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Lightroom v6.7 perpetual - where to go from here (don’t want subscription Adobe CC)


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I am a long time Adobe Lightroom user (using Lightroom since v1.x).
I absolutely loooooove Lightroom and am using it basically blindfolded with keyboard shortcuts and using it’s DAM aspect extensively, rating, keyboarding and archiving mostly still photographs from a large number of digital cameras and film scans.

Since Adobe has pushed users into their cloud based product I have been looking into replacing Lightroom (I have bought every license up to v6.7 which I am currently still using on MacOS).

Over the years I have looked into Aperture (which got discontinued sadly), Capture One, ON One (is that what it’s called ?) and several pure standalone RAW developer apps.

I have had a quick look into Photo Mechanic for the super fast ingestion and rating workflow a few years ago and basically liked it but then the all-around Lightroom only use for DAM and basic editing and printing was just always in every way superior as a package.

Currently I need to manage my archive from about 15 years of photography, need to regularly ingest digital still photographs, film scans (which I prepare via VueScan and prepare the files to be treated by the DAM essential as digital image files) and I want to always archive video files I produce with digital cameras.

I want the Lightroom replacement first and foremost to be a robust, secure and rock solid DAM software.
I do not mind to have to do my editing in a standalone software if I absolutely have to.

I do not want to do any video editing in my Lightroom replacement but do this solely in Final Cut Pro.
I do want to archive, rate and keyword my video files with the Lightroom replacement though.

I understand that Adobe CC is THE PERFECT product for me, given how fluent I am in Lightroom + I get the latest builds of Photoshop to use for what its worth and get to have more powerful tools across devices (iPhone 11 Pro, iPad Pro, MacBook Pro and Mac Pro, all of which would be nicely integrated which currently is a bit messy).

I do have an incredible hard time to accept the cloud aspect and PARTICULARLY the subscription based payment aspect and more aggressive DRM aspect with necessary internet connectivity (I live in a place with censored internet and very often have a hard time to get a secure internet connection at all and would hate to be stranded in a “license check internet connectivity issue” which currently on perpetual license software is no issue at all).

I have recently tested extensively On One which promises with big words to be a great, modern Lightroom replacement but sadly it doesn’t even come close, being EXTREMELY slow ans sluggish to use (on a fully maxed out BTO MacBook Pro none the less which FLIES in Lightroom).

I see ON One not as a valid Lightroom replacement for that matter (I want at least the same speed I get from Lightroom 6.7.

Is there any valid option in 2019/20 as a Lightroom replacement for those needs?
Is moving to the Adobe CC jailhouse the only way to go from here (I am stuck with old Lightroom in terms of OS upgrade path and some of my newer cameras and file formats are not properly supported by Lightroom 6.7).

Please discuss ;-) I am curious what you guys are doing who were / are in the same situation.
 
menos said:
I am a long time Adobe Lightroom user (using Lightroom since v1.x).
I absolutely loooooove Lightroom and am using it basically blindfolded with keyboard shortcuts and using it’s DAM aspect extensively, rating, keyboarding and archiving mostly still photographs from a large number of digital cameras and film scans.

Since Adobe has pushed users into their cloud based product I have been looking into replacing Lightroom (I have bought every license up to v6.7 which I am currently still using on MacOS).

Over the years I have looked into Aperture (which got discontinued sadly), Capture One, ON One (is that what it’s called ?) and several pure standalone RAW developer apps.

I have had a quick look into Photo Mechanic for the super fast ingestion and rating workflow a few years ago and basically liked it but then the all-around Lightroom only use for DAM and basic editing and printing was just always in every way superior as a package.

Currently I need to manage my archive from about 15 years of photography, need to regularly ingest digital still photographs, film scans (which I prepare via VueScan and prepare the files to be treated by the DAM essential as digital image files) and I want to always archive video files I produce with digital cameras.

I want the Lightroom replacement first and foremost to be a robust, secure and rock solid DAM software.
I do not mind to have to do my editing in a standalone software if I absolutely have to.

I do not want to do any video editing in my Lightroom replacement but do this solely in Final Cut Pro.
I do want to archive, rate and keyword my video files with the Lightroom replacement though.

I understand that Adobe CC is THE PERFECT product for me, given how fluent I am in Lightroom + I get the latest builds of Photoshop to use for what its worth and get to have more powerful tools across devices (iPhone 11 Pro, iPad Pro, MacBook Pro and Mac Pro, all of which would be nicely integrated which currently is a bit messy).

I do have an incredible hard time to accept the cloud aspect and PARTICULARLY the subscription based payment aspect and more aggressive DRM aspect with necessary internet connectivity (I live in a place with censored internet and very often have a hard time to get a secure internet connection at all and would hate to be stranded in a “license check internet connectivity issue” which currently on perpetual license software is no issue at all).

I have recently tested extensively On One which promises with big words to be a great, modern Lightroom replacement but sadly it doesn’t even come close, being EXTREMELY slow ans sluggish to use (on a fully maxed out BTO MacBook Pro none the less which FLIES in Lightroom).

I see ON One not as a valid Lightroom replacement for that matter (I want at least the same speed I get from Lightroom 6.7.

Is there any valid option in 2019/20 as a Lightroom replacement for those needs?
Is moving to the Adobe CC jailhouse the only way to go from here (I am stuck with old Lightroom in terms of OS upgrade path and some of my newer cameras and file formats are not properly supported by Lightroom 6.7).

Please discuss ;-) I am curious what you guys are doing who were / are in the same situation.
Click to expand...
I am not certain if it would make any difference but I am on Lightroom 6.14, the last version for Lightroom perpetual license. I will be looking at Capture One which has a perpetual license.
 
menos said:
I want the Lightroom replacement first and foremost to be a robust, secure and rock solid DAM software.
I do not mind to have to do my editing in a standalone software if I absolutely have to.

I do not want to do any video editing in my Lightroom replacement but do this solely in Final Cut Pro.
I do want to archive, rate and keyword my video files with the Lightroom replacement though.
Click to expand...
None of the macOS products provides as comprehensive organizing tools as Lr. Many have bits and pieces, so whether one would work as an organizer depends very much on your specific needs. Bridge can do a lot. So can Graphic Converter. I've been in the beta test for Photo Mechanic's new DAM and while it's better at finding stuff, it's still a long way from Lr for getting to images as opposed to ingesting, culling and adding metadata.
menos said:
I do have an incredible hard time to accept the cloud aspect and PARTICULARLY the subscription based payment aspect and more aggressive DRM aspect with necessary internet connectivity (I live in a place with censored internet and very often have a hard time to get a secure internet connection at all and would hate to be stranded in a “license check internet connectivity issue” which currently on perpetual license software is no issue at all).
Click to expand...
You realize that if you use Lr Classic you do not need to put one, not one, image in the cloud, right? It isn't pushing any of us anywhere. The software phones home like every 30 days, but if it can't connect it gives you a 99 day grace period. Can you get a very brief internet connection 3 times a year?

Loading…

helpx.adobe.com

I can't help you if you can't afford a subscription, but note that when you don't subscribe you can still use all but the Develop and Maps modules.
menos said:
Is there any valid option in 2019/20 as a Lightroom replacement for those needs?
Is moving to the Adobe CC jailhouse the only way to go from here (I am stuck with old Lightroom in terms of OS upgrade path and some of my newer cameras and file formats are not properly supported by Lightroom 6.7).

Please discuss ;-) I am curious what you guys are doing who were / are in the same situation.
Click to expand...
The closest I've seen to Lr's functionality for organizing (vs just doing the adjustments; lots of stuff does that well) is iMatch, but it runs on Windows only (although you can access it via a web browser from macOS). Perhaps you could run it in a virtual machine, or switch to Windows.

I'm not sure what "jailhouse" you're referring to. It's just software. If you've committed to learning it then it seems the simple solution is to just keep using it; just sort of depends on how much it's worth it to you to have the same functionality vs paying possibly more money and learning new workflows.

And search here. It's been discussed pretty much every month for a couple of years.
 
robgendreau said:
menos said:
I want the Lightroom replacement first and foremost to be a robust, secure and rock solid DAM software.
I do not mind to have to do my editing in a standalone software if I absolutely have to.

I do not want to do any video editing in my Lightroom replacement but do this solely in Final Cut Pro.
I do want to archive, rate and keyword my video files with the Lightroom replacement though.
Click to expand...
None of the macOS products provides as comprehensive organizing tools as Lr. Many have bits and pieces, so whether one would work as an organizer depends very much on your specific needs. Bridge can do a lot. So can Graphic Converter. I've been in the beta test for Photo Mechanic's new DAM and while it's better at finding stuff, it's still a long way from Lr for getting to images as opposed to ingesting, culling and adding metadata.
robgendreau said:
I do have an incredible hard time to accept the cloud aspect and PARTICULARLY the subscription based payment aspect and more aggressive DRM aspect with necessary internet connectivity (I live in a place with censored internet and very often have a hard time to get a secure internet connection at all and would hate to be stranded in a “license check internet connectivity issue” which currently on perpetual license software is no issue at all).
Click to expand...
You realize that if you use Lr Classic you do not need to put one, not one, image in the cloud, right? It isn't pushing any of us anywhere. The software phones home like every 30 days, but if it can't connect it gives you a 99 day grace period. Can you get a very brief internet connection 3 times a year?
Click to expand...
You get 99 days if you pay annually and I'm sure there would be a grace period just in case you are in the jungles of Borneo for an extended period.
robgendreau said:
https://helpx.adobe.com/creative-cloud/kb/internet-connection-creative-cloud-apps.html

I can't help you if you can't afford a subscription, but note that when you don't subscribe you can still use all but the Develop and Maps modules.
robgendreau said:
Is there any valid option in 2019/20 as a Lightroom replacement for those needs?
Is moving to the Adobe CC jailhouse the only way to go from here (I am stuck with old Lightroom in terms of OS upgrade path and some of my newer cameras and file formats are not properly supported by Lightroom 6.7).

Please discuss ;-) I am curious what you guys are doing who were / are in the same situation.
Click to expand...
The closest I've seen to Lr's functionality for organizing (vs just doing the adjustments; lots of stuff does that well) is iMatch, but it runs on Windows only (although you can access it via a web browser from macOS). Perhaps you could run it in a virtual machine, or switch to Windows.

I'm not sure what "jailhouse" you're referring to. It's just software. If you've committed to learning it then it seems the simple solution is to just keep using it; just sort of depends on how much it's worth it to you to have the same functionality vs paying possibly more money and learning new workflows.

And search here. It's been discussed pretty much every month for a couple of years.
Click to expand...
 
menos said:
I am a long time Adobe Lightroom user (using Lightroom since v1.x).
I absolutely loooooove Lightroom and am using it basically blindfolded with keyboard shortcuts and using it’s DAM aspect extensively, rating, keyboarding and archiving mostly still photographs from a large number of digital cameras and film scans.

Since Adobe has pushed users into their cloud based product I have been looking into replacing Lightroom (I have bought every license up to v6.7 which I am currently still using on MacOS).

Over the years I have looked into Aperture (which got discontinued sadly), Capture One, ON One (is that what it’s called ?) and several pure standalone RAW developer apps.

I have had a quick look into Photo Mechanic for the super fast ingestion and rating workflow a few years ago and basically liked it but then the all-around Lightroom only use for DAM and basic editing and printing was just always in every way superior as a package.

Currently I need to manage my archive from about 15 years of photography, need to regularly ingest digital still photographs, film scans (which I prepare via VueScan and prepare the files to be treated by the DAM essential as digital image files) and I want to always archive video files I produce with digital cameras.

I want the Lightroom replacement first and foremost to be a robust, secure and rock solid DAM software.
I do not mind to have to do my editing in a standalone software if I absolutely have to.

I do not want to do any video editing in my Lightroom replacement but do this solely in Final Cut Pro.
I do want to archive, rate and keyword my video files with the Lightroom replacement though.

I understand that Adobe CC is THE PERFECT product for me, given how fluent I am in Lightroom + I get the latest builds of Photoshop to use for what its worth and get to have more powerful tools across devices (iPhone 11 Pro, iPad Pro, MacBook Pro and Mac Pro, all of which would be nicely integrated which currently is a bit messy).

I do have an incredible hard time to accept the cloud aspect and PARTICULARLY the subscription based payment aspect and more aggressive DRM aspect with necessary internet connectivity (I live in a place with censored internet and very often have a hard time to get a secure internet connection at all and would hate to be stranded in a “license check internet connectivity issue” which currently on perpetual license software is no issue at all).
Click to expand...
I have been a subscriber since 2017 and I don't have a single file in the cloud.

How did you get Auto updates when LR6 was still supported? You computer was communicating with Adobe. No different now.
menos said:
I have recently tested extensively On One which promises with big words to be a great, modern Lightroom replacement but sadly it doesn’t even come close, being EXTREMELY slow ans sluggish to use (on a fully maxed out BTO MacBook Pro none the less which FLIES in Lightroom).

I see ON One not as a valid Lightroom replacement for that matter (I want at least the same speed I get from Lightroom 6.7.

Is there any valid option in 2019/20 as a Lightroom replacement for those needs?
Is moving to the Adobe CC jailhouse the only way to go from here (I am stuck with old Lightroom in terms of OS upgrade path and some of my newer cameras and file formats are not properly supported by Lightroom 6.7).

Please discuss ;-) I am curious what you guys are doing who were / are in the same situation.
Click to expand...
--
I feel even more confident that soon things will have a wonderful conclusion
 
Last edited:
hjr13 said:
Yoiu could get Adobe DNG converter and convert raws to dng and keep using Lightroom. It is free so you have nothing to lose trying it. That's what I've been doing with PS 6.
Click to expand...
That is a good option.
 
menos said:
I am a long time Adobe Lightroom user (using Lightroom since v1.x).
I absolutely loooooove Lightroom and am using it basically blindfolded with keyboard shortcuts and using it’s DAM aspect extensively, rating, keyboarding and archiving mostly still photographs from a large number of digital cameras and film scans.
Click to expand...
$120 a year is worth it to use a program you "loooove" and can use blindfolded. Not to mention Ps thrown in as well.

Thats just me though. :)
 
If you choose the DNG route then you can update to 6.14 if you have a valid license. You need to call Adobe for that. It still won't support any cameras that were released as of Jan 1, 2018.

Just be aware if you choose companies like C1 as they are on an annual upgrade plan. Once an update is released then the previous version stops getting support. C1 is about $150 a year. Very good software but can cost $450 in the first year unless there is a sale. Those are rare. You can skip upgrades if you wish.

I have read a lot of good things about ON1. I believe they upgrade every year as well. I'm not sure about their upgrade policy and previous versions but you should check it out.

Before you give up on LR check this out. The plan also comes with a personalized website called Portfolio.

www.lightroomqueen.com

What's new in Lightroom Classic since Lightroom 6? | The Lightroom Queen

Whether you’re considering upgrading from Lightroom 6 (or earlier) to Lightroom Classic because you have a new camera, you’re planning to upgrade to macOS Catalina, or you’re just tempted by the new features, you may wonder what’s changed since Lightroom 6’s release in April 2015. What's new -...
www.lightroomqueen.com www.lightroomqueen.com

Good luck. I hope you find something that works for you.
 
kilofox said:
menos said:
I am a long time Adobe Lightroom user (using Lightroom since v1.x).
I absolutely loooooove Lightroom and am using it basically blindfolded with keyboard shortcuts and using it’s DAM aspect extensively, rating, keyboarding and archiving mostly still photographs from a large number of digital cameras and film scans.
Click to expand...
$120 a year is worth it to use a program you "loooove" and can use blindfolded. Not to mention Ps thrown in as well.
Thats just me though. :)
Click to expand...
And a personalized website. I was paying Zenfolio and dropped it which basically pays for the plan.
 
Have you considered and tried DxO PhotoLab 3? I have been using it for about three weeks now and it is fast and has all the features that I want and need. However, it is not a DAM, so that would be a function that you would need to set up outside of the editing software.
 
Clix Pix said:
Have you considered and tried DxO PhotoLab 3? I have been using it for about three weeks now and it is fast and has all the features that I want and need. However, it is not a DAM, so that would be a function that you would need to set up outside of the editing software.
Click to expand...
I have that as well but LR is my primary developer. I send select files to it. Also on an annual upgrade plan. If you buy it within a few months of the upgrade which is November you don't get the latest version and you have pay for the upgrade.

I'm not saying it is bad but I have learned to be careful with these annual plans. Anyone who is exploring should be aware of it. If I choose to upgrade to version 4 next Nov DXO can send me 100 emails a day to do so but I will wait until the BF sale ;-)
 
As a few others have mentioned, you don't need internet connection at all with Adobe's Photography Plan that includes LR Classic and PS. I've been a subscriber since 2014, after using LR 3/4/5 + PS Elements. The Photography Plan is such an improvement for me and well worth the $120/year as I get full PS and the updates in the past few years to LR have been super useful.

I have ZERO images in Adobe's cloud, the software and all of my photos are on my Mac and my library is backed up on an external SSD and BackBlaze cloud backup. There is no need to use Adobe's cloud unless you want to but it isn't necessary. If you want to share across devices, you can use Google Drive or DropBox or iCloud.

The only time that you need to have an internet connection is for updates to the software that live on your Mac and that only happens a few times a year and you can do that when you want to, it isn't mandatory to connect and update.
 
Zeee said:
Clix Pix said:
Have you considered and tried DxO PhotoLab 3? I have been using it for about three weeks now and it is fast and has all the features that I want and need. However, it is not a DAM, so that would be a function that you would need to set up outside of the editing software.
Click to expand...
I have that as well but LR is my primary developer. I send select files to it. Also on an annual upgrade plan. If you buy it within a few months of the upgrade which is November you don't get the latest version and you have pay for the upgrade.

I'm not saying it is bad but I have learned to be careful with these annual plans. Anyone who is exploring should be aware of it. If I choose to upgrade to version 4 next Nov DXO can send me 100 emails a day to do so but I will wait until the BF sale ;-)
Click to expand...
Ah, thanks for that info! I just happened to stumble into the Black Friday sale and thought, "yeah, OK, let's give this a shot!" without any consideration as to whether a year or so from now I'll have to cough up more money for the next version.... Over the past couple of months I had already been considering DxO PhotoLab but was still waffling.....with the Black Friday offer at half-price, it was a no-brainer to go for it. At any rate, right now I am very pleased with the software so glad that I did take a chance on it!
 
If you decide to go the DNG route, it's wisest to use the option to embed the original Raw. Although that approximately doubles the file size, it ensures that all metadata the camera records is included in the DNG. Otherwise, depending on the camera and DNG version, some metadata may not transfer to the file.

Also, my understanding is that DNG ICC profile is proprietary to Adobe, and other apps that work with DNG create their own profiles (one reason for embedding the original Raw).
 
Clix Pix said:
Zeee said:
Clix Pix said:
Have you considered and tried DxO PhotoLab 3? I have been using it for about three weeks now and it is fast and has all the features that I want and need. However, it is not a DAM, so that would be a function that you would need to set up outside of the editing software.
Click to expand...
I have that as well but LR is my primary developer. I send select files to it. Also on an annual upgrade plan. If you buy it within a few months of the upgrade which is November you don't get the latest version and you have pay for the upgrade.

I'm not saying it is bad but I have learned to be careful with these annual plans. Anyone who is exploring should be aware of it. If I choose to upgrade to version 4 next Nov DXO can send me 100 emails a day to do so but I will wait until the BF sale ;-)
Click to expand...
Ah, thanks for that info! I just happened to stumble into the Black Friday sale and thought, "yeah, OK, let's give this a shot!" without any consideration as to whether a year or so from now I'll have to cough up more money for the next version.... Over the past couple of months I had already been considering DxO PhotoLab but was still waffling.....with the Black Friday offer at half-price, it was a no-brainer to go for it. At any rate, right now I am very pleased with the software so glad that I did take a chance on it!
Click to expand...
They sent me emails every day to upgrade so finally I did. Two weeks later BF came around and they wouldn't honour it. You have to watch out with this stuff.
 
Zeee said:
Just be aware if you choose companies like C1 as they are on an annual upgrade plan. Once an update is released then the previous version stops getting support. C1 is about $150 a year. Very good software but can cost $450 in the first year unless there is a sale. Those are rare. You can skip upgrades if you wish.
Click to expand...
Why does this "required annual upgrade" sort of note keep getting mentioned with C1? Yes, they have an annual version upgrade. And NO, you do NOT have to upgrade. You have a perpetual license and the only reasons I can think of that you might be forced to upgrade are a) you acquire a camera that your current C1 version doesn't support (but of course you could use DNG, which C1 does support) or b) something in an OS upgrade breaks C1 (hasn't happened to me yet, but it sure could).

If you want the features in a new version of C1, then you have 30 days to try the new version for free before deciding if you really want to buy it. And then, of course, you pay.

As for no more support: I don't know about that. C1 maintains user forums for old versions, and afaik their Tech Support folks continue to answer support cases (as they will even for people on 30-day free trials, according to people I know who have experienced it). It's just that they don't issue any upgrades after a new version is released/

This year they ran a couple of nice discounts around Black Friday. btw,, so you didn't have to pay the full $150 if you knew you wanted the version (I think they also have a refund policy, but I'm not sure).

So for someone who's still happy with LR, you could probably license C1 (a perpetual License is for 3 machines, btw) and be happy for a number of years.

I've upgraded each year, but only because I really benefit from the new features. This year was no exception.

Also, C1 is available by subscription, but the subscription terms are more amenable to commercial shops where various computers may need to be activated/deactivated relatively frequently.
 
I moved over to Capture One Express (came free for fuji) and new to me Afinity Photo.

However, I realise that I want more control, like brushes, in the raw editor so will upgrade to capture one 20 pro.

Subscriptions only really suit a business or people who feel they need to upgrade more than once a year. C1 will cost me £150 and should last me 3 - 5 years. LR would cost me £120 a year, so a lot more expensive over 3 years. As a mostly hobby shooter, I don't get a return on my photography so balance the expense nor do I shoot enough to to justify a monthly subscription- some months I shoot nothing!
 
kierenlon said:
I moved over to Capture One Express (came free for fuji) and new to me Afinity Photo.
However, I realise that I want more control, like brushes, in the raw editor so will upgrade to capture one 20 pro.
Subscriptions only really suit a business or people who feel they need to upgrade more than once a year. C1 will cost me £150 and should last me 3 - 5 years. LR would cost me £120 a year, so a lot more expensive over 3 years. As a mostly hobby shooter, I don't get a return on my photography so balance the expense nor do I shoot enough to to justify a monthly subscription- some months I shoot nothing!
Click to expand...
For me it would cost $400 CND. I like the latest so another $200 in the first year. Another $200 a year lets say for 5 years. Total $1600. That is 10 years of subscription costs.

I like to get the latest. For those who don't it would make more sense.
 
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