Home MacProf Digital Photo ,,,,,Luminar 3 with libraries is the enhanced and enlarged version of Luminar 2018, the photo editing app we talked about recently: in detail, the differences all focus on the presence of the database, which in addition to improving the Finder experience, allows you to automate some very common operations in the photographic field.
With this version, in fact, Luminar 3 presents itself to users as a concrete competitor of Lightroom and Capture One, but the writer likes to see it as the true heir of Aperture, a software no longer updated since 2014 and prematurely abandoned by Apple.
We tested the new version for you, focusing on the database news , because as far as editing is concerned, readers can refer to our review of the Luminar 2018 version, since from that point of view nothing has changed.
The new Luminar 3 single window, with the database open: on the right you can see the active File Manager
Luminar 3 , the review
Three is the new 2018
Luminar 3 is a slightly bizarre update, especially in the name, of Luminar 2018 announced some time ago with several posts in the official Skylum blog.
Although the Luminar 2018 software update check does not report the new version, Luminar 3 should be a free update for those who own the previous version, since downloading the installer from the site and entering the credentials we already had, the software unlocks correctly.
The cutter tool
More than a real upgrade in fact it is an addition to the previous version, mainly concerning the libraries: if before Luminar was a photo editing App designed for one photo at a time (or in batch, but limited to Presets), now the 'App allows you to view one or more folders of images, edit them one at a time in the exact same way but also to copy and synchronize editing between multiple images very easily.
Now Luminar 3 is divided into three distinct parts: Library (for browsing the photos), Edit (for photo editing, in practice the old Luminar 2018) and Info, for the details and metadata of the photo.
All the tools of Luminar 2018 remained on Luminar 3, especially those that make use of Artificial Intelligence
(Much) better than Finder
At startup Luminar 3 asks you to locate a first folder to scan and a second folder to store the database.
On seeing the interface (in English, an update in Italian should arrive shortly) of the App, you immediately notice the clear “inspiration” to Lightroom in the general imprint and in many details, even if honestly here the affinity with macOS is greater and the whole offers a feeling of greater modernity and freshness than Adobe's program.
The Library section opens with the images in the center and a File Manager on the right: the operation of Luminar 3 focuses on a full collaboration with the Finder, in order to control the contents of one or more folders operating like the Finder.
The interface is still in English (briefly) but the online explanations are very interesting
It is possible to navigate between folders and subfolders, see changes in real time or make them directly from the module by moving a file from folder to folder. The classification operations focus on the possibility of applying a star rating, a colored class and a flag (preferred, normal or rejected).
It is obviously possible to create Albums, in practice static playlists of chosen images and also to create several distinct databases for various jobs: the classification is quite flexible (but can be improved) and leaves the user the freedom to decide how to operate in full autonomy.
The detachment from Luminar 2018 is clear and an incredible advantage especially because for those who live in photography often the management of the shots is as important as their retouching.
On this page you can see some work we have done on Michele Discardi's RAW images, performed with a Fujifilm X-T1 equipped with XF 16–55mm ƒ2.8 lens, used here in RAW format sometimes native, sometimes converted to DNG via Adobe DNG Converter without obvious differences.
The Luminar Looks (presets) are very useful in the production phase to optimize the initial phases, even if they can then be completely customized
The influence on Editing
Although the editing part is directly inherited from Luminar 2018 (on which we have deepened here), the presence of the database brings back several advantages not just. The Editing module opens on a single image, which can be treated with all the tools (right) either directly or first starting from one of the Luminar Looks, very powerful and advantageous presets that promise to automate many parts of the post production finalization process, in especially for those who usually use a creative mood.
Browsing is still possible thanks to the images on the left side, which can be managed both via the pointer and the arrow keys. But the real potential comes from the ability to copy and paste the retouching parameters from one photo to another from the context menu, or to synchronize the parameters from the first photo to a group of other photos.
This possibility, typical of these applications, is very convenient but applied here in a very elementary way: for example we would have liked to limit the copy only to some parameters, or to have the possibility to exclude others.
Among all at least the cut, since this is singular for images, while light and color can involve multiple shots together.
In the Info module there are the details of the camera and the shot, but there is no possibility to enter keywords
Info and export
The Info panel shows the basic data of the selected shot, convenient and complete but without customizable elements.
For those who use large amounts of data, the use of personalized metadata (such as keywords but now also GPS data) is often a determining factor that we hope will arrive soon and is perhaps the most felt lack at the moment.
There is also a complete lack of a module for creating photo albums to be printed and an export to HTML (5), which are possible with other Apps (here we are thinking of Hype) but which would be better to have here available internally.
On the other hand, the export module is beautiful, simple but powerful both for the database, with group export, but also for the batch module, very useful for on-the-fly conversion and retouching of large photo folders, without having to go through the database.
The Batch module, always useful and powerful
Considerations
As mentioned at the beginning, Luminar 3 is certainly a huge step forward for a product that in a very short time has carved out an important part in the world of photo editing, from amateur to professional.
Some things have to be solved, such as a slowness that is critical in some points and a certain fragility, peculiarities that will surely be corrected in the course of the next updates and important features such as greater detail in the synchronization and use of metadata.
The installation phase follows a path that guides the user step by step
However, the full potentials all present in the edit module remain, with powerful tools (some very sophisticated such as those with artificial intelligence) and the possibility of using both Luminar Looks (which increase productivity) and Levels, with the possibility of retouching this infinite point.
From a simple plug-in for Photoshop or Lightroom Luminar it has become a valid competitor to all intents and purposes, and with the database it begins to make a big voice: in our opinion the talent is there and it is a lot and it is worth betting on an App which promises sparks, with ample room for growth but on a more than solid basis. In addition, the Italian translation of the software should also arrive in the first months of 2019.
Pro : • The database amplifies the good seen on Luminar 2018 • The editing is spectacular • Incredible price for such powerful software
Cons : • Stability and speed can be improved • Some modules are missing • Multi-shot management can be improved
Price : 69.00 Euro
For all those who would like more from Lightroom, who still regret the departure of Aperture, who appreciate the complexity but not the functionality of Capture One, a trial of Luminar 3 (free trial for 60 days) is definitely worth it, as well as the price of 69.00 Euros certainly affordable, which become 59.00 thanks to the exclusive discount for our readers thanks to the MACITYNET code to be entered at the time of purchase .
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