When I first started taking pictures, I remember being startled by the prices of Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom, but I “need” them, so I put my hands in my pockets. Before that, you could buy one version of the software right away, which was better in many ways, but that also meant they became obsolete because major updates were locked behind new versions. I thought this changed for the better when Adobe introduced a subscription model so you always have the latest version, but alas, that turns out not to be the case. Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom alone, the “Photography” plan, it’s $19.99 per month (more outside the US) or $82.49 per month (yes, you read that correctly) for all including Adobe software (including Adobe Premiere Pro for video).
For many beginners, that’s simply too much for those two apps, and the $82.49 per month plan is hard for most people to justify. However, when I started my journey with a camera, the alternatives were grim. I’ve tested with a few, and they behave like software from the early ’90s — and they look the same. Now, there are viable alternatives and one is Zoner Photo Studio X. Not only can it compete with what Photoshop and Lightroom have to offer, but it does it with speed fraction compared to the price ($5.99 or $59 per year.)
If you search for “Zoner” here on Fstoppers, you’ll see several other articles about the suite and some major updates before that. In this article, I’ll highlight the best parts of the latest update that contains “the biggest batch of improvements since Version X, released in 2016.”
Cut raw processing time in half
There are some things that make me rage faster than slow calculations, especially if the immediate task is for work. When you open raw files for the first time, this can be a slow and cumbersome task for the editor. What’s going on behind the scenes is a decolorization algorithm that interprets and combines the color information captured by your camera’s sensor, which only records one color per pixel. Once done, the algorithm provides the full-color image you see by guessing the missing colors per pixel. Although modern software has improved how quickly and efficiently this function can be, it can still be slow. With the latest update, ZPS X has more or less halved raw file opening times, as well as improved import and export speeds in general.
Native support for 50% more body and 1,200+ lenses
Over the past 20 years, the number of different cameras that have been released is unprecedented. It has reached the point where it is no longer common to stumble across someone with the same model you are using. If, like me, you often enjoy lounging off the beaten track with your camera, this could pose a problem. If you have never been denied reading your work by processing software, you may not appreciate the pain afterwards. When looking at unreleased cameras, I would say that’s the worst part of the workflow. Well, since the Fall 2022 update — just a few months ago — the ZPS X has increased the number of supported camera bodies by a whopping 50%.
Arguably the bigger news, however, is the native support of more than 1,200 lenses. This means that there are lens profiles for a multitude of glass choices, allowing you to automatically correct distortion, chromatic aberration, and vignetting. No extra settings needed, just enable automatic lens correction and the number of supported lenses is continuing to grow at a node-by-button rate.
Brand new video module features
In any article I write about the ZPS X, I mention that it aims to be a comprehensive software suite that can edit photos and videos and act as a file management tool. The video module starts off working pretty basic, but with each passing update it evolves into a more comprehensive weapon for multimedia folk. There are four main components to the latest update to the video module:
- clip conversion: Footage can now be easily cropped, scaled and moved.
- keyframes: Any setting or animation can now be fully controlled on clips instead of the whole thing.
- preload: Videos can now be preloaded from a folder for a smoother and faster workflow.
- Quick preview: Video preview is now smooth even on weaker hardware and high quality at full resolution.
Bonus: Zonerama
Last year, I said area underrated, and I still feel the same way. In fact, the whole quote is applicable: “Zonerama is a free online gallery for your images, but it’s a lot of things: unlimited space, sharing settings and custom privacy, and my personal preference: no compression. That is, you can upload as many photos as you want for free, and they will keep their original quality.”
Zonerama has continued to improve, with this update also adding 2K and 4K resolution video. However, there is one aspect that I am not aware of: Zonerama is free to use regardless of whether you purchase a software license or not. The ZPS X is already ridiculously reasonably priced, so I’m not sure why Zonerama is free, especially when it’s such a useful feature. There aren’t many — if any — free online galleries with unlimited space that give you privacy and sharing, while not compressing your images. So it’s worth planting a flag in this!
And more…
When I say that these three features stand out to me, that’s not to say that there aren’t some great additions and improvements in the latest ZPS X update that I haven’t included. There are some general improvements, such as higher quality photo previews, interactive video thumbnails, and loads of UI changes. Then there are more targeted enhancements like artifact reduction for high ISO images; This is especially effective for cameras using the Fuji X-Trans sensor.
So much has been included in this latest update to the ZPS X that it’s hard to cover it all in one place, but I’ll emphasize one last point as a great quality of life addition: You can now customize the Grow module, allowing you to move and rearrange panels and settings groups the way you want them positioned.
ZPS X may not be the most popular editing suite out there, but the team that worked on it deserves more credit than they get. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen software so actively iterated, rolling out massive update patches multiple times a year.
If this comprehensive software suite for a fraction about the price of its well-known competitors sounds interesting, why not use Zoner Photo Studio X’s free one-month trial To test the water?
