use a combination of NX, Luminar Neo (sky replacement and Ai sharpening), LightRoom, and PhotoShop. I'm not processing hundreds of pictures at a time but more like 5 or 6 and I enjoy computer processing of images.

I've been shooting RAW exclusively for several years now because it gives me more control over color, saturation, sharpness, blur, exposure, noise control. When shooting jpeg, much of your final product is finished when it comes out of the camera and further modifications are much harder to do in post. When I first started shooting RAW I shot both RAW/jpeg and my jpegs looked better. But, I stayed with it until I found out how to get what I wanted. It was worth the switch for me.

If for some reason you have to shoot jpeg, I suggest that you shoot with the FLAT or NEUTRAL color profile. These 2 profiles add very little BAKED IN processing and are much easier to work with in post processing. (jmho0

 

[KJ_North]

Like others on here I shoot in RAW + Jpeg. That way you have a usable photo right off the hop and still have the RAW file to tweak if you feel inclined to do so. I use Adobe Elements. Its a simpler version of Adobe Photoshop but does all i need to do. Elements also has a guided feature which can walk you through simple things to show you how to do them.

 

[Woolsocks]

Photoshop.... Photoshop............. You can get a monthly subscription. Photoshop is so much fun.

 

[10acres]

Let me add another little twist. My wife only wants to use her her IPad to edit photos so this will obviously limit what she can do.

 

[jeffashman]

Let me add another little twist. My wife only wants to use her her IPad to edit photos so this will obviously limit what she can do.

If I'm not mistaken, there is some pretty nifty photo editing software for Apple products. That used to be the whole selling point, that Apple products were great for multi-media work, from photo editing to videos and on. I'm looking at replacing my Windows laptop with a Macbook Air or Macbook Pro.

 

[snowbear]

I use Lightroom. Photoshop is included in the package but I rarely use it.