Zoner Photo Studio X Software Review Autumn Update 2023

Following the Spring release of Zoner Photo Studio X, we now have the Autumn 2023 update that promises to make the software faster and easier to use. We’re taking a look at the updated tools and improvements to see how they enhance the popular photo editing software. 

Zoner Photo Studio X Features

The Autumn update of Zoner Photo Studio X brings GPU acceleration, support for 3D LUT, improved optimisation for low-end computers, a new toolbar, enhanced local adjustments and a new way to manage default settings. It’s now easier to keep track of files in the print module where you can also apply live edits, Linear Curve editing has been added to RAW processing and a new feature has been added to the Develop module when applying vignettes. 

Zoner Photo Studio X Ease Of Use & Performance

When you first open up Zoner Photo Studio X, you’ll see there’s a new navigation panel and toolbar which are available across all of the modules found in the user interface. This makes photos easier to navigate and puts frequently used functions in easy reach. Plus, the toolbar is customisable so you can put the tools you use the most in it. We think this change makes the Zoner Photo Studio X UI much cleaner, too.

Looking at the tools found in Zoner Photo Studio X, local adjustment tools, which allow for the fine-tuning of images, now have more options. In fact, nearly all of the editing options found in the Develop module can now be applied when using the Brush, Gradient, and Circular filters. 

So you can be even more creative, colour toning is now available via 3D LUTs. Zoner Photo Studio X have a brilliant explanation of what this is but in a nutshell, it gives you more control over the colour and tone of an image so you can precisely select how a specific shade should look. 

As well as practical updates, the new version of Zoner Photo Studio X brings speed improvements so when editing in the Develop module, actions you take are up to 2x faster and for those with less powerful, older computers, the team behind the software have made improvements so Zoner Photo Studio X will run more smoothly. It’s good to see this as more often than not, new releases require bigger and better hardware. To aid with performance, you can also adjust the quality that image previews are displayed so your computer doesn’t have to do as much processing as well. 

Another way processes are sped up is with the introduction of default adjustments for RAW processing. Instead of having to apply the same adjustments manually, you can now set default adjustments for different cameras which are then saved. This is a real-time-saver and a feature we can see quite a few photographers using. Also now available when processing RAW files is a linear curves tool which, again, offers a way to control your image processing more precisely. 

Smaller but still useful improvements see a ‘Highlight Protection’ slider added to Vignetting options that allow for a more natural vignetting effect to be applied and any edits you make in the Develop module are now visible in the Print module live so you know that the image you are working with is exactly how it will appear when printed. 

Value For Money

Zoner Photo Studio X is available on a subscription basis at either $5.99 a month or $59 paid yearly. There’s also a one-month free trial available.

Zoner Photo Studio X Verdict

The fact that the team behind Zoner Photo Studio X work hard to continuously bring updates and improvements is a big plus point for us and the tools they add are always designed with the user and their photo editing journey in mind. Some won’t like the subscription format but as subscription prices go, it’s rather reasonable. Zoner Photo Studio X is very much ‘Highly Recommended’.

[REVIEW_FOOTER]R_features=4.5|R_Handling=4|R_performance=4.5|R_value=4.5|R_overall=4.5|A_level=4.5|A_text=Zoner Photo Studio X is easy to ‘Highly Recommend’ and we applaud the team’s dedication to continuously adding useful updates. |E_id=7837[/REVIEW_FOOTER]

View Full Product Details