ON1 Photo RAW 2026.4: Restore AI tutorial and limits

Anthony Morganti demonstrates the home screen and Restore AI in ON1 Photo RAW 2026.4. The home screen provides access to recent images, folders and practice files. Users who prefer to start in Browse can change the startup option in General preferences.

Restore AI is the main focus. Morganti says it requires ON1 Photo RAW 2026 Max and sends images to ON1 servers for processing. This workflow therefore should not be treated as offline photo restoration. He demonstrates repairing a creased, yellowed photograph, then compares Auto, Faithful, Monochrome and Sepia presets. Adjustments control tone, color and sharpness, while text prompts request further edits.

The examples also expose limitations. A prompt adds clouds and sharpens a film scan but fails to remove a log in two attempts. Portrait restoration changes recognizable facial features, and an orangutan example develops altered eyes and skin. Morganti recommends manual removal tools and sharpening for some images where preserving appearance matters. Face Recovery includes a slider to blend the original face with the recovered result.

Export creates a separate image rather than overwriting the original. The ON1 Photo format retains the restored result and original as separate layers. Morganti also shows how to choose the editing module that opens after saving.