DaVinci Resolve – Photo

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Overall sentiment

  • Strong excitement, especially from people eager to escape Adobe/Lightroom subscriptions and tracking.
  • Many see this as a major move in a stagnant RAW photo market and potentially “top 3” editor status on day one.
  • Others are cautiously optimistic or unimpressed after first tests, seeing it more as “photo tacked onto a video app” than a true Lightroom replacement.

Competition with Adobe, Capture One, DxO, etc.

  • Big interest from Lightroom and Capture One users unhappy with subscriptions, performance, and perceived lack of innovation.
  • Some semi‑pro photographers say the $295 Studio price is reasonable if it can replace LR/C1 and bring Resolve‑class color tools to stills.
  • Several point out that library/DAM and camera profile quality will be decisive; LR’s ACR support and cataloging are still benchmarks.
  • DxO, Capture One, Luminar, Photomator, Affinity, and others are referenced as partial solutions with various gaps.

Linux support and codec issues

  • Resolve running on Linux is a major draw; some say this could finally let them leave macOS/Windows.
  • Reality is mixed:
    • Official support is Rocky Linux; other distros often need workarounds (scripts, containers, makeresolvedeb).
    • Free version on Linux lacks H.264/H.265/AAC due to licensing; even Studio reportedly lacks AAC decode, forcing ffmpeg transcoding.
    • Audio (ALSA/Pulse/PipeWire) and Wayland vs X11 can be problematic; some report rock‑solid installs, others give up.

Workflow, UI/UX, and target users

  • Many long‑time Darktable/RawTherapee users find their UIs powerful but difficult; some hope Resolve will offer “mature UI without tinkering.”
  • Early testers say the Photo page feels deeply Resolve‑centric: you still think in timelines and Color/Fusion pages; masking and simple edits feel unintuitive compared to LR.
  • Some explicitly note it seems aimed at existing Resolve video users who also handle stills, not at photographers first.
  • Node‑based grading is praised as more powerful than layer‑based workflows but acknowledged as harder to learn.

Technical capabilities and quality

  • Strong enthusiasm for Resolve’s color tools, cinematic grading, LUTs, film‑look effects, and the idea of bringing video‑grade tooling to stills.
  • Others argue Resolve lags LR in basics like HDR pipeline/output, wide‑gamut export, and even color temperature behavior; some RAW renders (e.g., Sony, Fuji X‑Trans, Pentax DNG) are reported as poor or buggy.
  • Darktable is highlighted for advanced scene‑referred workflows and upcoming neural denoise; several still criticize its UX.
  • Plugins like Dehancer already work in the new Photo mode, but one plugin author feels the UI is clearly built for video editors, not photographers.

Business model and ecosystem

  • Discussion emphasizes Blackmagic’s model: profitable, non‑VC, hardware‑first, with Resolve (and Studio upsell) supporting camera, panel, and I/O card sales.
  • Free Resolve is considered extremely generous; Studio adds GPU acceleration, higher‑end codecs, noise reduction, etc., and has historically included free major updates.