Neo questions
Answered
Preordering Neo makes me nervouse given the history of the previous two releases (Luminar 4 and Luminar AI). After getting burned with moving up to L4 from L3 and L2018, I passed on AI and I'm glad I did. So, what to do this time?
- Does Neo still destroy the image EXIF data?
- The best part of L3 is the ability for me to customize the menus based on MY workflow - will Neo bring that UI function back?
- I have no use for the AI replacement functions (sky, background, etc.) - can those be hidden in the menus?
- When operating as a plugin, has the import/export function been improved over L4?
- What limitations are in the layering ability?
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Hi Gary,
With regard to pre-ordering, we want you to be able to do that with confidence. That is why we offer a 30-day money-back guarantee that begins when the software is released. That should give you ample time to decide if it is a good fit for your workflow.
As for your specific questions,
What specific EXIF data are you referring to as destroyed? Are you using Luminar AI as a plugin and if so, what host program and method are you using to send your images to Luminar AI?
I don't have specifics I can share about the UX quite yet, but given that we'll have layers and the option to add tools and masks multiple times, I think you'll like it.
We don't have plans to hide tools at this time, but the UX will be different from Luminar AI and we hope it will work better for you.
With regard to plugin use, what is your host program and what functionality are you hoping to see improved?
Are there specific layering limitations that concern you? Please be specific so I can do my best to address these concerns.
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Thank you for your reply.
"What specific EXIF data are you referring to as destroyed?"
EXIF stands for Exchangeable Image File Format. This data is in every image file a digital camera records.
Some of this information includes settings such as:
- shutter speed,
- aperture,
- focal length,
- ISO,
- white balance,
- camera model and make,
- flash mode,
- metering mode,
- and much more.
Luminar has made this data unavailable to other programs once Luminar SAVEs a file (tif or jpg) or exports the file back to a host program if Luminar is used as a plugin. This has been brought up in the community forum for several years but never fixed. Search for EXIF data in the forum.
"Are you using Luminar AI as a plugin and if so, what host program and method are you using to send your images to Luminar AI?"I do not use Luminar AI - tried it but didn't fit my needs. However, I use L4 as a plugin to Affinity Photo and L4, L3 and Flex as Lightroom 6.14 plugins. I use both plugin launch methods available in LR depending on whether or not I want the image to be added to the Luminar library. Affinity Photo has only one launch method.
"With regard to plugin use, what is your host program and what functionality are you hoping to see improved?"Hosts include Lightroom 6.14 and Affinity Photo. Issues I have had, and others also reported, include import from host doesn't open the proper image and color rendering isn't always consistant from host to Luminar and then again back to the host. And there is the EXIF issue.
"Are there specific layering limitations that concern you? Please be specific so I can do my best to address these concerns."I brought it up as L-AI dropped layers. If layers are returning are there any stacking limits? And for those who still use Photoshop (I stopped years ago), just search the community forum for layer issues.
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Hi Gary,
Thanks for your reply. I'm aware of what EXIF data is :) but am not aware of it being stripped upon export in Luminar AI and thus do not expect this to be an issue with the new Luminar Neo. (It has been a while since I've used Luminar 4).
For instance, here is the EXIF from a raw file that I just edited in Luminar AI and exported as a high-res TIFF.
All of the parameters of this image are preserved, so perhaps the issue was with an earlier version of Luminar?
I also regularly use Luminar AI as a plugin with Lightroom and have found that EXIF data is preserved as long as you use the Export command (not Edit In - EXIF can be stripped this way) to send your images from Lightroom to Luminar AI.
It is worth noting that while Affinity does support most photoshop style plugins, we do not have official support for Affinity Photo, thus I cannot guarantee smooth performance if you're launching directly from Affinity.
With regard to Luminar Neo's layering capabilities, I'm not aware of any stacking limits but I'll see if I can get more clarity on this for you.
If you have any other questions or need further clarification on anything, please let me know!
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Why ever time you release something new there are always problems. I'm looking for product support on my many Liminar purchases, but can't find a support email anywhere. I have snapshots of your page giving me one price Canadian and when I go to pay it's a higher cost for the pre-release...
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Hi James N - I've just answered to your question here: https://community.skylum.com/hc/en-us/community/posts/4406447405074-Luminar-AI-vs-Neo-key-differences-
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Hi Raymond - Please note that we're not abandoning the development of Luminar AI, and it will keep getting its free maintenance and free performance updates. Also, as it's a lifetime license, you can keep using the current version as long as your computer supports it.
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Hi Gord,
We usually ship the upgrades or new software every 12-24 months. The upgrades are the next versions of the app, which require purchasing a separate license for them and the upgrades are absolutely optional.
As for the price getting higher, could you please send us screenshots and a link to the offer you're referring to via https://skylum.com/support? Thanks in advance!
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4 months ago Gary Bowen raised a query about the stripping out of EXIF data by Luminar. I can confirm that, while this did not happen in Luminar 4 or Luminar AI, sadly that is the case with Luminar Neo at the moment. Exporting an image to either jpeg or tiff strips out not only the EXIF data but also the IPTC data. Hopefully this will be corrected in further releases. Regards, Geoff
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Hi Member,
Could you please reach us out via skylum.com/support so we could take a look into this?
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Hi Geoff,
I don't see a support request from you in our system other than one you sent earlier in December about your newsletter preferences which we replied to on December 16. Please email us directly at support@skylum.com and we'll be happy to help.
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Yes, as many have complained over the years, Luminar continues the legacy of stripping out IPTC data. Their workaround as a plugin to LR works, but not everyone used Lightroom. I just opened a jpg with Neo. No plugin, no Edit in, no export, just opened in Neo. This file had a description and keywords. I edit the file and export it. And the IPTC data is gone.
And no, I won't contact support. I did this with Luminar 3 and it was a complete waste of my time. It's been complained about by many people through each version and it hasn't changed. Luminar is the only software on the planet that does this. Every once in a while, someone from support will acknowledge this problem in these forums, but not very often.How about everyone who reads this thread do a test and post the results.
Angela, I would ask that you do the following. Open up a jpg that has IPTC data embedded, edit it and export it from Luminar. Not as a LIghtroom plugin but as a standalone product. Please post your findings here.
Geoff, I would love for you and others to weigh in here. This problem will continue to be ignored until they can't ignore it anymore.
On a positive note, Neo did an excellent job for power line removal. So, for that and sky replacements I will use it as needed. But it can't be a full time photo editor until this bug is addressed. -
And before we get to far down the rabbit-hole of not acknowledging the problem, here is a response from Kate Williams a year ago in this thread, which contains numerous people complaining about the problem. https://community.skylum.com/hc/en-us/community/posts/360010210559-Luminar-AI-Destroys-Critical-Metadata
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Hi Darryl, I have just gone through these steps in Luminar AI & Neo. Both stripped out the IPTC metadata but Neo also stripped out the EXIF data which did not happen with AI. This was using the updated version of Neo. Hopefully the next version of Neo will address this. I will file another report with Luminar support. I think the loss of EXIF data is more serious as many editors such as DXO Photolab make use of this data for their automatic corrections.
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Thank you for testing and confirming. I just went back and looked at screenshots of a test I did with AI, and you're right, exif data, including my copyright info was preserved. In that particular instance, it stripped the keywords, but left the other metadata alone. Neo, as you have seen, strips everything.
And, of course, stripping out the Date Taken field plays havoc with my workflow. -
It is my understanding that neo will be available as a stand alone and as a plug-in for both Lightroom and Photoshop? At the moment the beta version is only stand alone. I would also to comment on the fact that the power line erase function seems to do a better job on busy backgrounds but fails in regards to power lines in a sky background.
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It is my understanding that neo will be available as a stand alone and as a plug-in for both Lightroom and Photoshop? At the moment, the beta version is only stand alone. I would also like to comment on the fact that the power line erase function seems to do a better job on busy backgrounds but fails in regards to power lines in a sky background.
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Hi Guys,
The issue with Luminar Neo's Early Access version stripping EXIF is a known one and should be resolved in the upcoming updates.
That's correct, the official release version of Luminar Neo will work both as a plugin and standalone software.
As far as the Remove Power Lines tool is concerned, I'd be grateful if you could provide our team with a couple of samples where the tool failed to remove the power lines properly. We'll use these images to improve the neural networks powering this feature.
Here's how you can send us the files:
- Visit https://wetransfer.com/
- If it's your first time visiting this website, it might ask you to purchase a subscription. Simply select to proceed with the free version.
- Click Add your files.
- Select the file(s) on your computer.
- After you see all the files you need to send appear in the list, click the icon to the left of the Transfer button (the icon looks like a circle with three dots in it).
- In Send As select Link.
- Click Transfer.
- After the files have finished uploading, click Copy Link and paste it into your support request at https://skylum.com/support
Looking forward to hearing from you.
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I hope they will address the IPTC issue as well.
I haven't found the same issue as John Murphy with power line removal as the following images show. The first is the original, the second after powerline removal & the third after using the erase tool to take out the powerline supports.
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