Pixelmator is one of the best photo editing software available for Mac. When comparing Pixelmator vs Affinity Photo, the Slant community recommends Affinity Photo for most people. In the question “What is the best photo editing software?” Affinity Photo is ranked 3rd while Pixelmator is ranked 5th. The most important reason people chose Affinity Photo is. Processed with Affinity Photo, Pixelmator Pro, and Aurora HDR for macOS. Thaw by Vadim aka t-maker 827 89 Processed with Affinity Photo, Pixelmator Pro, and Aurora HDR for macOS. Dreamscape for a Sunday night HSS by Robert Laliberte 91. Download a FREE Affinity Photo Quick Start Guide – made with photographers in mind. In this article, we will dig into which advanced photo editor, you should choose: Photoshop vs Affinity Photo in 2021. It is not a direct head to head comparison of the two applications though. Affinity Photo provides impressive editing power for less than £50 - and, at the time of this review was on special offer for just £23.99. The app's list of features is long and - for less.
Pixelmator Vs Affinity Photo
Adobe Lightroom is undoubtedly the most popular photo editing software out there. Millions of creators and photographers rely on Adobe’s solution to craft perfect photos with a blend of editing tools at their fingertips. However, the software isn’t as intuitive and a one-time purchase as it used to be. Adobe is cleverly forcing users to go with the Creative Cloud subscription that costs $52.99 per month. If you are looking for a Lightroom alternative for Mac, then read along to find some of the best options.
Many companies focus on one-time payments and continue to support the software for years to come. If you are in the same boat as other GT members and looking to get out of the Adobe ecosystem then explore the below Lightroom alternatives for Mac.
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Read More1. Pixelmator Pro
Pixelmator is one of the best photo editing software available for Mac. We love the whole Pixelmator interface. It’s easy to understand and use, and unlike other apps, Pixelmator doesn’t throw every possible option to the user.
The Pixelmator Pro editing engine is written from the ground up on Metal, Apple’s unique hardware-accelerated graphics API. Built to take full advantage of the latest Mac graphics technologies, Pixelmator Pro squeezes maximum performance out of every Mac.
Pixelmator Pro includes hundreds of major additions and smaller thoughtful improvements at every turn to the image editing tools, the interface, and the image editing engine.
With full support for RAW photos, a collection of adjustment presets, and incredible retouching tools, it couldn’t be easier to turn good-looking photos spectacular.
Pixelmator is available as a one-time payment for $39.99 on the Mac App Store.
Download Pixelmator Pro2. Affinity Photo
Thanks to frequent sales and promotions, Affinity’s suite of apps is getting popular among creatives. Affinity Photo is more of an Adobe Photoshop replacement, but you can perfectly use it to replace your Lightroom usage.
Some of the headline-grabbing features of Affinity Photo include 100MP image support, PSD and PSB file support, support for complex vector docs, studio presets for the UI layout, and other time-saving tools. Of course, it does support full RAW development as well.
The company recently added a path text feature which the GT team simply adores. You can explore a range of diverse typographical designs by adding text along a path. Create a path from any line, curve, or shape drawn with any of the line or shape tools.
Affinity is currently offering 50% off on Affinity Photo, bringing the overall cost to $25 from the original $50 price tag. Go ahead, give it a try and we are sure that you will be left impressed.
Download Affinity Photo3. Skylum Luminar 4
We haven’t been a fan of Luminar’s product at first glance. But the company’s recent release of Luminar 4.1 in March 2021 takes the whole experience to the next level.
Our favorite feature from the bunch is the AI Structure tool. It’s similar to what Google has been trying to achieve with the Google Photos app. The add-on helps to give your images an instant ‘pop’ by improving your photo areas that could look richer and leave everything else in its natural state.
Adobe Lightroom, by contrast, offers very few A.I. editing features – any ‘pop’ you want to give your photos, you have to do it manually.
Another huge advantage of Luminar’s library feature is that it can mirror your hard drive. If you move or rename your images or folders outside of Luminar, it will adjust its catalog accordingly.
Other features include the erase tool, portrait enhancer, adjustments amount slider, Lightroom/Photoshop support, and more.
Luminar is offering a 30 days money-back guarantee. You can get the license for one seat at $69.99.
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Read More4. RawTherapee
So far, we have only talked about paid Lightroom alternatives for Mac. Let’s talk about a capable open-source Lightroom rival with dedicated RAW support.
At first glance, the default interface will remind you of a perfect mixture between Photoshop and Lightroom. The app isn’t feature-heavy, and it’s an ideal solution for a beginner looking to take a swing at the photography world without costing hundreds of dollars.
As the name suggests, RawTherapee shines when working with files and will always keep them intact. It also has many of the editing tools that you’ll find in Lightroom, like adjusting exposure, sharpening and curves, and color correction.
A couple of points to keep in mind before you make up your mind on RawTherapee. There is no way to organize photos like Lightroom, and because it’s not as popular as Lightroom, you will have a hard time finding tutorials on the web.
Download RawTherapee for Mac5. On1 Photo RAW
ON1 Photo RAW is another of our favorite alternatives, and the 2021 version brings in many new features.
Our biggest gripe with On1 Photo RAW is a complex user interface. It’s not simple or streamlined as Lightroom or Luminar. There is a high learning curve, and once you are past that, you will be left amazed with the whole offering.
ON1 has all the photo adjustments you would expect from a Lightroom replacement, including excellent AI auto options for tone. Other new features include SmugMug integration, better noise reduction, an excellent map view mode, new timeline albums, and a new focus mask overlay so you can tell which photos are in focus.
When using Photo RAW, there’s no need to import images, as the program will automatically recognize images on your computer’s hard drive.
ON1 Photo RAW has a decent one-time cost at $149.99 and comes with a 30-day free trial and a 90-day money-back guarantee. You can opt for a subscription at $10 per month. A monthly recurring cost is a prime factor in moving away from Lightroom in the first place.
Download ON1 Photo RAW for Mac
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Click here to see our photography articles pageDitch Lightroom
Adobe continues to dominate the design world with a plethora of apps and services. With that, the company kept increasing the price of single apps subscriptions and the Creative Cloud package. If you are in the same boat as us, then go ahead and give these Lightroom alternatives a try.
Do let us know if you want us to cover alternatives for other Adobe apps.
Next up:Looking to optimize Mac performance? Read the post below to learn about the top seven macOS apps to optimize Mac.
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Adobe Photoshop has been the default choice for photographers and creators out there. Over the years, Adobe switched to the subscription model instead of a more cost-friendly one-time purchase. The company is also forcing users to opt for the Creative Cloud subscription that costs an eye-watering $52.99 per month. If you are looking to get out of the Adobe ecosystem then read the post to learn about the 5 best Adobe Photoshop alternatives for Mac.
In this post, we will focus on proper photo editing tools and not any graphics or UI/UX design tools as we have dedicated apps for that from Adobe and other companies. Let’s get started.
1. Affinity Photo
No surprise here. Because of Affinity’s one-time payment option coupled with frequent sales (and of course, an excellent feature set), the Affinity Photo is having a positive WOM (Word of mouth) among professionals.
Affinity has got you covered on the cross-platform availability. It’s accessible on both Windows and Mac. The feature-set is almost identical to Adobe Photoshop. However, you will need to master the UI as it requires a bit of a learning curve. Some of the notable functions include liquefying color correction, RAW support, Panorama stitching, Batch processing, and more.
Working with PSD files? Affinity has got you covered that as well. You can easily import Photoshop files and start editing. The software is also powerful enough to support 360° image editing.
As I mentioned above, Affinity does require a bit of a learning curve and understandably, there aren’t many online guides available for the software yet. The company offers a hardcover workbook to help new users become familiar with their program.
Affinity Photo usually retails for $49.99. As of writing, the company is offering a 50% discount, bringing the cost down to $24.99. It’s a bargain if you ask me.
Pixelmator App
2. Pixelmator Pro
Pixelmator Pro is more of a Lightroom alternative than the actual Photoshop replacement. But if you have a light workflow and have no problems with the current feature set of Pixelmator Pro then I will definitely recommend you to give Pixelmator a try.
I love the interface of Pixelmator Pro. It’s simple, easy to use, and feels fluid than the complex Photoshop UI. Instead of throwing every option at the user, Pixelmator smartly organizes the functions in the sidebar.
The company claims to have written the editing engine from the scratch on Metal, Apple’s hardware-accelerated graphics API. The method allows developers near-direct access to the graphics processing unit (GPU). And it shows in the final product. I have been using Pixelmator Pro for more than six months and never ran into any random error or glitches, something that I often experience with Adobe Photoshop.
As for features, you have the usual set of editing options such as support for RAW photos, a plethora of filters, retouching tools, text styles, ready-to-use shapes, and more.
Pixelmator is available for $39.99 (One-time payment) on the Mac App Store. Do look out for frequent sales from the company on social media. I bought the software for a 40% discount during Christmas time.
3. Skylum Luminar 4
Skylum emphasizes on AI capabilities of Luminar 4 to lure potential Photoshop convertibles. The whole software is designed for users to spend less time messing with endless editing options and let the AI settle and adjust photos for you.
True to Skylum’s tall claims, I love the AI structure tool in Luminar 4. With a single click, you can let the software make necessary changes to an image to look richer and give the pop-up effect. We have seen something similar on Google Photos and it’s nice to see Luminar offering something comparable on the Mac.
Luminar’s library feature is a blessing for anyone frequently importing photos from the hard drive. When you connect your hard drive to Mac, Luminar will mirror your hard drive and keep the changes in sync between the software and the hard drive.
The remaining feature list includes add-ons such as the erase tool, adjustment amount slider, portrait enhancer, and more.
Lumiar 4 is available for both Mac and Windows. However, it still doesn’t support the M1 architecture natively, something that both the rivals Pixelmator Pro and Affinity offer out of the box.
Luminar is offering a 30 days money-back guarantee. You can get the license for one seat at $69.99. If you are serious about Luminar, then I would advise you to go for the two license deal that brings the overall cost down.
4. Colorcinch
Pixelmator Pro Vs Affinity Photo
So far, we have only talked about dedicated Photoshop alternatives for Mac or Windows. Let’s take a look at Colorcinch which is a web-based image editor. Using a web-based solution allows you to use the same software across Windows, Mac, Chrome OS, or even Linux. No need to worry about cross-platform availability.
The software has an extensive collection of presets, graphics, and other creative assets. One of the biggest strengths of Colorcinch is the fact that it features a handful of AI-powered specialty effects. One of my favorites is the Cartoonizer effect that can neatly transform images into cartoons, sketches, and paintings.
Need to access royalty-free images for the next project? Colorcinch has got you covered on that as well. The software gives 1.5 million high-resolution stock photos to choose from.
You also get to enjoy hundreds of artistic borders, vector graphics, and icons. The only issue with Colorcinch is the lack of offline support. Understandably, the software only works with a capable internet connection.
Colorcinch offers a free version with basic editing capabilities. The Plus plan starts at $5.99 per month.
5. ON1 Photo RAW
If you don’t want all those AI tools to do a mediocre job for you and instead want all the control then ON1 Photo RAW is a suitable Photoshop alternative for you.
Pixelmator O Affinity Photo
ON1 has most of the photo adjustment tools you would expect from a Photoshop replacement. Some of the head-turning features include Portrait editing, a bunch of presents, filters, smart organization, and masking tools to explore your creative side.
My only problem with ON1 Photo RAW is the complex user interface. New users will find it hard to navigate through the menus and options.
ON1 Photo RAW has a decent at $149.99 (one-time cost) and comes with a 30-day free trial. You can opt for a subscription at $10 per month. But hey, a monthly subscription is the prime reason we started looking for an Adobe Photoshop alternative on the Mac, isn’t it?
As for me, I personally use Pixelmator Pro on my MacBook Air and switch to Affinity Photo on a Windows desktop. What about you? Which Photoshop alternative are you going to choose? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Pixelmator Oder Affinity Photo
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