ACDSee releases free Gemstone Photo Editor 12 Beta ahead of a full launch this fall

ACDSee Gemstone comes with features which are bound to catch the eye of some Adobe users looking for an alternative to Adobe’s subscription plans. Windows users can download the Gemstone beta (opens in new tab) right now – no announcement has been made about any Mac version.

ACDSee is keen to point out that the aim of this Gemstone beta is to get photographer feedback to develop a better product. This beta version will expire, so while it is free right now, it won’t be a free beta forever. With all beta software, our advice is to use it for experimentation rather than 'mission critical' work.

• See our ACDSee Gemstone beta review (opens in new tab)

ACDSee Gemstone key features

Even though this is an early version, ACDSee has already listed a series of key features:

• Multi-document-interface (MDI): This is a fancy way of saying you will be able to open multiple images at once for editing. This is how programs like Photoshop work, as opposed to Lightroom, for example.

• Raw editing: ACDSee says Gemstone supports more than 500 different camera models (opens in new tab). 

• Layered editing: Like Photoshop, Gemstones supports image layers to let you achieve “complex adjustments and effects and go back to tweak them at any time”.

Reading between the lines, it looks as if Gemstone might be a spin-off from ACDSee’s Photo Studio software, incorporating many of its features, such as:

• Light EQ
• Frequency Separation
• Path text
• Pixel Targeting
• Color Wheels
• Tone wheels
• Liquify Tool

Where to get ACDSee Gemstone

You can download the ACDSee Gemstone beta (opens in new tab) from the ACDSee website. You will need a computer with an Intel or AMD processor with 64-bit support (Intel i5 or better processor recommended), 4 GB RAM (8 GB RAM or more recommended) and 2 GB of available hard disk space.

Read more:

• ACDSee Gemstone Beta Photo Editor review (opens in new tab)
• Best photo editing software (opens in new tab)
• Best free photo editors (opens in new tab)
• Best photo editing laptops (opens in new tab)
• Best monitors for photographers (opens in new tab)