The month is not yet over, but, since Christmas is near and I have to bake cookies, he’s a short list of the most important software updates and releases that might be of interest for digital photographers.
LightZone for Linux
With LightZone First Professional Photo Editor for Linux Users, you have all the powerful LightZone tools for editing, enhancing and improving digital photos that Windows and Mac users have, including the innovative ZoneMapper and Re-Light tools. LightZone is the first and only application of its kind spanning all three major platforms. The 3.3B beta version of LightZone for Linux is free and available for download at http://www.lightcrafts.com/linux .
Linux users will now enjoy access to LightZones ZoneMapper and Zone Tools, which enable digital photographers to easily apply the powerful Zone Systemâ„¢, developed by Ansel Adams in 1941, to produce photos with exceptional exposure and tonal ranges.
Linux users will especially enjoy access to the new LightZone Relight Tool which recaptures the High Dynamic Range (HDR) images they visualized when originally taking the photograph.
onOne Software Now Leopard Compatible
The following onOne Software products are now compatible with Apples latest version – Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard: Genuine Fractals 5.0.4, Mask Pro 4.1.2, PhotoFrame 3.1.1, PhotoFrame Professional Edition 3.1.2, PhotoTune 2.2, Intellihance Pro 4.2.1, Essentials for Photoshop® Elements 2.0, PhotoTools 1.0, PhotoTools Professional Edition 1.0, Plug-In Suite 3, PhotoFrame Frame Collections, PhotoPresets for Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom®, and PhotoPresets for Adobe Camera Raw.
PhotoPerfect 2.85
Arcadia Software introduces the english version of its Photo Editing Software PhotoPerfect 2.85 with a rich functionality and range of features – like exposure correction, selective color saturation, RAW and 16-bit TIFF editing, support of lab- and RGB color mode, color-profiles / soft proofing as well as HDR/DRI images and framing -, combined with a moderate introductory sales price of only $59.99, PhotoPerfect is geared towards both the enthusiast and the professional photographer. With one-click optimizations the enthusiast achieves results that are so good that most pictures need no further enhancement. The professional finds advanced image enhancement functions that are usually included only in much more expensive software. Product fact-sheet: http://www.arcadiasoftware.com/download/pp-factsheet.pdf
Bibble 4.9.9
Bibble Pro Version 4.9.9 adds support for Nikon D300, D3, Canon 1Ds Mark 3, Canon G9, Olympus E-3, Sony A700, and adds Tethering Support for Intel Macs with Nikon dSLRs. This latest update is free for all current Bibble 4 customers, and new customers will also receive a free upgrade to Bibble 5, when available. Bibble Pro is the most comprehensive cross-platform RAW Workflow application available today, including robust support for the latest cameras and offering Best-in-Class image quality with features such as tethered shooting, Noise Ninja technology, Perfectly Clear automated image optimization and the industrys only RAW-Level plug-in interface. The Bibble Pro plug-in for Adobe Photoshop supports CS2, CS, and version 7 – providing native access to the latest camera formats otherwise inaccessible in these older versions of Photoshop. Bibble Pro also remains the fastest RAW converter in existence. Bibble 4 is available in both “Pro” ($129.95) and “Lite” ($69.95) versions for Windows, Macintosh (PPC/Intel as a Universal Binary) and Linux. Visit http://www.bibblelabs.com for further details and to download.
AKVIS Frame Suite 2.6
AKVIS Frame Suite is an impressing collection of edge effects. Thanks to its 12 effects and a rich Pattern Library, the software can generate an endless number of photo frame versions (from classic to most fancy ones).
For the upcoming holidays, new Christmas decorations have been added to the Pattern Library. Screenshots of the programs features are available at http://akvis.com/en/frame-suite/screenshots-photo-framing.php. Whether you plan to upload holiday photos on a web-site to share with your friends or you wish to decorate a personalized Christmas greeting card, you can rely on AKVIS Frame Suite – it will add elegance and style to any photo.
The program is available in two versions as an independent program (standalone) and as a plug-in to a photo editor.
AKVIS Frame Suite Plugin is compatible with Adobe Photoshop and Photoshop Elements, Corel Painter, Corel Photo-Paint, and Paint Shop Pro, ACD FotoCanvas, and Ulead PhotoImpact.
Microsoft HD Photo Plug-In for Adobe Photoshop
The Microsoft HD Photo Plug-In allows you to open and save any HD Photo file (.wdp or possibly .hdp) in Adobe Photoshop. The HD Photo plug-in supports a wide range of pixel formats (including high dynamic range, wide gamut formats) and numerous advanced HD Photo features. HD Photo is also known as Windows Media Photo. This plug-in is designed for use with the CS2 or CS3 versions of Adobe Photoshop software running under Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Windows Vista or Mac OS X.
Download for Windows
Download for Mac
Sigma Photo Pro 2.3
Sigma Photo Pro 2.3 includes new image processing code, which provides better auto white balance performance. Sigma Photo Pro is an exclusive software package for displaying and manipulating your Sigma digital camera images on your computer. Available for both Windows and Macintosh operating systems, Sigma Photo Pro 2.3 can be downloaded now.
Adobe Camera Raw 4.3.1
Camera Raw 4.3.1 for both Windows and Mac platforms Version 4.3.1 includes the following changes:
– Compressed raw files from the Nikon D100 were read incorrectly in Camera Raw 4.3
– A possible artifact in Camera Raw 4.3 raw file support for the Olympus E-3 has been corrected
Adobe Camera Raw 4.3.1 (Windows)
Adobe Camera Raw 4.3.1 and DNG Converter (Windows)
Adobe Camera Raw 4.3.1 (MAC)
Adobe Camera Raw 4.3.1 and DNG Converter (MAC)
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom1.3.1
The update will provide corrections for the following issues:
-The Lightroom 1.3 Print Module could previously cause the application to crash on either OS X 10.5 or 10.5.1 during template usage.
-On Mac OS X 10.5 or 10.5.1, the import process from a card reader or other device into Lightroom could fail to import all or a portion of the selected images.
-A decrease in Develop slider responsiveness introduced in Lightroom 1.3 has been corrected.
-The Lightroom 1.3 Develop module could cause the application to crash if adjustments were made in quick succession.
-Compressed raw files from the Nikon D100 were read incorrectly in Lightroom 1.3.
-A possible artifact in raw file support for the Olympus E-3 has been corrected.
-The Lightroom FTP Plug-in provided as sample code with the Export SDK did not function properly if the password was not saved with the selected FTP preset.
-Editing or creating a new FTP preset immediately prior to using the FTP plug-in provided as sample code with the Export SDK would cause the FTP process to fail.
-Using the Export as Previous option did not work with the FTP plug-in provided as sample code with the Export SDK.
JAlbum 7.4
Jalbum.net has been lacking visual ways of sharing published albums, but, the new browse album page is the first step in enabling the users to share their albums on our site. See the page by clicking on a featured album thumbnail on: http://jalbum.net. Other new features include password protecting albums hosted on myjalbum.net, support for Windows Vista and a sharing function. JAlbum is a free service.
– User interface redesigned to be more workflow-logical. These changes have been performed after analyzing user behaviour on a test group. We strongly believe this change will help a lot of new users to get a long with the UI resulting in a lot more published albums.
– Password protecting albums hosted on myjalbum.net. This has been one of the most requested features.
– Windows Vista support.
– New sharing function: JAlbum can now help users telling about their new albums after publishing them via email and web.
StudioLine Photo Classic 3 Plus
H&M System Software is now offering StudioLine Photo Classic 3 Plus, a feature-rich update to its multiple award winning image editing and archiving software StudioLine Photo Classic. The update is available immediately at http://www.StudioLine.biz and is free for registered users of StudioLine Photo Classic 3. StudioLine Photo Classic 3 Plus costs £42 for a download version or £49 for a CD version. The “Christmas Special” of £21 or £28 will apply until December 31, 2007.
StudioLine Photo Classic 3 Plus features:
Clear User Interface and Optimized Workflow
Rapid Keywording and Description
Efficient Search Functions
RAW Support
Professional Tools for Image Editing
High Quality, Flexible Printing
Film Strips for Rapid Export Preview
Add-on Module DigitalXpress for Exchanging Large Numbers of Pictures
Image Doctor 2
With Image Doctor, you can restore old shots and retouch new shots. This Photoshop plug-in from Alien Skin Software is capable of:
Removing unwanted objects. Image Doctors powerful Smart Fill feature removes large, unwanted objects from photos, such as trash items from foregrounds and undesirable guests from party photos. Smart Fill can automatically replace these areas with an intelligent sampling of the nearby background pattern or the user can specify the location of the background samples.
Repairing low-quality JPEG images. Use Image Doctors JPEG Repair to fix blocky areas and ragged edges in over-compressed JPEG images. Select an area for repair or use it on your entire photo.
For examples, illustrations of the powerful photo repairs you can make with Image Doctor 2:
http://www.alienskin.com/imagedoctor/idoc_filters.html
Upgrade: Registered users of Image Doctor 1 can buy Image Doctor 2 at a discounted price (Image Doctor 2 is available now for $199, or $99 to upgrade from a previous version).
https://www.alienskin.com/ecomm/s2_deliv_type.asp?prod=57&buy_now=212
