For each new feature I’ll first let Skylum explain it, then I’ll add my commentary.ġ. On Windows you can find that under the Help menu. Then on the Mac click on Luminar Flex/Check for Updates… and follow the instructions. You can find it in your Applications folder. In order to update the Flex plugin, you need to launch it as a standalone. Flex, now 2.5 months later, is now finally getting that same filter.

For example, Luminar 3 received an update on April 25 with a new Accent AI 2.0 filter and has heavily promoted it since. Sign into your account at Skylum to see.Īnother confusing issue is that Skylum is not updating Luminar 3 and Flex on the same schedule. Lastly, if you bought Luminar 3 before a certain cutoff time, you might already have Flex. If you want the option to use Luminar both as a standalone AND as a plugin, you have to get both – but you might want to hold off on that until Skylum figures out how to not have Flex run as a standalone. If you want to work on RAW files with Flex you can’t with the plugin unless you are sending the file from Lightroom or are using it as a standalone (for now). If you are still running Luminar 3 as a plugin in Photoshop it won’t work with Smart Objects, but Flex does along with Actions. If you don’t want the library catalog of Luminar 3 but want all the editing filters & tools and want to use it as a plugin, you get Flex. So if you want to use Luminar 3 and it’s library catalog but don’t need it as a plugin, you buy Luminar 3. Skylum has mentioned they will eventually update Flex so it doesn’t run as a Standalone, but that hasn’t happened yet so it is odd to still see Batch Processing in Flex Standalone. Luminar Flex works as a plugin and is marketed as such, yet it still runs as a standalone program even after this update, and if running as a standalone you get extra benefits of Batch Processing – something that can’t be done as a plugin. But once Flex arrived Skylum mentioned they will eventually update Luminar 3 so it doesn’t work as a plugin anymore and only as a standalone. Luminar 3 works as both a standalone AND as a plugin in Photoshop, Lightroom, Aperture, and Photos. Rather than try to compete with Adobe’s Lightroom, they marketed Flex as a plugin that works inside of Photoshop, Lightroom, Aperture, and Elements, and as an extension in Photos. And then on Apthey released Luminar Flex, calling it “Something Special for Adobe Artists”. Skylum took notice of customer complaints and started dropping the Lightroom replacement marketing it was doing for Luminar 3. Results of my Facebook poll at time of this writing. In fact, one of my most popular YouTube videos I have is a video I recorded showing how to use Luminar 3 without the catalog. Only a small percentage were happy with Luminar 3 at the time. I was not a fan, and apparently I wasn’t alone as the majority of people in my Learn Skylum’s Luminar & Aurora HDR Facebook Group who voted in a poll I conducted just last month still couldn’t use the DAM because of missing features and/or performance issues.

Luminar 3 arrived back on Decemand was initially marketed by Skylum as a Lightroom replacement, even though it barely had any more organizational power than Finder on Mac or Explorer on Windows. If you just want to see what’s new with Flex, scroll down to the New Features. And bear with me for a moment as I discuss Flex, as I never posted a review of it when it first came out. I say “might be for you” because this is where things get a little confusing. Luminar Flex v1.1 running as a plugin inside Photoshop If you don’t want to use the “DAM” (digital asset manager) of Luminar 3 (and I can’t blame you as it has been a big disappointment from day 1) but still want to use Luminar’s filters to enhance your photos, then Flex might be for you. What is Luminar Flex? Don’t they have Luminar 3 too?įor those not familiar with Flex, think of all the great photo editing filters and tools from Luminar 3, minus the not-ready-for-primetime catalog features that Luminar 3 has. Skylum today has released a free update to Luminar Flex bringing it to version 1.1.

Luminar photoshop plugin