Suggestions for post processing software.

[Perfectly Frank]

I'm currently using Canon's DPP and Topaz Sharpen AI to process my photos. DPP is rather basic, and I'm looking for another pp program.

Here's what I want to do...organize and tag photos, recover shadow detail, sky replacement, object removal, and sharpening. I do very little high ISO shooting so
noise reduction isn't important. There are several programs that can do this, but some are better than others.

The one I'm most interested in is Lightroom classic. One drawback is it being a subscription. $11.99 a month isn't that expensive, and is well within my budget.
But as a hobbyist I don't do post processing all that much. There will be periods of time when I don't use it, but still have to pay.
Lightroom seems to me to be very complex and has a long learning curve. A few years ago I bought a book about learning Lightroom, and it was a chore
getting through the first 4 chapters. I stopped reading it. Still, LR is considered by many to be the gold standard of PP programs.

There are other popular programs...ACDsee, ON 1, DXO Pureraw 5 are a few. All have free trials and I may start there.
Any suggestions that can put me in the right direction? Thanks.

 

[theAngryMarmot]

I have tried about every major / common software - and IMO Adobe is still the best by far. I have the $11 photoshop/lr/lrc plan.

I don't do a ton of post, but I have found their "smart" tools are heads and shoulders above others. I also use a plugin that is only compatible with lrc.

I think it is one of those "when you are used to it, you don't like to change" things - but I prefer LRC and Photoshop's interfaces and workflow over Topaz or DXO. I also do like Adobe Bridge for preview and cataloging.

I really wish there was an actually good suite for linux, so I could ditch windows - but there isn't.

 

[MSH411]

I have tried about every major / common software - and IMO Adobe is still the best by far. I have the $11 photoshop/lr/lrc plan.

I don't do a ton of post, but I have found their "smart" tools are heads and shoulders above others. I also use a plugin that is only compatible with lrc.

I think it is one of those "when you are used to it, you don't like to change" things - but I prefer LRC and Photoshop's interfaces and workflow over Topaz or DXO. I also do like Adobe Bridge for preview and cataloging.

I really wish there was an actually good suite for linux, so I could ditch windows - but there isn't.

+1

I've tried others and always go back to the Adobe Suite. Like theAngryMarmot I just find the workflow simple and easy to use. I also use Bridge and Camera Raw, because I have the Suite I'm also eligible to download and run the Beta version which see's all the upcoming updates first. The Beta is currently at version 26.9 and has been my daily driver. Denoise and to some extent sharpen have eliminated the need for Topaz, for the first time in years I no longer opted into the Topaz subscription. If Adobe stays on their path Topaz will become obsolete.

 

[garryknight]

I also started out with a book, back when Lightroom was much simpler, and found it a chore. I have two suggestions. 1 Search YouTube for "Lightroom Classic getting started". 2 Go to Victoria Bampton's Lightroom Queen site and download the free, easy, step-by-step PDF guides.

The Lightroom Queen

Tips, Tutorials & Troubleshooting for Adobe Photoshop Lightroom

www.lightroomqueen.com

 

[paddler4]

Lightroom has evolved enormously over the past several years, so the experience of people who used it in the past could be misleading. When I started using it, its editing tools were very limited, and one had to export to Photoshop or another pixel editor to do most edits. That's no longer the case. For example, Lightroom now has AI based masking, sky replacement, powerful color management tools, etc., etc. I end up going to Photoshop far less than I used to, even though I do complex editing.

The strength and weakness of LR are the same, IMHO--it's database based. Everything is done with images imported into its catalog. That adds an extra learning curve, but it also enables a lot of very useful features, like virtual copies and virtual collections.

To be clear: I have been using the Adobe suite for years, so I can't offer any useful comparison to competitors like OnOne, etc.

 

[Nick5]

Lightroom Classic for me.
And it keeps evolving.

 

[Sogs]

Lightroom Classic/Photoshop subscription and Photo AI

 

[joayne]

I also started out with a book, back when Lightroom was much simpler, and found it a chore. I have two suggestions. 1 Search YouTube for "Lightroom Classic getting started". 2 Go to Victoria Bampton's Lightroom Queen site and download the free, easy, step-by-step PDF guides.

The Lightroom Queen

Tips, Tutorials & Troubleshooting for Adobe Photoshop Lightroom

www.lightroomqueen.com

Great suggestions!

 

[Immaculens]

I have tried about every major / common software - and IMO Adobe is still the best by far. I have the $11 photoshop/lr/lrc plan.

I'm curious about those paying $11 for the Photography plan... my price went up a few dollars a couple months ago (currently CAD $14.68/month+tx) - and Adobe emailed me this morning saying its going up to CND $22.59+tx for my next bill. Those of you paying $11 USD (do you mean $11.99?) - is your price going up soon as well?

I just downloaded the free trial of On1 Photo Raw 2025. Its only like $56 CAN no subscription. I'm watching video tutorials and will kick its tires and see if its good enough.

My computer does not support AVX2 so I have not been able to update my Adobe apps for about 5 months.

 

[theAngryMarmot]

I'm curious about those paying $11 for the Photography plan... my price went up a few dollars a couple months ago (currently CAD $14.68/month+tx) - and Adobe emailed me this morning saying its going up to CND $22.59+tx for my next bill. Those of you paying $11 USD (do you mean $11.99?) - is your price going up soon as well?

I just downloaded the free trial of On1 Photo Raw 2025. Its only like $56 CAN no subscription. I'm watching video tutorials and will kick its tires and see if its good enough.

My computer does not support AVX2 so I have not been able to update my Adobe apps for about 5 months.

Actually I just checked - and I pay 9.99 for Photoshop, LR, LRC & 20GB Cloud storage.

Screenshot 2025-07-07 153730 by Paul Taylor, on Flickr

 

[Perfectly Frank]

Here's an article about Adobe's new pricing. My guess is that people who already have a subscription get to keep the lower price.
New subscribers pay more.

https://www.dpreview.com/news/50082...oom-monthly-plan-price-increase-december-2024

 

[Immaculens]

Here's an article about Adobe's new pricing. My guess is that people who already have a subscription get to keep the lower price.
New subscribers pay more.

https://www.dpreview.com/news/50082...oom-monthly-plan-price-increase-december-2024

yearly seems the way to go, if one can.

 

[Perfectly Frank]

Yes, if I get Lightroom only, it's $11.99 month or $119.88 year. Yearly saves $24.

 

[Perfectly Frank]

Thanks folks for all the suggestions. I'm thinking Lightroom classic is the way to go. I took Garry's suggestion and
visited the Lightroom Queens site. Downloaded the Lightroom classic Quick start ebook.

I'll put those other pp programs on the back burner for now.