I just returned home from Moab to see my good friends at ON1 have released Photo Raw 2018 and they're offering a 30-day free trial. I've been using the 2018 Beta for a while and loving it. Here's what's new and exciting about the software.
- HDR processing: that is easy, intuitive and capable of generating a really natural looking linear HDR file.
- Versions: The software has tremendous power to process and finish edit your RAW files, now you can edit each file multiple ways without creating extra physical files.
- Noise Reduction Brushing: The ability to paint noise reduction into problematic shadows with precision masking on raw files is really exciting and a huge time saver from my old workflow.
- Panoramic Mergers: You can select your panorama files and merge them right from Browse with a few simple clicks.
- Masking Enhancements: My favorite thing about Photo RAW 2017 was the ability to do precision masking non-destructively on my raw files. Photo RAW 2018 takes that to another level with simple sliders for the density and feather of those masks along with improved luminosity masking controls.
- Speed and Stability: Overall things just seem faster and more stable. I can honestly say I haven't had a crash using Photo RAW 2018 even in it's Beta forms.
If you, or someone you know is looking for an intuitive, powerful, full-function photo editing and organizing platform, then you should download the 30-day trial and take it for a spin.