Processing software - an observation and a question

[Alan Sh]

I have Photoshop Elements 2023, Capture 1 Express and Fujifilm X Raw Studio. Each of them does some things that others don't.

Elements is my go-to s/w for cropping and basic stuff plus printing. I've used it for years and it's OK. By default the raw processor for the X-T5 won't be loaded - you have to manually copy the .8bi file across to another folder to get V15 (which the T5 RAF files need). It will display the metadata but the main stuff is all in raw format. Readable because it's XML (thank you Fuji - much nicer than Canon), but not easy to read inside the app (I extracted it into notepad++ and it was much easier to read).

Capture one Express is nice. It does really good sharpening for soft(ish) lenses and seems to have the fim simulations buit in without needing the camera connected. But I cannot find anywhere that it can display the meta data, which I do like to use. I think this will me my main s/w for tidiying up pictures. I will have to work out how it all works and whether I can print from it.

X Raw Studio is good for looking at meta data, but it needs my camera connected to be able to do any conversions. I understand why, but it's a pain as the lead they provide is quite short. And it's a bit 'clunky' to use. And doesn't seem to allow much in the way of 'playing' with the files.

So, I am not sure what to settle on as my 'goto' software.

What do others use? And don't suggest Photoshop - there's no way I am paying those prices - I've got lenses to buy :-D

Ala

 

[MBolton]

I pay $10 a month for Lightroom & Photoshop and since I use Adobe everyday the cost is nothing.

 

[lewiedude2]

I pay $10 a month for Lightroom & Photoshop and since I use Adobe everyday the cost is nothing.

Agreed. Bring IxT to the party and things get even better (Iridient X Transformer). Good luck!

 

[MBolton]

I pay $10 a month for Lightroom & Photoshop and since I use Adobe everyday the cost is nothing.

Agreed. Bring IxT to the party and things get even better (Iridient X Transformer). Good luck!

I never found a need for Iridient. In Lightroom I just mask close to 50% and sharpen 100%.

 

[Morris0]

I pay $10 a month for Lightroom & Photoshop and since I use Adobe everyday the cost is nothing.

I agree and am a Photoshop user.

Morris

 

[Jerry-astro]

I have Photoshop Elements 2023, Capture 1 Express and Fujifilm X Raw Studio. Each of them does some things that others don't.

Elements is my go-to s/w for cropping and basic stuff plus printing. I've used it for years and it's OK. By default the raw processor for the X-T5 won't be loaded - you have to manually copy the .8bi file across to another folder to get V15 (which the T5 RAF files need). It will display the metadata but the main stuff is all in raw format. Readable because it's XML (thank you Fuji - much nicer than Canon), but not easy to read inside the app (I extracted it into notepad++ and it was much easier to read).

Capture one Express is nice. It does really good sharpening for soft(ish) lenses and seems to have the fim simulations buit in without needing the camera connected. But I cannot find anywhere that it can display the meta data, which I do like to use. I think this will me my main s/w for tidiying up pictures. I will have to work out how it all works and whether I can print from it.

X Raw Studio is good for looking at meta data, but it needs my camera connected to be able to do any conversions. I understand why, but it's a pain as the lead they provide is quite short. And it's a bit 'clunky' to use. And doesn't seem to allow much in the way of 'playing' with the files.

So, I am not sure what to settle on as my 'goto' software.

What do others use? And don't suggest Photoshop - there's no way I am paying those prices - I've got lenses to buy :-D

Ala

Please forgive me if it seems that I'm taking your comments too lightly, but after the investments you've made in camera gear, etc. you feel that $10/month is too much for the fundamental software you would need to use consistently to process your images? Unless you want to shoot JPG exclusively, it's simply part of the costs associated with this hobby, regardless whether it's LR, C1, or any other such processing software. Given the value of having highly capable software that is kept up-to-date, I frankly don't have a big problem with paying $120 USD a year to have that capability. There are plenty of other options out there, but I don't feel that the subscription price is by any means a rip-off or unreasonable. There are other options out there, but given how important processing software is to me, I don't in any way begrudge the cost. What's more, having capable processing software (unless you exclusively shoot only JPGs) is simply a necessity and no less important than having the right gear for the job, regardless whether it's LR, C1, or whatever you prefer.

So... that's sort of a long answer to a short question, but that's what I use and I feel it's more than worth the cost. Clearly, YMMV.

--
Jerry-Astro
Fuji Forum co-Mod

 

[Alan Sh]

Thank you for all the replies. I may have come over a bit harshly.

My outlooks is slightly different. I have a regular outgoings 'pot' and a savings 'pot'. All my camera purchases (and they don't happen that often) come out of my savings pot.

As I am retired, I need to ensure that my regular outgoings are less than my normal income (my pension). As such I endeavour to NOT set up regular payments for anything. I don't owe on my credit cards, I have no loans, I've paid off my mortgage. It's just the way I work. So paying out even a low amount for photoshop goes against the grain for me. I'd rather pay a one off fee (savings pot) and know that my income and outgoings will be OK even if my savings disappear.

But, enough of the philosophy. Does anyone use anything else apart from Photoshop?

cheers

Alan

 

[Jerry-astro]

Thank you for all the replies. I may have come over a bit harshly.

My outlooks is slightly different. I have a regular outgoings 'pot' and a savings 'pot'. All my camera purchases (and they don't happen that often) come out of my savings pot.

As I am retired, I need to ensure that my regular outgoings are less than my normal income (my pension). As such I endeavour to NOT set up regular payments for anything. I don't owe on my credit cards, I have no loans, I've paid off my mortgage. It's just the way I work. So paying out even a low amount for photoshop goes against the grain for me. I'd rather pay a one off fee (savings pot) and know that my income and outgoings will be OK even if my savings disappear.

But, enough of the philosophy. Does anyone use anything else apart from Photoshop?

cheers

Alan

Appreciate the additional detail. I’m also retired, so anything that’s an ongoing expense gets more critical consideration and needs to be factored into the overall budget. Clearly, decisions like this all come down to priorities, and in my case, since photography is really my only significant hobby, I feel that I can justify the ongoing expense for LR. But, what works for me clearly isn’t necessarily the optimal approach for others, such as yourself.

 

[yayatosorus]

But, enough of the philosophy. Does anyone use anything else apart from Photoshop?

Alan

Been using Capture One since jumping to Fuji. It's a solid program, especially if you get once you tune and preset your default sharpening/NR settings.

Regarding your question about metadata, you'll find it under "Library".

 

[His Dudeness]

Thank you for all the replies. I may have come over a bit harshly.

My outlooks is slightly different. I have a regular outgoings 'pot' and a savings 'pot'. All my camera purchases (and they don't happen that often) come out of my savings pot.

No need to justify your decision.

But, enough of the philosophy. Does anyone use anything else apart from Photoshop?

You may want to take a look at darktable . Extremely powerful, high quality output, open source and free. With respect to editing, concepts are quite different compared to C1 or LR. Hence, you may have to invest some time for learning, but it is rewarding.

 

[Alan Sh]

But, enough of the philosophy. Does anyone use anything else apart from Photoshop?

Alan

Been using Capture One since jumping to Fuji. It's a solid program, especially if you get once you tune and preset your default sharpening/NR settings.

Regarding your question about metadata, you'll find it under "Library".

Is that the full Capture One? I only have Express (at the moment) and can't seem to find that anywhere. No - found it. Thanks.

[edit 2] - it is just the basic stuff. The Fuji metaware has a lot more in, as can be seen by using Fijifilm X raw Studio.

Alan

 

[Mustafa K]

Thank you for all the replies. I may have come over a bit harshly.

My outlooks is slightly different. I have a regular outgoings 'pot' and a savings 'pot'. All my camera purchases (and they don't happen that often) come out of my savings pot.

No need to justify your decision.

But, enough of the philosophy. Does anyone use anything else apart from Photoshop?

You may want to take a look at darktable . Extremely powerful, high quality output, open source and free. With respect to editing, concepts are quite different compared to C1 or LR. Hence, you may have to invest some time for learning, but it is rewarding.

I am pensioner, too. :-D I do not like to pay a regular fee for the Lightroom to process my RAW files. For RAW processing I use Darktable, that is very powerful.

In addition, for further editing, printing and creating cataloques/documents I purchased Affinity Photo and Publisher, respectively. With this software trio I am quite happy.

 

[Meeces]

It may not be as full featured as some others, but RAW Power app is quite nice. I use that as either a stand alone or plug-in with Apple photos for a majority of editing on a Mac. On iPad or iPhone it’s a stand alone app. No subscription. Of course, it does require being in the Apple world. It also has Fuji native film sims built in (as LUTS instead of presets), and will show metadata.

It’s not great for layers/local adjustments- for which I usually use Pixelmator, Affinity, or Darkroom apps.

 

[sluggy_warrior]

You may want to take a look at darktable . Extremely powerful, high quality output, open source and free. With respect to editing, concepts are quite different compared to C1 or LR. Hence, you may have to invest some time for learning, but it is rewarding.

Thanks for mentioning darktable. I've been using darktable exclusively for 10 years, but my principle is software freedom, so I don't know how to sell it :-D

Practicality wise, I shoot at events quite often: tournaments, recitals, conferences, summits, theaters, parties, ... and darktable is more than good enough for me to process hundreds of RAWs at once.

If OP don't like darktable's interface, RawTherapee and its fork, ART, are also excellent free/open-source tools with a different UI/workflow.

If at some point Photoshop becomes a luxury, GIMP is a great free/open-source alternative.

For panorama stitching, Hugin is the obvious option.

 

[bobnn]

I'm generally in favor of open source, I use Linux almost exclusively, but I can't make sense of darktable, and I was an Electrical Engineer. I don't want to be a physicist and and a computer scientist to edit pictures. It's laziness at least in part.

I've set up for dual boot, I never used it at all until I started using raw editors.

 

[McWoodley]

I will preface this with I always shoot RAW+Fine(jpg). I am not sure what your end audience is, e.g. social media, printing or just for your own enjoyment on a screen. Maybe try to figure our what camera settings and film simulations give you the desired look in camera. I often take photos where I am happier with the in camera jpg than I can edit the raw. Fujiweekly and their film sims are overplayed in my opinion, its a good starting point to help you understand how you can manipulate the camera to make jpgs to your liking. Of course there will be times that editing raw can really make a photo but that is manipulating different aspects using layers and not global edits. I have been using capture one for about 5 years now. I started off with the Fuji express version then upgraded to the Fuji full. I have always done perpetual licensing. I have saved a little using that scheme but I have also paid for a few upgrades either for desired features or new camera support. At least its a controlled expense that way and not a monthly charge. Alternatively the are plenty of programs you can make minor adjustments to your jpgs as well. I get it though, to really process a photo there is often no substitute to processing the RAW. Others have made some good suggestions you have to decide what works best for you and your budget.

 

[biza43]

I use an outdated version of LR, so I need to process Raf files through Iridient first, no big deal. I am so familiar with LR that I do not want to change. C1 is going to subscription mode also, so that seems to be the future for the big names.

My advice is to try a few options and test them, and then settle on a product/workflow.

 

[Coldpaw]

If you don't want a subscription model, you might want to take a look at DXO PhotoLab. It cones in two flavors, Standard and Elite, with the former being cheaper but having a more limited feature set. It has very capable noise reduction, a fairly extensive catalog of lens profiles and is, in my opinion, quite easy to use. They offer a fully featured 30-day trial if you are interested.

You should keep in mind however they are releasing a new, major version every single year, usually some time in October. Once that new version is released, support for the previous version stops pretty soon after, that also includes support for newer cameras. During that year, they typically release smaller updates with support for more cameras, improved features, bug fixes, performance improvements and so on for free.

Maybe the best bang for the buck software would be Affinity Photo, they released a new, major version last year. It is highly feature packed, but I find it rather difficult to use. The software is, especially considering for what it does, quite cheap. Especially considering the developer keeps releasing free updates for years to come. One of the most major issues though: It falls sort of short in my opinion as a RAW processing software.

 

[Alan Sh]

Thank you all. It seems I have a lot to think about and try out.

Photography can be fun

 

[BackToNature1]

So, I am not sure what to settle on as my 'goto' software.

What do others use? And don't suggest Photoshop - there's no way I am paying those prices - I've got lenses to buy :-D

Ala

I am currently in the market for both New Software and a New Camera. So I certainly want to get both right since that can make like, much easier. Folks will say it won't matter which camera an or paying monthly don't matter for software. Well they ain't us.