This is in part because it's modeled on Lightroom, so in a sense it aspires to be every bit as impenetrable as anything from Adobe.īut it's more because of the program's extreme flexibility, which is also an asset. Let me say right off, Darktable wasn't easy to love at first. Rather than tell the whole story here, I suggest you read my previous post, and then come back and read the rest of this one for updated details. They are all free downloads and can be automatically installed by Ubuntu. The programs I use are Rapid Photo Downloader, for loading images into the computer DigiKam, for tagging and rating images Darktable, for RAW conversion and detailed image processing and Gimp, for printing. The verdict: After a few bumps along the way, it's Linux and free open-source photo software for me. Over the past 10 years, I have collected about 50,000 digital images that I need to maintain access to.įor all this, I need a robust, reliable system that allows quick, easy downloads from camera cards simple and easy tagging and rating of photos and good control of black and white printing through the Epson 7600.

Finally, I do occasional freelance event and portrait photography. I also publish a subscription arts blog for which I regularly take photos at arts events. I make and sell hand-colored black and white photos, printed on an Epson 7600 modified with after-market ink. That would give me a chance to see whether I could actually run my photography business on the new system. Once I headed for Linux, I decided to plunge in fully and commit to using Ubuntu and free, open-source photo software for several months – at least until the end of that year. This was sparked by sudden crashes that were afflicting my system, but in a deeper sense grew from frustration with Windows and, to a lesser degree, with Lightroom. In summer 2015, I posted a detailed account of my tentative switch from Windows7 and Lightroom to Linux and Darktable. Brush Creek Ranch, Wyoming, where I enjoyed an artist residency for a month last fall.Ĭan a Linux system handle serious photography?

Darktable vs rawtherapee reddit