Tools for opening your camera’s RAW files, adjusting light, color and tone without touching the original file, and organizing your photo library. First decide whether your photos should stay on your computer or in a cloud service, and check whether your camera’s RAW format is supported.
Good to know: Free-use terms vary by tool and plan. When a card lists no tool-specific limit, check quotas, watermarks and export terms on the official page.
LightCraft is a free, open-source photo library and non-destructive raw developer for macOS, Windows and Linux: it decodes raw files such as DNG, CR2, ARW, NEF and RAF itself, offers light, color and tone-curve controls with brush, gradient and sky or subject masks, and organizes photos in albums with ratings and flags. The official page says it needs no account and has no cloud, telemetry or subscription, and its GitHub README calls it alpha, states a dual MIT or Apache-2.0 license and names gaps such as missing measured camera color calibration for several raw formats. getartcraft.com lists LightCraft as “In development” (checked 13 October 2026).
Why it fits
RAW Photo Editing
Good to know: Requires desktop installation.
What should you compare?
Removing a background, erasing objects or quickly shrinking a single photo are separate jobs; this page lists apps that process RAW files and keep a photo library. Try a few RAW files from your own camera: change the exposure and white balance, export the result as JPEG and check that the original file stays unchanged.
Read on the official page which cameras and RAW formats are supported, which operating systems it runs on and whether the app works in a browser or on the desktop. Find out whether your edits are kept in a separate catalog file or in small sidecar files next to each photo, and back those up too. If the app is in alpha, beta or development, back up your originals and try a small folder before moving a large library.
What is the difference between RAW and JPEG? RAW keeps the sensor data with less processing, so you can adjust exposure and color over a wider range later, but the files are large and must be exported before sharing. JPEG is processed and compressed in the camera: it is ready to share but leaves less room for correction.
Will my edits move to another program? Most apps keep adjustments in their own catalog or sidecar format, which another program may not read. Keep your original RAW files, export finished photos, and check the import and export options in the official documentation before you switch.
Compare documented features
This comparison is based on published official documentation. It is not a hands-on test or a quality ranking. Unknown features are not treated as verified.