My Favorite Photo Editing Apps That Aren't Oversaturated With AI Features

What Is the Command Key on Windows? A Guide to Mac Keys on Windows 10 and 11 Quick Links Affinity Photo 2 Capture One VSCO Afterlight 2 Key Takeaways Affinity Photo 2 offers advanced photo editing with a user-friendly interface and non-destructive RAW editing. Capture One allows for instant photo sharing and editing. VSCO provides unique filters and editing tools but requires a subscription for full access. Artificial intelligence is being integrated into just about everything nowadays, and one popular use case is taking and editing photographs. If, like me, you prefer to edit your photos manually, here are the best apps I've tried that use little or no AI. 1 Affinity Photo 2 Affinity Photo is a multi-award-winning editing app that can be used on macOS, Windows, and iPad, which means you can work on the same file using any of these devices. Standout features of Affinity Photo include skin retouching and blemish removal, a huge library of filters and effects, and extremely precise pen and brush options. While Affinity supports various AI plugins and extensions, these, thankfully, aren't mandatory for editing your images. The latest iteration, Affinity Photo 2, has a much-improved user interface layout, which is smoother and more intuitive. In addition, the most recent update allows for non-destructive editing of RAW files, which means you can edit and develop RAW images (such as those created with a DSLR camera) without losing a copy of the original RAW file, making it an excellent choice for professional and keen photographers. Download: Affinity Photo 2 for Windows and Mac | iPad ($33.99 for Mac and Windows, $8.99 for iPad) 2 Capture One If you work as part of a team or want to instantly share photos with collaborators, then you might want to check out Capture One. This software allows you to shoot images directly to a desktop, iPad, or iPhone, without any uploading or downloading, allowing for instant feedback from friends or clients. Capture One features all the expected editing tools, along with a large range of preset filters and styles. While Capture One does incorporate AI, you can choose the level integration, and just leave the boring jobs like exposure balance and cropping to the robots, thus saving your time for the artistic touches. You can take advantage of the 30-day free trial, after which there are various paid packages available, from the dedicated mobile app to the full studio subscription for professionals. Download: Capture One for Windows and Mac | iOS (Free, subscription available) 3 VSCO Similar to Instagram, VSCO is an image-sharing and editing app that works across Android, iOS, and desktop devices, allowing photographers to share their photos with other users on the platform. While there is a free version available, it only provides limited access to the VSCO community and the editing functions. To take advantage of over 200 preset filters and advanced editing tools, you will need to purchase a monthly or yearly subscription. Standout features of VSCO include access to imaging effects and GIFs that aren't found on other platforms, a unique range of movie-inspired effects and overlays -- think graining, scratches, or dust -- and the ability to group collections and galleries together, and choose who can see them. Download: VSCO for Android | iOS (Free, subscription available) 4 Afterlight 2 Afterlight and the all-new Afterlight 2 are both software applications designed for Apple devices. However, there is now a version that runs on Windows. It is aimed more at beginner photographers and has a simple, user-friendly interface with large, clear icons. It supports importing RAW images and exporting files in HEIC, or High-Efficiency Image Compression format. Along with a full suite of editing features, the app also allows you to adjust some of the settings on your phone camera before you take a photo, such as white balance, exposure, shutter speed, and ISO. The app also allows you to add layers of graphics and text to create stunning and unique visuals, and then upload them to social media. Download: Afterlight 2 for Windows | iOS (Free, subscription available) While artificial intelligence is certainly a useful and welcome addition to our lives, there are some things that the artistic among us would just rather do ourselves. To the discerning photographer, an editing tool that allows full user control is much more useful than an AI-powered tool that churns out run-of-the-mill photos.

MakeUseOf

Wed, 7 Aug, 12:08 AM UTC

AI-Powered Photo Enhancement: Revolutionizing Smartphone Photography

AI tools are transforming smartphone photography, offering advanced enhancement capabilities. From upscaling low-resolution images to removing unwanted objects, these AI photo enhancers are making professional-quality editing accessible to everyone.

2 Sources

Tue, 27 Aug, 12:02 AM UTC

How to Use AI to Make a Headshot

Amanda Smith is a freelance journalist and writer. She reports on culture, society, human interest and technology. Her stories hold a mirror to society, reflecting both its malaise and its beauty. Amanda's work has been published in National Geographic, The Guardian, Business Insider, Vice, News Corp, Singapore Airlines, Travel + Leisure, and Food & Wine. Amanda is an Australian living in the cultural center of gravity that is New York City. I'm a sucker for a selfie, but getting glammed up for a photoshoot zaps the personality out of me. I overthink how to smile and stand and turn into Chandler. A photographer directed my last shoot, but that was five years ago. It was time for a new headshot. But this time, I didn't have the colorful streets of Antigua, Guatemala, as my backdrop. With no trips coming up, I decided to test out an artificial intelligence tool with a goal in mind: to generate a new headshot or set of professional images that looked real, not like a caricature of me. I chose HeadshotPro because I liked the natural look of the photos, it seemed like a popular tool and I realized I follow its founder -- AI entrepreneur Danny Postma -- on X. It was founded in the Netherlands in March 2023 and is used used by many well-known global brands and institutions. HeadshotPro's pricing is a three-tier structure: 40 headshots for $29, 100 headshots for $39 or 200 headshots for $59. I actually liked that it's a paid platform because there always seems to be a catch with free tools. There's also a 1- to 3-hour turnaround with HeadshotPro, which might not work for everyone, but I was curious about why it wasn't instant and what it could produce. There are no free trials or subscription fees. It's a one-off cost, but it will refund the fee if you're unsatisfied with the results. I signed up to HeadshotPro and set my login details. I chose the basic $29 plan and paid with my credit card. I checked my email for the instructions. HeadshotPro guaranteed I'd find three to six profile-worthy headshots. The tool advises you to have at least 10 minutes to work on it and to "make sure you look fresh" and take pictures in daylight or in a well-lit room. You then have to upload at least 15 photos for the AI to examine. You can either take new selfies to use or upload some of your older photos. It suggests making sure you're looking at the camera, have a clean background and a good angle, have your face take up at least 20% of the image, and be wearing a "professional expression." I was in no state to take selfies, so I opted to upload a mix of photos from my last shoot and recent candid snaps. Different seasons, styles, hair colors and locations. Out of the 15 I uploaded, only one was approved. It was hard to decipher why, so I decided to upload one at a time. When I cropped the larger photos to just my head, it seemed to work. Most of the candid photos were either too small or it couldn't recognize my full face because of the way I had tilted my head. I found a shortcut: In my iPhone albums, under People, Places & Pets, I clicked on my face. If Apple's AI can recognize my face in the photos, surely HeadshotPro could too. There was a lack of consistency with what it determined to be a "bad" photo. My full face was showing in some photos, but they still weren't approved. I also learned my camera roll is full of photos of me in sunglasses, and I always tilt my head when I pose. A good reminder to work on my posture. But we got there in the end. Next, onto the customization. HeadshotPro needed to know a little more about me, then my layout preferences. It asked for my name, age, ethnicity, eye color and gender and then whether I wanted the background of my profile photo to be garden, marina, office, lake, cafe, kitchen, streets or bookshelf. I could choose my portrait style or have the AI select for me. You can also choose from a few different outfit types -- it picked a turtleneck, which I don't think I've ever worn in my life, so I chose one myself. I selected the one that looked like New York City in the background, then got to pick my outfit. I was looking for a bohemian-but-professional style. I didn't dare trust AI to put me in an off-the-shoulder dress, so I went with a classic white tee. I quickly looked at HeadshotPro's T&Cs and noticed they don't use the photos to train their algorithm. Good to see! Now we wait. It said it would take approximately 2 hours, but I received the email with the completed photos in just over an hour. I was slightly nervous to see what AI thought I looked like, but I was pleasantly surprised with its capabilities. Of the photos I liked (about half of them), it nailed my features. But it got right the crow's feet when I smile (too much time in the Aussie sun growing up), my balayage hair and even my favorite shades of lipstick. There were definitely a few wonky ones, as to be expected. It overdid the bronzer, was inconsistent with my eye color, made me gaunt and overly wrinkly, and had awful style in some. I asked my partner which ones she thought looked like me and we picked 17. When I showed her this photo, she said, "that's my girl." Would I use this image as my headshot? Probably not. However, if you do, it's good practice to label photos that have been altered or assembled by AI. No matter how good these tools get, I know it's not me. Call me old-fashioned, but I think we should keep photos real, imperfections and all. Now this is me -- a photo taken by my photographer friend, not manipulated by a machine. I'm sure she made a joke to get that shot.

CNET

Fri, 20 Sept, 2:05 PM UTC

VideoProc Converter AI Unlocks Ultimate Photo and Video Quality Enhancement for Photographers

The challenges of post-photography are inevitable. Whether you are working in low light, capturing fast-moving subjects, or trying to enlarge an image without losing quality for printing, these obstacles can prevent your work from reaching its full potential. That will affect the quality of your post-editing output, print quality, etc. Full disclosure: This sponsored article is brought to you by Digiarty. Fortunately, AI is changing how photographers manage their post-editing workflow. This is where VideoProc Converter AI comes in, a complete solution to elevate both photo and video quality. Without complex settings, its AI Super Resolution can upscale photos to 10K, videos to 4K and enhance the quality, giving you more space for post-editing and creativity. It provides more AI tools to smooth and stabilize footage. That makes it a versatile tool for photographers who also work in videography. Advanced AI technology does not have to be pricey. As a reader of PetaPixel, you are invited to take advantage of a special offer - unlock a 62% discount on the lifetime license of VideoProc Converter AI. It's a one-time purchase of just $29.95, giving you full access to the software and free upgrades for life to keep pace with the latest (AI) features and improvements. Every photographer knows how tricky it can be to deal with poor image quality. With 4 specialized AI models incorporated in the AI Super Resolution module, VideoProc Converter AI serves as an advanced AI image quality enhancer to make your photography clear and more vivid. Each AI model is trained to enhance and upscale various image types, from portraits to landscapes, anime to real-world photos, and even AI-generated art, etc. The Gen Detail model is the overall recommended model to use across most photographs. It enhances textures and fine details, such as skin textures, hair, and landscapes. The Real Smooth model focuses on eliminating flaws while retaining a natural look. It works best with smooth surfaces, animations, or line drawings. Trained with millions of anime data, the Anime model is specially optimized for cartoons and anime pictures. The Zyxt model is the original model used in previous versions and works best for reality images. We all know capturing a shot is just the beginning. Ensuring the image has the right level of detail, sharpness, and clarity in post-production is equally important. Whether you are dealing with blurry photos, unwanted noise, or imperfections caused by compression, VideoProc Converter AI can help correct these common issues and enhance your photos. Even better, it's an automatic 4-in-1 process. The AI Super Resolution doesn't just improve the photo quality - it can also upscale the resolution and bring out better visuals for printing or viewing on larger screens. Upscale to Specific Resolution Presets (1080p, 2K, 4K, etc.) VideoProc Converter AI includes several commonly used resolution presets, allowing you to upscale photo/video resolution to standard formats in one click. This ensures that your media fits specific displays perfectly without compromising quality. Upscale by 2X, 3X, 4X Besides resolution preset options, VideoProc Converter AI offers scale options of 2X, 3X, and 4X. You can easily increase the resolution by up to 400% to an impressive 10K for photo. This flexibility ensures that the image remains crisp and clear at any size, whether for digital use or prints. As more photographers transition into videography, the challenges of creating smooth and high-quality footage become apparent. Be it a short film or a behind-the-scenes clip, having a stable and visually appealing video is just as important as your still images. VideoProc Converter AI offers a versatile solution for this to boost your video quality, so you don't need to reshoot from the scratch or drown yourself in complex editing techniques from the start. AI Super Resolution (for video): This AI tool works seamlessly with both photos and videos. Elevating video quality is just as simple as it is for photos. It supports upscaling and enhancing old footage, downloaded clips, anime, and DVDs, elevating them up to 4K quality. The latest VideoProc Converter AI V7 introduces two new modes - High Quality Mode and Fast Mode, offering a greater flexibility between output quality and speed. AI Frame Interpolation: General consumers and professionals have embraced smartphone videography in an increased capacity. It's common to have mixed frame rates with videos from different sources. The AI Frame Interpolation tool is designed for this. It can intelligently generate new frames, convert low-FPS video to up to 480 FPS, and produce epic slow motion in a few clicks. You don't need to create every frame manually for demos, so focus on more creative aspects of your work with ease. AI Video Stabilization: There are always reasons for wobbles and jitters when shooting with your smartphone, drone, or GoPro. Shaky footage can be a common problem, especially for people new to shooting video or working without a stabilizer. VideoProc Converter AI uses AI to precisely track key points and analyze the movement in each frame, calculating a smooth camera trajectory to minimize motion between these points. Be it handheld shots or action sequences, the AI Stabilization ensures your videos remain sharp and free from unwanted motion. That's not all VideoProc Converter AI has to offer. It boasts a wealth of features for handling your videos. With support for 370 input codecs and 420 output formats, it effortlessly converts video for better compatibility, like ProRes 4444, ProRes 422, AVCHD, AVI, MXF, and many more into ones compatible with your editing software. This eliminates the frustration of dealing with file-type incompatibilities in NLEs. Beyond conversion, its robust editing, downloading, and recording capabilities make it a one-stop tool for videographers and content creators. AI is reshaping the way photographers work - VideoProc Converter AI goes beyond this. Its widely acclaimed AI Super Resolution helps enhance and upscale your photos and videos with incredible convenience and efficiency. Whether you are enlarging photos for print or restoring fine details, this tool ensures your images remain sharp and clear. Most importantly, it won't compromise the original aesthetic or artistic intent behind your photos. Coupled with its video conversion and AI frame interpolation tools, VideoProc Converter AI offers a one-stop solution in post-production by tackling challenges like format incompatibility or frame rate mismatches. Be sure to take advantage of the 62% Lifetime License discount on this handy tool! Opportunities don't often come along. For newbies, you can get a free trial of VideoProc Converter AI to test out its capabilities.

PetaPixel

Tue, 24 Sept, 4:00 PM UTC

Skylum's New AI-Powered Aperty App Is Built Specifically for Portraits

Skylum has officially announced its newest desktop software Aperty, formerly known as Project "Barcelona", designed for professional portrait editors who value time and quality. According to the company, the new application will set a new standard for the next generation of portrait retouching tools for creatives by combining advanced AI technologies with state-of-the-art features. "Aperty delivers unmatched precision and natural-looking results, making it the ideal choice for professional photographers who value time and quality." The company says some improved AI technology powering Aperty include new Face Mesh, Face and Body Segmentation, and "cutting-edge" Synthetic Data Set Generation models. 'Face Mesh' will be able to process up to 4,000 dots per face -- over 20 times more when compared to other applications on the market, per Skylum. This feature promises to ensure every edit is precise and accurately represents the whole image's depth and dimensions. 'Face and Body Segmentation' can detect up to 30 classes of face and body parts, which will allow for high-detailed retouching and reshaping adjustments, and the 'Synthetic Data Set Generation' found in the application's AI models have been trained using "synthetic data" to ensure that each creators' original work remains secure and untouched, which the company says will address some of the common concerns among photographers around privacy and intellectual property. The application is designed in collaboration with portrait photographer Julia Trotti in an effort to build an application that specifically meets the needs of semi-pro and professional photographers by offering advanced editing features and a streamlined workflow that even includes batch processing. "Aperty is the portrait editing software I've always dreamt of creating to help save time retouching while maintaining professional results," says Julia. Aperty will feature several additional tools at launch, including skin smoothing and blemish removals to enhance the look of skin while keeping it natural and preserving permanent details, face/body skin color correction to match and balance skin color, removing any red or green tones cause by mixed lighting or shadows, studio light to create artificial light sources and apply textures to enhance their scenes, a makeup tool to add blush, contour, and highlights in post-production, enhanced masking to create precision mask layers for people, objects, and backgrounds for greater control over edits within an image, as well as the ability to apply Presets and LUTs in just a few clicks. "We paid close attention to the challenges faced by professional photographers to deliver exactly what they need. With Aperty, what used to take hours -- retouching each photo individually -- can now be done in a fraction of the time," says Skylum CEO Ivan Kutanin. "We understand that a photographer's time is precious, especially for professionals who run their own businesses, which is why we believe retouching should be fast, straightforward and deliver high-quality results every time." The new Aperty software will be available to preorder starting October 1st, 2024, with a release date set for November 7th, 2024. The application is available at an early-bird price: a one-year subscription plus a one-year free for $199/€179. After the launch on November 7th, Aperty will be available at $29.90 for a one-month subscription or $299 for an annual subscription. All plans include the latest version, 24/7 technical support, and activation on up to two devices. Interested users will also have the option to preorder a lifetime license for $249, which includes two years of free upgrades and five years of updates.

PetaPixel

Thu, 26 Sept, 4:03 PM UTC

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