Any Point in Upgrading Lightroom?

I currently have LR 5 (version 5.7.1). I've had this for several years now. I guess newer versions of LR are subscription based? $119 a year for Lightroom CC? Is there any point in upgrading from my current version of LR? Any meaningful benefits from the more current version. I am not a professional photographer or anything. I simply want to try and take and edit nice photo's for my own personal enjoyment. Just a hobby. Thank You.

I upgraded to stand-alone LR6 so I could get access to 80D raw files. I'm done with Adobe if they stick to subscription models.

There are some speed differences between versions, as charted here https://photographylif​e.com …cc-performance-comparison

An article summarizes differences of v5 versus v6. A key factor is that you MUST use a 64-bit o/s !
https://prodesigntools​.com …-lightroom-6-cc-vs-5.html

And then of course, is the fact that a newer camera RAW file may not be supported in earlier version but is supported in the newer version.

There may be a non-subscription version available, but Adobe is starting to use the 'feature found only in cloud version' differentiation, too.

Getting up to 6 is worth it, just from a performance stand, and some of the newer controls. I refuse to move to the new 'subscription' models for my software, though; so, at some point I'm going to have to find a new solution.

6 does me just fine up to my 5DIV, though.

I will not use a subscription plan. I currently use 5.7 or whatever the latest LR5 version is. Soon I am going to upgrade to 6.13. The one thing 6 will do that 5 will not is that the programs that allow you to use a midi controller with LR only work with 6 or higher. I have updated my computer from a laptop to a desktop and due to the differences in ergonomics between the computers a midi controller just makes since.

So after getting the new computer working properly with 5.7, I will update it to 6 for the higher processing speeds and so I can use a midi controller.

If it was not for that, I would stick to LR5 and when it came time to upgrade then I would probably go with Capture One.

Bogino wrote in post #18669959
I currently have LR 5 (version 5.7.1). I've had this for several years now. I guess newer versions of LR are subscription based? $119 a year for Lightroom CC? Is there any point in upgrading from my current version of LR?

I'm using Lightroom Classic (the subscription version) and love it. It has a new Process version (4) and a bunch of new features that aren't available in LR6; including a new Profile system that allows the use of Colour Look Up Tables. There has also been some serious work done to speed it up when importing or moving between images.

Photography is a very expensive hobby. People pay thousands of pounds for camera bodies, lenses and computers, yet balk at paying a few measly quid for software. Editing software is an essential part of digital photography and for £10 per month you can get some of the best and most powerful photography software available. You don’t even have to buy Photoshop/Lightroom from Adobe. I have just renewed my Photography plan subscription through Amazon, and over here in “Rip-off” Britain I got a 12 month subscription for £79.

Wilt wrote in post #18669967
There may be a non-subscription version available,

Although Adobe is still selling upgrade serial numbers for LR6, you should be fully aware before buying that it is 3 year old software that is becoming obsolete and is not supported by Adobe. Its last and final update was issued in Dec., '17. Like with anything else, buying an out-of-production model can be a smart move or it can boomerang when buyer's remorse sets in. (I recently bought a Sony RX 100 in order to always have a decent camera in my pocket. Although current models are the Mk. 5A and the Mk. 6, I bought a new Mk. 4. No remorse.)

They have been saying that since 2013, when the parallel subscription track was launched. Now they have stopped saying it because there is only the subscription, although referring to it as the "cloud version" is a misnomer. Although LR Classic CC comes with a couple GB of cloud storage space tossed in, when I want to share I use other clouds.

john crossley wrote in post #18670082
Photography is a very expensive hobby. People pay thousands of pounds for camera bodies, lenses and computers, yet balk at paying a few measly quid for software. Editing software is an essential part of digital photography and for £10 per month you can get some of the best and most powerful photography software available. You don’t even have to buy Photoshop/Lightroom from Adobe. I have just renewed my Photography plan subscription through Amazon, and over here in “Rip-off” Britain I got a 12 month subscription for £79.

My issue with the subscription model is that Adobe quadrupled my cost for their software when they eliminated the perpetual license model, and I do not think Lightroom is worth four times the price I used to pay. Adobe's subscription model basically forces you to pay for Photoshop even if you do not use it.

Similar to Bassat, I upgraded from Lightroom 5 to Lightroom 6 to have the latest perpetual license version, and have added DxO PhotoLab to my set of tools. PhotoLab is priced very similar to what Adobe used to charge for Lightroom. I recently added a Canon M50 mirrorless camera to my arsenal, and that body is not supported yet by PhotoLab and is also not supported by LR6. So, for now I am using Adobe's free RAW to DNG converter application and then processing the DNG files in Lightroom 6. Once DxO adds support for the M50 to PhotoLab, I will be back to using that application for all my cameras -- I still use it for my 5D3 and 7D2.

Scott M wrote in post #18670266
My issue with the subscription model is that Adobe quadrupled my cost for their software when they eliminated the perpetual license model, and I do not think Lightroom is worth four times the price I used to pay. Adobe's subscription model basically forces you to pay for Photoshop even if you do not use it.

Similar to Bassat, I upgraded to from Lightroom 5 to Lightroom 6 to have the latest perpetual license version, and have added DxO PhotoLab to my set of tools. PhotoLab is priced very similar to what Adobe used to charge for Lightroom. I recently added a Canon M50 mirrorless camera to my arsenal, and that body is not supported yet by PhotoLab and is also not supported by LR6. So, for now I am using Adobe's free RAW to DNG converter application and then processing the DNG files in Lightroom 6. Once DxO adds support for the M50 to PhotoLab, I will be back to using that application for all my cameras -- I still use it for my 5D3 and 7D2.

Scott M,
Since you are using DNG converter, take a look at this. It contains a batch file for automatically:

Copying your raw files (and any JPGs you shot) to computer,
Converting raw files to DNG,
Backing up your raw files to a directory of your choice,
Open LR so you can import the DNG files (and any JPGs shot)

It comes with instructions.

https://photography-on-the.net …/showthread.php​?t=1472058

The subscription model won't make your images nicer but there are a bunch of new features. Besides the LUT tables mentioned

1. The updated Auto feature (Sensei) in the Basic window is very usable now.

2. Dehaze which has been recently moved up to the Basic window is a handy feature.

3. They introduced Adobe Colour to replace Standard which give more life to shots out of the camera. A few more profiles have been added. The profiles are now at the top of the windows, not the bottom.

4. Range Mask is an excellent addition for landscapes.

https://www.youtube.co​m/watch?v=SFuHYJvBXIQ

https://www.youtube.co​m/watch?v=usD8FIdQtkU&​frags=wn

You get LR CC for mobile apps but it is 100% cloud file storage. LR Classic CC or LR7 only syncs to the cloud if you want it to.

You also get PS CC, a few others and a free web site via Portfolio. If you are not opposed syncing to the cloud you can download LR collections to the website. You don't have to use the cloud. I just upload single images to it.

Like mentioned if you get LR6 the last update was December 2017. All cameras released up to 2018 were updated. Any cameras released in 2018 and on will not be updated. I figure LR6 will probably no longer be for sale in 2019. Just basing that on what happened to PS after it went CC.

If you are looking to upgrade and want perpetual licensing check out DXO PL. I was looking or an NR plugin for the tougher jobs and found Prime to be one of the better products out there. I still work with LR and send select files to DXO and back to LR for export. It is pretty impressive and it goes on sale for $149 from time to time. Like others once they update to a new version updates stop but if you keep the camera for a lot of years it can pay off. No DAM if you need it.

If I ever drop the subscription I could work with DXO. DXO has no DAM but I could still use LR's DAM as long as I like. If you unsubscribe only the Develop and MaO modules are disabled. The export page would still be available as well.

Scroll down to "What's new in Lightroom Classic 7.4" and previous version 7 updates to see if there is something you might like.

https://www.lightroomq​ueen.com/blog/

tzalman wrote in post #18670174
Although Adobe is still selling upgrade serial numbers for LR6, you should be fully aware before buying that it is 3 year old software that is becoming obsolete and is not supported by Adobe. Its last and final update was issued in Dec., '17. ...

They have been saying that since 2013, when the parallel subscription track was launched. Now they have stopped saying it because there is only the subscription, although referring to it as the "cloud version" is a misnomer. Although LR Classic CC comes with a couple GB of cloud storage space tossed in, when I want to share I use other clouds.

Well, in para 1 you clearly echo that the upgrade LR6 standalone has stopped evolving, as I said was the Adobe tactic.
OTOH, while 'cloud' may not pertain to file storage, payment of the subscription fee keeps alive the periodic web verificiation of your license being actively paid for, or your LR ceases to function.

Scott M wrote in post #18670266
My issue with the subscription model is that Adobe quadrupled my cost for their software when they eliminated the perpetual license model, and I do not think Lightroom is worth four times the price I used to pay. Adobe's subscription model basically forces you to pay for Photoshop even if you do not use it.

In my case, I have skipped versions of LR when I did not see the need/value of the newer version. So I have since Adobe originally purchased licenses for five versions of LR (after Adobe purchased software from Pixmantec to create LR)

Under the current CC subscription concept (if it had applied for the last 11 years), if I had to pay $10 a month for 11 years, I will have paid $1320!! Instead, the 'buy only when you want/need it' upgrades of LR have cost me $500 total (coming to LR from RawShooter... $99 upgrade from RAWshooter to LR1, then LR2 thru LR6 (skipping one) cost me $400 total.

Wilt wrote in post #18670856
Well, in para 1 you clearly echo that the upgrade LR6 standalone has stopped evolving, as I said was the Adobe tactic.
OTOH, while 'cloud' may not pertain to file storage, payment of the subscription fee keeps alive the periodic web verificiation of your license being actively paid for, or your LR ceases to function.

Yes. Monthly contact with the internet if you pay monthly and every 3 months if you pay for the year. How many people are without internet for a month these days? Not anyone in this thread I don't see the difference when I had perpetual licensing. Every once in a while PS and LR would tell me there was an update without my intervention. Something was communicating with my computer in the background, via the internet.

What is the difference between Adobe and others like C1Pro that has about a 14 month upgrade cycle or DXO that is about the same? I purchased DXO a few months ago and about 2 weeks ago got a generic email for the upgrade. I already had the latest version but people at other sites were complaining about upgrade price and the resent $50 for NIK which was free weeks before.

If you want to keep up with the latest you pay for the top developers. If you are happy with older versions and don't want the latest features then all is good. When the day comes your RAW files can't be used there is always DNG.

I have always kept up with PS since 2005 and LR since 2012 anyway. I worked it out and there wasn't much difference annually between perpetual purchases and upgrades over the years vs the current plan. I figure I'm saving $30 a year. Zenfolio cost me $150 a year and I dropped it and use the free website the plan offers. Zenfolio is a good site but was overkill for me and I was looking for other less expensive options. That motivated me.

Again I'm not trying to promote Adobe and I'd have no problem dropping the plan today if Adobe ticked me off. I don't care what anyone uses. I purchased a second developer because it did a better job in a certain area. I just compared my perpetual licence costs over the years to subscription and it made sense to me. It is not for everyone.