Substitute for Lightroom - open source?

fikkser · 09-26-2015, 10:14 AM

Update!

So what did I learn?

Tried RawTherapee - had to force stop it several times because it stopped responding. The crop function made me so mad I rage quit the ****.

At this moment it wont be shut off from the X button in the upper corner, crap software.

Then I tried LightZone - Sony A7 raw files look like shit when I open them.

Need to unlock and disable things to even make the image look OK. Do not want this... Below is how a slightly underexposed picture looks like when I open it in the editor with default settings.

What the he.. am I supposed to do? am I too stupid for those softwares? Lightroom might not be perfect, but I cant use any of the above.

Leaning towards buying LR.

Edit:

Downloaded Capture One for Sony only, and it's free.

Workflow seems OK and I managed to edit a picture with a pretty good results for being the first time. Only problem is that it wont work with my K-5 or Q that I rarely use these days. Mainly shoot A7 with Takumars.

Last edited by fikkser; 09-26-2015 at 11:16 AM.

clockworkrat · 09-26-2015, 10:35 AM

Have you tried Darktable yet?

**GUB** · 09-26-2015, 12:10 PM

Originally posted by fikkser

Update!

So what did I learn?

Tried RawTherapee - had to force stop it several times because it stopped responding. The crop function made me so mad I rage quit the ****.

At this moment it wont be shut off from the X button in the upper corner, crap software.

Then I tried LightZone - Sony A7 raw files look like shit when I open them.

Need to unlock and disable things to even make the image look OK. Do not want this... Below is how a slightly underexposed picture looks like when I open it in the editor with default settings.

What the he.. am I supposed to do? am I too stupid for those softwares? Lightroom might not be perfect, but I cant use any of the above.

Leaning towards buying LR.

Edit:

Downloaded Capture One for Sony only, and it's free.

Workflow seems OK and I managed to edit a picture with a pretty good results for being the first time. Only problem is that it wont work with my K-5 or Q that I rarely use these days. Mainly shoot A7 with Takumars.

I have lightzone running in wine(not wine - thanks Newmikey) on linux but have never played with it much so your comments sent me off to have a look at it.
I am sorry but if it is too complicated for you and you are used to lightroom then you are better off paying your kickback to that company and getting on with photography.
Lightzone seems simple and intuitive to operate with a lot of presets (styles) for those who like to work that way.
If a person was unacquainted with both Lightroom and LightZone then I think Lightzone would be much simpler to learn than Lightroom.
The lack of a colour curves tool to drag the histogram around is a deal breaker for me (maybe I missed it) - I will stick with Gimp.

Just to clarify with people - the screenshot image of lightzone above is a detail of the tools area -- not an overview of the screen.

**newmikey** · 09-26-2015, 12:32 PM

Originally posted by GUB

I have lightzone running in wine on linux ...

Have to ask: why in wine and not the native Linux version? It's in the repos of most distros.

**UncleVanya** · 09-26-2015, 01:06 PM

Did you try Polarr?

Edit... Nevermind, despite chrome being linux based, polarr doesn't have a linux version!%/\:#!$#...

**GUB** · 09-26-2015, 01:38 PM

Originally posted by newmikey

Have to ask: why in wine and not the native Linux version? It's in the repos of most distros.

Sorry -- brainfade - it is indeed the linux version. It is Faststone that I have running on wine

jimr-pdx · 09-26-2015, 04:16 PM

I haven't fully committed to it but DxO often free-dumps their software when it's 2 generations old; I picked up v8 that way a couple months ago. If you have 'the Latest' in cameras this won't work at all, so my K-s1 should work via its native DNG but not Pentax' own raw. I've just been using Picasa raw conversions (dcraw?) until I have more time to relax by the computer (house refi in progress..).

fikkser · 09-27-2015, 07:04 AM

Originally posted by GUB

I have lightzone running in wine(not wine - thanks Newmikey) on linux but have never played with it much so your comments sent me off to have a look at it.
I am sorry but if it is too complicated for you and you are used to lightroom then you are better off paying your kickback to that company and getting on with photography.
Lightzone seems simple and intuitive to operate with a lot of presets (styles) for those who like to work that way.
If a person was unacquainted with both Lightroom and LightZone then I think Lightzone would be much simpler to learn than Lightroom.
The lack of a colour curves tool to drag the histogram around is a deal breaker for me (maybe I missed it) - I will stick with Gimp.

Just to clarify with people - the screenshot image of lightzone above is a detail of the tools area -- not an overview of the screen.

Was just a tiny bit of sarcasm in my post, but I'm not that good at English. That picture of the tools area thing represents what the actual screen looks like - shit. What I meant was that it's hard to use because the raw files looks like crap. Don't want to start my editing with blown highlights on all pictures, even underexposed ones. Maybe it's just on my machine but it doesn't work with my .arw files. Rawtherapee froze too many times in an hour to be useful on my machine - makes it hard to use.

Capture one worked out of the box. Very nice feature...

Haven't tried darktable, haven't got Linux installed, might try on my Mac later.

Oricman · 09-27-2015, 08:45 AM

Aftershot 2 RAW converter, RAW Photo Editing Software - Corel AfterShot 2 - Formerly Bibble

I have seen it under £12, but at the price it's at now it isn't half bad. It is surely worth a try at this sort of price?

clockworkrat · 09-27-2015, 10:25 AM

Originally posted by fikkser

Haven't tried darktable, haven't got Linux installed, might try on my Mac later.

Well, once you do get it installed, have a watch of Robert Hutton's tutorials on YouTube. These help immensely in getting to grips with the interface (which is actually pretty solid, but just looks daunting on first glance).

You Tube

Nick Siebers · 09-28-2015, 08:00 PM

LightZone can do amazing things... but I never get the majority of my pictures looking as good as the Pentax jpeg does. So I mostly only use it for certain circumstances.

I tend to use Fast Stone for browsing and minimal tweaks, PDCU for RAW conversion and bigger tweaks, plus then occasionally LightZone, GIMP or Perfect Effects. Everythign I use has been given away at one point or another. I was using DXO v8 as per Jim above, but while it will handle K5 files it won't do K3 ones. I also got PhotoDirector4 free at some point, and that has a number of neat tools, but similarly to LightZone I typically prefer the Pentax program's output.

ChainbreakR · 11-01-2015, 03:30 PM

You're on a Mac? The Photos app!

Yes, the Photos app built into OS X Yosemite and El Capitan is what I'm using now. Its RAW support is really good, too.

The editing tools certainly aren't as powerful as Lightroom, but I find its library management,exporting and keywording to be just as good. Beyond that, if you need to edit a photo further than what you can do with the built-in tools, both Pixelmator ($30 once off) and Affinity Photo ($40 once off, amazing program) have extensions built right into Photos.

09-26-2015, 12:10 PM	#33
GUB Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Wanganui Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 5,760	Originally posted by fikkser Update! So what did I learn? Tried RawTherapee - had to force stop it several times because it stopped responding. The crop function made me so mad I rage quit the ***. At this moment it wont be shut off from the X button in the upper corner, crap software. Then I tried LightZone - Sony A7 raw files look like shit when I open them. Need to unlock and disable things to even make the image look OK. Do not want this... Below is how a slightly underexposed picture looks like when I open it in the editor with default settings. What the he.. am I supposed to do? am I too stupid for those softwares? Lightroom might not be perfect, but I cant use any of the above. Leaning towards buying LR. Edit: Downloaded Capture One for Sony only, and it's free. Workflow seems OK and I managed to edit a picture with a pretty good results for being the first time. Only problem is that it wont work with my K-5 or Q that I rarely use these days. Mainly shoot A7 with Takumars. I have lightzone running in wine(not wine - thanks Newmikey) on linux but have never played with it much so your comments sent me off to have a look at it. I am sorry but if it is too complicated for you and you are used to lightroom then you are better off paying your kickback to that company and getting on with photography. Lightzone seems simple and intuitive to operate with a lot of presets (styles) for those who like to work that way. If a person was unacquainted with both Lightroom and LightZone then I think Lightzone would be much simpler to learn than Lightroom. The lack of a colour curves tool to drag the histogram around is a deal breaker for me (maybe I missed it) - I will stick with Gimp. Just to clarify with people - the screenshot image of lightzone above is a detail of the tools area -- not an overview of the screen. Last edited by GUB; 09-26-2015 at 01:50 PM.*

09-26-2015, 01:06 PM	#35
UncleVanya Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2014 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,460	Did you try Polarr? Edit... Nevermind, despite chrome being linux based, polarr doesn't have a linux version!%/\:#!$#... Last edited by UncleVanya; 09-26-2015 at 01:53 PM.

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09-26-2015, 10:14 AM	#31
fikkser Veteran Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Borlänge, Sweden Posts: 373 Original Poster	Update! So what did I learn? Tried RawTherapee - had to force stop it several times because it stopped responding. The crop function made me so mad I rage quit the ***. At this moment it wont be shut off from the X button in the upper corner, crap software. Then I tried LightZone - Sony A7 raw files look like shit when I open them. Need to unlock and disable things to even make the image look OK. Do not want this... Below is how a slightly underexposed picture looks like when I open it in the editor with default settings. What the he.. am I supposed to do? am I too stupid for those softwares? Lightroom might not be perfect, but I cant use any of the above. Leaning towards buying LR. Edit: Downloaded Capture One for Sony only, and it's free. Workflow seems OK and I managed to edit a picture with a pretty good results for being the first time. Only problem is that it wont work with my K-5 or Q that I rarely use these days. Mainly shoot A7 with Takumars. Last edited by fikkser; 09-26-2015 at 11:16 AM.*

09-26-2015, 10:35 AM	#32
clockworkrat Veteran Member Join Date: May 2015 Location: Black Isle, Scotland Posts: 405	Have you tried Darktable yet?

09-26-2015, 12:32 PM	#34
newmikey Site Supporter Join Date: May 2007 Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,289	Originally posted by GUB I have lightzone running in wine on linux ... Have to ask: why in wine and not the native Linux version? It's in the repos of most distros.

09-26-2015, 01:38 PM	#36
GUB Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Wanganui Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 5,760	Originally posted by newmikey Have to ask: why in wine and not the native Linux version? It's in the repos of most distros. Sorry -- brainfade - it is indeed the linux version. It is Faststone that I have running on wine

09-26-2015, 04:16 PM	#37
jimr-pdx Pentaxian Join Date: May 2010 Location: now 1 hour north of PDX Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 3,897	I haven't fully committed to it but DxO often free-dumps their software when it's 2 generations old; I picked up v8 that way a couple months ago. If you have 'the Latest' in cameras this won't work at all, so my K-s1 should work via its native DNG but not Pentax' own raw. I've just been using Picasa raw conversions (dcraw?) until I have more time to relax by the computer (house refi in progress..).

09-27-2015, 07:04 AM	#38
fikkser Veteran Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Borlänge, Sweden Posts: 373 Original Poster	Originally posted by GUB I have lightzone running in wine(not wine - thanks Newmikey) on linux but have never played with it much so your comments sent me off to have a look at it. I am sorry but if it is too complicated for you and you are used to lightroom then you are better off paying your kickback to that company and getting on with photography. Lightzone seems simple and intuitive to operate with a lot of presets (styles) for those who like to work that way. If a person was unacquainted with both Lightroom and LightZone then I think Lightzone would be much simpler to learn than Lightroom. The lack of a colour curves tool to drag the histogram around is a deal breaker for me (maybe I missed it) - I will stick with Gimp. Just to clarify with people - the screenshot image of lightzone above is a detail of the tools area -- not an overview of the screen. Was just a tiny bit of sarcasm in my post, but I'm not that good at English. That picture of the tools area thing represents what the actual screen looks like - shit. What I meant was that it's hard to use because the raw files looks like crap. Don't want to start my editing with blown highlights on all pictures, even underexposed ones. Maybe it's just on my machine but it doesn't work with my .arw files. Rawtherapee froze too many times in an hour to be useful on my machine - makes it hard to use. Capture one worked out of the box. Very nice feature... Haven't tried darktable, haven't got Linux installed, might try on my Mac later.

09-27-2015, 08:45 AM	#39
Oricman Guest	Aftershot 2 RAW converter, RAW Photo Editing Software - Corel AfterShot 2 - Formerly Bibble I have seen it under £12, but at the price it's at now it isn't half bad. It is surely worth a try at this sort of price?

09-28-2015, 08:00 PM	#41
Nick Siebers Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Madison, WI Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,165	LightZone can do amazing things... but I never get the majority of my pictures looking as good as the Pentax jpeg does. So I mostly only use it for certain circumstances. I tend to use Fast Stone for browsing and minimal tweaks, PDCU for RAW conversion and bigger tweaks, plus then occasionally LightZone, GIMP or Perfect Effects. Everythign I use has been given away at one point or another. I was using DXO v8 as per Jim above, but while it will handle K5 files it won't do K3 ones. I also got PhotoDirector4 free at some point, and that has a number of neat tools, but similarly to LightZone I typically prefer the Pentax program's output.

11-01-2015, 03:30 PM	#42
ChainbreakR Forum Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico Photos: Gallery Posts: 93	You're on a Mac? The Photos app! Yes, the Photos app built into OS X Yosemite and El Capitan is what I'm using now. Its RAW support is really good, too. The editing tools certainly aren't as powerful as Lightroom, but I find its library management,exporting and keywording to be just as good. Beyond that, if you need to edit a photo further than what you can do with the built-in tools, both Pixelmator ($30 once off) and Affinity Photo ($40 once off, amazing program) have extensions built right into Photos.