Crop as the only post processing to alter the image?

[JNK100]

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10 hours ago, Fuad7 said:

Any  specific image processing software better suited for Leica?

Any suggestions?  Thank you all for your very valuable comments so far.

LR and C1 are great programs but I moved to DXO PL as I didn't want to pay Adobe every month. I tend to upgrade to every second version.

The NR is the best in my opinion and the results excellent overall esp. the highlight and shadow detail recovery.

[PhotoCruiser]

vor 11 Stunden schrieb Fuad7:

Any  specific image processing software better suited for Leica?

As many already mentioned, the 20$/Month Adobe Photographer package with Photoshop and Adobe Lightroom, Lightroom is a photo catalog software and got more and more editing functions and is for most enough for post editing. Photoshop is the standard for heavy photo editing, mostly for business big size printing and creating art.
I have used for 2 years Capture 1 what hase same catalo function as Lightroom, but did not find it particularly superior so i went back to Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop (i now rarely use).

Just presented was the new GIMP 3.0 freeware Photoshop clone with no catalog function, GIMP is a a very long living and widely used totally free editing software with a update after 7 years. One Problem is that GIMP 3.0 can not open DNG files and need to process them first:

Zitat

Specifies DNG, a format, proposed by Adobe, aiming to become a standard for storing raw data from digital cameras. As for most other “RAW image formats”, GIMP doesn’t support them natively anymore and instead promotes passing through a RAW image developer, such as darktable or RawTherapee. GIMP has an infrastructure system redirecting automatically RAW images to one of these software if available, then get the result back for further processing. 

Not a big deal to do as proposed, but a one step more and the price to pay for a totally free software.

 

if you would like to edit DNG/RAW photos and willing to fork out 100-200$ per year for the software then either the Adobe Photographer package or Capture One.
If you crop and maybe light editing of pre processed DNG/RAW files or save your photos as JPG then GIMP would be a free solution.

You may download and install GIMP and run some tests to verify if it would fit your needs, otherwise pay the Adobe subscription or buy Capture One and use those.

Chris

[Mikep996]

I've always treated digital images the same way I treated slide film - either get it right in the camera or toss it.  The only processing I routinely do is to crop slightly if necessary OR convert to black and white if I'm looking for BW images.  That's pretty much it.  I don't use any photo programs other than Photos in the Apple OS.   Since I shot probably 90% of color film images on slide film - the "get it right or toss it" mindset works well for me and I hate sitting at a computer futzing around with a bunch of images.  Heck, I took 3000 pics in 14 days in Africa 10 years ago and still haven't gotten around to reviewing all of them!  When I hear of folks going out and shooting 1000 pics in a day, I cannot conceive of how anybody can manage to evaluate them all.  I have trouble maintaining the interest in reviewing 50 pictures I shot in a day!!  

Edited March 27 by Mikep996

[Jeff S]

15 hours ago, jaapv said:

Imageprint is indeed an excellent rip but I doubt that a beginner in printing would see much benefit, especially at 400$ for the cheapest version. 

Agree.. just noting, as an addendum, what I use.  For me, it’s much more than a RIP, providing excellent editing controls, superb profiles for virtually all papers, and more.  The cost, for me, was roughly half of what I would have spent just on custom profiling hardware/software.

[ianforber]

On 3/26/2025 at 8:53 PM, Fuad7 said:

Any  specific image processing software better suited for Leica?

Any suggestions?  Thank you all for your very valuable comments so far.

I use Capture One but if you’re not familiar with any post-processing software I think you can’t beat Lightroom. There’s such a ton of advice and guides out there, including on this forum.

I hate post-processing and don’t have any desire to learn to be any good at it. I tend to press the Auto adjust button, which provides a better version but is almost always slightly overexposed for my liking so I then just fiddle with the exposure, shadows and highlights sliders. For colour shots, that’s usually all I do but about 80% of my shots are black and white. For that, I pass the image to Nik Silver FX (it involves using the Image Menu and clicking on “Edit with…”). Black and white demands much more severe processing but that’s a different discussion. 
 

I shoot DNG+jpeg. Sometimes, the jpeg is all you need. For some, it’s all they will ever need. You can still tweak a jpeg in post processing but nowhere near what you can with a raw file.