Photo Editing Software
PhotoLab 4 Elite – This is my preferred and personal photo editing software. The raw image processing, AI tools, and noise reduction are better than everything below – in my humble opinion. For beginners, there is a learning curve but there are some presets already built-in that will fix up your photos quickly. Advanced photographers will immediately appreciate the DXO optics modules, Deep Prime Noise reduction, and Lens sharpening tools. However, it doesn’t offer a stacking feature, hdr, or panorama, so I recommend you also purchase Affinity Photo to complement this. There is no import feature, but it does have rudimentary photo management features for organizing and searching. Coming soon, I will be doing my own beginner tutorials to help you get started. Until then, they have a great selection of videos and tutorials on their site to help you.
Lightroom/Photoshop CC (subscription) – Even though this is priced on a subscription basis, it is still the most robust and feature-packed photo editing software package available. Used by professionals for decades, there is no other software out there that can really compete when taken as a whole. It’s not hard to see why this is so popular from its data asset management, extensive raw camera support, and native stacking, hdr, and panorama features. They have also recently expanded with new AI features and creative tools.
Photoshop Elements – This is often my recommendation for beginners. It’s actually the first real photo editor that I started with myself. It offers all of the features any photographer would need, from beginners to advanced, for a one-time payment. It packs in a robust photo-management capability, stacking, hdr, panorama, and other tools to help you make creative photo albums and more. It doesn’t offer the smooth workflow and features that a professional photographer would need, so I wouldn’t recommend this for them.
Capture One – This is the application of choice among professionals. Offering extremely powerful editing tools, unparalleled raw processing, and a robust tethering capability. The developer is committed to professionals and has a large community that translates into regular updates with new features and tweaks. This includes updates to the editing engine so large workflows and complex edits are a breeze and lightning-fast. My friend and fellow professional photographer is also a moderator and educator for many Capture One communities. Visit his Youtube channel for free tutorials and live streams: Walter Rowe Photography
Luminar – While relatively new in the photo-editing business, Luminar has brought many innovations that other companies are still trying to catch up with. Not only offering a full suite of tools, but also several powerful AI processing tools. David Crooks, my friend, and fellow photographer runs the local photography club and prefers Luminar over everything else for his photography. I’m also a member so invite you to join us on photo walks around the area. Virginia-Beltway-Photography-Meetup
On1 Raw 2021 – This is another great photo editing program with a ton of features and optional plugins. One of the standout features is the availability of mobile versions when you get the desktop version. It also has a standard import function with some customizability to add keywords and other information when importing your images – something that should not be taken for granted. While the core photo editing program is robust, you’ll have to buy plugins like HDR and NoNoise to fill it out. Still, you do get advanced features like customizable presets, customizable shortcuts, and other workflow niceties that help you move quickly through your editing. You can get a subscription or buy the current version outright.
Affinity Photo – An amazing feature set for beginners and advanced photographers alike. It also includes photo stacking tools for focus, hdr, and more. It’s priced well below all of the above options with virtually no compromises. The learning curve is a little steep but the workflow is fluid and fast. Works great even on older computers. It only lacks a photo-management and import function, so you’ll have to organize the photos yourself. This one goes on sale from time to time, I got mine for just $25! Still, I think it’s very cheap at the full price of $50.
Raw Therapy (free) – A free software with lots of community support. No shortage of tools for both beginners and advanced photographers. I don’t use this at all now, but the few images I processed with it were stellar! I can’t put my finger on it, but I really was impressed by the colors it rendered. Very warm and pleasing. The learning curve is a bit steep for beginners but well worth it.
Add-Ons
DxO Film Pack 5 – I bought this one as part of the DXO Premium Bundle. It tries to emulate real film on your digital images. I have to say that it does an outstanding job – IF you’re into this kind of thing. It comes in two versions if you buy it as a standalone. As always, get the premium one. It comes with 38 B&W film simulations and 44 color film/slide simulations. There are also tons of presets, frames, grains, and textures to mix and match. I compared a real Kodak Portra 160 vs. the simulated Kodak Portra 160 and on some images, it nailed it! On others, it got some colors right and others not so much. Converting digital to a specific film stock will always be difficult but I applaud the effort here. It definitely makes your digital images look like they were shot with actual film, and to a great degree in some cases, a specific film stock. Either way, I’m very happy with my purchase and I think you will be too.
DxO PureRaw – This is actually included with PhotoLab 4 Elite, but can be purchased separately. It really is amazing. It reduces noise with almost unbelievable results. It brings back details, unlike anything I’ve ever seen. I did a video review on it called “Color Me Impressed!”. It’s not without its limitations though. Your camera/lens combination must be compatible. Although you’re probably covered, there is no Fujifilm X-Trans sensor support for example. If you use adapted vintage lenses, you’re out too. The only way to be sure is to download the trial and see if it works or not. It’s also limited to working with just native raw files and only exports jpg or dng. Photolab 4 Elite lets you export as tiff and can work with vintage lenses, albeit without the optics module, and you can tweak the sharpness settings. Some have complained that PureRaw oversharpens and can look unnatural. The other problem is you’ll always have two files for every image. I know disk space is cheap, but I’d be willing to bet most of us are already low on disk space and/or cloud space. That’s why I recommend getting PhotoLab 4 Elite instead. Still, if you like your current photo editor, this could be a game-changer for you!
Luminance HDR (free) – This is strictly an HDR software meant for stacking exposure bracketed shots into a single image. The interface is a bit intimidating at first but is relatively easy to use. There is other free HDR software out there but I found this one did the best job, particularly with aligning multiple images. It uses the “Huggins” algorithm for this task. You’ll need a separate photo editing software once the HDR image is created. The final output will definitely need to be edited because mine came out very flat. However, all the “information” was there for me to pull highlights and push shadows with a lot less noise than I would get from a single raw image. Obviously, you won’t need this if you already have it built-in your photo editing software but for those who relish free stuff, this one is pretty good.
Nik Collection (ver 4) – I remember this when Google-owned it years ago. I really enjoyed playing with all the creative tools and had a lot of fun with them. Now that DXO has taken over, they have taken many of the tools and improved on them. I guess you could even use this as your only photo editing program but the workflow would be super awkward. The creative tools are broken into several modules that each specialize in a different effect. The Silver Efex module is extremely popular with B&W enthusiasts. I don’t think I’ll be getting this one for myself, but if you’re the creative type, you won’t be disappointed with all the tools packed in here.
Topaz Denoise AI (ver 3.2) – While the current version still lags a little behind DXO PureRaw in terms of noise reduction performance, it makes up for that with the ability to work with multiple file formats, regardless of camera/lens combinations. This flexibility is especially useful for those with Fujifilm X-Trans sensor cameras, older digital cameras, and those that like to adapt vintage lenses to their modern digital camera. I’ve gotten great feedback and support from the Topaz team and I have no doubt that they are just a few updates away from bringing competitive noise reduction performance. As it stands, it’s way better than the standard tools you’ll find in Lightroom, Affinity, and others. Many of my viewers say they prefer the noise reduction algorithm of Topaz over its competitors – producing a more natural final result. It’s also much cheaper than other stand-alone denoising software. So I recommend you get all the free trials and compare them for yourself and see which one is right for you.
Topaz Sharpen AI – This software both surprised me and disappointed me at the same time. On some images, it really brought out amazing detail and recovered what I would otherwise discard as a total loss. On other images, it didn’t make things any worse but didn’t really help either. I found on images that were just slightly out of focus it did an amazing job. It also was stellar at recovering details on some very blurry images but not all. Where it really suffered for me was on images that had motion blur, even if only a little. You definitely have to try this on several images because the results will vary but when it gets it right, it’s pretty amazing. It has a pretty intelligent sharpening algorithm, sharpening things that need to be and ignoring areas that shouldn’t be sharpened. A little trick I learned when editing my images in Photolab 4 was to then send it to Topaz Sharpen AI. The photo came out much sharper than I could do in Photolab 4 alone! So this one is definitely in my toolbox now and you should seriously consider it too.
Topaz Gigapixel AI – Now this one is hard for me to wrap my head around. The idea is to supersize your resolution without losing any details. It even cleans up artifacts and mitigates pixelation you would normally see when enlarging an image. I tried it on a few images and I have to say it works and works very well. It won’t add any details that weren’t in the original image, but it won’t mess it up when upscaling it either. My only problem is I don’t have any reason to upscale. I suppose if you need this kind of thing, you already know you do – so give it a try!
| Rob Trek Ranking | Raw Processing | Tools (without add-ons) | Performance | Price | Total |
| PhotoLab 4 Elite | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 14 |
| Lightroom/Photoshop CC | 4 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 15 |
| Photoshop Elements | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 15 |
| Capture One | 5 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 17 |
| Luminar | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 14 |
| On1 Raw 2021.5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 14 |
| Affinity Photo | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 16 |
| Raw Therapy | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 16 |
Key:
Raw Processing:
5=Excellent
4=Very Good
3=Welcome to 2005
2=Camera JPG was better
1=Deletes your images for no reason.
Tools:
5=Everything you need and much more (very advanced tools)
4=Everything you need and more
3=Everything you need
2=After hours of work, it still doesn’t look right
1=BSOD, freezes up, crashes, etc…
Performance:
5=Very fast, well optimized for cpu/gpu and Apple M1
4=Very fast on any new computer
3=Okay but older machines will struggle
2=very slow, get some coffee ready
1=you might need to shave again
Price:
5=Free
4=Great deal
3=Wait for a sale or get the bundle price.
2=You only buy Leica
1=You probably buy NFTs too.
Final Thoughts
Like most things, what’s best for me is not best for you. Photolab 4 Elite tied for last but I like it the best for the Deep Prime and Optics module. Capture One had the highest score but I’d have to buy PureRaw and the Filmpack 5 separately making it very expensive. I gave Capture One a 5 on Performance because mainly professionals buy this and it’s probably the fastest on new computers which a professional should have. I gave Photolab 4 Elite a 3 on performance because when you use Deep Prime – it really takes a while to process, otherwise, it’s pretty fast. Lightroom/Photoshop has the best tools and workflow and I still use it for very specific tasks that no other package listed here can touch. I think most people can just use Raw Therapy which is free! I didn’t even talk about Olympus Workspace which is pretty awesome if you have an Olympus camera and a very fast computer. You might like the Luminar AI tools which would tip the scales in their favor.
Believe me, it’s frustrating. In the end, I bought almost everything above and will probably buy more in the future. I use each one for different reasons, sometimes exporting the results of one to process again in another.
Lightning Round, Gun to my head, Fast Money
Budget – Raw Therapy (free)
Beginners – Photoshop Elements
Enthusiasts – PhotoLab 4 Elite
Professionals – Lightroom/Photoshop CC
My Video Reviews
More to come!
Check back every few weeks or before you make a purchase. I will be adding more reviews as time permits.
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