DxO PhotoLab 9 Review: Will It Replace Lightroom Workflow

First Impression

DxO PhotoLab offers a 30-day free trial, and it's recommended to install it during the holidays so you have uninterrupted days to fully test the software. It generally requires 1 GB to 2.5 GB of storage space to install the app and download the necessary AI models, assets, and camera modules.

To get started, DxO PhotoLab offers presets for a default correction. You can apply 1-click natural style for balanced color and lighting, use optical corrections, or start without any pre-processing.

DxO PhotoLab is packed with essential features as a standalone RAW photo editor. Starting in the PhotoLibrary tab, the software acts as a file browser that s reads your computer's existing folder structure. It's straightforward for photo culling, star rating, color labeling, and organizing your shoots.

What Makes DxO PhotoLab Special

RAW Processing and DeepPRIME Noise Reduction

PhotoLab is engineered for developing RAW files into high-quality photos. Through its calibrated lens and camera correction modules and DeepPRIME noise reduction, DxO restores detail from high-ISO shots, making it ideal for wildlife photography, live performance shots, and night street photos.

It also includes sample raw files of different types to help you quickly evaluate the software, from wildlife and landscape to dark indoor scenes and intricate architectural structures.

How about JPG and PNG files?

DxO's DeepPRIME requires sensor data from a RAW file to work; they are not designed for delivery formats like JPGs or PNGs. If you are dealing with old photos, mobile shots, or downloaded files in JPGs, you can adjust the HQ settings and drag the luminance and chrominance sliders.

As a hobbyist birder, I go with Canon R7 and 100-400mm lens for a lightweight trip. In these setups, the ISO is frequently pushed to the limit, and birds hiding in tree shadows exhibit heavy noise. Running those files through DeepPRIME, those color speckles from sensor noise is removed.

Optical Corrections

DxO has a large optical correction database, with over 95,000 lens and camera combinations. It applies tailored corrections for vignetting, distortion, and chromatic aberration.

When I open photos, DxO PhotoLab will read the profile data and suggest the correction modules for specific camera bodies and lens combinations. To some degree, it can prevent artifacts on fine structures.

Masking with Control Points and Diffusion Slider

Inherited from the Nik Collection, DxO uses Control Points, where you click a point, and DxO automatically masks similar tones and colors in that radius. It is intuitive and faster than manual brushing.

To avoid the "cut-and-paste" result from over-sharpening in previous versions, where the subject edge looks unnaturally sharp against the background, you can now use the Diffusion Slider in DxO to smoothly feather the boundaries of AI masks over the subject.

Color and Smart Lighting

The software offers accurate color calibration, making it a favorite for photographers needing high-fidelity editing. The intuitive ColorWheel and advanced HSL controls allow for highly targeted manipulation, with direct local adjustments.

For landscape photos, I love the smart lighting of DxO. It automatically balances highlights and shadows as a strong starting point for the RAW file. Though it needs to be used carefully to avoid an over-processed look.

Image Management and Workflows

Catalog vs Folder-Based Photo Management

DxO PhotoLab utilizes a local, folder-based browser that allows you to navigate directly to your local drives and begin culling and editing. In contrast, Lightroom relies on a central catalog, which requires an import process before you can begin working.

Lightroom's approach is designed for high-volume photographers, like wedding or event shooters. They need to manage tens of thousands of images across multiple shoots and avoid import duplicates.

DxO appeals to occasional photo editing, or to users who already organize their files meticulously at the OS level and prefer not to be locked into a proprietary database structure. Even without an import catalog, it still offers rating, color labeling, keywording, and search tools.

Plug and Play with NAS

Since DxO is folder-based, it works exceptionally well with NAS (Network Attached Storage) or external drives. You can point directly to an archived folder and re-edit immediately.

Some photographers prefer DxO's localized approach, saying it feels more responsive for direct RAW viewing and editing, while Lightroom can feel laggy and resource-heavy. However, some users running DxO on older Macs report that it feels slower than Lightroom.

Since DxO offers a generous free trial, you can fully test it before making a purchase decision.

Integrating DxO with Other Photo Editors

While some users quit the Lightroom subscription to stay in the DxO system, there are other users integrating DxO with their existing workflows. It all depends on your specific projects, photo culling preferences, and the degree of control you want over your local storage and editing environment.

For DxO-only workflows, many photographers choose the routine of:

1. Use DxO PuraRaw for initial noise reduction and raw editing
2. Move to PhotoLab for exposure, color, and local adjustments with U-Point.
3. Optionally, integrate creative color effects and filters from Nik Collection.
4. Export photos from DxO PhotoLab.

For photographers who want DxO's processing power without abandoning their current catalog, a hybrid workflow is ideal:

1. Batch import raw files into DxO PureRaw, apply DeepPRIME noise reduction, and export as DNGs.
2. Round-trip to Lightroom for photo culling, color correction, and final export.

The advantage is, this workflow doesn't disrupt your existing cataloging habits. You are simply outsourcing batch noise reduction to DxO, while keeping your library management exactly as it is.

For Mac users, you can replace Lightroom with Photomator for the same workflow above.

Tips:

Previously, DxO bakes creative edits into exported DNG files, such as white balance, exposure sliders, smart lighting, or crops. After PhotoLab 9 updates, exported DNGs are treated as pre-processed, clean RAW files. It applies DeepPRIME noise reduction and optical corrections, and can be sent over to Lightroom, Photoshop, or other editors as part of your workflow.

The updates also apply a high-fidelity DNG compression, so that you won't meet the previous pains of an uncompressed DNG result in large file size.

Pricing and Add-Ons

DxO PhotoLab offers a 30-day free trial and a version-based perpetual license. For instance, if you own DxO PhotoLab 8, it remains yours to use.

If you prefer to upgrade to the next major version, such as PhotoLab 9, you have to pay an additional upgrade fee.

Therefore, some existing users suggest that you can buy the current version of DxO PhotoLab and hold it for a few years without upgrading. Then, when a future version is released with more powerful features, you can upgrade around Black Friday.

• Version-based perpetual license: $239.99
• Upgrade from previous versions*: $119.99

*But note that, currently for DxO PhotoLab 9, you are eligible to upgrade from DxO 7 or 8.

Add-Ons and Plug-Ins

The two primary native add-ons are DxO FilmPack and DxO ViewPoint. FilmPack brings analog film simulations and cinematic grain to your digital files, while ViewPoint provides advanced geometry and perspective corrections.

For Nik Collection, PhotoLab features a dedicated export button that smoothly hands your image over to the Nik plugin interface. Once your creative edits are applied, the file is effortlessly round-tripped back into your PhotoLab workflow.

Tips to Enhance Photo Quality

While DxO PhotoLab excels at RAW development and optical corrections, some photographers also use specialized AI enhancement tools for tasks such as image upscaling, detail recovery, face enhancement, restoring older photos, and noise reduction for both RAW and delivery formats like JPG/PNG.

In such scenarios, Software like Topaz Photo or Aiarty Image Enhancer can complement a photo enhancing workflow when additional enlargement or AI-based enhancement is needed.

Here is a quick test of Aiarty Image Enhancer for noise reduction and upscaling.

For both raw files, JPG/PNG, and other mainstream formats, you can apply noise reduction to clean up photos with Aiarty. With the strength slider, you can adjust how intensely the enhancement is applied, thus maintaining a balance for natural results, while restoring real details.

For compact camera photos, APS-C, M43 shots, and mobile photos suffering from sensor noise and softness, Aiarty Image Enhancer works as a dedicated photo quality enhancer for batch tasks, speeds up your workflow, and delivers clean, high-quality, and professionally developed photos.

• Powerful noise reduction in 3 models, for RAW/JPG/PNG, etc.
• Restore natural details in bird feathers, wildlife fur, portraits, skin, and fabrics.
• Enhance soft, dark, grainy photos to clearer 4K quality.
• Avoid over-sharpening and deliver a professional finish.
• Option to batch upscale by 2X, 4X, to 8K and higher.

Click the button below to test out Aiarty Image Enhancer, and see how handy it fits into your existing workflow. You can use it alone or as a batch quality enhancer for photo editing tools.

Wrap Up

If you're mainly editing RAW photos from a camera and don't already have a well-curated photo catalog, DxO PhotoLab is a strong choice. It is best suited for photographers who want high-quality RAW processing and industry-leading lens corrections.

Lightroom's advantage remains its seamless integration with Adobe apps, enhanced noise reduction, generative AI tools, and cloud syncing across devices. For a pure RAW processing and local-storage workflow, users without an Adobe subscription can choose between raw photo editors or invest in hybrid workflows.

For users needing image quality enhancement and noise reduction for both raw and delivery formats, like JPG/PNG, photo enhancer and upscaler tools, such as Aiarty Image Enhancer, are a handy inclusion.