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Image banner for the November 2023 PFRE Photographer of the Month Winner Javier Sotomayor, with a featured image of his winning photo titled "Open"

Congratulations to Javier Sotomayor, November 2023 PFRE Photographer of the Month! The theme this month was "Open." Javier Sotomayor - Entry #879 Dave Koch - Entry #877 Peter Wingfield - Entry #874 Here's what Javier has to say: Hello First of all I wa ...

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ACDSee vs Lightroom - Which Editor Should You Buy?

Published: 15/04/2022

As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

ACDSee and Lightroom are high-end photo editing applications that you can use to manage a large collection of real estate photos. This ACDSee vs Lightroom comparison reveals how the two applications relate in organizational features, compatibility, and ease of use.

ACDSee vs Lightroom Overview

ACDSee and Ligtroom are versatile RAW file editors and image organization applications that you can use with a wide range of camera models. Since their respective releases, these applications have evolved in compatibility, organizational, and photo editing features.

Woman editing images using ACDsee

ACDSee Overview

ACDSee application is developed and owned by ACD systems International inc. Although it's not popular like Lightroom, ACDSee is stable and well-established software that has evolved since its initial release in 1994.

ACDSee 19
4.0
Pros:
  • Has a nice interface
  • Has tutorials and training that users can use
Cons:
  • Confusing cropping and resizing feature
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Lightroom Overview

Lightroom software is a high-end photo organizational and editing application developed and owned by Adobe. Considering that Lightroom is now offered as a part of the Creative Cloud subscription, it's more popular due to the other Adobe products it comes with.

Best Overall
Adobe Lightroom
4.5
Pros:
  • HDR software automatically synchronizes your real estate work to Cloud storage that users can access anywhere at any time
  • Does profile corrections and removes chromatic aberrations from wide-angle lenses
Cons:
  • Limits sharing and doesn't come with plugin support
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Comparing ACDSee and Lightroom

Although you can use ACDSee and Lightroom alternatively, they are different applications that have varying compatibility with other photo-editing applications such as Photoshop. 

Understanding their similarities and differences in workflow, features, and photo manipulation capabilities will help you choose the most suitable one.

Similarities

Although ACDSee and Lightroom are different applications, their overall design that aims at processing RAW files makes them share these similarities:

  • They are versatile, and you can run them on Mac OS, Windows, and web-based platforms.
  • They allow you to assign color labels, tags, and ratings to photos
  • Both applications support soft proofing when printing
Person checking the mobile version of her images

Differences

Since ACDSee works directly from the hard disk or SSD while Lightoom imports photos to create virtual copies, there are differences that can impact the overall workflow and results.

Ease-Of-Use

Regardless of your photography skills, you will want a photo-editing application that is more straightforward in importing, manipulating, and exporting photos. Although both ACDSee and Lightroom don't have steep learning curves, the popularity of Lightroom gives it an edge over ACDSee.

Usually, you'll find more online tutorials and videos on carrying out photo manipulation in Lightroom than in ACDSee. Although the two applications support presets, there are more free photo editing presets available for Lightroom than for ACDSee, making Lightroom easier to use. 

System Requirements

With the user interface of ACDSee prioritizing function over form, the ACDSee design is simplistic, making it more lightweight than Lightroom. Typically, your system hardware needs to meet the following requirements to run ACDSee:

  • 2GB of free SSD or hard disk space
  • 512 MB of video RAM
  • High Color display adaptor set at a resolution of 1024 x 768
  • 2GB of RAM installed
  • DirectX 10 compatible graphics adaptor
  • AMD Athlon or Intel Pentium 64-bit processor with a minimum speed of 2 GHz

On the other hand, your hardware needs to meet the following system requirements to run Lightroom:

  • 8GB of RAM installed
  • 2GB of a video RAM
  • GPU with DirectX 12 support
  • Monitor calibrated at 1024 x 768 resolution
  • At least 2 GB of free SSD or hard disk space
  • At least 2 GHz or faster ARM, AMD, or Intel processor with 64-bit support

That means ACDSee is more compatible with low-resource computers, making it the best option to use if your computer is old or low-end. 

Person editing images on his laptop

Major Distinguishing Factor

The major distinguishing factor between ACDSee and Lightroom is their pricing plans. The latest version of Lightroom is Lightroom CC, offered as a subscription plan of the Adobe Creative Cloud starting at $9.99/month.

On the other hand, ACDSee offers subscription plans when bundled with a video editing application or full version purchases for photographers. The latest full version of the ACDSee license for photographers costs $89.95.

When to Use ACDSee

The lightweight, simplistic design and pricing plans of ACDSee makes it ideal for use under the following circumstances:

  • If you don't want to commit to the Lightroom monthly subscriptions
  • Since ACDSee supports adjustment layers, it’s the best option to use when you want to make non-destructive edits to your image tones and colors
  • ACDSee offers a 30-day trial period, making it the ideal choice for use if you don’t have long term photo-editing projects

When to Use Lightroom

The intuitive interface and popularity of Lightroom make it suitable for use in the following situations:

  • If you're a beginner and you are looking for an application with many free presets and tutorials and presets
  • If you're using other Adobe products as you can go for a package that includes Lightroom
  • When you need to connect the camera to the photo-editing application and shoot tethered

Which Photo Editing Application Is Better?

The advanced tools and customizability of ACDSee make it the best option for professional real estate photographers who don't want subscription plans. Lightroom is better for new real estate photographers who are looking for ease of use.

Verdict

Both ACDSee and Lightroom are versatile applications you can use in photo management and processing. The ACDSee vs Lightroom comparison helps you evaluate which software is compatible with your system and budget.

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