The best Photoshop replacement on Mac just got smarter. Photo editors for Windows, macOS, iOS and Android Photo editors for Mac

Whether you are a professional photographer with the appropriate equipment or simply the owner of a gadget with a good camera, you always need photo editors for high-quality and fast post-processing of photos. We offer you the best programs for processing photos on a desktop computer or mobile devices.

Photo editors for Windows

Applications on a personal computer or laptop have a number of advantages in contrast to photo editors on smartphones or tablets. The main advantage is the many settings, available functions and corrections. A professional photo editor for Windows can be downloaded to your PC for free, or you can find software with a large set of tools on a paid basis. List of the best photo editors for Windows:

1. Paint.net application. A free program from Microsoft that is included with the operating system. It is a full-fledged graphic editor, supports 8 interface languages. It has ample opportunities for photo processing: color corrections, brightness, color, red-eye removal, frame overlay. The application provides the ability to return the correction to the moment you need without limiting the memory of actions. The program works quickly, does not load the operating system and takes up only 33 MB of RAM. The Paint.net app can be a great replacement for another popular app, Photoshop.

1. Application from Google Picasa. A convenient application for non-professional, home use. The program is completely free, easy to use, and despite the absence of any professional tools among the possible ones, it has all the possible functions for editing images and photographs.

What will installing the photo editor on your PC Picasa give you:

• Simple and intuitive interface in Russian.
• The image preview function, so as not to save a deliberately unreviewed image after corrections have been made.
• Changing contrast, shades, brightness.
• Cropping, cropping images.
• Removing red eye.
• Image alignment and retouching.
• Adding text to a photo.

A special feature of the application is the automatic photo editing function, when the program independently determines what needs to be adjusted and shows the result before and after the changes.

1. PaintShop Pro app. The best photo editor for Windows with a paid base. For the premium version of the application you will have to pay up to $100. The program is intended for professional use. It is distinguished by the presence of various tools that can correct the slightest defects in images.

Features of the photo editor:

• Professional-level photo editing with a full set of tools for retouching, editing and artistic processing of images and photographs.
• Tools for creating design projects: retouching, cropping, straightening, converting to curves, a set of brushes, textures and much more.
• Quick correction of photographs and images - retouching, cropping, cropping, color correction, brightness, tonality.
• Lots of filters to create unusual and creative images that convey a special atmosphere.
• Deleting objects. A tool for discreetly removing unwanted objects from an image.
• Correction of defects.

1. Photo editor Adobe Photoshop. Multifunctional, probably the most popular photo editor on a PC, which is used not only for image corrections, but also for video files. Now the application is adapted to work on Android, iOS, macOS. The application is shareware, to use all the features of the program you need to pay and the payment is worth it.

The software is used for processing presentation projects, clips, and videos. Photo editor features:

• Correction of scanned images, changes in their color rendition.
• Overlaying images with the ability to correct each of them.
• Creating collages with pre-processing of pictures.
• Restoring old black and white photographs.
• Photo retouching.
• The application is suitable for comfortable work with sketches and drawings.
• Large selection of image processing tools.
• Processing of 2D and 3D images.

The graphic editor has been developing for a long time, so over the entire existence of the program, many versions and improvements of Adobe Photoshop have been released. If you are a professional photographer, then it makes sense for you to purchase a paid version of the photo editor.

Photo editors for Mac OS

Photo processing programs that run on the Mac OS operating system have also been developed specifically for Apple gadgets. The selection of applications will help you choose what you need:

1. Pixelmator app. Powerful software that acts as an alternative to Photoshop, a program that significantly affects the performance of the gadget during image correction. The Pixelmator application is an excellent graphic editor for realizing any creative ideas.

The photo editor has a clear and user-friendly interface. In the application you will have access to all functions: color correction, retouching, layering, color correction and others. The program can be used to create collages, add inscriptions, frames, and logos. The Pixelmator application supports numerous image formats: PSD, JPEG, PNG, PDF, etc. The photo editor is paid, but the cost is not high - about 5 dollars.

1. Affinity Photo app. A universal photo editor with a clear and accessible interface. It is an analogue of the Photoshop application, only less cumbersome.

The photo editor is available for installation and operation on Mac OS and Windows. What will the user get if he installs the Affinity Photo application:

• Tools for quick photo correction: retouching, red-eye removal.
• Correct images using curves, level, white predominance, shadows, color correction and more.
• Precise outline. Function for accurately separating the desired object from the background.
• Filters and effects. The application offers a huge number of filters: glow, shifts, blur, shadows and others.

The special feature of the program is editing RAW files at the level of a professional application.

1. Luminar 2018 application. A specialized photo editor with a variety of functions for quick and professional correction of images and photographs. The program has a user-friendly interface that greatly simplifies working with the application.

The photo editor is equipped with many tools to correct distortions, chromatic aberrations and torn edges. With such a program, you can achieve image perfection using all sorts of software functions: manual optical correction, multi-layer overlay mode, 40 filters based on “artificial intelligence”. The photo editor is a paid software; to purchase it you will need to pay a one-time fee.

Photo editors for iOS

Photo processing programs for iPhone are also actively developing, providing ample opportunities for instant, amateur or professional processing of images and photographs. Therefore, let’s look at applications that are compatible with the iOS operating system:

1. One of the best photo editors for iPhone is the Photo Editor by Aviary app. The software is a graphic editor that is easy to use for quickly editing images and photographs.

In just a few minutes you can edit a photo by removing unnecessary objects, red-eye effect and doing light retouching (teeth whitening, resizing, removing skin imperfections). In general, the photo editor offers a lot of interesting correction tools: cropping and cropping photos, removing defects, changing brightness, contrast, and adjusting saturation. You will also get a large number of different, available filters, and the ability to write an inscription on the photo.

1. ProCam 5 application. An old and convenient application that is equipped with many functions for the shooting itself and post-shooting image processing.

In the “Shooting” mode, you can set the white balance, set the shutter speed, select the shooting mode, frame format, etc. Post-shoot processing with a photo editor includes color correction, retouching, brightness settings, passing through available filters for the application, and contrast settings. Overall, the software has established itself as a simple photo editor for amateur correction.

1. Enlight Photofox application. A powerful photo editor for iPhone with a full set of photo editing tools. The application allows you to overlay layers of images on top of each other with preliminary correction of each of them, change the degree of transparency of each image, transform their shape, size and perspective.

The photo editor has a “Dark Room” function, which allows you to meticulously work on color rendition, tone, contrast and other special effects. The basic free version of the photo processing program offers functions such as changing the canvas size, blurring, adding vignettes, and simulating analog light. More advanced and professional tools are available in the paid version of the application. A large selection of brushes, stickers, styles, filters and the ability to work with RAW images make the application one of the best for iOS operating systems.

Photo editors for Android

There are special photo editors for gadgets running on Android for quick correction of photos and selfies. They have all the tools as for versions, for example, on PC. Let's look at the best photo editors that can be downloaded via Google Play:

1. Photoshop Express application.

The photo editor for Android is aimed at quick correction and provides a set of functions:

Trimming and cropping.

• Color correction.
• Removing red eye caused by flash.
• Flip the image.
• Working with color and lighting.
• Filter overlay.
• Adding frames.

Photoshop Express is designed to quickly and efficiently make changes and corrections to a photograph.

1. Photoshop Lightroom application. Unlike the previous photo editor, this one is more professional and offers greater opportunities for adjusting photos and images.

This app is a paid app and is only available for free for 30 days. Features of the photo editor include the availability of a large number of tools, the ability to roll back changes to the original, editing photos in RAW format, and support for synchronization with the cloud from Adobe.

1. Android application Aviary. A simple and convenient photo editor with a pleasant and intuitive interface for home and amateur image processing.

The program is designed for simple corrections, such as contrast, brightness, applying built-in filters, flipping the image, changing the background of the photo. The application is sold free of charge; additional filters and additions to special effects can be purchased for a fee.

1. PicLab app. Designed for installation on devices running Android. The program interface is intuitive, not overloaded with unnecessary functions and tools.

In total, there are 9 filters built into the photo editor that will help you adjust the lighting. The PicLab application has all the necessary tools for working on photographs: changing brightness, contrast, changing exposure, a large number of ready-made sketches and sketches for overlaying on a photo. Overall, the photo editor is simple and multifunctional.

1. BeFunky Photo Editor application for Android. A multifunctional photo editor with many photo editing options.

• 32 free photo effects.
• Tool for creating collages.
• Large selection of fonts to overlay on your photo.
• Lots of special effects: cropping, rotation, sharpening, contrast, photo depth, photo exposure, tint.
• Possibility of overlaying photo frames and vignettes.

The application is simply created for photo editing of images and for posting your pictures on social networks “without delay”.

1. Handy Photo app. A paid multifunctional program with a non-standard interface and great capabilities for graphic editing.

The program allows you to change color and tonality for the entire image as a whole and for its individual elements. The application also allows you to remove unnecessary objects from the image, replace the background and remove defects. The photo editor offers the function of overlaying several photos on top of one another with their subsequent correction. The entire set of photo editor tools for Android:

• Full and partial editing mode.
• Smart brush.
• Application of built-in filters and textures.
• Photo retouching with a large set of tools for this.
• RAW format support.
• Supports large size photos (up to 36 MP).

At first, for a beginner, the photo editor may seem complicated, but once you understand it, you will appreciate its versatility.

If you find an error, please highlight a piece of text and click Ctrl+Enter.

Photoshop is the most popular raster editor. The application is used by designers all over the world.

Gimp

Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, Mac OS X official website December 20, 2016 GNU General Public License Raster graphics editors 9

Gimp is an excellent free alternative to paid raster editors, even such as Adobe Photoshop. The application has full functionality for working with images: support for transparency, layers, a large number of formats, various filters for image processing. The program interface is quite standard for raster editors, but it can be customized to suit your needs.

Raw Therapee

Windows, Linux, Mac OS X official website September 26, 2017 GNU General Public License - license for personal and commercial use Raster graphics editors 3

Raw Therapee is a free RAW photo editor. A distinctive feature of the application is that it works with color in 96-bit format, which makes it possible to color correction and perform other operations with images without loss of quality. Most of Raw Therapee's functionality is color and light correction, but you can also improve images: remove noise, improve clarity. The developer states that the use of multi-threaded algorithms ensures high image processing speed. In addition, there is a batch file processing mode. The program interface consists of a large number of panels with various tools.

After Adobe presented Photoshop CC with a new Creative Cloud strategy, which included a paid subscription, many began to think about an alternative to the long-time leader in the world of photo editors. A subscription to Photoshop through Creative Cloud costs $50 per month and is easily paid for by people who use this application in their professional activities. Let's face it, the old price tag of $699 for the standard version was steep enough for most amateur photographers. We want to offer you good alternatives that are accessible and convenient for both beginners and photography experts

Adobe Photoshop Elements 12 ($100)

Photoshop Elements is a full-fledged photo editor with many features. This is a lightweight version of the flagship Adobe Photoshop CC. The lack of individual professional features (for example, division into four main colors, etc.) is compensated by the price, which is about 1/7 of the Pro version. All the important functions are present: red-eye editing, Instagram-style photo effects, moving objects, creating panoramic images, artistic photo processing, etc.

Photoshop Elements is aimed at a wide range of photographers, from beginner to advanced.

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 5 ($149)

Lightroom is an editor at the intersection of cutting-edge amateur and professional photography. Lightroom can be purchased under a standalone license, without a subscription. As a photo manager on par with Apple's Aperture, Lightroom offers a ton of editing options. For example, the process of working with images is divided into separate stages. Each of them has its own functional module with a corresponding set of tools and settings palettes.

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 5 stands at a high level of graphic editors, which is suitable for both amateurs and professionals.

Apple Aperture 3.5. ($80)

Aperture has long been used by Mac owners along with Adobe Lightroom.

Although it's marketed more as an organizer than an editor, it, like Lightroom, has a ton of features for fixing images. The new version supports Mac-Retina displays and integrates the database libraries of Aperture and IPhoto, facilitating easy transition between these applications. Advanced white balance, improved shadow and highlight editor, professional automatic enhancement. If you add to this a quick view that immediately selects the best photos, a full-screen viewing mode, sorting by person and place, and a photo stream, you get a fairly powerful application.

Aperture is a natural editor for the Mac and makes it easy to transition from iPhoto, which it shares a common image database with.

Apple iPhoto 9.5 ($0-15)

A client-centric editor that's easier to use than Photoshop Elements. iPhoto for Mac is included in the iLife package. With this application you can add special effects, remove red-eye and unwanted objects, and much more. Photos taken on iOS devices using Photo Stream can automatically appear in iPhoto. This editor supports 64-bit systems and is combined into a single base with Aperture.

iPhoto is one of the simplest photo editors for users, but its level of integration with other Apple apps gives it additional benefits for Mac users.

Flying Meat Acorn 4.1. ($50)

The Acorn app is suitable for those who want a wide range of editing options, with a full range of features. Text overlay and editing, vector tools, filters, layers, shadows, highlights, halftones, support for loading PSD images, etc. All this in a simple interface, with support for Retina displays and 64-bit processors.

Acorn, like the next editor Pixelmator, is one of the main alternatives to Photoshop, being low cost and easy to learn.

Pixelmator 3 ($30)

A full-featured image editing application for Mac. It can safely be called an alternative to Photoshop. A full-service image editor like Acorn, it offers all the traditional, recognizable tools that amateur photographers need to work with their images. Like Acorn, it only works in the RGB color space. The new version adds the Liquify toolkit, which makes it possible to compete with the well-known functions of Photoshop. Expanded support for multiple monitors and 64-bit architecture provides greater editing flexibility.

Pixelmator is a good alternative to Photoshop for basic photo editing tasks.

Corel AfterShot Pro ($25)

Corel was created as an editor and photo manager capable of competing with Photoshop, Aperture and Lightroom. Extensive options, as well as organizational capabilities, will give you a new perspective on the way you edit images. Various ways to view images will help you choose high-quality and interesting photos. A wide range of functions allows you to apply various edits to levels and curves, sharpness, color rendition and many other possibilities. As an image manager, it allows you to access photos anywhere on your hard drive, without having to import them into a program.

Corel AfterShot Pro turned out to be a good competitor to Aperture, Adobe and Lightroom.

CyberLink PhotoDirector ($60)

Most recently, CyberLink made its way to Windows Macs. The editor offers a solid universal image editing package with a large number of one-click options. It is possible to view images from the library, select a photo and edit it manually or using preset settings. The application automatically corrects distortions, provides the ability to remove unnecessary objects from images, and adjusts color and contrast. PhotoDirector is easy to use and yet has some sophisticated controls that rival Photoshop.

CyberLink PhotoDirector provides a user-friendly interface and a wealth of well-organized image editing controls.

GIMP 2.8. (for free)

GIMP is a free application that offers a ton of editing capabilities that are just as solid as those found in Photoshop. This means that it has a huge number of controls available to fine-tune how you fix your photo. Full screen mode, digital retouching, mixing, lens blemish correction and more make GIMP close to Adobe. Unfortunately, the Mac app does have some glitches, such as the cursor's path sometimes appearing on the screen, but as a free app, it's definitely worth a look.

GIMP doesn't have a Mac-like interface, but developers are making it increasingly attractive and easy to use.

We told you about nine alternative applications. Did the article help you with your choice? Will you try something new, does iPhoto fully satisfy your needs, or do you not see the need to edit photos with third-party applications at all? We are waiting for your comments.

You don't need to use Adobe Photoshop on your Mac to edit images like a pro. There are many alternatives to this software that you can download or use directly in your browser to create images and graphics for your projects. And some of them are completely free!

None of the solutions below are necessarily universal. Each tool typically serves a specific purpose; do you want to edit online or on your desktop? Do you edit photos or more different file types? Is all this work destined for the web or will the images be printed?

Here is a list of the best Photoshop alternatives for Mac in 2018:

1. Affinity Photo

Affinity Photo is a former Apple Mac App of the Year and a professional tool that has everything you'd expect from a premium photo editing product.

Use it to edit and retouch images and create multi-layered images. The professional correction and adjustment tools easily rival any other app, and it has an excellent noise reduction filter. Retouching options include not only the usual dodge, burn, clone, patch, blemish, and red-eye tool, but also a paint brush and liquefaction feature.

Other Key Features:

• Dedicated Camera RAW workspace
• HDR merge mode
• Panorama
• Batch Processing
• Editing 360-degree images

Price: $49.99

2. Sketch

Sketch is not a photo editing app, but you can edit images within the Mac prototyping tool.

The best part about editing in Sketch is that all changes are non-destructive, meaning that any changes take effect without overwriting the original image file. So you can always go back to the original if you want.

Sketch provides basic image editing, including inverting images, cropping, and color shading. It can be described as a basic raster image editor and for many simple projects this is quite enough.

Other Key Features:

• Possibility of color adjustment - hue, saturation, brightness and contrast
• Reduce image/file size
• Replace and change images in projects with one click (since you use the same tool)
• Ability to work in layers
• Also includes the ability to edit vector elements

Cost: $99 per year

3. GIMP

GIMP offers powerful photo manipulation and editing capabilities in a free, open-source package. You can also download the source code and make changes as you wish, adding more functionality using third-party plugins.

GIMP is designed for high-quality photo processing, including image retouching and photo restoration. Users can also use it to create original works of art, a feature that many other alternative Photoshop editors don't provide (or have but can be difficult to use).

Other Key Features:

• Ability to create icons and other elements
• Used to work with scripts (C, C++, Perl, Python, Scheme and others)
• Color management tools included in Scribus, Inkscape and SwatchBooker
• A large number of convenient file formats and a customizable workspace
• Extensive library of tutorials on the website so you can learn the tool more easily

Cost: Free

4. Pixelmator Pro

Pixelmator Pro is a non-destructive editor that allows you to edit images and draw within the app. It also includes a great automatic color adjustment tool that makes the process of changing colors much easier.

One of the best features of Pixelmator Pro is that you can even export images for web optimization, so you don't have to use multiple editing tools and then reduce the image for high-quality website performance. Pixelmator Pro also includes some workflow tools to help you work more efficiently.

Other Key Features:

• Works with Mac Touchpad
• Live preview option so you can see what changes will look like before committing
• Text editing capabilities
• Editing and Exporting SVG
• Drawing tools so you can draw anything by hand

Price: $59.99

5. Pixlr Pro

Pixlr Pro - which has the ability to edit photos, vectors and text. You can edit like a pro with tools that include layer masks, multiple brush options, curves and levels adjustments, color and blend modes, effects and filters, and transform and wrap tools.

What sets Pixlr Pro apart from others, which also have a free version, is that you don't have to download anything to use it. All the tools are right in your browser (and it has serious browser compatibility). The editor also includes many other useful features to help you get started with your projects, such as templates and fonts.

Other Key Features:

• Includes access to 1 million royalty-free images
• Comes with over 10,000 photo templates
• Works with PSD and Sketch image files
• Smart photo correction tools
• Refine Edge tools make it easy to mask out complex objects

Cost: $5 per month

6. PicMonkey

PicMonkey is a famous online photo editor and retoucher. It has the most complex feature structure of any tool on this list, with free, basic, and pro plans with varying levels of features and tools.

If you plan to use any additional features - saving and exporting, advanced retouching, effects and overlays, fonts - then you should probably consider the Pro tier plan. Free plans include ads, unlike paid ones. PicMonkey is a fairly simple tool that is popular among users creating images for social media and online use, with a simple photo editor and design tools.

Other Key Features:

Add-ons include filters, overlays and text tools

Tweak your photos to add more visual interest

Watermarks and other templates to quickly create projects

Possibility to create a photo collage

Simple interface with ready-to-use buttons in the browser or using the desktop app

Cost: from $5.99 per month

7. Fotor

The tool, dubbed "Photoshop lite" by the BBC, is simple and easy to use. Edit images, add effects and text, or create portraits like a pro with Fotor.

The photo editor has all the tools you'd expect to find for everyday editing, with settings for cropping shapes and formats, color, saturation and white balance, as well as the ability to straighten and rotate images. Additionally, you can create a custom collage within the app.

Other Key Features:

• Batch Processing Option
• Tilt-shift tools add focus and blur for a professional look
• 13 photo enhancement options in one click
• Use popular file formats such as RAW, PNG, JPG, BMP, GIF and TIFF
• Optimizing images for displaysRetina

Cost: Free

8. Acorn

Acorn is another non-destructive piece of Mac photo editing software that has a robust set of tools. The company says it has “everything you need in one image editor,” with the ability to add layer masks and selections to tweak your images or do something completely new. You can also remove backgrounds, combine images, color correct, resize, transform, crop, and more.

While Acorn is billed as an image editor, it also includes vector tools.

Other Key Features:

• 100+ photo effects - vignette, shadow, gradients, sharpening, color correction, distortion, blur
• Web export and scaling
• Exporting a Smart Layer
• Importing and Editing Camera RAW Images
• Ability to import Photoshop brushes

Cost: $29.99

Try: From The Flying Meat Store (other addons also available)

9. SumoPaint

SumoPaint has paid and free versions with different options. One of the key differences is whether you want to edit the image online or offline (paid only).

SumoPaint is marketed as an image manipulator with a lot of options, not all of which are designed for working with photographs. Sumo's proprietary file format also provides a non-destructive saving option. The tool includes a variety of brushes, shapes, colors and gradients to start any project. It also allows you to use layers and comes with a lot of filters.

Other Key Features:

• Dodge, Reflect and Mosaic Tools
• Animated and 3D Brushes
• Automatic smoothing function
• Type Tool
• Ability to easily customize curves and levels

Cost: $4 per month

10. DxO PhotoLab

DxO PhotoLab is designed for editing RAW photos. It has many different features and you might even mistake its toolbar for a Photoshop panel.

Tools include the ability to edit using control points to work only on the part of the photo you want to edit, there are also plenty of brushes for precise work, a graduated filter makes landscape photos look great, and an automatic repair mode allows you to remove unwanted elements from images.

Other Key Features:

• Smooth transitions between elements that preserve textures and shadows
• Fast processing
• Automatic Lightening Optimization Tool
• The filter simultaneously removes haze from a landscape photo
• 40,000 camera and lens combinations

Cost: $99.99 (Essential Edition)

Happy work everyone!

Apple Macs are great devices for photo editing, especially for professionals. The Retina display for Mac combines with powerful processors to enable seamless image editing.

Whether you're a hobbyist looking to improve your family vacation photos or a professional photographer working under pressure, there are Mac image editors to suit your needs.

Here are the best free and paid image editors for Mac.

Best Free Mac Image Editors

If you're looking for a basic editor, you don't need to buy a full-featured editing suite. The basic image editor is easy to use and has all the features you'll need to fix and enhance your personal photos.

1.Photoscape X

Photoscape X is a great graphics editor for Mac that you've probably never heard of. It's a versatile app that lets you edit RAW images, fix photos, add filters, and more. Using a brush, you can quickly fix small problems with your photos. Photoscape has a batch mode that allows you to resize and rename photos with one click.

Download: Photoscape X (free)

2. GIMP

GIMP is an open source project that has been actively developed for over twenty years. It is often called the best free photo editor. Thanks to community development, it offers professional features that you can only find in paid apps like Photoshop.

GIMP is designed to be a professional editing tool and has a steep learning curve. But it has all the basic and professional features you would expect from a graphic design kit. GIMP's Layers feature is powerful, and you can even use some Photoshop plugins with GIMP. If you're new to GIMP, check out our introductory guide to GIMP

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Learn the basics.

Download: GIMP (free)

3. Photos

If all you're looking for is an easy way to manage your photo library on Mac

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And to make some basic changes to fix or improve your personal photos, the built-in Photos app will be more than enough.

The Photos app has a good auto-enhancement tool, a cropping tool, basic image editing, and filter support. Plus, it has a familiar user interface. If you feel comfortable editing photos in the iPhone Photos app, you'll feel right at home with the Mac version.

4. Pixlr X

Pixlr X works seamlessly in any modern web browser. If you only need to edit a couple of photos every now and then, there's no point in downloading a feature-rich image editor. Instead, see if Pixlr's web-based image editor is enough for you.

Pixlr X has all the basic image editing features you'd expect. You can crop, resize, add filters, and easily remove background from any image. There are several tools to customize the visual elements of an image, and you can add text and draw on top of the images. If you have an image, you can use Pixlr X to quickly create a poster or flyer.

Visit: Pixlr X (free)

Best Paid Mac Image Editors

If you're serious about photo editing, you'll need professional tools. A full-featured photo editing suite to help improve the quality of your work. Since paid apps are designed for professionals from the start, you'll save a lot of time once you get used to the workflow.

1.Lightroom

Lightroom is the standard photo editor for professional photographers. Lightroom's workflow makes it stand out. Apart from its stellar photo editing features, it also has a simple yet robust image organization feature. And that's why many professionals stick with Lightroom.

If you're clicking thousands of photos for a project and need to select a couple dozen good ones, Lightroom makes the process easy for you. You can browse through thousands of RAW files, mark important photos, move them to another directory, edit them in a specific style, save that style as a preset, go back and apply it to other photos, and then finally export the images in multiple formats.

And once you're done with a project, you can use the Lightroom library to store important photos and back them up using an Adobe Cloud account. For professionals, this is what makes Lightroom's $9.99/month starting price reasonable.

Download: Adobe Lightroom ($9.99/month)

2. Photoshop

Photoshop is a different type of photo editor. You can think of it as Lightroom's big brother. Photoshop is designed specifically for processing and enhancing images. Photoshop is famous for its advanced selection tools, complex layer system, and endlessly customizable brushes.

You can use Lightroom to extract all the detail from a RAW image file or to aesthetically enhance an image (to correct colors and saturation levels). Once you're done with that, you can import the image into Photoshop to kick things up a notch. In fact, you cannot edit RAW images in Photoshop without the Camera RAW plugin.

Photoshop is a massive, complex application with over twenty years of constant updates. There are too many features, but once you master the basics, Photoshop gives you the tools to turn your imagination into reality.

Using Photoshop, you can combine multiple images, completely change the color palette of an image, and fix parts of an image to make them look better (especially portraits).

Download: Adobe Photoshop ($9.99/month)

3. Similarity Photo

You can think of Affinity Photo as a lite version of Photoshop. It has the most common Photoshop features such as advanced selection tools, brushes, and layer support. Affinity Photos is 350MB, not the 2GB behemoth that is Photoshop. Affinity Photo is also much faster than Photoshop, especially on a Mac without a dedicated graphics card.

Plus, unlike Photoshop, you can buy Affinity Photo outright for $49.99. If you don't like Adobe's move towards subscription prices and increasing reliance on cloud syncing, take a look at Affinity Photo. If you've already learned the basics of Photoshop (you can open PSD files in Affinity Photo), you'll have a much easier time picking up Affinity Photo.

Download: Similarity Photo ($49.99)

Pixelmator Pro is a powerful image editing application designed for ease of use. This is a universal tool for working with images. Pixelmator Pro is a mixture of Lightroom, Photoshop and Illustrator. It has the core features of all three apps.

You can use it to edit RAW images, enhance photos, fix parts of images, and create posters by adding beautiful text and other elements. Pixelmator Pro can go from a basic photo editing app to a graphic design suite, depending on your needs and skills.

Download: Pixelmator Pro ($39.99)

Other Great Mac Apps You Should Use

The apps listed above have something for everyone. We recommend that most people start with Pixlr X and see if that helps. However, if you're looking for a fast, beautiful, and feature-rich photo editor designed for Mac, Affinity Photo is a great choice.

There are many more great Mac apps out there waiting to be explored. Take a look at our list of the best apps for MacOS

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To find some applications that you should install on your Mac.

Learn more about: Adobe Photoshop, Batch Image Editing, Image Editor, Photography.

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