ON1 Photo RAW 2026.4 vs Lightroom: editing tradeoffs

This review compares ON1 Photo RAW 2026.4 with Lightroom through RAW editing examples and a discussion of licensing. The speaker discloses affiliate relationships and free software access from photography companies, including ON1. His recommendation rests largely on the value of a perpetual license, rather than a claim that ON1 matches Lightroom's interface or editing behavior.

The main criticism concerns tonal adjustments. In the example, raising shadows also shifts midtones and highlights. The reviewer finds the overlap with the separate midtone slider counterintuitive and says the controls still need improvement. He briefly applies Brilliance AI for automatic correction, then demonstrates NoNoise AI on an ISO 1600 photo taken with an RF-S 18-45 lens. He considers the noise reduction result good, but points out vignetting that remains after lens correction.

The workflow also differs from Lightroom: curves and vignette adjustments require adding filters in the Effects tool. The speaker recommends staying with Lightroom Classic if its interface is what the viewer wants. He discusses darktable and Affinity as other options, while favoring Lightroom or Capture One when cost is less of a concern.

On his 16-inch M2 Pro MacBook Pro, he reports no major performance issues, though opening photos and using the brush can occasionally be finicky. The demonstration stops short of completing the edits, so it provides examples of specific controls rather than a finished-image comparison.