Aperture vs. Lightroom: 2013

Biro · 01-01-2013, 05:44 PM

My iMac is about a year old: 21.5-inch screen, i7 chip, 8 gigs of RAM and a one TB hard drive. I had Aperture 2 on my older iMac and, frankly, I've been getting by reasonably well with iPhoto on the new computer so far. But I'm now weighing Aperture vs. Lightroom 4. Does anyone have any thoughts on the latest versions of each?

**boriscleto** · 01-01-2013, 05:50 PM

If you are already familiar with Aperture 2 and iPhoto Aperture 3 is the way to go. Personally I don't like Lightroom (modal interface) but you can download it and try it for free. The next version of Aperture is due in the spring or summer, a listing for a book on Amazon.ca has a release date of March...

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/digital-processing-software-printing/2097...perture-x.html

Nuff · 01-01-2013, 06:00 PM

When it comes to output and features it's LR all the way. I'm actually one of the few people who didn't find Aperture intuitive and I like the database concepts of LR, but than I've IT background and those concepts can take a while to get your head around, but once you do, they are a huge time saver. There are lots of helpful videos on youtube that can ease you in.

I also like that all of my lenses have automatic correction. The automatic CA correction has been spot on all the time and the latest release of LR has pretty good PF removal. Also I like the way it handles shadows and highlights.

bigted · 01-01-2013, 06:24 PM

For me I plan to go to Aperture. I haven't used either at this point simply because my current desk top dinosaur couldn't cope with LR and when I get it this will be my first iMac. I picked up a year of one to one so apple could show me how to use it. The other consideration was cost. Aperture is almost half the price of LR, last time I looked.

It will be interesting to see what others say.

**boriscleto** · 01-01-2013, 06:46 PM

Originally posted by Nuff

I'm actually one of the few people who didn't find Aperture intuitive and I like the database concepts of LR, but than I've IT background and those concepts can take a while to get your head around, but once you do, they are a huge time saver.

You probably use vi to edit text too...

Nuff · 01-01-2013, 06:50 PM

Originally posted by boriscleto

You probably use vi to edit text too...

I do everyday at work. It's blazing fast in the right hands, the things that vi can do in seconds could take days in notepad... vim is even better.

And one of the great thing about osx is, it comes with vi.

DSims · 01-01-2013, 07:28 PM

I know it's not what you asked for, but I find Capture One 7 to be preferable, because it has good camera profiles and makes very good images and prints without making extensive (or even any) adjustments. And unlike LR, you can use it with or without importing into their catalog.

Fortunately, you can try both Capture One and LR for free. If you don't like either one, then you can go ahead and get Aperture.

john mood · 01-01-2013, 07:50 PM

Originally posted by Biro

My iMac is about a year old: 21.5-inch screen, i7 chip, 8 gigs of RAM and a one TB hard drive. I had Aperture 2 on my older iMac and, frankly, I've been getting by reasonably well with iPhoto on the new computer so far. But I'm now weighing Aperture vs. Lightroom 4. Does anyone have any thoughts on the latest versions of each?

I've used Aperture for many years on two different Mac Pro machines. My wife uses it on her latest IMac. Much better than Iphoto. If you used it before, you know the capabilities of A2 and A3 is much better. It's a no brainer.

enoxatnep · 01-01-2013, 08:22 PM

Please bear with my contribution to this topic. Now, I don't want to play the game of suggesting what is better, but rather to share my experiences and opinions. In the end, to each his own.

I owned and extensively used Aperture 3 for well over a year before trying a trial version of LR3. After a very short time with LR, I regretted having spent the $179 at the time on Aperture. LR4 is $149 U.S. new and was only $79 for an upgrade, and even though Aperture is now much cheaper in the Apple App Store I would still pay the extra for LR4 new without any question or hesitation whatsoever. Allow me to explain.

My biggest mistake was how I bought A3 "just because" and didn't even attempt the trial version of LR. (So as a lesson, no matter what, import the same 10 photos into a trial version of each and fiddle around with them for starters.) Anyhow, I got really good at Aperture and figured out most of its features, but then started to get annoyed at some of its 'bugginess' (the darn thing just "wouldn't work" and would hang up and crash - not always, but often enough), its relative ineffectiveness with noise reduction, and lack of lens correction options. Only then did I decide to give LR3 a try. There were other things about A3 that I found clumsy or not too intuitive but better in LR3. Needless to say, not long after I enthusiastically bought the full version of LR3. For the record, my experiences with learning A3 also made the learning curve for LR3 and now LR4 much easier.

I think the LR4 post-processing effects are better, especially noise reduction which I've found to be largely on par with Topaz Denoise. I was particularly blown away by the lens corrections options. And being able to adjust tone and saturation and even white balance by clicking and dragging on very specific portions of a photo just can't be beat. I like the LR Filter options better. I also really like the Survey and Compare view modes. Overall, LR4 seems to give you more post-processing options, or maybe they don't - but in any case, to me they're just easier to implement and are more logically organized, so maybe it just seems like I'm getting more options than A3. In short, LR4 just seems more logically thought out than A3 and it has also never hung-up or crashed on me.

Some Apple users like to have the Apple-like look and interface of A3, one reason why I blindly rejected LR at first. But I soon got over that with LR, especially when I realized the amount of extra "power" I was now dealing with. I also have no problems with importing to the LR4 catalog because, like A3, I can create a folder structure in Finder then create my own structure in LR4 if I wish or use the same one as Finder.

I was also annoyed at first by thinking I had to switch between the Library and Develop modes in LR by clicking on them at the top of the window; in A3, all I had to do was press "W" to toggle between modes. However, I later learned that all I have to do in LR to view photos in a grid is to press "G", to view a single photo press "E", then to develop/process the photo press "D". Problem solved for this keyboard-shortcut junkie!

I should finish by adding that the only really annoying thing I've found about LR is that its Clone and Heal brushes (Clone and Repair in A3) are far easier and quicker to use and much more flexible in A3; in LR4 I'm forced to do these in an external editor. If you're touching up blemishes, unwanted objects, etc. a lot, this is an important consideration. I got around this by buying the Photoshop Elements 10 Editor in the Apple App Store, but I'm also not on a tight budget.

Hope this gives you a lot to chew on!

Biro · 01-01-2013, 08:45 PM

Thanks for all of the feedback so far. Very useful. Any other input is welcome.

BirdDude007 · 01-02-2013, 06:22 PM

I have always used LR, I have never even thought of a need to use anything else, I am limited to use LR over Aperture because I run on a PC, Macs are great but I have never understood the lure of the great "Apple" machine, I am sure I would like one if someone gave one to me.
The main reasons I like LR are thus-
1-Non destructible files
2-organization, I am crappy at organization of my files, LR is turning me around
3-Lens calibration is usually spot on, especially when it comes to removing PF that the lens caused.
4-awesome control over noise adjustments
5-over all ease of use (once you learn it)

IchabodCrane · 01-03-2013, 06:41 AM

Originally posted by BirdDude007

I have always used LR, I have never even thought of a need to use anything else, I am limited to use LR over Aperture because I run on a PC, Macs are great but I have never understood the lure of the great "Apple" machine, I am sure I would like one if someone gave one to me.
The main reasons I like LR are thus-
1-Non destructible files
2-organization, I am crappy at organization of my files, LR is turning me around
3-Lens calibration is usually spot on, especially when it comes to removing PF that the lens caused.
4-awesome control over noise adjustments
5-over all ease of use (once you learn it)

Is #3 the most notable difference between LR and Aperture 3 and how much can 3rd party plugins for Aperture even the score?

bomjack · 03-13-2013, 07:26 AM

Another HUGE (to me anyway) advantage of Lightroom in favour of Aperture is the ability to organize images on an iPad and sync the changes back to LR! This is done through PhotoSmith 2 on the iPad and a plugin to LR. It even syncs via WiFi. I cannot believe that Apple has not integrated Aperture (or iPhoto) better with the iPad.

**Kerrowdown** · 03-13-2013, 07:36 AM

FWIW I can't see past LR, between that and CS6, there don't seem to be anything I can't do.

**boriscleto** · 03-13-2013, 07:57 AM

Originally posted by bomjack

Another HUGE (to me anyway) advantage of Lightroom in favour of Aperture is the ability to organize images on an iPad and sync the changes back to LR! This is done through PhotoSmith 2 on the iPad and a plugin to LR. It even syncs via WiFi. I cannot believe that Apple has not integrated Aperture (or iPhoto) better with the iPad.

There is a new version of Aperture coming out maybe even this month...

There was a job listing at Apple noted in Jan. of last year for a Sr. Apps UI Engineer. It called for a Cocoa engineer with experience in iOS programming...

Apple Job Listing Hints At Aperture For iOS | TechnoBuffalo

In December it was noted that there was a placeholder on Amazon.ca for a book about a new version of Aperture...

Forthcoming book references unannounced 'Apple Aperture X'

01-01-2013, 05:44 PM	#1
Biro Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 1,200	Aperture vs. Lightroom: 2013 My iMac is about a year old: 21.5-inch screen, i7 chip, 8 gigs of RAM and a one TB hard drive. I had Aperture 2 on my older iMac and, frankly, I've been getting by reasonably well with iPhoto on the new computer so far. But I'm now weighing Aperture vs. Lightroom 4. Does anyone have any thoughts on the latest versions of each?

03-13-2013, 07:26 AM	#13
bomjack New Member Join Date: Mar 2013 Posts: 2	iPad work flow in LR with PhotoSmith Another HUGE (to me anyway) advantage of Lightroom in favour of Aperture is the ability to organize images on an iPad and sync the changes back to LR! This is done through PhotoSmith 2 on the iPad and a plugin to LR. It even syncs via WiFi. I cannot believe that Apple has not integrated Aperture (or iPhoto) better with the iPad.

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01-01-2013, 05:50 PM	#2
boriscleto Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: North Syracuse, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 16,475	If you are already familiar with Aperture 2 and iPhoto Aperture 3 is the way to go. Personally I don't like Lightroom (modal interface) but you can download it and try it for free. The next version of Aperture is due in the spring or summer, a listing for a book on Amazon.ca has a release date of March... https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/digital-processing-software-printing/2097...perture-x.html

01-01-2013, 06:00 PM	#3
Nuff Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Sydney Posts: 671	When it comes to output and features it's LR all the way. I'm actually one of the few people who didn't find Aperture intuitive and I like the database concepts of LR, but than I've IT background and those concepts can take a while to get your head around, but once you do, they are a huge time saver. There are lots of helpful videos on youtube that can ease you in. I also like that all of my lenses have automatic correction. The automatic CA correction has been spot on all the time and the latest release of LR has pretty good PF removal. Also I like the way it handles shadows and highlights.

01-01-2013, 06:24 PM	#4
bigted Moderator Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Jessica Lake, Whiteshell Provincial Park, or Winnipeg Manitoba, Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,593	For me I plan to go to Aperture. I haven't used either at this point simply because my current desk top dinosaur couldn't cope with LR and when I get it this will be my first iMac. I picked up a year of one to one so apple could show me how to use it. The other consideration was cost. Aperture is almost half the price of LR, last time I looked. It will be interesting to see what others say.

01-01-2013, 06:46 PM	#5
boriscleto Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: North Syracuse, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 16,475	Originally posted by Nuff I'm actually one of the few people who didn't find Aperture intuitive and I like the database concepts of LR, but than I've IT background and those concepts can take a while to get your head around, but once you do, they are a huge time saver. You probably use vi to edit text too...

01-01-2013, 06:50 PM	#6
Nuff Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Sydney Posts: 671	Originally posted by boriscleto You probably use vi to edit text too... I do everyday at work. It's blazing fast in the right hands, the things that vi can do in seconds could take days in notepad... vim is even better. And one of the great thing about osx is, it comes with vi.

01-01-2013, 07:28 PM	#7
DSims Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Southern California Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 3,236	I know it's not what you asked for, but I find Capture One 7 to be preferable, because it has good camera profiles and makes very good images and prints without making extensive (or even any) adjustments. And unlike LR, you can use it with or without importing into their catalog. Fortunately, you can try both Capture One and LR for free. If you don't like either one, then you can go ahead and get Aperture.

01-01-2013, 07:50 PM	#8
john mood Inactive Account Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Ninole, Hawaii Photos: Gallery Posts: 74	Originally posted by Biro My iMac is about a year old: 21.5-inch screen, i7 chip, 8 gigs of RAM and a one TB hard drive. I had Aperture 2 on my older iMac and, frankly, I've been getting by reasonably well with iPhoto on the new computer so far. But I'm now weighing Aperture vs. Lightroom 4. Does anyone have any thoughts on the latest versions of each? I've used Aperture for many years on two different Mac Pro machines. My wife uses it on her latest IMac. Much better than Iphoto. If you used it before, you know the capabilities of A2 and A3 is much better. It's a no brainer.

01-01-2013, 08:22 PM	#9
enoxatnep Closed Account Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: The edge of nowhere, Alberta, Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 467	Please bear with my contribution to this topic. Now, I don't want to play the game of suggesting what is better, but rather to share my experiences and opinions. In the end, to each his own. I owned and extensively used Aperture 3 for well over a year before trying a trial version of LR3. After a very short time with LR, I regretted having spent the $179 at the time on Aperture. LR4 is $149 U.S. new and was only $79 for an upgrade, and even though Aperture is now much cheaper in the Apple App Store I would still pay the extra for LR4 new without any question or hesitation whatsoever. Allow me to explain. My biggest mistake was how I bought A3 "just because" and didn't even attempt the trial version of LR. (So as a lesson, no matter what, import the same 10 photos into a trial version of each and fiddle around with them for starters.) Anyhow, I got really good at Aperture and figured out most of its features, but then started to get annoyed at some of its 'bugginess' (the darn thing just "wouldn't work" and would hang up and crash - not always, but often enough), its relative ineffectiveness with noise reduction, and lack of lens correction options. Only then did I decide to give LR3 a try. There were other things about A3 that I found clumsy or not too intuitive but better in LR3. Needless to say, not long after I enthusiastically bought the full version of LR3. For the record, my experiences with learning A3 also made the learning curve for LR3 and now LR4 much easier. I think the LR4 post-processing effects are better, especially noise reduction which I've found to be largely on par with Topaz Denoise. I was particularly blown away by the lens corrections options. And being able to adjust tone and saturation and even white balance by clicking and dragging on very specific portions of a photo just can't be beat. I like the LR Filter options better. I also really like the Survey and Compare view modes. Overall, LR4 seems to give you more post-processing options, or maybe they don't - but in any case, to me they're just easier to implement and are more logically organized, so maybe it just seems like I'm getting more options than A3. In short, LR4 just seems more logically thought out than A3 and it has also never hung-up or crashed on me. Some Apple users like to have the Apple-like look and interface of A3, one reason why I blindly rejected LR at first. But I soon got over that with LR, especially when I realized the amount of extra "power" I was now dealing with. I also have no problems with importing to the LR4 catalog because, like A3, I can create a folder structure in Finder then create my own structure in LR4 if I wish or use the same one as Finder. I was also annoyed at first by thinking I had to switch between the Library and Develop modes in LR by clicking on them at the top of the window; in A3, all I had to do was press "W" to toggle between modes. However, I later learned that all I have to do in LR to view photos in a grid is to press "G", to view a single photo press "E", then to develop/process the photo press "D". Problem solved for this keyboard-shortcut junkie! I should finish by adding that the only really annoying thing I've found about LR is that its Clone and Heal brushes (Clone and Repair in A3) are far easier and quicker to use and much more flexible in A3; in LR4 I'm forced to do these in an external editor. If you're touching up blemishes, unwanted objects, etc. a lot, this is an important consideration. I got around this by buying the Photoshop Elements 10 Editor in the Apple App Store, but I'm also not on a tight budget. Hope this gives you a lot to chew on!

01-01-2013, 08:45 PM	#10
Biro Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 1,200 Original Poster	Thanks for all of the feedback so far. Very useful. Any other input is welcome.

01-02-2013, 06:22 PM	#11
BirdDude007 Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Las Vegas NV Photos: Albums Posts: 784	I have always used LR, I have never even thought of a need to use anything else, I am limited to use LR over Aperture because I run on a PC, Macs are great but I have never understood the lure of the great "Apple" machine, I am sure I would like one if someone gave one to me. The main reasons I like LR are thus- 1-Non destructible files 2-organization, I am crappy at organization of my files, LR is turning me around 3-Lens calibration is usually spot on, especially when it comes to removing PF that the lens caused. 4-awesome control over noise adjustments 5-over all ease of use (once you learn it)

01-03-2013, 06:41 AM	#12
IchabodCrane Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2012 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,728	Originally posted by BirdDude007 I have always used LR, I have never even thought of a need to use anything else, I am limited to use LR over Aperture because I run on a PC, Macs are great but I have never understood the lure of the great "Apple" machine, I am sure I would like one if someone gave one to me. The main reasons I like LR are thus- 1-Non destructible files 2-organization, I am crappy at organization of my files, LR is turning me around 3-Lens calibration is usually spot on, especially when it comes to removing PF that the lens caused. 4-awesome control over noise adjustments 5-over all ease of use (once you learn it) Is #3 the most notable difference between LR and Aperture 3 and how much can 3rd party plugins for Aperture even the score?

03-13-2013, 07:36 AM	#14
Kerrowdown PEG Moderator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Highlands of Scotland... "Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand" - William Blake Photos: Gallery Posts: 57,819	FWIW I can't see past LR, between that and CS6, there don't seem to be anything I can't do.

03-13-2013, 07:57 AM	#15
boriscleto Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: North Syracuse, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 16,475	Originally posted by bomjack Another HUGE (to me anyway) advantage of Lightroom in favour of Aperture is the ability to organize images on an iPad and sync the changes back to LR! This is done through PhotoSmith 2 on the iPad and a plugin to LR. It even syncs via WiFi. I cannot believe that Apple has not integrated Aperture (or iPhoto) better with the iPad. There is a new version of Aperture coming out maybe even this month... There was a job listing at Apple noted in Jan. of last year for a Sr. Apps UI Engineer. It called for a Cocoa engineer with experience in iOS programming... Apple Job Listing Hints At Aperture For iOS \| TechnoBuffalo In December it was noted that there was a placeholder on Amazon.ca for a book about a new version of Aperture... Forthcoming book references unannounced 'Apple Aperture X'