Aurora HDR 2018 for Mac & Windows is Available for Pre-Order!
Are you ready for the latest & greatest in HDR processing?
Aurora HDR 2018 for Mac and Windows is finally available for pre-order!
Aurora HDR is not just a tool for merging bracketed images, it also provides numerous tools and countless options to create perfect HDR photos for every taste – from one-click presets and advanced tone-mapping, to layers, noise reduction and powerful luminosity masking controls.
I got my hands on the pre-release version yesterday and I’m blown away! Here are a few screenshots and a finished photo:
Bracketed Photos Uploaded into Aurora HDR 2018
Aurora HDR 2018 User Interface with Presets Bar
Aurora HDR 2018 User Interface Before/After View
Cape Hatteras Light
The photo above is made up of 3 bracketed handheld exposures from my Canon 6D and 16-35mm lens. I took the RAW files from Lightroom directly into Aurora HDR 2018 where I did my tone mapping and stylistic edits. The only thing I did when I got back into Lightroom was a bit of sharpening.
My first impression is WOW! I can’t wait to run other photos through the new version. I’m a big fan of the new interface. The HDR Enhance slider in the HDR Basic panel seems to function a lot like the Accent-AI Filter in Luminar, which is totally awesome.
I’ll put together a more thorough review once I have a chance to fully test it. For now the pertinent specs along with info on pre-order pricing and bonus gifts can be found below.
What’s new in Aurora HDR 2018:
- Next-generation Tone Mapping – A new smart Tone Mapping algorithm automatically reduces noise, and produces more realistic and natural initial results.
- Mac and Windows versions – Aurora HDR 2018 is available both for Mac and PC users, enabling mixed-computer households to share the same product key.
- Lens Correction Tool* – The new Lens Correction filter easily fixes all kinds of lens distortion, from barrel and pincushion to chromatic aberration and vignetting.
- Transform Tool* – Easily scale, rotate and shift your image to better fit your vision.
- Dodge & Burn Filter – Selectively lighten or darken specific areas of an image to artfully direct your viewer’s eye towards the key subject of your image, similar to a traditional darkroom technique.
- HDR Enhance Filter – Adds details and clarity to an image, adjusting colors, details and contrast without creating artificial halos or other problems.
- User Interface – A new, modern and responsive user interface brings a powerful, yet joyful experience to HDR photo editing.
- History Panel – An easy-to-reference list of edits made to your image, the History panel allows you to click on any editing step to revert the photo to an earlier stage of editing.
- Touch Bar support for Mac – Aurora HDR 2018 adds Touch Bar support to give new MacBook Pro users fast access to key editing features and speed up their workflow.
- Image Flip and Rotate* – Perfect for correcting photos with incorrect horizons or making creative compositions or other stylistic changes to an image.
- IMPROVED: New Structure Algorithm – The re-developed Structure tool allows you to adjust detail and clarity of an image to get a classic HDR effect with great detail or a smoother effect with less details.
- IMPROVED: RAW handling – An improved RAW conversion brings out more details in shadows/highlights, displays colors more accurately and reduces noise in RAW files.
- IMPROVED: Crop tool update – Now specify custom crop sizes for even more versatility.
- IMPROVED: Speed – Faster merging and masking performance, improvement in RAW image processing.
* Lens Correction and Transform tools, as well as image flip and rotate will be available in the Mac version at launch, and arrive in the PC version with the first free update in the beginning of October. Other tools and features that are currently available for Mac only would be added to PC version by the end of the year.
Pre-Order Prices and Bonuses:
Aurora HDR 2018 is available for pre-order now and will be and released on September 28.
Pricing:
- Current users of Aurora HDR may upgrade at a special pre-order price of $49 ($59 MSRP)
- New users can purchase Aurora HDR 2018 at a special pre-order price of $89 ($99 MSRP)
- A collection of bonuses will also be included with every purchase.
Bonuses:
- Trey Ratcliff Deep Dive video
- Travel Photography Tutorial by Matt Granger
- Source Brackets
- 3-month Zenfolio Pro website, including a complementary design consultation. $60 value.
Pre-Order Aurora HDR 2018 Now!
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