The improvements in PhotoLab 6.3 mainly target the Elite edition, with an extension to the soft proofing tools that can no incorporate on-screen simulations of papers and inks, to allow even more accurate color visualization and control over printed output.
Featured posts
Welcome to the Life after Photoshop archive of 'Featured' posts. These are favourite articles or tutorials that appear in the carousel at the top of the home page.
Lightroom color adjustments made easy
Sometimes the colors in your image aren’t quite right and it’s not all of them but perhaps one in particular. White balance, saturation and vibrance adjustments affect the whole image, so how do you target specific colors? In Lightroom it’s easy.
How seriously do you take your camera’s in-camera effects?
I’ve reviewed a lot of cameras. It’s been my job for many years. And I’ve quickly figured out that in-camera effects are mostly boring and unimaginative or just a bit crass. But there are exceptions.
Is noise as bad as you think it is?
This question comes in three parts. First, is your camera really as bad at high ISOs as you think? Second, is noise REALLY that intolerable? And is your attitude to noise stopping you from taking shots you might actually like?
When LUTs can be a lifeline
LUT stands for LookUp Table. It’s a digital file that shifts colors and tones in hue, saturation, luminance – usually all three. LUTs are used widely in video editing and cinematography, but are becoming increasingly popular in regular stills photography. They are like ‘pre-processing’ for images. They give you a whole new look without involving any of the editing tools – unlike presets.
Capture One to favor subscriptions in 2023, perpetual licenses downgraded
You can read the full details in Capture One’s official bulletin, though this offers so many alternative scenarios for existing users that they do become a little hard to follow – but perpetual licenses will no longer offer feature updates or even traditional upgrade discounts.
DxO offers 30% off two or more products this December, releases PhotoLab 6.1
Black Friday may be over, but DxO now has a Holiday Magic offer running until December 31. If you buy two or more DxO products during this period it triggers a 30% discount at the checkout. This applies to any permutations of DxO products, including DxO PhotoLab 6 Elite, Nik Collection 5, PureRAW 2, FilmPack 6 or ViewPoint 4.
Capture One 23 review
Verdict: 4.8 stars Capture One 23 is a professional Lightroom rival that offers a step up in both image quality and editing tools, and supports a greater variety of professional workflows. The RAW processing is excellent, the editing tools are powerful and the new Cull view, layered Styles and improved Variant handling alone make the upgrade look worth it. Capture One is not cheap, but it’s designed for professional, quality-orientated workflows.
ON1 Photo RAW 2023 review
Verdict: 4.5 stars ON1 Photo RAW 2023 is probably the closest thing there is to a photo editor that does absolutely everything. This version adds AI subject recognition and masking features. ON1 Photo RAW’s scope and ambitions are impressive, though the AI doesn’t always work perfectly and ON1 Photo RAW 2023 can sometimes feel sluggish.
Affinity Photo 2 review
Verdict: 4.5 stars Affinity Photo 2 is not a huge leap forward from version 1 for photographers, but more a major refresh and rebranding for Affinity. It remains an extremely powerful professional Photoshop rival at an exceptionally low price. Its tone mapping is superb, its RAW processing can now be applied non-destructively and its central Photo personal is hugely powerful.