The camera captures the image, but editing software develops it. RAW files straight from your camera are flat and dull. They’re not broken, they’re just waiting for interpretation.

I’ve used most major editing platforms over the years. Each has strengths and frustrations. Here’s what actually matters when choosing software for your photo workflow.

Adobe Lightroom Classic: The Industry Standard

Lightroom Classic is what most photographers use. Not because it’s perfect, but because it’s comprehensive, widely supported, and integrates with the broader Adobe ecosystem.

The library management is excellent. You can organize hundreds of thousands of photos with keywords, ratings, color labels, and collections. The search and filtering tools are powerful. If you’re building a photography library over years, this matters.

The editing tools are solid and continually improving. Modern Lightroom has AI-powered masking that saves hours compared to manual selections. The healing brush, graduated filters, and adjustment brushes handle most common editing needs.

Presets and profiles give you starting points. Thousands of free and paid preset collections exist. While I recommend learning to edit properly rather than slapping presets on everything, they’re useful for batch processing or developing a consistent style.

The Adobe ecosystem means Photoshop is just a click away for more advanced edits. Changes sync back to Lightroom automatically. If you’re already paying for Adobe Creative Cloud for other tools, Lightroom is essentially free.

The downsides: it’s subscription-only now. About $15/month for the Photography Plan (Lightroom Classic + Photoshop). Some people hate subscriptions on principle. Also, Lightroom can be slow, particularly on older computers with large catalogs.

Capture One: The Professional Alternative

Capture One is technically superior to Lightroom in several ways. The color rendering is arguably better, particularly for skin tones. Tethered shooting (connecting your camera directly) is more reliable. The adjustment layers are more flexible than Lightroom’s masking.

It’s particularly popular with studio photographers and anyone who needs precise color control. Fashion and product photographers often prefer Capture One.

The interface is less intuitive than Lightroom. There’s a steeper learning curve. Everything is customizable, which is powerful but overwhelming at first.

Catalog management exists but feels less polished than Lightroom. If you’re managing a huge library, Lightroom’s organizational tools are generally better.

Pricing is either subscription (about $18/month) or perpetual license (around $380). The perpetual license appeals to people who hate subscriptions, but you don’t get free updates to major new versions.

For most photographers, Lightroom does everything Capture One does, maybe 90% as well, at a lower price. But that extra 10% matters to professionals in certain fields.

DXO PhotoLab: The Best RAW Processing

DXO PhotoLab’s claim to fame is superior noise reduction and lens corrections. If you shoot at high ISOs regularly or use vintage lenses without electronic communication, DXO’s automatic corrections are impressive.

The DeepPrime XD noise reduction is genuinely better than Adobe’s algorithms. A photo at ISO 12800 processed in DXO looks cleaner than the same file in Lightroom.

The automatic lens corrections account for specific lens and camera combinations, correcting distortion, vignetting, and chromatic aberration better than generic corrections.

The workflow is less polished than Adobe or Capture One. Library management is basic. If you’re organizing thousands of photos, DXO feels clunky.

Pricing is perpetual license, around $250 for the Elite version. There’s also a cheaper Essential version, but you want Elite for the best noise reduction.

I know photographers who use Lightroom for organization and most edits, then export particularly challenging high-ISO images to DXO for noise reduction. It’s a valid hybrid approach.

ON1 Photo RAW: The Perpetual License Option

ON1 is often positioned as the “Lightroom killer” with a perpetual license. Pay once (around $100), own it forever, get free updates for a year.

It combines library management, RAW editing, and effects/plugins in one application. The tools are comprehensive. Portrait retouching, sky replacement, HDR, panoramas, all built-in.

Performance can be slow, particularly when applying complex effects. The interface tries to do everything, which makes it feel cluttered.

It’s good value if you absolutely refuse subscriptions and need an all-in-one solution. But it doesn’t excel at any specific aspect the way Capture One excels at color or DXO excels at noise reduction.

Affinity Photo: The Photoshop Alternative

Affinity Photo isn’t a Lightroom competitor (it’s more like Photoshop), but it deserves mention because it handles RAW files and costs only $75 with no subscription.

As a pixel editor, it’s excellent. For retouching, compositing, or advanced editing, it does nearly everything Photoshop does at a fraction of the price.

But it’s not designed for managing hundreds of photos. There’s no catalog system. It’s for editing individual images, not organizing a photography library.

A workflow some photographers use: free software for organization (see below), Affinity for advanced edits. It works, particularly for people who don’t shoot high volumes.

Free Alternatives: Darktable and RawTherapee

Both Darktable and RawTherapee are free, open-source RAW editors. Both are powerful. Both have terrible interfaces.

Darktable is the more complete solution with library management and editing tools. It’s genuinely capable, but the learning curve is steep and the UI feels like it was designed by engineers (because it was).

RawTherapee focuses purely on RAW development. It’s fast and has deep controls, but it’s even less user-friendly than Darktable.

If you’re willing to invest time learning non-intuitive software, these are legitimate alternatives. But most people underestimate how much the interface matters for workflow efficiency.

Google Photos and Apple Photos: The Convenience Options

Both are fine for basic edits and storing phone photos. Neither is suitable for serious RAW editing or managing a proper photography library.

The adjustments are limited. You get basic sliders, some filters, and automatic enhancements. For holiday snapshots, that’s enough. For intentional photography, you’ll quickly hit their limitations.

Some photographers use these for backup and sharing, while doing actual editing elsewhere. That’s sensible.

What Matters for Your Decision

How many photos do you take? If you’re shooting thousands per month, robust library management becomes crucial. Lightroom or Capture One makes sense. If you shoot occasionally, you can get by with simpler tools.

How much editing do you do? If you’re doing heavy retouching, composite work, or creative manipulations, you need Photoshop-level tools (either actual Photoshop or Affinity Photo). If you’re doing straightforward adjustments, simpler editors suffice.

Do you shoot high ISO regularly? DXO’s noise reduction might justify its cost.

What’s your budget? $15/month ongoing is different from $100 once. Calculate what you’ll spend over 3-5 years.

What platform are you on? Some software is Mac-only or runs poorly on certain systems. Check before buying.

My Recommendation

For most photographers: Adobe Lightroom Classic. It’s not perfect, but it handles the full workflow well, integrates with Photoshop when needed, has tons of learning resources, and continually improves.

For professionals needing precise color: Capture One. The extra cost is justified if color accuracy matters professionally.

For high-ISO shooters: Consider DXO PhotoLab, possibly as a supplement to Lightroom.

For subscription-averse photographers on a budget: ON1 or Affinity Photo, depending whether you need library management.

For the truly broke or philosophically opposed to commercial software: Darktable, but be prepared to invest serious time in the learning curve.

The best editing software is the one you’ll actually use effectively. A photographer who masters Lightroom will produce better results than someone fumbling with Capture One because they read it was “technically superior.”

Pick something appropriate for your needs and budget, then spend time learning it thoroughly. The software matters less than your skill in using it. Every option I’ve mentioned can produce excellent results in competent hands.