Kasper JadeExclusive — Refusing to stand idle while Apple Computer woos digital photographers with its new Aperture post production tool for working with RAW images, Adobe Systems next week will unveil a similar piece of software designed to lure back its professional audience, AppleInsider has learned.
Designed as a virtual light-box and photographer's companion, the initial version of LightRoom is expected to support approximately 100 digital cameras and their corresponding RAW file formats. It will reportedly boast a feature set similar to Apple's Aperture, including basic color correction and photo enhancement tools.
Also like Aperture, LightRoom will offer photographers several ways to sort and display photographs immediately following a photo shoot. Specifically, sources said the application will pack a slideshow feature akin to the one built into Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger.
In the few weeks it has been available, Apple's Aperture has been met by mixed reviews: while some praise the software for its intuitive new approach towards post production RAW image editing, others gripe at its sluggish performance and lack of professional-level tools and filters.
Although Aperture was designed to run on computers such as the 1.25GHz 15- or 17-inch PowerBook G4, Apple on its Web site recommends that software be used on a computer with at least two (dual) 2GHz PowerPC G5 processors and 2GB of RAM for optimal performance. These steep requirements have deterred some potential users from adopting the $499 software for their mid-ranged Macs. At the same time, Mac systems approaching two-years of age and older just don't meet the grade.
According to sources, Adobe developed LightRoom to run on a slew of Macs not supported by Aperture. The company hopes that LightRoom's more lenient set of system requirements will be one its greatest benefits and selling points.
While Adobe has yet to set a release date or pricing information for LightRoom, the company plans to offer the application as a free beta in an effort to widen distribution and put the software into the hands of as many professional photographers as it can, sources told AppleInsider.
Initially, LightRoom will be released only for the Mac. However, sources say a PC version is in the works.
William Gallagher
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Chip Loder
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Christine McKee
85 Comments
Competition is good.
This is an interesting development. This means that Adobe has been developing this new product for some time now.
All in all, the competition between the two companies should yield better products for consumers. If the competition gets fierce, I hope that Adobe doesn't drop Photoshop for Mac as it did with it's video editing products.
This is an interesting development. This means that Adobe has been developing this new product for some time now.
All in all, the competition between the two companies should yield better products for consumers. If the competition gets fierce, I hope that Adobe doesn't drop Photoshop for Mac as it did with it's video editing products.
Considering the new app will start its life as a Mac-only app, I don't think the situation is quite as you think. It looks to me like Adobe rushed completion on the Mac version of an upcoming product so-as not to lose too much market share.
What will be interesting to see, for me, is if the Adobe product sped it's time-to-market by using Core Image filters and other MacOS-isms.
I guess this will result in Apple spending a lot of time improving Aperture so they don't lose out to Adobe.
You mean Adobe lost ground to Aperture?
I agree this has to be a rushed out the door application, if they are willing to show it this shortly after Aperture's release and a number of months before it will actually ship. Shot across the bow?
Odd they want to name it LightRoom. The app is not a room ... unless?
Why not simply LightBox? Maybe it is taken?
Also odd they did not make it part of Bridge? Bridge could handle alternate views and some extra features along the likes of Aperture.