Have finally taken the axe to ...

bilzmale

Hall of Famer
Location
Perth, Western Australia
Name
Bill Shinnick
... my Adobe dependancy after more than 10 years. Started the CC Subscription in Dec 2013 but before that had PS from CS2 and LR from before it existed (remember Raw Shooter Premium back in 2006?). I had quit Adobe Reader long ago but was happy to pay the monthly fee of some $13AUD for the Photography package of PS & LR. That is until now.

Self-cancelling is supposed to be possible from the Adobe website but trying results in a seemingly endless loop (a common problem according to google). After about 15 minutes of trying and links not working and pages not loading I opted to use Web-chat on the Adobe site.

I connected with a support person quite quickly but sat through a series of responses like
'Why?' and 'You can have 1 month free' and 'How about 2 months free'. These were interspersed with delays of 3 to 5 minutes to 'check your acccount' several times. Finally after 20 minutes I was unsubscribed. I suppose you can't blame Adobe for being so tenacious but they certainly don't let go easily.

To answer Why? it is based on the availability of stand alone versions of app based programs like On1 Photo RAW (my go to processor) plus Perfectly Clear and Topaz Studio are now stand-alone and Luminar is just about to be released for Windows (I've pre-ordered).

So that's my story, care to share your's?
 
I was never comfortable with that whole subscription model. I would buy Photoshop Elements every couple years. Once they want to the CC subscription, I just stopped spending money on photography software, period.

My "ancient" Photoshop Elements 10 still does everything I ask of it (though obviously it won't open newer raw file formats....but that doesn't concern me....plenty of free programs to open those should I need it).

But that Luminar coming to Windows looks pretty enticing. It's priced appropriately and I love that it looks like it will play nice with some of the plug-ins I have and enjoy. I'm likely going to buy that.
 
I agree. I am against the subscription model for software for personal use. It makes sense for corporates and I have spent years assisting companies to move from "ground to cloud" but it doesn't work for me personally. Remember the days when you used to rent your TV rather than buy it? It feels like that. Equally, I always buy my portable telephone handset, a generation behind current, outright. I get full warranty and it is MINE.

Like Luke, I use Elements - 15 in my case. It does all I want. I have tried to get to grips with Lightroom, even going to evening classes for a while, but I came from Photoshop and I find Lightroom painfully counter-intuitive.
 
I cut the cord with On1 Photo Suite Premium v9. It was good enough for what I wanted to do. Then I discovered some MacPhun apps which would work as plugins to Apple's Photos and began moving to those almost entirely. Luminar was the next step and I got AuroraHDR free with some bundle or other. Upgrading, for me, was a bit of a no-brainer. I also have standalone Lightroom 6, and Elements 13. Neither are actually installed anymore. Like Bill P, I could never really get to grips with Lightroom, much as I wanted to be able to use it. I still want to be able to use Photostream on my Macs and iOS devices, and alas, without CC, you cannot sync between devices with Adobe products.
 
I swore off Adobe when they started the subscription model. Their need to lock in long-term profits ran counter to my need to rationalize my own expenditures.

I had been using Aperture, which was just fine, and then limped along with Apple's Photos app. It was acceptable but not great. But the latest version of Photos, included in the High Sierra OS, is much stronger and feature-rich.

I'm going to give it a thorough work out. If I really like it, fantastic. If I don't, I think I'll finally buy a proper copy of Capture One.
 
I swore off Adobe when they started the subscription model. Their need to lock in long-term profits ran counter to my need to rationalize my own expenditures.

I had been using Aperture, which was just fine, and then limped along with Apple's Photos app. It was acceptable but not great. But the latest version of Photos, included in the High Sierra OS, is much stronger and feature-rich.

I'm going to give it a thorough work out. If I really like it, fantastic. If I don't, I think I'll finally buy a proper copy of Capture One.

I havent updated to High Sierra... but what you might want to consider is a plugin called External Editors for Photos. It means you can use all your usuals from inside Photos. I'm assuming it will work with HS. I'm not planning to upgrade to that. I have reached my end of Apple upgrades I think.

I've considered reverting to Aperture, myself.
 
I like the direction that Apple Photos is headed and, thanks to you Sue, I have the External Editors. Which for me works with High Sierra. Great for using Nik!
Still have a freestanding copy of PS CS6, which I use on occasion. Have never been interested in the Adobe subscription model.
Actually, I have access to the entire Adobe Creative Suite through my firm, but like to keep my personal interests separate.
So I am up for Luminar.
 
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