20 Best Photo Editing Software for New Photographers (2023)

Traditionally, only seasoned photographers could edit raw images to bring out the best in them; nowadays, everyone is a photographer.

Image credit: Photographerhumor

The great news is that the right software makes photo editing a breeze.

This guide includes all such tools ranked and compared, including:

• The best free photo editors.
• The best tools for Mac.
• The top photo editing picks for PC and Windows.
• The most accessible photo software for beginners.
• The best portrait editing software.

Let’s get started.

What is the Best Photo Editing Software?

Here are my picks for the best photo editing software to try this year:

1. Adobe Photoshop.

Best Overall Photo Editor for Mac and PC.

Adam’s Take

If you’re looking for excellent photo editing software, then Adobe Photoshop is your tool. It has everything you need to create stunning artwork or edit photos. With an intuitive interface and a wealth of features, Photoshop is sure to meet all your needs.

out of 10

Best For

Overall Editing

Price

$20.99/mo

Annual Discount

No

Promotion

Start Free Trial

Try Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Photoshop deserves special mention as the best editing software in any article. After all, the name “Adobe Photoshop” is synonymous with photo editing.

It is one of the most popular photo editing software tools. Photoshop is the primary tool for its fans worldwide, including designers, artists, and illustrators.

Unlike Adobe Lightroom, Adobe Photoshop is meticulously designed for professionals who need all the advanced features in one package. You name an editing feature, and the chances are Photoshop will have it.

Key Features:

It is practically impossible to include all the features that Photoshop offers. Here are some key features that would help you to make a better decision:

• Its masking and selection tools are the best in the business
• Incredible cloning and retouching capabilities
• Photoshop is incredibly fast, even with larger size images
• It comes with depth map support for HEIF files and 360 editing tools
• Photoshop supports all of the main file formats like JPG, PNG, and GIF, as well as raw files
• It uses local adjustment layers for non-destructive editing to enhance the appearance of your image

User Experience:

Adobe Photoshop is easy to use, with a well-known left-hand side menu that features all the tools you need and a right-hand side menu with your history and layers.

In the center, you’ll see the preview of your image and can use the various tools to make adjustments.

Pricing:

Initially, you get a 1-week free trial. Adobe Photoshop comes bundled with Creative Cloud storage of 100 GB. Its annual plan costs around $20 per month.

The Creative Cloud Photography plan includes Photoshop and Adobe Lightroom for photo management.

What I Like/Dislike About Adobe Photoshop:

Like:

• A vast choice of tools makes it versatile to get the job done
• It has a lot of features and functions that can get the job done in multiple ways

Dislike:

• Takes time to find your way around it if you’re new to photo editing

Product Updates:

• Edge enhancement in your skies allows you to make your skies pop in photos with just a few clicks.
• Copy-paste Live Text from Ai is a new feature that allows you to copy and paste text from Adobe Illustrator into Photoshop easily.

Sign up for Adobe Creative Cloud and get started with Adobe Photoshop.

2. Corel PaintShop Pro.

Best Easy Photo Tool for Beginners.

Adam’s Take

I recommend Corel PaintShop Pro for easy-to-use yet effective image editing software. It is one tool that I would recommend to beginner users or those who are on a budget. It has a wide variety of built-in brushes, which makes it great for painting or drawing.

out of 10

Best For

Ease Of Use

Price

$79.99

Annual Discount

No

Promotion

30 Day Guarantee

Try Corel PaintShop Pro

Corel PaintShop Pro is a capable and one of the most inexpensive photo editing software tools out there. Some photographers call it an Adobe Photoshop alternative, but it lacks Photoshop’s most advanced flagship features, including Camera Shake Reduction, 3D modeling, Faces Liquefy, and detailed typography, among others.

However, Corel PaintShop Pro is not a bad option if you want basic yet effective image editing software.

Key Features:

Some of its unique features which make it worth trying are as follows:

• Perfect for beginners
• 360-degree image editing capability
• The user experience is crisp and smooth
• Designers can start working from pre-existing graphic design templates
• Extensive library of gradients, picture tubes, colors, and pallets, among others

User Experience:

With a similar interface to Photoshop, Corel PaintShop Pro is an excellent program for those already familiar with Photoshop.

However, even if you have never used Photoshop before, Corel PaintShop Pro is still relatively easy to use and learn, thanks to its many helpful tutorials.

Some filters and effects can be applied to photos and images, and users can also take advantage of the program’s RAW image support for superior editing options.

Pricing:

PaintShop Pro 2022 version is $79.99. It also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.

What I Like/Dislike About Corel PaintShop Pro:

Like:

• Intuitive interface that is easy to learn for newbies yet still packed with enough features for advanced users.
• It can handle vector and photo images which is great for graphic designers or anyone who needs to work with both images.

Dislike:

• PaintShop Pro is only available on Windows. No Mac version exists.

Product Updates:

• AI Style Transfer status bar translations were fixed so that they now correctly display in all languages.
• Decrease Color Depth > 2 Color Palette now correctly converts images.

Get started with Corel PaintShop Pro 2022.

3. Skylum Luminar.

Best HDR and Filters for Photographers.

Adam’s Take

An alternative to other popular photo editing software that many people love is Luminar AI by Skylum. It has excellent image editing capabilities and a great user interface. If you are looking for powerful photo editing software, Luminar AI should be one of your considerations.

out of 10

Best For

Photographers

Price

$79-$138

Annual Discount

No

Promotion

30 Day Guarantee

Try Luminar AI

Skylum Luminar AI is an excellent alternative to Adobe Lightroom. As a result, it has been gaining massive popularity among photographers.

It comes with powerful image editing capabilities with more affordable pricing. Its latest version, Luminar 4, is faster and provides a perfect blend of Lightroom and Photoshop. With one single software, you get the best of both worlds.

Key Features:

Some of its notable key features include:

• Adjustment layers and masks
• Offers 24/7 Technical and Sales Support
• Fast editing controls with a lesser lag time
• Clever shortcuts for automatic management of photographs
• Folders are constantly updated with the content available on the hard disk
• Viewing options include filmstrip view, gallery view, and single image view
• AI-powered sky enhancer and accidental AI and sun rays

User Experience:

The photo editing opportunities in Luminar are endless. 

You can achieve almost any look you can imagine with various tools.

The user interface is very intuitive and easy to use.

Even if you’re a beginner, you’ll be able to find your way around the software, mainly thanks to the AI Augmented Sky feature, which can help you to enhance your photos with just a few clicks.

Pricing:

Unlike recurring payment for Adobe editing tools, Luminar comes with more affordable plans, as follows:

• Luminar Neo + Film Burn: $79
• Luminar Neo + Lumbinar X Membership + Film Burn: $138

They also offer subscription memberships.

What I Like/Dislike About Skylum Luminar:

Like:

• Massive AI photo editing software can do almost anything you can imagine for your photos.
• The photo editing process is done easier and faster with the help of the software.

Dislike:

• Healing and cloning tool is not always reliable
• Handling of workflow and organization could use improvement

Product Updates:

• Automatic content-aware image enhancements help you to get the best out of your photos with minimum effort.
• Sky AI is a new feature that uses Artificial Intelligence to replace the sky automatically.

Get started today and order the brand-new Skylum Luminar 4. 

4. Adobe Lightroom.

Best Online Photo Editing Tool.

Adam’s Take

I like Adobe Lightroom because it is easy to use, and the results are fantastic. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a great photo editing software that has similar functionality to Photoshop – without being quite as overwhelming.

out of 10

Best For

Online Editing

Price

$9.99/mo

Annual Discount

No

Promotion

30 Day Free

Try Adobe Lightroom

Adobe needs no introduction to the world of photo editing. It continues to be a pioneer in releasing cutting-edge photo editing software updates.

Adobe Lightroom is another powerful editing software by Adobe. Ideally, it is perfect for photographers who want a more straightforward yet capable tool to edit their images.

Unlike Photoshop’s complicated and intimidating user interface, both Lightroom Classic and CC offer a more intuitive and user-friendly interface for image editing.

Key Features:

Some of its incredible features include:

• Sliders are customizable
• Blurring and fixing tools
• It syncs with multiples devices
• Cam and lens-based corrections
• Gradient and brush adjustment tools
• Professional filters, along with numerous presets
• Its face detection capability helps in organizing the photographs more efficiently

User Experience:

Tweak your photos to your heart’s content and get the look you want with Adobe Lightroom.

The user experience is intuitive and straightforward, making it an excellent choice for amateur and professional photographers.

While there is a slight learning curve if you want to get super detailed with your photos, the average user should be able to pick it up quickly and start using all the features easily.

Pricing:

The cloud-based photo editing tool offers seamless editing capabilities across mobile, web, and desktop through a single subscription plan. The annual subscription of its Basic plan starts at around $125.87 and ranges up to $251.87 for up to 1 TB of Cloud storage.

What I Like/Dislike About Adobe Lightroom:

Like:

• Next-level editing allows you to change the feel and look of your photos.
• Its recommendations and presets help take the guesswork out of which settings will work best for your photo.

Dislike:

• Limited editing options when compared to other software.
• The absence of layers or blend modes means that you cannot create as complex graphics as you can with other software.

Product Updates:

• Automatically select a subject or sky and edit those areas with the new tools.
• Experience more creative control and editing precision with the new Masking Brush. Now you can quickly and easily mask out areas of your photo so you can make non-destructive edits.

Get started with Adobe Lightroom.

5. Skylum Aurora HDR.

“The world’s most advanced HDR photo editor for Mac and Windows.”

Adam’s Take

Looking for an HDR photo editor that will take your photography to the next level? Look no further than Skylum Aurora HDR. With its easy-to-use interface and powerful editing tools, Aurora HDR is great for merging images to create final shots that look natural and stunning.

out of 10

Best For

HDR

Price

$99

Annual Discount

No

Promotion

30 Day Free

Try Skylum Aurora HDR

Skylum Aurora HDR facilitates the efficient merging of imagery to create final shots that simultaneously look natural and stunning. It operates as a standalone app and can integrate with other tools like Adobe Photoshop.

You can also integrate it as an Apple Photo extension. Aside from the traditional methods to create HDR images, Aurora enables photographers to create HDR images from a single file through its AI-based neural network.

Key Features:

Aurora HDR is a boon for HDR photography as it offers several leading-edge features to create cutting-edge images. Here are some of its key features:

• It comes loaded with 20+ tools that help you create stunning HDR images
• It smartly cleans noise and enhances depth & details
• Its HDR clarity feature optimizes clarity and enhances localized contrast for better results
• You can leverage its 80 unique presets to create RAW images into creative masterpieces in a few seconds
• You can also use manual mode to take all the control into your hands.

User Experience:

The difference between pictures edited in Aurora HDR and those that haven’t is stark.

The software offers a wide array of features and presets that make it easy to get professional-looking results.

Whether a beginner or a pro, you will find the tools to create stunning HDR photos.

Pricing:

It costs around $99 and comes with a 60-day money-back guarantee.

What I Like/Dislike About Skylum Aurora HDR:

Like:

• HDR Smart Structure is excellent for bringing out details in your images.
• Smart Tone makes it easy to get the perfect exposure for your photos.

Dislike:

• Manual work to install the Lightroom and Photoshop plugins

Product Updates:

• In Aurora HDR PRO, the number of RAW formats supported by other camera manufacturers has increased.
• Developers enabled banding in highlights.
• They also resolved the Photos for Mac extension stability bugs.

Get started with Skylum Aurora HDR.

6. Canva.

Best Tool for Business Templates and Designs.

Canva is one of the most popular tools to help you design stunning photo templates. Its simplistic user interface has enabled millions to edit graphics without substantial technical knowledge.

Its user-friendly drag-and-drop editor can add several layers to your photos. Plus, it allows you to easily add fonts and other graphics to your photos for publishing on social media or your website.

Key Features:

Canva is a go-to tool for professionals who want to create photo designs for websites, social media, flyers, brochures, and marketing collateral.

Here are some of its key features:

• You can download its mobile app to edit photos and create designs on the go
• It offers more than 8,000 templates, photos, icons, and cards for the easy creation of visual content
• Straightening and image cropping
• Offers speech bubble maker
• It is online, and one can use it on decent computers and laptops
• Get access to its massive library of images and designs
• Stores your photos and designs in the cloud

Pricing:

Canva operates on a freemium model. The Pro version comes at a subscription price of $12.99 per month. Canva also offers a quote-based version for teams.

Get started with Canva today.

7. Stencil.

Best for beginners with no graphic design skills ($9 per month).

Stencil is a web-based graphic design and photo editing tool that helps you create and edit images for your social media and website. It has a user-friendly interface and is suitable for social media marketing professionals, bloggers, and small business owners.

It helps you quickly design social media images, including ad banners, headers, profile pictures, and posts.

Some of its key features include:

• Instant image resizing.
• Ability to store and upload multiple logos.
• Easy-to-use addons for Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.
• Identify safe areas to put content in your image.
• Share images on different social platforms directly from your dashboard.
• Keep all your ‘favorite’ icons, logos, and images separately for quick access.

Stencil comes with a bank of over 5 million royalty-free images in high resolution that you edit within your Stencil dashboard. Besides, you get over 1400 templates to create designs like quotes, banners, etc.

With over 3,300 Google fonts and the ability to upload your custom fonts, you won’t lack options to design and customize your images.

Other elements include over 3 million unique icons for commercial and personal use, and 140+ custom-size presets to design images for different requirements. However, it also allows you to design images with a custom size. After you’re through with the final measurements, you preview the designed image to get a precise idea of how the final cut would look like.

Additionally, Stencil offers multiple filters to beautify images and download them in high resolution. You can also share your designs as a Bit.ly link with anyone across various platforms.

Integration with social platforms helps you share images directly to social media channels, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Buffer, and more. On top of that, it enables you to schedule your posts with Buffer.

Pricing:

Stencil comes with three subscription plans:

• Free: $0 per month (always free)
• Pro: $9 per month (when paid annually)
• Unlimited: $12 per month (when paid annually)

The Free plan lets you save up to 10 images per month; the Pro plan allows you to save 50 images per month, while you can save unlimited images with the Unlimited plan. Plus, all paid plans come with a 100% 7-day money-back guarantee.

Use my promo code ENFROY10 for a 10% discount on any plan.

8. PicMonkey.

Best for Online Ads and Social Posts.

PicMonkey is recommended for starters who want to brush up on their design and photo editing skills. It offers a complete range of photo editing tools, including touch up, crops, collages, and many more.

You can leverage its free trial version to test its photo editing capabilities before going for the paid version.

One of the best parts about PicMoney is its user interface, which is straightforward. It is also a perfect alternative for professionals overwhelmed by the complex features of other heavyweight photo editing software.

Key Features:

• A good selection of templates
• Advanced touch-up tools for stunning images
• Addition of features and tools through constant updates
• You can edit images easily through its feature-rich smartphone app for iPhone and Android
• Sophisticated graphic design tools to create images for online publishing
• You don’t have to be an editing wizard to use this photo editing software

PRICING:

PicMonkey offers a 7-day free trial, allowing you to test the product before upgrading to a paid version. The Basic plan is $7.99 per month, the Pro plan is $12.99, and the Team plan is $33.99.

9. Capture One.

Most Powerful Tool for Advanced Users.

Created by a camera company called Phase One, Capture One is an excellent addition to this list.

At first glance, this RAW image editor looks like any other editing software but offers many unique features.

If you are a photographer primarily interested in enhancing RAW images, this is a better option than Adobe Lightroom.

Key Features:

Capture One offers many robust features to make image editing a total breeze.

Here are some of its key features:

• Its masking capabilities eliminate the requirement to use Photoshop
• Performance is faster and slick even with massive images
• The Advanced Color Editing feature offers greater flexibility to adjust colors and white balance
• You can customize the interface as per your preference
• It allows you to make several adjustments on each layer without getting sluggish

Pricing:

Its monthly subscription plans start from $24 per month. You can also purchase it outright by paying $299, which includes 500+ camera support. The annual subscription is valued at $179.

CONS:

• You can’t export an image without a watermark. You will have to process it to remove the watermark.
• The Dehaze tool is absent
• No cloud storage option

10. DesignWizard.

Best Library of Image Templates.

DesignWizard is a tool that has thousands of pre-made image design templates suitable for everything from social media posts and YouTube Channel Art to birthday cards and gift certificates.

FEATURES:

• A library of over one million images, thousands of high-quality videos, graphics, and illustrations
• Every image and video is licensed for commercial use
• You can share content instantly on social media
• Marketing templates, including Facebook Ads templates, LinkedIn Ads, sale posters, loyalty cards, and more
• A simple photo editor where you can resize images, add text, logos, and more

Pricing:

DesignWizard’s pricing includes free and paid plans at $9.99 and $49.99/month.

Their free Basic Plan allows you to view their entire library, but you must pay $1 for each image design download. You can add text, resize images, and download your designs in JPEG, PNG, and PDF.

Their $9.99/month Pro Plan gives you up to 60 image downloads per month and allows you to upload custom images and fonts.

Finally, their most popular Business Plan at $49.99/month gives you unlimited image downloads and opens up all of their video features.

You can download unlimited standard videos, upload your videos to edit, and add text, images, and logos to your video assets.

Ultimately, your choice depends on how many images you need each month and whether or not you want to get involved in video marketing.

Overall, DesignWizard is an excellent tool if you’re looking for thousands of templated designs for personal or business use. 

11. ACDSee Photo Studio Ultimate.

Best Photo Editor for Creative Features.

ACDSee Photo Studio has been in the photo editing software market for a long time.

This multipurpose photo editing tool offers impressive features, which make it a reliable alternative to Adobe Photoshop. Moreover, it also comes in handy for beginners, thanks to its user-friendly interface.

The newly released version, ACDSee Photo Studio Ultimate, offers the latest capabilities and advanced tools for a better photo editing experience.

Key Features:

Let us take a look at some of the key features which make this photo editing program worth considering:

• Facial recognition capability that helps in better management of photographs
• You can use the Black and White tool in the “develop and edit” modes
• Leverage powerful LUTs presets for different color looks
• No need to import the files. Edit source files directly
• Distorts objects in the image through Liquify tool without compromising its quality

Pricing:

You can purchase its lifetime license at $79.95. ACDSee also offers one year of free updates and technical support along with the plan.

CONS:

• Skin Tune in develop mode faces lags
• This tool is not the perfect option for high-end professionals
• The user interface looks a bit dated and needs improvement for better performance

12. On1 Photo RAW.

Best Software That Includes Skills Courses.

Photo RAW is quite a popular option among photographers because it offers cutting-edge photo editing capabilities for free.

The software comes with a free trial version for 30 days, which one can upgrade later.

Photo RAW is an efficient tool for photographers who want to create stunning images without spending too much time on the editing table. It can either be used as a photograph organizer or an editing tool.

Key Features:

Some of its key features are unique from other popular photo editing programs present in the market.

Here they are:

• Its dual mode is a boon for photographers as it allows them to browse or edit pictures from the same tool
• You can view every editing step in its Edit History feature
• It is integrated with Apple Photos to support complete RAW data for stunning results
• You can execute live adjustments and previews
• Available for download on any device

Pricing:

On1 Photo RAW is priced at $99.99 for its new customers and $79.99 for customers who have used any On1 product before. You can also get the Photo RAW 2022.1 + All Plugins + Cloud Sync as a monthly or yearly package.

CONS:

• Online sharing capability is absent in Windows
• No Face and the geotagging feature
• Some features react slowly

13. Pixlr Editor.

Best Easy Online Photo Editor.

Pixlr Editor is an online photo editor more capable than several desktop photo editing apps.

Pixlr is a full-fledged photo editing web app with impressive customization capabilities and a simple user interface.

Though it is a browser-based application, you can make simple changes to its images from anywhere.

Key Features:

Pixlr comes with some fantastic features, including:

• You can use this web-based photo editing app from anywhere and on any computer
• Its supports masks and layers
• Allows you to choose from over 2 million effects
• You can also download its desktop photo editing software or mobile app
• You can customize the user interface as per your preference
• Allows you to open pictures from desktop, URLs, or simply import directly from social media platforms

Pricing:

Pixlr offers a free version. However, it is cluttered with ads, a major distraction for any photo editing professional. Pixlr is right now offering substantial discounts on its pro subscription plans. You can get a monthly subscription at $5 and a quarterly at $12.

CONS:

• It requires flash
• A brand new photo editing software might replace it soon
• The help section of Pixlr isn’t efficient and doesn’t provide solutions to all the problems

14. Gimp.

Best Free and Open-Source Photo Editing Software.

Gimp stands for GNU Image Manipulation Program. This free and open-source image editing software has pro-level features that can help you create stunning images.

It also allows the developers to tweak the source code and distribute the updated version.

This free photo editing software is excellent for designers, illustrators, and photographers just starting.

Key Features:

Gimp is free but offers pro-level features to meet all essential photo editing requirements.

Here are some of its key features:

• Its high-quality photo manipulation capabilities help you retouch or restore the images efficiently.
• You can create stunning original artwork.
• Allows you to create pro-level graphic design elements.
• Offers a greater level of customization through integration with several plugins.
• You can integrate with several programming languages, including Perl, Scheme, Python, and more.

Pricing:

Entirely free of cost.

CONS:

• You might face bugs and errors due to community development
• It is a bit slower than other professional options
• Gimp is good for starters and professionals with limited requirements. However, it is not an ideal option for pro-level editing work.

15. Alien Skin Exposure X4.

Best Professional RAW Photo Editor.

Alien Skin Exposure comes equipped with a fantastic range of tools for professional photo editing. It is also touted as a perfect combination of Photoshop and Lightroom CC.

It has many features to choose from, from its support to layers and masks to several one-click presets.

Key Features:

It has a host of key features to enable photographers to achieve desired results.

Here are some of the key features:

• Clean and user-friendly interface
• Loaded with several one-click presets and filters
• Facilitates faster transfer of images
• It offers an efficient printing option
• Offers Smart Collection features to organize the library more efficiently
• Enhanced light effects for better exposure

Pricing:

You can buy Exposure X7 for about $129 or the entire Exposure X7 Bundle for about $149.

CONS:

• No Auto-correction tools
• No Face or geotagging feature
• Lens-profile correction feature is not up to the mark
• The chromatic aberration correction feature is absent

16. Adobe Photoshop Elements.

Best Simple Image Editor for PC.

Adobe Photoshop Elements is specially designed for beginners and comes with crisp and easy-to-use UI and powerful photo editing capabilities.

If you are a non-professional or beginner who wants to enter Adobe’s photo editing ecosystem, then Elements is an excellent option.

You can execute pro-level photoshop effects with Elements without having any professional skills. It also performs basic photo editing tasks at an incredible pace.

Key Features:

• Its “Auto Curate” feature leverages the power of AI to categorize the best images in your gallery.
• The “Open Closed Eyes” feature can fix a closed eye, a common problem in photography.
• It is capable of more guided edits, including replacing the background, double exposure, shape overlay, watercolor, and more.
• Create professional collages in a few steps
• Its “Guided Edits” feature helps create part-image sketches, memes, and multi-photo text.
• Its AI capabilities cover a lot of editing tasks on its own

Pricing:

You can buy Adobe Photoshop Elements for $99.99. You can also get Photoshop & Premiere Elements for $149.99.

CONS:

• It takes up a lot of memory space on the hard disk.
• HEIF support is not available on Windows.
• Social sharing outputs are limited.
• Lens geometry profile or chromatic aberration removal is absent.

17. Snappa.

Best for Creating Quick Online Graphics.

Snappa is a cloud-based photo editing tool. It perfectly meets the requirement of professionals who typically need images and designs for social media postings, marketing, and personal purposes.

The image editing tool collaborates with different professionals to help you complete a project faster.

Moreover, Snappa’s user-friendly interface enables photographers to transform their images into stunning art. It also allows you to add unique effects and new dimensions to your images.

Key Features:

Snappa’s key features provide professional photo editing capabilities.

• Edit pictures using its powerful drag-and-drop editor
• Start editing quickly on image dimension templates meant for social media, blog, and other online postings
• Leverage thousands of free stock photos to create stunning designs
• Share edited pictures directly on social media
• Crisp and fast editing
• Custom font uploads

Pricing:

Snappa works on a freemium model that allows five free image design downloads per month. You can buy its 1-user monthly subscription for $10.

Subscription for teams is priced at $20, which allows five users to work from the account. Both of these are billed yearly.

CONS:

• No autosave option
• No-undo feature makes editing somewhat frustrating
• The font search feature is not reliable as it only searches by its first letter

18. PortraitPro.

Best Portrait Editing Software.

PortraitPro is one of the best photo editing software tools on this list. It is created specifically for professionals who specialize in portrait photography.

The software is powered with all the bells and whistles you need to create stunning portraits.

This photo editing software allows you to correct skin tone, remove wrinkles, fix sagging cheeks or blemishes, and add eye shadow, among others.

It also allows you to fix poor lighting errors.

Key Features:

• PortraitPro comes equipped with advanced features to ensure stunning portraits, such as:
• It allows manual adjustments to fix almost any facial feature
• It comes equipped with an advanced layering option
• Advanced makeup tools can transform a face efficiently
• Skin smoothening and wrinkle remover features help in creating stunning portraits
• All the adjustments are made in real time without any lag

Pricing:

PortraitPro is offering a 50 percent discount right now, which brings the cost down to $54.95.

CONS:

• No option to reset the image to its original form
• It takes some time to wrap your head around the UI

19. Fotor.

Best Collage Maker and Designer.

Fotor is a perfect option for photo editing enthusiasts and beginners who usually edit images for personal use.

This online photo editor and collage maker also comes in a full-fledged desktop application.

Moreover, it supports RAW photo conversion, a valuable free software feature.

The software also includes image-enhancing tools, including numerous filters to create stunning images. Its simple user interface offers stunning one-click filters, which can instantly enhance your images.

Key Features:

Fotor can rival some of the best-paid photo editing software thanks to its smartly packed features. Some of its key features include:

• Its stunning filters, including portrait, theatre, landscape, and sunset, help you enhance the quality of your pictures
• It enables you to add frames or borders and apply special effects to improve the quality of the image
• Leverage its innovative photo collage tool to create intuitive collages in a significantly less amount of time
• It supports popular RAW formats and also offers a tilt-shift algorithm in an improved version
• Fotor’s free version will not bug you aggressively with ads

Pricing:

Fotor’s Pro costs $39.99, while Fotor Pro+ costs $89.99 on annual subscriptions.

CONS:

• It is not as feature-packed as professional photo editing software is expected to be
• Not the most capable app for designing artwork from scratch

20. Inkscape.

Best for Linux and Vector Graphics.

Inkscape is mainly built for vector illustration and is free to download.

It is a perfect software tool for budding designers and illustrators who don’t want to invest in expensive software at the start of their careers.

Moreover, it is an open-source photo editing software that coders can develop further and upgrade its features.

Key Features:

Despite being an open-source photo editing software, Inkscape offers a lot of value for designers.

Some of its new features are:

• Converts bitmap images into vectors through a variety of different ways
• It is available on Windows, MacOS, and Linux
• Multiple text formats and color picker
• It offers a vast extension eco-system and a large community that is working on its continuous development
• Its placement and path tools function like a professional software
• You can choose or remove tools as per your requirement

Pricing:

It is entirely free of cost.

CONS:

• Its interoperability is weak
• It requires a steep learning curve to run the software efficiently, especially for Mac users.
• The user interface is dated and hampers the performance
• Text formatting tools need improvement

Other photo editing software worth mentioning are Affinity Photo, DXO Photolab, Cyberlink, and Photodirector.

What Is Photo Editing Software?

Photo editing software is a computer program that allows users to edit and manipulate digital images.

Photographers can enhance their images’ colors, brightness, contrast, and sharpness with photo editing software.

Photo editing software also allows for more complex manipulations such as cropping, blending images, retouching blemishes or flaws in photos, adding text or graphics overlays to photos, creating collages, and other special effects.

One can use photo editing software for a variety of purposes.

For example, some photographers use it to make basic adjustments to an image, such as color correction or brightness/contrast adjustments.

Others may use it to create more complex compositions by combining several images or adding special effects and filters.

Amateur photographers may use photo editing software to enhance their photography skills. In contrast, professional photographers can use advanced features such as layering and masking tools to create high-end results.

Photo editing software is also used extensively by graphic designers to produce professional graphics for various uses, including website design and corporate branding materials.

One advantage of photo editing software is that it allows users to work directly with digital images and quickly adjust without compromising the original image quality or resolution.

With the addition of AI photo editing software, it is now possible to automatically make adjustments and corrections, saving time and allowing users to focus on the creative side of their work.

Many programs offer tools for batch processing multiple images at once, saving time when working on large projects such as wedding albums or family reunions where hundreds of photos might need minor tweaks before printing them out for framing or sharing online.

Additionally, many modern photo editors offer powerful image manipulation capabilities that allow users to adjust specific areas within an image without affecting the rest of the scene.

This feature makes them great for producing realistic composites from separate elements or retouching glossy magazine adverts in minutes rather than hours!

Photo Editing Software FAQ.

Wrap-Up: Which Photo Editing Software Did You Choose?

All these photo editing software tools mentioned above are impressive in their own right.

However, deciding which photo editor is perfect depends on your preference, budget, and photo editing skills, among other things.

For instance, GIMP could be the most suitable option for professionals looking for a powerful photo editing tool for free.

However, to get the best photo editing features, I recommend you go with one of my top picks:

• Adobe Photoshop
• Corel Paintshop Pro 2020
• Skylum Luminar

So, which photo editing software did you choose? Let me know about your experience in the comment section below.

Also, since most of these photo editors offer free trial plans, there’s no harm in trying out a few before making a final decision.

Further Reading on AdamEnfroy.com: To dive deeper, check out my reviews of the best video editing software and animation software to test your editing and design skills.

In addition, check out my GIMP vs. Photoshop comparison to see what features are available in both software.

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Last Updated on February 24, 2023 by Adam Enfroy