Use Aurora HDR for free for 14 days.
May 15
11 min. to read
Explore the unlimited power and versatility of photo editing tools with your favorite Mac apps.
Photos for Mac is one of Apple’s most recent ‘replacements’ on board. It unarguably is a significant improvement for Apple users. Photos for Mac is less confusing for users, and performs great. It’s got excellent iCloud functionalities that enable your devices digitally and securely communicate.
On a broader view, Photo’s editing tools are fantastic especially for the non-photo-professional users. However, advanced users or professionals would want much more; this is where the use extensions come in handy.
Luminar 4 Your photography. Elevated.
Replace the sky in your photos, instantly! Boost details with AI Structure. Discover more amazing tools in the new Luminar 4.
Photos somewhat limited capabilities notwithstanding, it features fantastic options like support for multiple photo libraries that enable you separate personal photos files from work photos. You could also decide to have only one of your library synced to iCloud while the others remain device-bound or local. A feature that lets you decide what you’d rather use your several hundreds of gigabyte storage space for.
The app also highlights a powerful organizing tool, the Smart Folders, that enables you have all their photos’ grouped together into an easy browsable album by means of keyword or tag with which the photos were previously saved. This feature is similar to Apple Aperture’s. There are several other features that still make Photos for Mac indispensably a photo-editing-utility app. One of such is its excellent compatibility with extensions.
The somewhat limited user-friendly Mac photo editor, depending on the user’s skill level, when used with the appropriate software extensions, can become a far more powerful and effective package than one could ever imagine. There’s indeed a whole lot more that one can get done on Photos for Mac when used with extensions.
This is where it gets more interesting. User’s editing options and experience on Apple’s Photos can indeed be further enhanced or expanded by means of extensions. Skylum’s Creative Kit features some of the most intuitive, powerful and efficient Photo’s extension available to Mac users.
The award winning apps which function as standalones and as a Photoshop or Lightroom plugins or extension possess amazing, 21st century photo editing capabilities that perfectly complements Photos for Mac, and transforms it into a super photo editing powerhouse. The Creative Kit’s app(s) can easily be launched, like any other extension, from within Photos, and the rest is history.
As part of Apple’s standard security requirements, you’ll have to first run the app as a standalone in order to authorize its plugin (extension) for use. It can then be instantly closed afterwards. Subsequent use of the plugin would not require this procedure.
The easiest approach is when you first launch the Pro version of the Creative Kit 2016 installer. You’d usually be prompted with an option to install the plugin or extension on the first launch. If this is skipped, you can do it manually by following these steps:
There are instances where the Skylum’s extension is not featured on the list of preferences. Not to worry, you can easily fix that by doing the following:
The Creative Kit extensions can be easily launched from within Photos for Mac by:
The Creative Kit applications run excellently as extensions on the El Capitan version of Mac OS X. Of the Creative Kit’s 6-award-winning apps, only four (Tonality, Noiseless, Snapheal and Intensify) are currently support extensions for Photos for Mac (El Capitan OS). The other two (Focus and FX Photo Studio) will be updated shortly.
The only software of its kind ever to be named the “The Editor’s Choice” by Apple, Tonality CK, features several hundreds of frames, filters and presets. It is undoubtedly the world’s most advanced black and white photo editor for Mac users. Tonality can be described as the digital ultra-modern version of the traditional darkroom.
As an extension, Tonality’s functionalities are integrated into Photos, thus making it super-fast and more efficient. Here are some of the features that the Tonality extension brings to its Photos’ users:
Noiseless is more or less an easy-to-use noise-reduction tool that offers you a selection of simple presets as well as some more sophisticated manual controls for advanced users who’d like to dig deeper.
The Noiseless extension is literarily a boost for Photos’ native noise reduction tool; it gives Photos wings to fly! With Noiseless extension, Photos now possess the unequalled capability to function as one of the fastest and most powerful noise reduction application for Mac. These features include:
Known for possessing one of the world’s fastest object removal algorithms, the Snapheal extension can be a powerful healing tool in Photos for Mac. It also features the clone and stamp tool for basic image enhancements. It’s great for removing single or multiple objects or unwanted details from your image. With the Snapheal extension installed on your Photos, Photos can perform the following and more…
The Intensify CK extension adds detail, drama, saturation and fine-tuning to your images. From Intensify’s quick dark-photo fixes to HDR, the extension imports over 60 one-click presets, into Photos for Mac, designed to give your images the desired look. With Skylum’s CK proprietary tools, you can seamlessly enhance pro-contrast, as well as selectively improve details and tonal range. Other Photos’ enhanced features include:
With Skylum’s CK extensions installed, Photos for Mac performs photo-editing tasks that stun the professionals.
Thank you for downloading
Aurora HDR
Preparing your download...
Did your download not start?
Dont worry, just click here to try again.
Oops! Something went wrong. Don't worry, just click here to try again.
Step 1
Step 1
Find & Open
Aurora HDR Installer
Step 2
Step 2
Follow the instructions
to install Aurora HDR
Step 3
Step 3
Enjoy new photo
editing experience