Reviews |Skylum update makes Luminar 2018 12x faster, brings parity to Mac, Windows versions

Skylum update makes Luminar 2018 12x faster, brings parity to Mac, Windows versions

Macphun launches public beta of Luminar for Windows
News

Skylum Software has updated its Luminar 2018 to make the photo editing software 12 times faster than before, the company says, as well as introduce more than 300 other improvements.

As well as a boost in speed, Luminar 2018’s ‘Jupiter’ update improves the software’s raw conversion tools and brings parity to both Mac and Windows versions by adding the Batch processing, Free Transform and Flip and Rotate features to the Windows platform.

Skylum says that Luminar’s Raw Develop filter is now armed with new technology that helps it produce better colours with less noise, as
well as automatic lens distortion removal. Skylum says the raw conversion process is now improved by:

  • Better exposure calculation. Refined initial brightness setting for RAW files produces a perfect match to how a camera saw the scene.

  • Cleaner gradients. Improved de-mosaic process for even cleaner image conversion, i.e. smooth transitions in areas like skies and shadows for accurate color and less noise.

  • Fewer halos. If an image has high contrast areas, the improved Defringe option will help with backlit areas or strong contrast.

  • More cameras, better compatibility. Now even more RAW formats can be edited natively with the RAW Develop filter. Plus, a large set of existing camera modules have been refined for even better RAW conversion.

  • Reduced chromatic aberration. If a lens shows color artifacts in high contrast or backlit areas, the new Auto Chromatic aberration removal option will help to get rid of green and cyan shifts.

There’s also a new one-click Automatic Lens Distortion removal tool that aims to eliminate wide-angle distortion.

Other Windows-specific improvements include:

  • Better cloning. Users can quickly call up the Clone & Stamp module by pressing Ctrl + J. Softness, opacity, and size of the brush can also now be modified.

  • Cleaner zooms. Accelerated zooming now delivers a cleaner image at all sizes. Images appear sharper when the zoom is beyond 100% for detail work. Plus the new version provides a cleaner preview when zoomed out to see the whole image.

  • Preview mode. To check out a photo free from any distractions users can now use Full Screen Preview – a great way to really study an image in detail.

  • Localization support. It’s even easier to use Luminar in a different language. The localizations have been improved for greater accuracy and can now be changed from the File menu in Windows version.

  • Better masking controls. Users can create masks more easily when painting masks. Holding down the spacebar and dragging with the cursor, pans and moves the image when masking.

  • Improved workflow with other applications. When using Luminar as a plugin with other applications, color profiles are properly included. This change also improves image exporting with attached profiles.

  • Shared workspaces. Users can now share their custom workspaces.

Visit the Skylum website for more information on how to update your software.