ArcSoft PhotoStudio Darkroom
Not to be confused with the PhotoStudio image editor, ArcSoft PhotoStudio Darkroom provides non-destructive image processing for RAW, JPEG and TIFF image files. It offers a full range of standard image processing features, including exposure and white balance adjustment, lens correction, curves and levels, crop and straighten, red-eye removal, and one-click spot/patch removal. It supports the most popular color spaces, has batch export facilities and can convert RAW files to Adobe DNG for archiving.
PhotoStudio Darkroom's interface has the streamlined arrangement of thumbnail strip at the bottom, histogram at top-right and a large viewing area for the images. You can see your pictures in "Before-After" viewing mode or in "Side-by-Side" mode for comparison and selection. A lens correction utility fixes purple fringe, vignetting, barrel, pincushion and perspective distortions. Export of the processed RAW files is to high-quality JPEG, or TIFF (24 or 48-bit) format.
Comment
Popular Photography placed ArcSoft PhotoStudio Darkroom as No.2 in a list of the five top RAW converters. In view of the competition, that is quite an achievement. Its RAW format support is particularly strong, including output from Hasselblad H2D and Mamiya ZD cameras. In line with most ArcSoft products it is aimed at both professionals and hobbyists, a dual personality that may tend to confuse its image in the market. You could describe it as being a low-cost alternative to Apple's Aperture, with support for Windows.
Tech info
- OS: Windows 2000 onwards; Mac OS X
- Price level: Approx. $100
ArcSoft
ArcSoft, Inc. is one of the leading software developers of multimedia technologies and applications, both for the desktop and embedded platforms. It has over 200 OEM clients worldwide.
From the same vendor:
- PhotoStudio
- Panorama Maker
- PhotoMontage
- Print Creations
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