Re Nik, they're plugins so once you've got them I don't know that they are tied to any software. In any case, when I had some hassles with my Nik license upon the first update after Google acquired them I contacted Google and in a hot second they just issued me new licenses.
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Alternatives to Aperture (What are your plans?)
- Thread starter JDDavis
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OK, plan B. Check out Capture One Express or Pro (still on sale; dunno when that ends but maybe today). They have a freebie app called Capture One Pilot. It's pretty simple: you fire up desktop application and it can start a server. You connect to the server (basically web) with your iPhone or iPad and see the photos. You can do some adjustments, tag, etc and those changes are reflected on the desktop.
And it's nice RAW processor. I tested the demo and got better results for my Oly than with LR.
Seeing exactly the same with all our Fuji X series kit as well in CO. The other thing I like is that we are getting good lens correction straight out of the box. RAW control is better than Aperture.
CO is worth a look guys - especially if like me, you don't want to see Adobe get a sole grip across the whole of the creative market.
I'm still also loading all our images into referenced Aperture storage as well, just in case the improved API in Photo brings with it a strong 3rd party plugin market!
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Yep same thumbs up for Nik response! Really good service for sorting licensing issues!
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We have cross loaded about 1400 of our most recent images to Aperture (referenced library) and CO as a trial and currently I haven't seen any buggyness in CO at all....very stable and quite quick. Currently we are storing the resulting edits in their version of library, how that pans out as it gets bigger I'm not sure though.
Ultimately, I'm gonna wait to see how Photo looks and how the 3rd party market responds to it. It's a bit of extra work to run 2 DAMs, but saves making a drastic decision to early!
maflynn
macrumors Broadwell
I've looked into Capture One once and I Agree the RAW processing is closer to Olympus, but for some reason I just could'n't adjust the app. I'm well on my way to converting over to LR, but I'll give this another look nevertheless.
I like what I'm seeing with Capture One Pro and it very well may be a good alternative. I like the thought of moving to software from a company that is completely dedicated to photography. It has the asset management piece too. The things I'd have a tough time letting go of is the ease of use with Aperture and my NIK plugins and the Zenfolio plugin. Neither of those work with Capture One. You can use standalone apps from NIK or others and there are other ways to upload I just like the way it works with Aperture. I will say I've never been completly happy with Apertures RAW processing for my Nikon so that may be a plus for Capture One.
I hope we hear word sooner than later about Photos and plugin support. I don't want to wait a year to find out. If a program like Capture One offered plugin support I would be really tempted to jump ship now. I know LR does but I've never taken to it and though we've been Creative Suite users for many years I still don't fully buy into Adobe. The subscription model is fine for my wife's business but I don't like it for personel use (I know you can buy it standalone).
I hope we hear word sooner than later about Photos and plugin support. I don't want to wait a year to find out. If a program like Capture One offered plugin support I would be really tempted to jump ship now. I know LR does but I've never taken to it and though we've been Creative Suite users for many years I still don't fully buy into Adobe. The subscription model is fine for my wife's business but I don't like it for personel use (I know you can buy it standalone).
MCAsan
macrumors 601
Let me know how to do plugins with Capture One. I can't believe the company thinks everything you could want and need is inside their program. That would make them more arrogant than Adobe.
maflynn
macrumors Broadwell
That was one of my questions, does it handle plugins. I'll be honest, I haven't looked at C1 for a while, I just downloaded the trial to play with it again.
From the reviews I've read, its slower then LR in some areas. Raw processing is subjectively better but the more I read about it the more its seems that there's no clear cut consensus.
I was going to start a discussion on C1 but I think there's a lot of info in this thread and the more I look into it, the less I'm inclined to use it.
I think LR is the industry leader and I know what I'm getting. Its not a perfect solution (what is perfect) but so far It looks like its fitting my needs.
Cheese&Apple
macrumors 68010
I can't think of a good reason to to react and switch from Aperture now.
I'll take the wait and see approach. Who knows...Photos may do everything I want/need it to do. If it doesn't, I'll deal with it then.
I'll take the wait and see approach. Who knows...Photos may do everything I want/need it to do. If it doesn't, I'll deal with it then.
MCAsan
macrumors 601
Good strategy. See what is available and read other folks comments about what they use and the trials and tribulations they go through migrating. If Photos does well enough, and especially lets you use plugins, it may be a solution for many folks who have been iPhoto or Aperture users.
MCAsan
macrumors 601
I sat through several Capture One tutorials. It seems to have a very flexible catalog system like Aperture that lets you store the raw files inside the catalog database package or in file systems folders....your choice. You can also do logical projects, folders, and albums in the same manner as Aperture. Very cool.
The image editing tools seem very good.
Missing: plugins support, map/gps support, web page gallery support, slideshow creation, book creation support, and social media site export. If you use those types of functions in Aperture or LR, Capture One may not be a good fit for you.
The image editing tools seem very good.
Missing: plugins support, map/gps support, web page gallery support, slideshow creation, book creation support, and social media site export. If you use those types of functions in Aperture or LR, Capture One may not be a good fit for you.
glenthompson
macrumors demi-god
Exactly my feelings too. Aperture does more than I currently need. Since it will work on Yosemite I figure I'm covered for at least a year or more. If Photos doesn't cut it, I'm no worse off. When I get to the point that Aperture won't do what I need, I can migrate then.
Ask and ye shall recieve.
https://www.macrumors.com/2014/07/01/photos-editing-effects-plugins/
Hopefully this means the info will flow pretty quickly on Photos capabilities. If it allows seamless plugin capabilities then it may foot the bill for me. I do most of my heavy lifting in NIK.
Another note, the anticipation of what Photos may be should be epic fodder for internet forums. Especially if it's a let down, and it always will be to a % of the users. Not as gargantuan as iWatch/iPhone 6 anticipation (and subsequent internet hate) but nonetheless agonizing in this circle.
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maflynn
macrumors Broadwell
I've played with this a bit and I'm liking how C1 is rendering my images, I'm going to take a deeper dive on this tomorrow and pull in a bunch of my other images.
I agree the lack of social media output is an issue as is plugins. So far though I like how it handles noise and blown hilights.
Plus, if Photos doesn't cover it, a year from now Adobe will have whatever migration tool they plan on offering (and you can bet that there will be one) as mature as its likely to get.
I just got back from vacation and this is news I come back to. The writing was on the wall.
MCAsan
macrumors 601
Aperture to Lightroom: The Switch is On!
You might want to watch the video.
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"In case you missed it, last night KelbyOne launched a free webcast helping you ease into the switch from Aperture to Lightroom. Lightroom pros, Scott Kelby and Matt Kloskowski (along with a little help from RC Concepcion) gave viewers the skinny on the big change, along with a step-by-step tutorial on how to make your transition fast, easy and fun. You can check out the rebroadcast of the FREE event."
http://kelbyone.com/aperture-to-lightroom/webcast/
You might want to watch the video.
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"In case you missed it, last night KelbyOne launched a free webcast helping you ease into the switch from Aperture to Lightroom. Lightroom pros, Scott Kelby and Matt Kloskowski (along with a little help from RC Concepcion) gave viewers the skinny on the big change, along with a step-by-step tutorial on how to make your transition fast, easy and fun. You can check out the rebroadcast of the FREE event."
http://kelbyone.com/aperture-to-lightroom/webcast/
The Bad Guy
macrumors 65816
I'll continue to use Lightroom and Photoshop and wonder how you few remaining Aperture users didn't see this coming. 😛
maflynn
macrumors Broadwell
It wasn't that I didn't see it coming, it was more hoping for the best. For instance iWork withered on the vine for a significant amount of time, yet apple updated that, albeit by gutting it, but still - hope springs eternal.
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I have to say I'm liking Capture One, though I'm not sold on its DAM capabilities yet. I hope to put it through more of its paces today if I can. It definitely has some short comings compared to LR, i.e., plug-ins and social media.
I'll try to import a years worth of images and see how things work on my rMBP.
MCAsan
macrumors 601
http://appleinsider.com/articles/14...h-pro-level-image-search-editing-plugins-more
Last sentence in the article: "Interestingly, Apple also mentioned it is concurrently working on a transitionary workflow from Aperture to Adobe's Lightroom, suggesting Photos may not fit the needs of photography professionals."
Makes me wonder if the reaction from photographers is stronger that Apple had hoped. Interesting if they write tools to bring photos and their sidecar edits from Aperture and populate a LR catalog with the raw image (which would be stored in the file system) and the sidecar ( which goes in the catalog files).
Last sentence in the article: "Interestingly, Apple also mentioned it is concurrently working on a transitionary workflow from Aperture to Adobe's Lightroom, suggesting Photos may not fit the needs of photography professionals."
Makes me wonder if the reaction from photographers is stronger that Apple had hoped. Interesting if they write tools to bring photos and their sidecar edits from Aperture and populate a LR catalog with the raw image (which would be stored in the file system) and the sidecar ( which goes in the catalog files).
maflynn
macrumors Broadwell
Didn't another site have similar verbiage and then removed that saying Apple isn't working with adobe for a transition to LR?
I was using Aperture 2 until late last year, so I should be fine on the current version for a year or two. I have also had better luck with Aperture than Lightroom for my workflow, and like the layout and nomenclature used for their tools.
I am also not a fan of subscribing for applications, as my life with Apple has been full of discounted, or free upgrades. I have enough monthly payments (phone, internet, etc) and I can't (personally) fathom the need to have a monthly subscription for software.
I am also not a fan of subscribing for applications, as my life with Apple has been full of discounted, or free upgrades. I have enough monthly payments (phone, internet, etc) and I can't (personally) fathom the need to have a monthly subscription for software.
maflynn
macrumors Broadwell
LR5 can be purchased as a stand alone product, but to be honest, I think the writing is on the wall, and LR will be moving to the subscription model, either in LR6 or shortly after that.
Lr upgrades are 80 bucks and adobe seems to be releasing major updates every 12 to 18 months. The photography bundle is 120 a year (or 10 dollars a month). This includes photoshop, so I guess you can make a case that if they do force us to subscription the price isn't horrendously expensive. My concern though is being locked in to the subscription process. I don't always upgrade my software, so why pay for something I'm not using.
I'm rather hesitant to commit to Adobe for this reason. I'm like as an application LR though I'd still consider myself a novice with it.
Thanks for that, I mistakenly saw it as being a subscription currently.
And I fully agree with your bolded point. I often don't upgrade software until I can fully test it, and ensure it functions in a way that I can use it. I had issues with the current version of Aperture why it took me a long time to migrate to it from Version 2.
Apple have said nothing of the sort.
I think it was TechCrunch who originally wrote that Apple would help users transition to Lightroom, but they later retracted the comment.
Apple's official statement is freely available online. It explains that users will be able to open their Aperture libraries in the new Photos app.
This is just poor journalism on the part of Apple Insider. By not checking their sources they're just adding fuel to the fire.