Photographers who take their pictures in the recommended RAW format can upload their collections straight to Lightroom and begin working in the same layout as one would find when editing lossy files such as JPEGs or PNGs. There's also greater compatibility with new cameras and lenses. Machine-learning now powers Lightroom for automatic subject or sky selection with the press of a single button. Selective editing tools such as the adjustment brush and radial filters now utilise colour and luminance ranges for more refined masking. Not only will it synchronise the edits made to photos, but specific metadata such as keywords, ratings, or labels are also easily applied across a range of images. Lightroom users are able to synchronise edits across a range of images simultaneously, saving time and effort. Lightroom (rather than Lightroom Classic) is also easier to operate on touchscreen devices such as iPads and smartphones. Lightroom's interface is less complex than Photoshop, which makes it easier to pick up for newcomers or those with editing experience in other softwares.
While both tools have extensive uses for photographers, each software has definitive advantages over the other, depending on what users need from their image editor. Don't have either programme yet? Get a free trial of Creative Cloud, explore our list of the best Adobe Creative Cloud discounts at the moment and see today's best deals below. To help make a decision on which software is right and where to start, we'll now look at Photoshop vs Lightroom.
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Of course, there are alternatives to both, which you'll find in our list of the best photo apps and photo-editing software. It primarily uses local storage, but can synchronise collections and photos with the cloud if needed. Lightroom Classic is favoured by professionals who need more editing tools and a more complex organisational element. It's linked to the cloud in an integral way, meaning any edits are synchronised across devices immediately.
Lightroom is designed for more casual users, its user interface is simpler and cleaner, making it easier to operate across desktop and portable touchscreen devices, available on desktop, iPad, and iOS or Android. It should be noted that there are two versions of Lightroom: Lightroom and Lightroom Classic. Lightroom is known for its non-destructive editing and sophisticated batch processing features, useful mainly for photographers and image editors, whereas Photoshop favours layers based editing and is useful for photographers, image editors, graphic designers, illustrators, animators and many more creative types. There are clear differences between the two software packages.