Luminar (formerly Luminar Neo) has always provided an accessible entry point into the world of serious photo editing, all the while breaking boundaries with its formidable roster of AI-powered tools. But for the longest time, it lacked a modern cross-platform workflow. That all changed at the end of last year, when Skylum launched the Luminar Ecosystem. And now, the Kyiv-based developer has taken things a step further by launching the world’s first browser-based photo editor with pro-grade tools.
Luminar for Web is a RAW image processor that lives in a web browser. No installation. No local storage woes. No keeping track of device licenses. All you need to get started is a free Luminar account. Don’t get me wrong, Luminar for Desktop is still the definitive offering, but Luminar for Web slots right into the Luminar Ecosystem alongside Luminar Mobile for a true cross-platform experience.
Skylum certainly hasn’t forgotten about its flagship software, either. The Luminar Fall update brings with it a plethora of major enhancements and additions, so much so that it feels shiny and new. All told, this is the developer’s most extensive offering to date. So, let’s dig into both Luminar for Web and Luminar for Desktop to uncover their most exciting new features.
Luminar for Web: Powerful browser-based edits
Luminar for Web will be instantly familiar to anyone who’s used Luminar for Desktop, because it shares a broadly similar interface. Naturally, it doesn’t boast the same breadth of functionality as Skylum’s flagship offering, but this streamlined experience is certainly no slouch.
Whether you’re on a train, in a hotel room, or on location, you have the ability to instantly access a powerful RAW editor from any device with a browser. It’s ideal for making preliminary edits that can be refined in Luminar for Desktop later, or making a quick edit for social media or a placeholder. And for novice creators, it can be free of commitment and is therefore entirely accessible and, above all, fun to play with.
While it doesn’t boast the desktop version’s full roster of tools, it still has some of the biggest hitters, such as Enhance AI, Skin AI, and Light Depth. I’m a huge fan of the Light Depth tool, and to have something this advanced in a browser-based editor is a real treat. It simply wouldn’t have been possible a few years ago.
You, of course, have access to the bread-and-butter Develop, Color, and Detail sliders, allowing you to adjust shadows, highlights, saturation, sharpness, and more. And it wouldn’t be Luminar software without access to Skylum’s coveted sky replacement tool; what I believe to be the most accessible example on the market. You’ve got Presets and Filters to play with, too (more if you opt for a Luminar Prime subscription).
Luminar Fall update: Supercharged editing
I’m a long-time user of Luminar, and this is a significant update. Not only has Skylum refined the photo editor’s interface and improved its generative tools, but it’s also added plenty of new functionality. Perhaps the most interesting development for newcomers is changes to the AI Assistant.
Luminar’s AI Assistant was impressive at launch, but not without its limits. I’m therefore pleased that Skylum has worked to increase the way you can interact with this intelligent help function. For example, you can now ask: “What do you think of this photo?” to receive a breakdown of what’s working well and what could be improved. You can take this a step further by telling the AI Assistant to make the suggested improvements for you, going so far as to ask it how it made said improvements so you can arm yourself with the practical knowledge for next time.
Arguably, my favorite tool in Luminar is Enhance AI. This distills key tonal edits such as shadows, contrast, and saturation into a single slider. It’s not for experienced editors who want to make every adjustment manually, but it’s a fantastic starting point for novice and casual creators. You could edit your family and holiday snaps with this tool alone and never dig any deeper.
The Luminar Fall update hasn’t added any new functionality to the tool, on the surface, but the formula has been subtly tweaked. The result is a more natural outcome when using Enhance AI. I usually find that the Accent AI slider, which affects the whole scene, is powerful enough not to warrant using the Sky Enhancer AI slider. However, both have been tweaked to deliver better results.
Enhance AI pairs extremely well with a whole new tool, Smart Composition. This lives within Crop AI and delivers a bespoke selection of crops based on classic compositional theory such as the rule of thirds and the golden ratio. What I like about this tool is that it allows you to choose from multiple options. This not only allows you to maintain your creative agency, but it builds familiarity with key compositional concepts so you can use them when you’re out and about with your camera.
Atmosphere AI has been completely revamped. Instead of a trio of sliders, it now generates a pseudo-3D map of your image. Once you’ve chosen your fog preset and set the Amount slider to your desired intensity, you can intuitively alter the fog’s depth by dragging it around the map. A Height slider allows you to dictate the level at which the fog sits, and an Advanced drop-down menu reveals more sliders, enabling you to tweak the fog’s density and vibrance. The results speak for themselves: more choice, more control, more natural-looking fog.
The final major addition could be easily overlooked, but anything that encourages more photographers to print their work is a win in my book. When printing, users are now greeted by a dedicated interface, as opposed to the small Print window that appeared before. From here, you have access to a huge number of conventional settings, along with the ability to create and position a watermark/signature, select the desired color profile, and add Print Sharpening. All alongside a large preview of the photograph in question.
Luminar Ecosystem: Plans and pricing
You can now choose from a trio of lifetime licenses for the Luminar Ecosystem, while saving up to 77% in Skylum's Black Friday deals: Desktop Only ($99/£89), All Platforms ($139/£139), and Max ($159/£159). The former includes Luminar for Desktop, while the latter two also include access to Luminar Mobile and Luminar for Web. Max is the most complete option, adding one year of Luminar Prime assets. If you want to try the Luminar Ecosystem before you buy, you can take advantage of a seven-day free trial of Luminar and Luminar Mobile. Luminar for Web is also available with limited functionality via a free tier.
