Photo editing app for macOS Photos app

[msackey]

I'm looking for a simple photo editing application in which the primary function is to edit the focus and aperture of images that are already in the native Photos app in macOS. Let me try to explain below what experience I'm trying to duplicate on the macOS side that I already have on the iOS and it should be clearer what I'm looking for.

On the iOS side, I have an app called Focos which I can use to directly edit photos already in the iOS Photos app. The Focos app focuses on changing the focal point (i.e., what to focus on and what to blur out etc.) although it also has a few other functions. After I'm doing editing in this app, I hit the command "Override Original" that results in the photo being replaced in Photos app -- but it's not a destructive override; within Photos you can easily revert to original or continue making further edits. The beauty of all of this is that from the user experience, it looks like it's all just one file and you don't have to worry about having duplicates etc., which makes organizing so easy.

What I'm trying to do on the macOS side is the same thing. Use a focus/aperture editing app to edit photos, and then it automatically overrides the original and saves it back in Photos without me having to manually go into Photos to remove original and import edited version etc. I really treasure this seamless experience for one because I'm not a professional or experienced photo editor and I do not need to spend so much time faffing around with both photo editing and post-editing organizing.

I know there are good tools like Pixelmator Pro* etc., but I think those software can't directly access Photos app's library to directly edit pictures, can it?

Thanks for your help!

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* Also, I don't need the high capabilities of programs like Pixelmator Pro or Photoshop. Their functions are way beyond what I need and way beyond what I'm willing to learn

 

[mmkerc]

You can edit with Pixelmator Pro in Photo, there are also some specific apps that I used years ago that I suggest you look at Focus2, Intensity, Luminar, Noiseless, and Tonality. These programs are from the early 2000, but still work on my M1 Mac, and I generally use them independently of Photos but they have extensions to work with.

The way you access the programs in Photo's is to select the photo you want to work on, select the edit button upper right corner, then select the circle with the three dots in it. the programs should show up in the list.

 

[ChrisA]

...there are good tools like Pixelmator Pro* etc., but I think those software can't directly access Photos app's library to directly edit pictures, can it?

Yes, it can. In fact, you can make Pixelmator work as an editor extension of Apple's Photos app. In this case works EXACTLY like Photos. You open the image in "Photos" then select "Edit in Pixelmator Pro" and the saving is handled by Photos.

BTW, you can not actually change the focus of a photo. That is impossible with any software. What you are doing is simply blurring the photo, except in one place.

You might also check if your IOS software runs on the M1/M2 Mac. Sometimes it does.

 

[msackey]

Thanks for the response. I’ll look at these.

With regards to changing the focus, I might have described it incorrectly but I’m essentially referring to there bokeh effect which Apple has implemented via portrait mode but some programs can apply it after a picture has been taken.

 

[ChrisA]

Thanks for the response. I’ll look at these.

With regards to changing the focus, I might have described it incorrectly but I’m essentially referring to there bokeh effect which Apple has implemented via portrait mode but some programs can apply it after a picture has been taken.

Yes exactly. They can selectively blur an image. Almost any decent image editor can do this. How they differ is in how they present this function to the user and in the level of automation provided.