Free alternatives to Adobe Lightroom

RawTherapee is a comfortable alternative to Adobe Lightroom. The open-source software is compatible with Windows, Mac, and Linux. It offers many functions for archiving, converting, and processing raw data and other image formats. This useful tool makes it incredibly simple to implement color correction, saturation, brightness, contrast, and sharpness, as well as crop and orient images. RawTherapee’s main strength, however, is the noise reduction function. Furthermore, the preview tool allows less experienced users to edit files securely without damaging the original file. Users can easily return to older versions of the file, which are all stored in the cache history.

The program is available for a total of 15 languages and has a wide range of practical functions, including the creation of fixed processing profiles and batch processing, which means several files can be optimized at once. It also uses popular file formats such as HDR DNG (16, 24, and 32 bit), JPEG, PNG (8 and 16 bit), and TIFF files (8, 16, and 32 bit). The software can also save and create files in JPEG, PNG, (8 and 16 bit), and TIFF (8 and 16 bit). Even for inexperienced users, it should only take a little time to get to grips with this program. And despite a few flaws in the processing and speed, RawTherapee offers a host of useful options, particularly in the conversion of raw files.

Another bona fide, free alternative to Lightroom is the open source program, Darktable. Experienced Lightroom users will immediately notice Darktable‘s similar black and gray design as well as the user interface with folding control panels, making their work far easier. However, the tool is mostly managed from the pure control panels, which requires some getting used to. Unlike its costly counterpart, however, Darktable does not allow users to create manual compilations, and instead automatically imports image galleries. Darktable is fully compatible with Linux and macOS and now also has a version that is compatible with Windows, although this is only suitable for 64-bit files.

With basic optimization - from cropping and rotating to gradation curves, color correction and some image effects, Darktable users benefit from extensive functions. The tool also facilitates the creation, cropping, and adjustment of slideshows. Despite this, the software does lack some practical automation functions. You therefore need to save individual presets as a profile, which makes it easier to adapt to your favorite styles. Furthermore, the live preview function enables users to see any changes in advance. The application is somewhat cumbersome in certain areas, which means users need to spend some time to figure out and get used to the functions. With Darktable, it’s possible to organize photos, adjust their metadata, and export them in the correct file folder – as JPEG, PNG, 16-bit PPM, and TIFF formats as well as PFM and EXR files. This way, everything can be compactly found in one place in your computer.

Looking at the sleek photo-editing tool, LightZone, it’s hard to believe that this software is free. But thanks in part to its polished and professional interface, the software’s developer has since gone on to work for Apple. Originally designed as a paid package, it’s now unreservedly available as an open source program. With this software, users can optimize raw data loss-free as well as edit and export JPEG and TIFF files. It pays to be a little more experimental here – the original images are automatically saved while editing and can be accessed at any time. In this way, you can design several versions without losing the original. In the flexible image view, you can either display all versions next to each other and compare them or simply keep the original view of the image folder.

With several practical style profiles, LightZone facilitates a quick optimization of several photos in the same way. This is particularly helpful if the group of images should have the same format and look as it means you don’t have to start from scratch each time. Rather than gradation curves, LightZone offers the ZoneMapper as a special feature that can identify 16 brightness zones in a photo and adjust contrast or color values using a preview image. With collapsible sidebar menus, you can easily integrate your images into your desktop’s folder structure and change your metadata (i.e. title, value, image description, author, and location). LightZone enables a loss-free optimization of raw data as well as the processing and exportation of JPEG and TIFF files.

Google’s browser-based image organizing tool, Google Photos, presents a rather more simplistic  Adobe Lightroom alternative with its more whimsical display. As part of the Google Cloud package, this program enables registered users to archive, organize, and edit their images for free. An additional benefit is its relative simplicity compared to the previously mentioned desktop programs. The tool’s primary focus is on sharing and storing images of up to 16 megapixels and HD videos of up 1.080p. The software is accessible on mobile devices, so it’s quick and easy to integrate photographs taken on smartphones and tablets. Users also benefit from the fact that the images are available via a server, meaning they can safely delete pictures from their mobile device as soon as they need the space. Photos saved on the computer can be automatically transferred to the cloud with the Google Photos backup function.

The photos are saved to the Google Cloud and are made available for albums, collages, animations, and panorama photos. Users can crop and rotate images and change the brightness, color, and sharpness with simplified but intuitive tools. It’s also possible to add your images to a selected shared album, if you wish to share your snapshots with friends. The software even has a visual image search for facial recognition, which makes it easier to organize and name groups of smartphone images. One major disadvantage is that Google collects a certain amount of user data to make this possible; if this puts you off and you don’t want to share your personal information with Google account, or if you would rather use more professional software, you should stick to a desktop program.

No-frills freeware PhotoScape is the perfect Adobe Lightroom alternative for those who are unfamiliar with photo editing programs. With its clear, pre-set functions, you can easily manage your photos and optimize them with various features. With basic functions such as retouch, crop, effect filters, color, and brightness correction, you can achieve everything that is necessary to edit an image quickly and simply. As well as this, there are other fun effects, such as collages, adding text, frames, and speech bubbles. Photos can also be edited by batch processing using the window menu integrated into the desktop view.

PhotoScape may be of particular interest to users of image sharing social media platforms, as the program enables users to createsimple GIF files. It is also practical that photos can easily be dragged and dropped into different collage templates and individually arranged with the combine function – ideal for presenting photos of friends, family, and holiday snapshots. Thanks to its easy-to-use interface integrated into the desktop, inexperienced users can get to grips with PhotoScape in next to no time. Furthermore, PhotoScape is compatible with both Windows and Mac (as PhotoScape X) and the tool opens and converts raw formats into JPEG, PNG, GIF, BMP and TIFF files.