Do we have any photographers around still using Aperture as their main workflow app? Have any of the “big names” stayed? Or is it now a Lightroom world?
Since I’ve started shooting with the Fujifilm X-T1, I find Aperture back in my most-favored-status. Since Fujifilm puts lens distortion correction data into their RAW files, and Aperture recognized and uses it, one of the biggest reason (for me) not to use Aperture evaporates.
So it looks like I’m back to Aperture and will ride that through to Photos for OS X and keep my fingers crossed that it will be the serious photographer’s tool many are hoping for.
This is just a random observation, but it seems that photogs like Chase Jarvis have switched over to Lr. Although Joe McNally’s gear pages still shows Aperture, I recall seeing a recent video that included is staff, and it looked like Lr was running on a couple of monitors.
Photos for iOS and even Photos in iCloud indicate that Photos for OS X will be an excellent program for serious photogs.
I get a bit confused these days between “big names” that are known for shooting vs “big names” that are known for selling photo stuff (workshops, presets, etc). If somebody is looking to sell things, there is definitely a better market in the LR world. I often wonder what the pure shooters are doing, since they are probably not as vocal about their tools set.
As for me (not a big name) I can say that I am just not that big a fan of ACR/LR RAW conversions. The edges bug me, which is just my opinion, but it’s my photography so I’m allowed. I’m still experimenting with Capture One 8 as a possible alternative, although this post has me thinking I should upgrade to Yosemite before deciding.
So much depends on the RAW file formats you’re post-processing and the end use for those images.
I see Aperture’s fatal flaws as lens distortion correction and noise reduction. If you shoot in a studio, with the best lenses used at their sweet spots and at ISO 200, these flaws likely won’t bother you.
My use of Fujifilm X-Trans RAWS greatly reduces my needs for Apertures weak spots.
Bob
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Bob Rockefeller
Midway, GA
www.bobrockefeller.com
Canon 5D2 and Fuji x-trans for me right now.
A lot of my photographic “work” is portraiture and my finals still manage to make a round trip to Photoshop for local adjustments. This does give me some flexibility to use noise reduction (noise ninja) at that level. I would like to do as much as possible as nondestructive RAW processing as it still feels like that would get the best possible results.
One additional note, I made the upgrade to Yosemite and am very happy with what Aperture is going for me. It’s crazy, but this is the best Aperture yet and I am actually migrating some things back to Aperture rather than away. I guess what would be even more crazy is using a tool that I really don’t like just because everybody else is using it (LR).
And wouldn’t it just be The Killer Feature if the new Photos could allow noise reduction as a non-destructive plug-in? Noise Ninja could create and sell such a plug-in if Apple creates an Extensions system that can work within the RAW image processing pipeline.
That way Apple doesn’t have to come up with the best noise reduction (or lens correction, or whatever), they just have to come up with the best system to let others deploy their tools in.
Bob
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Bob Rockefeller
Midway, GA
www.bobrockefeller.com
AFAIK, John Thawley still uses Aperture. I’m impressed with how quickly he can sort, cull, keyword, and send images from a race weekend using Aperture.
Bill Jurasz
Austin Texas
I’ve contacted John to see if he’s still using Aperture as a primary tool.
Bob
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Bob Rockefeller
Midway, GA
www.bobrockefeller.com
I heard back from John and he is indeed still using Aperture.
Bob
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Bob Rockefeller
Midway, GA
www.bobrockefeller.com
I’m not famous but I’m still using Aperture. No need to switch at this point. BTW, I’m still using FCP 7 for video. Again, no need to switch. They both do everything I need them to do.
Hi Bob,
Im now over to LR, I got sick and tired of all the hassles with changing from one software to another, First Nikon CNX 2, Aperture, now LR
Will I ever change back? probably not! I did like Aperture but hated the vaults, bit glitchy for my liking
I should mention, I was very disorganised with Nikon CNX 2, I have to say Aperture, along with Joseph’s excellent video tutorials, I learned enough to make a “more informed” choice this time around, Joseph’s little tricks and knowledge with other software like PS and NIK made the journey a lot easier
Will I make another change in the future? Who knows? At least I now have a plan
………….Gary
I have a photographic memory but never got it developed
We all have to find the software that gets the job done effectively and efficiently. Ideally, that software will also “feel” right. For me the efficiency and feel have always been with Aperture. Using Fujifilm X-Trans, I think the effectiveness is now sufficient, too.
Bob
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Bob Rockefeller
Midway, GA
www.bobrockefeller.com
Well I will continue to use Aperture until something comparable comes along down the line. I am mainly shooting Fuji X now and I am pleased with the RAW handling in Aperture. For any noise reduction I use NIK Define as a plug in. For black and white I use Silver EF EX Pro but I am actually now quite impressed by Tonality for B&W conversions. Also given what Pixelmator is now doing for iPad and Mac I am quite optimistic in a couple of years that there will be an app that can deliver. I dislike LR and find the Phase One app clumsy. I have been using Aperture since version 1.0. So its hard to change workflow. No idea what the new photo app and plugins will bring but given some of the great work other app developers are doing and will have in the pipe line I am optimistic. At the end of the day its about trying to shoot and make great photographs.
http://www.jimhendersonphotos.co.uk/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimhenderson/
Hi Bob, Looks like we’ve made a similar journey. I used Aperture, LR (an experienced user) and C1 for 6 weeks in tandem, same shots. I decided to abandon a catalog and tried to adopt Adobe Bridge + PS. Painfully slow, not very stable and uses too much space on my 500 gb ssd. Flush cache and it gets even slower. All along, Aperture was kept current. I’m now in the process of doing a clean install of Yosemite, now on an external. C1 and Adobe software is not being reinstalled. I’m back to Aperture. I also shoot XTrans. The Adobe renders just don’t cut it. A lot of that has to do with personal preference as to what a final edit should look like. I prefer an airy, delicate presentation and Aperture and C1 delivered in this respect. On too many shots, Adobe was the behind the other 2. Also way too much time chasing the magic bullet proposed by many Fuji shooters about how to edit XTrans in Adobe. None of which accomplished much if anything. So its back to Aperture. I’m not sure what the big boys are doing is of much relevance. They don’t have the time to go through the process I did. They likely do no post. The 1 big name I know hands his memory cards over to the Creative Directors on the way out the door. Asking him about an app would be a complete waste of time. He uses PS and the Finder for his personal work.
I’m using both Lr (since the very first public beta) and Aperture (since it started selling for $80 in the Mac App Store) … and I’ve had a major change of heart recently.
I am not a big fan of Adobe, but since they changed their policy whereby users won’t be left high and dry should they drop or can no longer subscribe … it does make the CC Photographer package a little more attractive.
Since Apple ceased support and further development of Aperture … I am not so fond of their decision making, rapid policy changes without warning either. They certainly have the resources, manpower, expertise and wherewithal that they could have had a viable replacement for Aperture long before they announced it’s impending demise.
While I have high hopes for the OS X Photos app and I think the Extensions feature offers great promise (based upon using FCP X and experiencing it’s evolution first-hand) … I will never place all my eggs in one basket again (I’m even keeping an open eye for a backup to FCP X, but not too fond of Premier Pro) … I will maintain at least two viable options at all times. Which is why I bought Pixelmator and may also pick up Acorn to have an alternate on hand for Ps. This is my livelihood, I can’t afford supporting a single developer with a fickle attitude toward the tools I use to earn a living.
I dislike having to invest and learn multiple options, but the actions of the top developers in the field over the past couple of years has proven we can’t really trust any of them to the level that makes sense that will withstand the test of time.
“Since Apple ceased support and further development of Aperture … I am not so fond of their decision making, rapid policy changes without warning either…I can’t afford supporting a single developer with a fickle attitude toward the tools I use to earn a living.”
Of course this was written Oct 31, just 2 weeks after Apple released the latest update to Aperture, version 3.6 which fixes compatibility with Yosemite. You can talk about all the doom and gloom you want about Aperture.
From where I’m sitting I keep seeing Apple updating and keeping Aperture working and relevant. I won’t believe Aperture is dead until it stops working. I got faith in Apple and I don’t think they are going to leave the pros hanging. The new Photos App must be something special.
It’s not about doom and gloom. It’s about the reality of lack of trust and confidence in a developer to have a replacement ready before they announce the end of life for it’s predecessor. I really would prefer to use Apple offerings exclusively for my business. To ignore their decision making for providing such options is not sound business practice when such tools are utilized to create an income.
Most of this stems from the fact that since 2010, Aperture has seen little improvement or additional features in many key areas when compared to several competitors. Ignoring that fact is not a sound business consideration. While I do appreciate the updates/additions we did receive, Apple really did drop the ball.
I have no doubt that the Photos app will be a viable option … some time in the future. My business can’t afford doubt and speculation as to what that option will be specifically capable of … or what point it can take over as the key puzzle piece in a professional workflow. I can’t afford to, nor is it wise for me to any longer rely upon a single option.
Actually, they did have a replacement ready before they announced the phase out of iPhoto and Aperture. They showed Photos at WWDC in the month and noted that it was coming in 2015. We have a bit of a mourning period but I believe they learned some hard lessons during the Final Cut hand off and this probably a better way to approach it long term. On day one it’ll be popular and they’ll still give away (or sell) millions of copies. Will pros count it as a pro solution on day one? Probably not. But we’ve seen that pattern time and time again. I’m sure there are people out there that still miss the days of Macromedia Director. And Flash. And some day HTML 5.
In my opinion, 2010 is off the mark. 2012, maybe. But I guess I’m not using the features that are “missing” in my daily workflow. I do feel that Lr/Ps is finally catching up with my wallet at $10 a month if not entirely in file management and full retouching power.
These days, with the new Smart Photos option in OnOne, I’m not in Photoshop very much at all. I can go in, make my corrections (including some of those “missing” fixes I rarely use), and be done with a file that’s still editable. The workflow is much faster, especially when you source Perfect Suite off an SSD. I’ll keep my monthly subscription for the time being but there is a day approaching when Adobe may not be my go to solution at all.
It’s apparent we do not agree on the definition of “ready” … I would not consider a very brief offering at WWDC nearly a year before the speculated release date as “ready.”
“Most of this stems from the fact that since 2010, Aperture has seen little improvement or additional features in many key areas when compared to several competitors. Ignoring that fact is not a sound business consideration.”
If you look at Apple’s balance sheet for 2010, the decision to pull people from the Aperture team to work on the iPhone was a great business decision. Aperture has never been a big money maker as it piggybacks off of OSX which has never been a big money maker either.
It’s too bad Apple has been growing so rapidly. They have struggled big time to keep up. There’s a reason why it took so long to come up with Mac Pro replacement. All their business lines have suffered at the hands of the iPhone.
Apple sold 10 million iPhone 6’s in it’s opening weekend. Microsoft, by comparison sold roughly 10 million Windows Phones for the entire quarter. Sales of iPhone have been staggering and they keep on increasing year over year. I don’t think the other business lines, Aperture (or the Photos App) included, will see the attention they deserve until Apple can finally get a hold on things. I also think this is a reason why development of the Photos App has been so slow, it was supposed to be released with iOS8.
Because of the way Apple works internally, their engineers all have a mindset of keeping with a design ethos. This is different from Microsoft where engineers think like typical engineers and thus, you have disasters like Windows 8.
Apple has to pull people from existing teams because they already know what’s expected of them. It’s difficult to simply hire an engineer off the street and just put them on a team and expect them to do miracles.
Apple makes more revenue selling iPhones in 1 fiscal year than Microsoft makes as an entire company in the same time frame and they accomplished this in just a few years. That number is beyond staggering, it’s mind blowing.
Hence, my decision not to place such high hopes in a company that prioritizes the key software I use for my business so low on their list of things to do.
While I concur with your analogy of moving over engineers to hot button issues rather than hiring new engineers in time of greater need … one would hope that a multi-national corporation that is valued more than the entire Russian economy could afford a couple of talented and dedicated engineers to focus on Apple professional software for photography.
Since Apple does indeed have a history of not placing a reasonable priority for professional grade software for photography … all the more reason to question if we can count on them in the future.
When the next Big Thing comes along … such tools will take a back seat again. This is not a pattern that establishes confidence going forward.
I am still using Aperture. It does all the things I need it to and the promise from Apple that Photos will be able to read my libraries means I am going to wait to see the new application.
Spending the hours / days / weeks transferring all my images to Lightroom while Aperture is still working does not make cents for me.
Paul
Still using Aperture 100% of the time. Downloaded the Capture Pro trial but did not install. Re-intalled Lightroom on my computer but could not bother.
Aperture is working well for me, as it has always been. Some of the features I wanted are fulfilled with plugins, which I own.
I will wait and see what Photos 2.0 will look like before making my transition to anything else. I will not draw my impressions when Photos first comes out. Lots of features may not be there to start (like FCPX). Probably I won't be upgrading from Yosemite to the new OS X 10.11 next year until I have made up my mind.
ps. Have you guys noticed that the just released update for Pixelmator OS X already uses photo extension? Can you see the integration level with Photos?
Rafael
http://www.mydarkroom.ca
Pixelmator does? How does that work?
Bob
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Bob Rockefeller
Midway, GA
www.bobrockefeller.com
Bob,
After you have the latest Pixemator app installed, open System Preferences and click the Extensions preference pane.
Click “Actions” on the left and you see a list of possible extension on the right. You should see Markup which is the extension used in Mail.app to markup up email messages. After installing Pixelmator 3.3 it will also appear in this list (as Repair Tool). Click the checkbox to enable.
Now when you’re drafting a new email with a photo in it, you’ll see a pop-up menu in the top-right corner of the image where you can invoke Pixelmator’s repair tool.
Tom
Thomas
Cool. Thanks!
Bob
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Bob Rockefeller
Midway, GA
www.bobrockefeller.com
Ditto for me. I have tried LR and found it to be a really disgusting program. I’ll wait for a few updates to Photo to make any decisions.
Mike
Aperture has been my go to app for photo cataloging and editing for a while now.. I used Lightroom 3 trial back in the days but my edits always turned out crisper and cleaner in Aperture.. plus the unified Library and iPad sync (without forced subscription like Adobe) that Aperture allows is a big reason I will stick with it. I’m hoping that the new Photos.app will retain all these capabilities.
Lens correction is a big missing feature in Aperture.. Maybe the devs at SKWRT can cook up a Mac app that can integrate with Photos.app.. http://skrwtapp.com
Another feature from Adobe PS CC is Camera Shake Reduction; that would be great in the upcoming Photos.app.. I saw this video on how it saved a slightly blurred image: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W32j94nKXhs.
SKR Imaging
https://skrimaging.wordpress.com
I still run my volume portrait business off of Aperture. I took a hard look at shifting over this summer. I’ve been using Lr off and on for years and the new features had me exploring the workflow advantages of Lr. I still enjoy Aperture for my personal and travel work but I thought we’d give Lr a go for the fall season. But after a hard look, Aperture still had better bulk file handling. It’s easy to move libraries back and forth around the office quickly. Processing may not have all the whistles and bells that some people need. But I do a lot of faces. The best solutions have never been Adobe. Aperture is always faster and easier and the heavy lifting is best handled by specialized tools from other companies. We’re also our own lab and I have to have consistency and dependability. Aperture is just easier and better at printing, even if I would have gained a few conveniences in Lr for some package combos. So we’re staying put until at least next summer.
I also teach with Aperture. Adobe education licensing is half this year what it was a year ago. They are still thousands of dollars a year more expensive than they used to be. They see it as giving you lots of power for that yearly license. But in a public academic setting, much of that benefit just isn’t practical. It’s all insane but it makes me glad I own ADBE stock. For a business, CC is a great deal. For institutions, it’s Adobe’s license to print money. I’m expecting Photos to be free so I can convert to teaching concepts in that almost immediately. After all, a curve is a curve.
But here is the thing that has me floored this year. For the last several years, I’ve watched students show less and less interest in Photoshop. This year, it changed like the flick of a switch. Colleagues I know around the region report the same. I call it “Appification.” What Apple and Google have started is now showing up. They want the work and their software to be stupid-easy. They aren’t interested in software complexity. They are used to apps on their phones and pads that make it look simple. And while Adobe is making their stand by adding more tricks to their existing tools, Apple might prove smart once again (as they have a history of painfully doing) by phasing out Aperture and building from the ground up. People are still arguing about FCP X but my new kids have taken to it like ducks to water with almost no training. And they are making sophisticated pieces I couldn’t have dreamed my kids could make in any editing solution four years ago. I hope and expect that Photos will be like that. May take some time to settle in before pros start using it. But it’ll be insanely simple with a great deal of power available through extensions.
“They aren’t interested in software complexity. They are used to apps on their phones and pads that make it look simple.”
Damn straight! I have apps on my iPhone that allow me to grey out background so that I can emphasize the subject in the foreground. No working with layers in Photoshop, just open the app and start greying out the part you want, easy peasy. Same goes for multiple instances of yourself in the same photo, just use an app. It’s quicker just to use the current iPhotos app because of extensibility. I don’t have to open the new app, I can open the app within the iPhotos app to save time.
Adobe and Lightroom are the surest bets in this business. Unlike Apple and Phase One, they rely and depend on software revenue. They have been around for a long time and they remain loyal to their products. Working pros can trust their products more than anything else on the market. What Apple did with Aperture is simply not acceptable for professional software.
The fact that Lightroom is the least desirable of the three does complicate things. Adobe’s handling of X-trans is appalling despite attempts to improve. This is particularly true with landscapes. So I am working with Capture One and I like what I see. Yes, it is clumsy comparing to Aperture, but it has lens correction for my Nikon files and it handles X-trans really well. The only thing that is missing for me are the plugins. But I found a way to streamline access to Nik with an acceptable amount of pain.
I’m not famous either - but I’m still using Aperture - I’m quite conversant with Capture One and Lightroom - but I simply prefer Aperture on a number of levels.
The idea of changing horses is pretty horrible (50,000 images etc.). I’m quite happy to keep using what I like until Photos arrives, and do a proper evaluation then.
In the meantime, Yosemite has solved my only real problem (reading Leica DNG files from X and T cameras).
All the best
Jonathan Slack (www.slack.co.uk)
A very useful thread. It had struck me that the longer I stick with Aperture I’m building up edits that ultimately I’ll need to start again with if I want to work further. But I do use Faces, and I’m about to buy a Fuji camera and my best stuff gets sent to Nik anyway for destructive editing. So I’ll hold out for photos for OS X and see where that gets me.
d.
Currently I switch between Aperture and Lightroom. Have both on two different Thunderbolt Drives. For now will keep Aperture up to date just to see what this new Photo App will bring us. However just in case it does not workout I will have Lightroom ready to go.
Stuart
Website: http://www.stuartonline.com
Google+: https://plus.google.com/+StuartSchaefer/
Hi
Today I have a referenced Library, I use faces and nested keywords. If I can migrate all of this to the new system I’ll be very happy. Otherwise I don’t know what to do yet. For all the rest I think that we have to be flexible to get used to a new workflow.
Best regards, Alex
I've always had an eye on other programs like LR, Capture One and DxO. I even aquired licenses to DxO, LR and now some months ago to Capture One. I've tried them all on some test images before, but took the chance to try LR and Capture One for some projects after the announcement of the end of Apertures further development.
Of the programs I did have more experience with LR so I tried Capture One first. It did look promising in some regards: It often produces the most compelling “after import look” for photos with difficult lighting (e.g. pictures with blown highlights). The UI somewhat resembles Aperture but still has a far way until it can be comparable. Capture One is missing some essential tools with “Open in Editor” being one and a useful retouch brush being the other. CO 8 added a retouch brush, but it is absolutely not comparable to what you can do in Aperture. I had major problems with simple things like white balance. Up to now I cannot imagine my workflow being implemented using Capture One.
I did follow LR over the years. My experiments with it the last months did show some strengths. LR handles blown highlights better than Aperture (but worse than Capture One). It allows a much (!) bigger range with many of its sliders like the sharpening, hightlights or shadows adjustments. The adjustments are non-linear or “smart”. I repeatedly got results from LR were I first thought, that Aperture might be unable to reproduce that strong effect. I almost always was wrong - I could reproduce it but it lead me to ways of working with Aperture I never did before this experiments. Like always before I found the UI of LR clunky. I think I could deploy my workflow on LR, but it wouldn't be on the same level as Aperture. The Lightroom Mobile app for the iPad has some cool features though. Another cool feature are the “Smart Previews”.
I finally ended the experiments a while ago and came back to a 100% Aperture workflow. The conclusion for me was, that the other programs still are not viable Alternative for me. I will use Aperture as long as it is possible and take a detailed look into what “Photos” and its potential ecosystem will be.
http://neonsqua.re
Jochen, your experience mirrors mine about exactly.
Bob
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Bob Rockefeller
Midway, GA
www.bobrockefeller.com
Using Aperture and then send images from a race weekend.
I still use Aperture, It’s easy and has that pro look. I have tried LightRoom but it’s too fussy and the retouch tool is not as easy and powerful for the ease of use as the Aperture retouch tool that it very powerful for how easy it is. I have also tried Photos with is too “home”.
I’m still using Aperture and staying with Yosemite. At this point I’m not still happy with any of the replacements I’ve tried but I’m afraid the time left to pick an alternative is getting shorter.
streborg
I finally switched to Capture One. Phase One got the missing pieces together and I - by myself changed some of my workflow habits.
The missing pieces that are now there:
1) Curves Local Adjustments (LR is still no option because of this thing missing)
2) Better Masking Brushes
3) Open in Editor
4) Better Keywording
Where did I change my workflow:
From Aperture I was used to a Library based workflow with a project for any photo shooting. At the beginning of using C1Pro I tried to apply the same principle to it and used catalogues and projects within them. I did change this to a session based workflow some time ago though. That means I create a new Session for each Shooting with the Images (RAW and Edits) lying in a simple folder structure (Capture, Selects, Output, Trash). I'm often shooting tethered directly into the Capture-Folder, but I also import from SD-Cards then doing a non-tethered shoot somewhere else. My session folders live within the Dropbox-Folder on my main machine. I'm not using the Original Dropbox Client, but ODrive (http://www.odrive.com) - the benefit is, that I can quickly “unsync” single files or whole folders if I do not need them to be directly available. That way I have a backup of my sessions on Dropbox and do not waste space on my harddisk. Within the output folder of a session I hold different reduced exports of the best photos. I can always regenerate them, bad having them there places them on Dropbox and makes them quickly available on any of my devices.
http://neonsqua.re
Sessions are the best way to fly. I went through the same learning curve. So if anyone else is reading this, give sessions a try. I do still use catalogs for longer stuff but sessions are now the bulk of what I use and they have tremendous advantages.
I’m still using Aperture, not a professional, just a good prosumer with talent. Aperture workflow is simply unmatched, and I try to keep up with the writing on the web of successful transitions to alternative software. However, I’ve not found a convincing case story, nor have I found a software I can adopt. Photos is for iPhone selfies, so Apple truly did ditch us and cared less about it. Lightroom…well, if you like subscriptions I guess it’s the only thing that makes sense; however, I did an analysis and found that compared to my 3-4 year standalone, perpetual licensed software and their paid upgrades, subscriptions being everywhere for every software maker means I’d spend 25% - 30% more on a per year analysis. So…LR is not an option for me because LR CC, the latest, is only subscription…you can only get LR 6 for Mac. Beyond LR, Mylio is subscription, Capture One…not sure, etc.
So, I’m now keeping a machine running El Capitan…it won’t be upgraded to macOS Sierra…and I’ll keep with Aperture for as long as I can. Who knows, Photos may grow up if we can kill the iOS/mobile/selfie/cloud mentality, which means, btw, additional necessary subscription fees. OK, maybe I’m cheap, or just wise with my money…after all, it’s just a hobby that might bring in some annual revenue. I just appreciate paying for a good piece of software and using it for a while. The rampant cycle of iOS/app updates is dizzying to me, and simply numbing when you think of the public beta syndrome behind it all.
--
M.A.Stough Photography
The main problem, for me, is that Aperture has fallen behind Lightroom and Capture One in its RAW decoding and adjustments. Its noise reduction is rudimentary, at best, its shadow and highlight recovery is not as effective, and lens corrections are none existent. The only remaining part ofm Apture that is competitive is the part that has always been superior, its file management.
I have mostly switched to Lightroom, a program that I love to hate. Its file management is awful (for me), but it’s image process is excellent. I want to switch to Capture One, and v9 is much better than v8, but it’s catalog system is not all that well developed. Its image process is at least as good as Lightroom’s. And its interface, and the customization allowed, is more in the spirit of Aperture. So I bounce back and forth between Lightroom and Capture One. I just keep hoping that the “next” version of Capture One will but me over the hump.
Bob
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Bob Rockefeller
Midway, GA
www.bobrockefeller.com
My memories of Aperture are now more golden than reality probably was. With that in mind, and having lived in C1 for a while now, I think there is reasonable equity there. Different flavor. Similar enough in function to be negligible in my workflow. What do I find indispensable now is C1's sessions capability. For my personal work, I love the big library/catalog with all my stuff jammed in there. But for day to day work, sessions are proving totally invaluable. You get the organization of the library in format that is portable and easy to work with without the host software having to show you around. It's that middle step between Lr and Aperture.
My last use of Aperture was for printing. It was rock solid and I built my business around a higher quality print than what the labs offered. Aperture didn't print predictably with El Cap and, just as problematic, Epson discontinued one of their papers I used for certain package sizes. Lr offers a little more flexibility in the print module that works around that. I hate the way Lr runs. If I have to, I'll switch over to printing from C1 since it is pretty much the same as Aperture's capabilities.
Life's too short to not enjoy your main processing tool. While I still mourn Aperture, I'm now a couple of years into heavy day to day C1 use and not regretting it. I haven't opened Aperture in months. I'm always nibbling with the other tools to keep current but see nothing to cause me to change over. Phase One is gradually making a better and better package that, short of handling all my printing desires, handles almost anything I need it to do. My Ps and filter use is way down because of v9. I'll probably discontinue my Ps subscription at some point. The workflow has smoothed out. The image quality is amazing with less fuss. They have new tools in 9 that I use constantly. I can't live without their sessions. C1 is a little quirky on the edges but it is a joy to run. At the end of the day, that's most the important thing.
I just downloaded Photo Mechanic 30 day Trial. I like it. Editing is only rudimentary, but I can adjust exposure and white balance, and those are the main things that need adjusting. I do not know if I can batch edit, however. This might be a deal breaker. I am not seeing any options for this.
Apparently, Photo Mechanic is a culling/photo management tool used by every hardcore professional on the planet. I wish someone here had mentioned it as a viable Aperture Alternative. It’s $150USD.
I was using DxO Optics Pro 10 with my Micro 43 camera until I switched to Pentax KS2. Thinking they would come out with a module for it, as well as the fact that they advertise that the software will work with generic raw files, I bought it. Turns out, DxO did support the Pentax KS2, for Optics Pro 11, that is! They refuse to back support so now I have to buy the Upgrade which I refuse to do. I’m disappointed that DxO Optics Pro 10 does not support generic raw files, so if your camera isn’t supported, it isn’t supported, in any way shape, or form.
Turns out, a lot of professionals use Photo Mechanic because of the speed and options it offers in terms of importing photos (they call it “ingesting”). After they sort out which photos are actually worth keeping, they simply select all the photos on the page and drag it directly into Lightroom. I guess this is a huge time saver because Lightroom is a bit slow for culling. I wouldn’t know because I can’t stand the software and refuse to use it.
I’m still using Aperture and I will update to Mac Sierra. Not sure why the guy above says he will not update. Will the update kill off Aperture? I really don’t care. These updates are awesome. iOS updates don’t come around that often, with major updates once per year. With these updates, have come big time improvements. I welcome them.
I've been using Photo Mechanic for about 10 years and I wouldn't count it as a DAM. I do run every image I shoot through it. It is the very best meta tool out there. Fast. Easy to run images through and get all the stuff you need tucked into the files. It's been always been better than Aperture at meta information and it will be a little while before C1 can be there if ever. Well worth the money and a great first step off the card.
I’ve learned of some decent options for raw editor and management. Photo Ninja is really good but doesn’t do management well or play well with Lightroom. Apparently it is designed to work well with Lyn which is supposed to be really fast browser.
Reddit has a list of potential replacements for Aperture. Someone made a huge list of 145 different editing tools and apps here: https://www.reddit.com/r/photography/comments/5afac4/145_photo_editing_t…
Not sure if the link will work or not. In any case, if it doesn’t work, just do a Google for:
“145 photo editing tools and apps. The biggest list ever existed!” and that should do the trick. I discovered one app by On1 called “Affinity Photo”. It’s not a replacement for Aperture, but more for Photoshop. I only mention it because it seems to render a really pleasing image, and it inspires me like Photoshop does not. I’ve never seen a photo editor like Affinity and looking at early results, I might just use it as a replacement, even though it might make my editing sessions a little longer.
On1 is in the process of making a software that really is a replacement for Aperture. That has got me excited! If they can make a replacement for Aperture, the same way they have made a replacement of Photoshop that would indeed, be something to behold.
To quote Steve Jobs, one more thing: Apple didn’t make a big deal about it. They held a conference a couple weeks ago to announce the new MacBook Pros with this touchbar slider thingy. Supposedly they are including Aperture in the new MacBook Pros! This is news to me. I find it hard to believe Apple would include a software and kill it off with the next iteration. So that makes me ask the question: is Aperture Dead???
Man if Aperture is NOT dead I’m a happy man! But I will give a big thumbs up to Affinity Photo. Its made by Serif, no One1. And Serif is indeed working on a DAM as well. I’m keeping my fingers crossed…
Bill Jurasz
Austin Texas
Serif will ship their iPad app and publishing tool before they will make Affinity an actual DAM with some power. BUT I've been using it as a replacement for Photoshop with C1 as a DAM and they play very well together.
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