Alien Skin Software plans to release a new 'nondestructive' photo editing application called Exposure X by the end of the year. Exposure X is the successor to Exposure 7, the company's film emulation software, and will include several changes over the previous version, including improvements to the user interface, file management tools, and new keyboard shortcuts.
Exposure X was first announced in late September, and Alien Skin has occasionally posted new details about the software on its blog. According to a post from last month, Exposure X won’t use a catalog file in an effort to keep things simple and fast. For this reason, the application doesn’t require photos to be imported, instead it uses any folder the user selects to access photos and save image edits. In a new post published today, the company detailed how new brushing and layers features will work.
The software will be available as a standalone application or as a plug-in. Among the interface changes is the option to rearrange and hide panels; there's a new Detail panel with sharpening and noise reduction, and the Basic panel has had Tint, Temperature, and white balance eyedropper tools added. Additionally, Exposure X supports file management, including renaming and moving images, and offers organization tools like star ratings, flags, and colors.
Exposure 7 owners will receive Exposure X as a free update. Retail pricing isn't clear at this time.
Awesome, no import! I'm a LR/PS subscriber and failed 3 times to get into LR because of the library management. Been a happy Photo Gallery Live user for years, using PS heavily. Will definitely check this out.
Ok, Interesting. Will there be an Import Feature to Migrate from LR?
Also, I do not document every Picture: Instead I use LR Descriptive Named Collections (Originally I used IMatch Categories) to document Groups of Pictures.
Will the same be possible in Exposure X, and given that a LR Import feature exists, will it be able to transfer the Collections from LR?
There will be a limited migration path from Lightroom. Items such as crop, rating, color label, and orientation can be transferred. Unfortunately, visual edits aren't transferred because of differences between the two image processing engines. Collections aren't imported at this time, but we're looking into the possibility of doing this at some point.
@Geir Ove: Importing from LR would be awesome. But I don't think that this is going to be possible other than by getting LR to export TIFFs (which apart from being a pain in the @$$, rather ruins the non-destructive idea).
Do you know if there any other apps that offer a import from LR function?
The only image editing program that does non-destructive editing the right way is, to my knowledge, ACDSee. "The right way" means that users have immediate access to the *result* of editing from any other application. Want to share an image, or complete retouching using another program? The file is already there. The original files, along with sidecar files containing editing instructions, are in the hidden "[Originals]" folder (similar to "Alien Skin").
As to UIs, both ACDSee and LR suck. They are utilizing "modes" (implemented as modules in LR) that were the curse of UIs for decades... Good Lord, that distinction between "quick edits" and "developing" is horrendous. When I view an image in editing application, I must be able to immediately drag the sliders and do all the adjustments I need, period. No switching to "developing" or "editing" modes BS.
Is Exposure X different in that (UI) respect?
The only app that I know of that got UI right was early, very early version of Picasa.
There are no modes/modules in Exposure X. You have access to all of your editing functions (including keyboard shortcuts for those functions) all the time.
Right now, I'm reasonably happy with ACDSee Ultimate 9 -- at least it does not lock me in with a catalog, or edits not seen by other apps; being able to use my entire Topaz plug-ins collection as plug-ins right inside the app (although only in edit "mode") is also very nice.
But my love affair with LR5 taught me to never stop looking around, so who knows...
BTW, speaking of Capture Pro, I have it, minimally dumbed down version comes with Sony cameras, but it's not exactly my cup of tea.
before you go into another lengthy appraisal of the mighty ufraw & gimp combo: ufraw doesn't support as many cameras as say lightroom or C1Pro... for example, practically as I do own one, the Panasonic LX100 isn't supported. Also they're lagging usually behind adobe & co when a new camera hits the market. For me I don't want three different programs, to deal with different cameras I'm using... that's one.
Then GIMP has no image management. I'm not debating whether an alien skin approach (folder based & file addon) or a database (lightroom) is better than the other. But being able to quickly sift through 3000+ images is an important part of most photographers work-flow. same goes for QUICKLY tagging & sorting and separating keepers from second rate from garbage. The apply your preferred "sauce" - and spend the rest of the time fine tuning the top-selection. Gimp doesn't offer any of this, ufraw, does neither. So then comes another app again - and there's really not much
... worth mentioning in the opensource world (unfortunately) aside a buggy light-room clone that has its fair share of issues...
What software like lighroom, capture one pro - or maybe the upcoming alien skin exposure X do is different from ufraw & gimp. neither tries to be GIMP or Photoshop or Affinity Photo or.. they're not fully fledged image editors. but they're good at sorting - quickly. Tagging, cataloging ... AND RAW Conversion & basic edits... And Export if needed.
I've used GIMP and UFRAW in the past... I'm not "intimidated" by it's mostly appalling UI/UX nor its excellent feature set. What has so far put me off is the lack of work flow for a large number of images.
IF - at some point there will be a good replacement, free, opensource that does the SAME thing as either LR, C1P, etc. I'll be very keen to give it a try and adopt it....
but Neodp, you need to grasp, that it's not just about that. and TIME SAVING TOOLS make my WORK more efficient (and my pay thus better).
I use a lot of free /OpenSource software. for example I've been an advocate of OpenOffice / Libre Office basically from day one and use it exclusively for my office-needs. There are a lot of other Open tools I choose to use and am happy with... I'm really not "blasting" open software... neither do I sell Adobe & Co.
But I make a living from my photography - part time freelance work, part time hired. I've been doing this for the better part of 20 odd years - now I know this doesn't say much ;)... But my tools need to work for me - and my workflow. I'm willing to go to certain lengths to adapt my workflow if I see advantages in specific tools. but the cost for some licenses alone, as a business isn't extraordinary. Gimp has really evolved over the years and with all but a few aspects (mostly when it comes to content aware editing) it is quite competitive of photoshop in my opinion. To the point where, if I wouldn't have a ps license, I would definitely use gimp.
I use C1Pro mostly - have moved there from lightroom for a number of reasons.
I've also used ufraw in the past... haven't tried the latest versions.
Digikam? I haven't used that one for some time, last time was on linux, and it didn't - at the time - offer half the feautreset of LR/c1). maybe it has changed... and I'm willing to look at it.
but take C1Pro for example... at just under 300$ it's not expensive - especially considering the top-class raw converter and editing tools. they offer both subscription and non subscription models (that waS ONE of the reasons why I chose it).
Last week's photo work consisted of 4200 photos... took me less than a day to sort, select, and edit the top-selection. Once you've fine tuned the workflow, you'd be astonished at the speed of work - and if you earn your money, I think speed and convenience matters.
again, don't get me wrong - I have NOTHING agains OpenSource SW... but I choose the tool that WORKS BEST FOR ME... (your mileage might vary).
Side Note: Plain curiosity drove me to download the latest DigiKam, precompiled for OS-X... installs, and crashes upon starting. Probably would need to download the macports version, install macports firs, and spend several hours COMPILING the thing. (yes I've dabbled into that sort of stuff years ago - I have some idea of what I'm doing...).
But here's the thing: This is all ok, it's free - and I'd be happy to give this a try if it would be my HOBBY. But at work: I need something that reliably installs, updates and runs on windows and mac (depending on what I'd prefer). if ANY software crashes upon starting - it's being deleted from my work computer. If I have to spend a few hours GETTING IT TO WORK - then it will be a VERY expensive piece of software, and quickly costs more than the C1Pro License. If I have to repeat this for every update, I can easily afford to BUY tested, professionally compiled, software for a few hundred dollars every other year. Again Business vs. Hobby.
I muse if you read my reply correctly? I have not said it was YOUR responsibility... ;)
Justifying cost in a business: Time = money... If you have MORE time than money = use time. If you have MORE money than time = use money. ( I know this is simplified to a point).
What I said is this: Digikam - downloaded STABLE RLEASE for OS X (precomp.) Installed - crashed upon launch, tried twice - deleted. Why? If its for work, and I had to fiddle two to three hours to get running - it would COST me MONEY. So I can choose between spending my time (=money) or my Money on something I know that will work from the start.
UFRaw is powerful - you will not hear anything against this from me.
But look, you start labelling me an idiot and I stop wasting my time. I figure your command of the english language isn't top notch (this is not an accusation, merely an assumption) ... otherwise you'd have understood that I have never said anything like "my solution being the only one...." or anything about "open source isn't for Pros..." ... read my text again, you'll not find any such nonsense. Quite to the contrary, I said I DO USE Opensource Software for my business - but essentially chose to use a 300$ program that works amazingly well for me. Again, your mileage may vary and that's perfectly fine.
I like how C1Pro works, I like its interface and the speed at which I can work with it. I like the results... it works from scratch... it's not a subscription model... And thus I didn't mind PAYING for it... heck, I can afford to - especially because it works well for me and helps me generate income.
A year ago, I was about to purchase the latest version of Lightroom -- but then I downloaded a trial version of Exposure 7. I never looked back.
Exposure 7, along with On1's software suite are light years ahead of Lightroom -- and I am a longtime Adobe fan. What takes me a half hour in photoshop or lightroom takes literally seconds in Exposure (again, the On1 suite is similarly excellent in this regard). Note that there are many who use both LR and Exposure together.
I no longer had to worry about images that looked so obviously 'photoshopped' or 'lightroomed' (not necessarily a bad look, but often an easily recognizable one). Exposure literally gives every image a uniqueness and elegance of its own.
Anything that takes Catalogues, Collections, Versions and all the other patronising "organising" nonsense out behind the shed and puts them out of their misery; has to be a step forward. This stuff belongs in an "almost" stand-alone environment with a real file renamer, not confusing the User experience. Like the rest of us, I don't get the non-destructive bit in 2015, but. Fingers crossed.
what do you not get about the Non-destructive bit in 2015? Because storage space has become far more affordable? sure. But I personally find it practical to be able to keep versions... sometimes I take a shot, process and then get requests for a B&W version... if I'd be working with backups etc.. this way I can just create another "virtual copy" and be done in seconds... no mess. sometimes I get requests for the unmodified, original RAW file... all there without searching, without finding backups... easy and quick.
Question is, how does it do with reading Nikon secret sauce on default rendering? The scale is a million miles away for LR and buggy-perfect for Nikon software. If it's not the latter, it might as well be the former.
I've shot and edited every.single.image since I turned on my first DSLR four years ago. I spent the first bit chasing the Nikon look to get a handle on how things worked with a benchmark rather than what I liked. It's a hopeless pursuit. Every program has a different default interpretation. LR is not a look I like very much for people photos, but everything else about LR is more compelling than the other stuff I've tried so overall it's the best choice. There's probably 25% of shots that I would barely need to touch if it looked like the Nikon JPEG to start. I could shoot RAW+, but that's deleting a ton of JPEGs. Accurate Nikon reproduction is just something that would be a selling point for me because it would save me some clicks. Not because I try and make my stuff look like that, but because it's a better starting point for a lot of snapshots than the LR version.
@AlienSkinTechSupport I hope Exposure X will have super speedy keyboard shortcuts for things like exposure, contrast, shadows, highlights, etc. The only thing that makes Lightroom workable for me is the speedy VSCO Keys shortcuts plugin, and that has been discontinued by the VSCO (still available, but no more updates). For some strange reason, Adobe has never created a proper set of keyboard shortcuts for LR. As you know, basic edits are much speedier with the keyboard than with having to mouse around the screen.
Good to know, but I hope it wont take too long. IMO having a histogram is essential for a serious photo editing app and I'm still baffled why this wasn't implemented from the start.
Lightroom already does non-destructive editing and catalogs. And RNI All Films 3 for Lightroom already contains all the film profiles you could imagine, from Kodachromes to Portras. This combo is a perfect film emulation.
Why the hell Alien Skin doing what already exists for ages instead of innovating?
... well, had another look at their demo. Looks like a poor man's Lightroom. Pretty understandable if Alien Skin are targeting those reluctant to pay $10 a month to Adobe.
Yes, LR does catalogs. What we have done is scrapped the idea of a catalog all together. Exposure X will not use a catalog, therefor you never have to worry about Exposure X losing track of your files like a catalog based system would, if you moved files outside of the program. If you move an image outside of Exposure, we see it when you launch Exposure again and transfer all your edits with the file. There are also new features that allow you to keep your files and edits synced across multiple computers so you never have to copy files between computers again. There are quite a few innovative things in Exposure X including being much much faster than other programs like LR. You never have to worry about what module you are in...you can do anything from anywhere...speeding up your workflow dramatically. I'd be happy to answer any other questions you have.
I have tried Exposure and have tried ACR + RNI. Perhaps ACR + RNI gets more perfect film emulation, but you need a lot of work. I think that with Exposure it's easier to get a pop up photo. And it's easier to navigate though films, and also you can view only a selection of prefered films. It has all tools and stacks integrated... So I think it's easier to get a nice photo.
We have never been OS X only. Exposure will be the same in all aspects for both Mac and Windows customers. They will both be available when we release it before the end of the year at the same time.
There are some non destructive tools and several image post processing suites for everyone. Some pro some not so pro. I guess that one of them suits someone mainly because of GUI. I also guess that at least 95% of pix taken and pped will finally have a Photoshop treatment no matter how light or heavy that 'll be. Adobe offered top products, still offer, but some parts of them still show their age. Alien skin is a serious company back from the 1993 (had a different name then), undoubtedly will offer a great product. The vast, to my opinion, number of such suites, converters and PP tools has to do with the fact that most people of photography does not know or hates to be involved with the maths and physics of photography.
Kai' s tools took their name from the owner of the company a German Photoshop guru at these days if my memory does not fail me. Black box and Eye Candy are correct. Thx guys.
Yes, Kai Krause. Kai's Power Tools had one of the most innovative (and inscrutable) interfaces I've seen --back when everyone had their own UI. He sold out to Corel around the same time Paint Shop Pro did. Anyone that worked with the 3d drawing program "Bryce" would recognize the Krause interface.
While the whole E7 application seems bigger and a bit clumsier, two things annoys me the most: 1. User presets were always fully listed with thumbnails in E5. Not so in E7 - they always fold. 2. Before/after - to see the effect, before and after, in E5 you click anywhere in the image, in E7 you have to press dedicated button to do the same.
Why "Ouch"? -- they all go into a tidy subfolder, unlike Adobe sidecar files which exist right next to the original photo file, thus doubling the number of files you see. Yes, you can run LR without sidecar files, but then you risk losing all of your edits to database corruption (has happened to me).
Maybe I overlooked something sensational... but I don't see anything new in terms of file handling versus Lightroom. LR is non-destructive since a decade. Using a folder with editing information is exactly the same as a LR catalog, which is a set of encrypted files in a catalog folder.
BTW: the smartest way of storing the entire editing information is managed by Hasselblad's Phocus software. It all fits into the header of the fff files. No catalog, no folder for editiing information.
Encrypted Files? I haven't seen one. The Lightroom catalog (.lrcat) is a simple sqlite database (you can view it with the sqlite browser or with the database driver and very little programming skills), a preview image (.lrprev) is just a simple jpg image pyramid. root-pixels and previews are also just sqlite databases. Or if you save your editing in the same folder as the photo, then it is a xmp file which is just a xml based sidecar. If you look at the database, do yourself a favor and don't make any changes. There are no triggers handling the business logic, so you can kill the catalog if you don't know what you are doing.
As you can see, I haven't found a single encrypted file. Maybe you can tell me where I have to look?
I think you have a different definition of encryption.
An encryption is the process of transforming a plain (or clearly readable) text into a cipher/secret text. The encrytion is done with an encrytion key. And this key can be complex or pretty simple. If you give a friend your phone number, add 1 to each digit as encryption and tell him this key, he can then read your number. This already is an encrytion.
I think one of the reasons for Adobe to generate the catalog file structure was to prevent people from easily reading in clear text, what has happened when editing image files in LR/photoshop.
Spreading the LR image editing information over several files in different folders in a not clearly readable state is, in my opinion, an encryption.
@Hans Stuhrmann That is clear, but I don't see where LR encrypts information. The image editing information also isn't spread in different folders, this information is complete in the sqlite database, the .lrcat file. (However you can save it additionally in folders if you prefer that, it must be enabled in the preferences window) Most databases store their data binary and this also is here the case. However, every editing information is stored in a text field, so you could have a look at the editing information even when opening the database in an text editor (but don't save or the catalog will be broken because most text editors screw the non text binary data).
Here something I took out of my lrcatalog when opening it with an text editor: { AutoGrayscaleMix = true, AutoLateralCA = 0, AutoWhiteVersion = 134348800, Blacks2012 = 0, Brightness = 50, CameraProfile = "Adobe Standard", Clarity2012 = 20, Contrast = 25 [...]
There also is nothing obfuscated, you can query the database like every other database with SQL. So it's a pretty standard way. The only thing that might be odd to you might be the fact, that not an auto increment number is used for indexing but a global unique ID (GUID).
When you query the database or use sqlitebrowser to view it, it is very readable. Ok you might have to look where the relations are but that is typical database structure so nothing especial. The table names and field names are also pretty good chosen.
The mess in the catalog comes simply alone from the preview images, they're not stored in a database but in a single file each (that might be due to performance reasons because they change are lot and are created and deleted beause you don't keep all photos you import). Letting the file system handle it is better than a sqlite database. Anyway, you don't want to look at them in text ;)
"Hope Adobe takes a good look at how Alien Skin here does away with the library and allowing users to work on a NAS."
The "Library" module is absolutely essential to me, otherwise I'd just use one of the many plain raw converters that are out there. All my image files are on a NAS - in exactly the same folder structure I used before I started using Lr, so I'm not sure what to make of the second part of the comment.
When I got Lr I configured it to match my existing storage and let it build its database. All new additions follow exactly the same file naming and locations I used before - I tell Lr where things are, not the other way around.
The Lr library and import modules are very configurable but with badly chosen defaults IMO. I suspect most criticisms are from users who have chosen to run with the defaults.
That's correct Howard and John - Its no problem as long as you are NOT working cross platform.
However as soon as you do work cross platform (Mac and Windows), within the same network then the links to the files do not match because of the way they referenced in the library.
Try it yourself and you will see that it breaks if you will use the same library on a Windows PC.
So for your information the day you will go back from Mac to Windows or vice versa, you will have some work to do. ;)
YES! - As more and more software companies are rolling out subscription based services. Adobe was first in this area, but now even Capture One is experimenting with this and soon we have to pay for each and every software we use a 10 dollars a month user fee.
Not only this Alien Skin editor is buy a once use for as long as you whish based. It also is one of the biggest providers for plugins to LR and Photoshop.
I'll admit that their products aren't perfect, and not everyone cares for their business model- but they still bring more to the table than literally anyone else.
Exposure 7 fits into any workflow. It integrates seamlessly with Photoshop and Lightroom. With its new RAW support and non-destructive editing features, Exposure delivers excellent results as a standalone application.
" Why do we need this?" Because it is not unthinkable that soon Lr will be subscription based only, so many of us are looking for alternatives. I will definitely try it out. The less dependent on Adobe I am, the better it is.
Exposure 7 is already pretty great and does a lot of things that LR doesn't. So they are making Exposure even better. And it *does* do Raw conversion. So many comments here are just plain incorrect.
sigh. sidecar files in subfolders. extra scripting imminent. while better than a catalog blob, this makes a lot automatable tasks harder than neccessary.
I'd rather have sidecar files then a corrupted database.
I've already twice had to deal with a LR database corruption issue. And its beyond me why Adobe has unchecked the option to write sidecars by default.
That option turned on by default would have saved me a lot of work. Now with each new version its the one thing I do first. Checkmarking the option to write sidecars next to my files.
This looks very interesting. I think these will make the applications much more useful for me. Right now I use Viveza2 (Nik tools) for some of these effects.
Lets hope they did it as a Photoshop Adjustment layer or / and as camera RAW- bridge working so you just can copy and paste settings and edit från bridge.
If this is a external Bridge / lightroom editor the it's not better the now. This article is not technical enough.
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