Luminar Neo is Here!
Luminar Neo is finally here! Here’s a few quick thoughts about it, and some great video resources to help you get up and running with it quickly. Thanks for following along!
The day is finally here - Luminar Neo is publicly available!
Yes, the original announcement and pre-order period started in September 2021, which feels like a really long time ago (well, it is 5+ months, so yeah). But the day is upon us, and Luminar Neo is now generally available. As you might expect, I created a First Look video on my YouTube channel, which I will link to below. In the video, I cover what’s new, what’s coming but not yet in the product, what’s different from Luminar AI, and also what’s missing (in my opinion). Yes, I do think there are some things that are missing from this initial launch version. I do think they will be added, but I do not know when.
Don’t have Luminar Neo yet? You can get it here.
I have been using the beta of Luminar Neo for a few months now, and have found it to be both quick and stable (I am on a Mac). Considering all the new stuff that is still to come (Mask AI and Portrait Background Removal, most notably), I think it is and will continue to be an amazing product. But it’s not perfect.
Once all of the remaining, promised features make it into the product, I think this will be a very formidable one. I already use it all the time, and have no reason to expect that to change.
I have already been sharing a lot of videos about Luminar Neo, which you can find in this playlist on YouTube.
Some of the more popular videos include:
Hopefully those give you some ideas about how to get the most out of Luminar Neo!
And oh yeah, I have a TON of Luminar Neo videos that I am planning. So if it’s of interest to you, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel to stay up to date on all these things.
I’ll be there every week making tutorials for ya!
Aurora HDR - Still a Good Option in 2021?
In this video and blog post, I dive back into Aurora HDR. It was the first app that I really got into deeply, and sort of put me on the path I am now on. But I haven’t used it in a while, and was curious if it held up to today’s standards. Check it out and let me know your thoughts!
I have used Aurora HDR since the first version came out years ago. But it hasn’t been upgraded in a couple of years. In this video, I dive back into it and see if it still holds up to today’s standards. Enjoy!
Here’s the image from the video. Fully edited in Aurora HDR, and I have to admit I really like the result, even though I have gotten away from processing HDR photos. Interiors like this always look good in HDR, in my opinion.
Back in the “old days” of just a few short years ago, I basically shot brackets every time I went out with the camera, and I edited nearly every single image as an HDR. It was what I loved to do, and I did it. A lot.
But in the last few years, I have drifted away from both shooting brackets and processing images as HDRs. I now mostly shoot single exposures, and am quite happy doing so. But on my recent trip to New England, I ended up shooting a few brackets and thought it would be fun to dive back into Aurora HDR and try my hand at processing some images as HDRs. Now, the image in this video wasn’t actually shot on my trip - it’s an older image from a trip to Dublin, Ireland years ago. It was just the recent trip to New England that inspired me to try HDR again.
And mostly I was curious as to how well Aurora HDR would hold up compared to the sort of things you can do with apps these days. You see, Aurora HDR has long been my favorite HDR processing software, but it has not been upgraded with new features in a couple of years. So I asked Skylum about it, and they said they felt it could still hold its own against other HDR editors.
And while this video is not a feature comparison between Aurora HDR and other HDR editing apps, I do fully edit the image in Aurora HDR here, and check out the various features (many of which I had forgotten about) and see how well I can manage an image here, vs having to start here and finish elsewhere (like in Luminar AI, for instance).
Spoiler Alert: The end result is that I am still impressed with Aurora HDR, and having rediscovered it, I may begin to use it again with other photos. I had forgotten that it support LUTs (something I am really into these days), has Lens Correction and Transform tools (which work great), and although I did not forget that it has a Layers function, it was good to be reminded of that. They can come in really handy!
Hope you enjoy the workflow video and let me know if you have any questions. Thanks!
If you are interested in a getting a copy of Aurora HDR, you can get it here: https://bit.ly/2N3av7b
Use coupon code JIMNIX to save $10 while you are at it!
Yes, You Can Use Your Own Skies in Luminar 4
Using your own skies in Luminar 4…
I have gotten the same question so many times, people wondering if they can use their own skies for the AI Sky Replacement feature in Luminar 4. Yes you can, and it’s easy to do. Follow along as I demonstrate how this works, and hope it helps!
5 Tips to Help You Prepare for Luminar 4
5 tips that will help you get ready for the new Luminar 4, which is coming really soon!
In this video, I share 5 tips that will help you get ready for Luminar 4, which is coming really soon! Check it out and I hope that it helps you prepare.
Foreground Replacement in Luminar
Replace a foreground in Luminar - quick and easy!
I have done several videos about how to replace a sky in Luminar, but did you know you can also replace a foreground? You can, and it can be quite simple to do. Follow along as I show this trick!
AI, New Sky: A Quick Demo of Luminar 4 AI Sky Replacement
A quick demo of the power of AI Sky Replacement in Luminar 4
Oh boy, you are going to love this feature in Luminar 4! Follow along as I show off the power and fun of the AI Sky Replacement filter in the upcoming release of Luminar 4!
Simple Landscape Workflow in Luminar
A new tutorial video showcasing how I achieved exactly the look I wanted in this shot…
I love to photograph landscapes - who doesn’t? - but I rarely get the chance. So in Wales I made sure to consume as many as possible. In this video, I share some tips for getting exactly the look I want by making quite a few adjustments across several filters. Hope it helps and enjoy!
Minor Tweaks, Major impact
A recent video showcasing how small changes can have a big impact…
Here’s a little video I did showing how a few minor tweaks can make a huge impact on the outcome. Hope it helps and thanks for watching!
Day to Night Fantasy Workflow in Luminar
Follow along as I delve in to the realm of fantasy and create an image that looks like it came from a story!
If you have seen any of my videos, you know I like to try creative things and experiment a lot on my images. In this video, I walk through how I took a photo from mid day in bright light and turned it into a fantasy-inspired evening shot with a lot of mood. It was actually pretty quick and easy, and of course it was fun. Follow along!
Skylum Announces AI-Powered Portrait Tools for Luminar 4!
Luminar 4 will get a couple of new filters, specifically for portraits. Check out this preview video!
My friends over at Skylum have just announced two new filters that are coming in Luminar 4 this Fall: AI Skin Enhancer and Portrait Enhancer. They both seem to work really well (note: I do not have the product yet) and are certainly an interesting development for the product. They sent me some sample images to look at it, so of course I put a little video together wherein I take a close look at the results and share my thoughts on it. Take a look and hope it helps.
If you are interested in pre-ordering Luminar 4, you can get it here: https://bit.ly/32JKBJP
Basic Luminosity Masking in On1 Photo Raw 2019
In this video I show how Luminosity Masking works in On1…follow along!
Luminosity Masking in On1 is easy and powerful, which is a great combo. I like to use it on my images to get a subtle application of a particular effect, as well as to control specifically where the effect is applied. Follow along as I show how to do that with On1. Hope it helps!
60 Seconds in London
Here’s a mini-film that I compiled from footage I captured recently in London. Hope you enjoy it!
While I was in London recently, I kept my DJI Osmo Pocket handy and captured quite a lot of video footage as I wandered around the city. It was great fun. But truthfully, I didn’t know what to do with the clips I captured. I had intended to make a vlog, but since I was running around here and there with my daughter, I just never got around to it. So instead, I ruthlessly whittled the footage down to this little 60 second mini-travelogue, which highlights a few of the places we visited while there. It was fun to make, and I think I will do more of these on future trips. Thanks for watching!
Getting Experimental in Topaz Studio 2
Follow along as I experiment with some less often used filters in Topaz Studio 2 and end up with a nice looking photo at the end! :-)
One of the great things about Topaz Studio 2 is that there are so many filters, which makes me want to grab them and experiment, just to see what I can come up with. So follow along as I do just that, and end up with a result I was not expecting, but find rather interesting!
Basic Brush Masking in On1
In this tutorial I demonstrate how to use the brush mask in On1 Photo Raw. It’s powerful, but quite easy to do!
Follow along as I show off the easy and powerful brush masking capability in On1 Photo Raw 2019!
Achieving My Vision || Luminar Workflow
Here’s a Luminar workflow video wherein I share some tips and tricks as I work towards what I imagined in my head. It all wort of worked out, too, which is always nice! :-)
This was a fun image to edit, simply because I had a vision that I wanted to achieve with it, and finally got there. It took some work, but it is always worth it. Follow along as I walk through this fun edit. Thanks!