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If you can't find Darktable on your package manager, the official Darktable installation page has detailed information for several different Linux distributions. I used the built-in package manager called "AppCenter" to simply search for and install Darktable. My Linux distribution of choice is elementary OS, and installation of Darktable was a breeze. If you are familiar with your Linux distribution's package manager, start by searching for Darktable to check for a one-click installation. Most Linux distributions have what's called a package manager that makes it easy to search for, install, and update your applications. If you're ready to get started with Darktable, great! Let's look at how to install it on Linux. Read on to find out more about how to use Darktable. Watch & LearnĬheck out the video below to learn more about Darktable and what it can do. This makes your data more portable and futureproof. You can preview the edits and changes that you're making in real time, but the adjustments aren't applied to a finished file until you export a copy.ĭarktable also outputs an "XMP" sidecar file for each image that stores the edit info. It accesses your images "read-only" and doesn't change the original image file. The two key modules are Lighttable, which is the photo organization and management tool, and Darkroom, the image correction tool.ĭarktable is a non-destructive image editor. Users of Adobe Lightroom will find the Darktable interface familiar.ĭarktable is divided into modules, much like Adobe Lightroom. There are also some handy tools under the hood in the form of tethering, mapping your images using GPS, and more. It is a RAW image processor, as well as a photo management tool. What is Darktable?ĭarktable combines several photo tools under one umbrella.
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In this tutorial, I'll help you get started with Darktable. It's a capable replacement for Adobe Lightroom for Linux users. It's a RAW processor and photo manager for Linux.
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Adobe doesn't release their industry-standard apps for Linux, and using them requires kludgy workarounds.Īll of this is why Darktable is a breath of fresh air.
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Using Linux has long been a challenge for creatives. If you haven't heard of Linux, you might have heard of one of its popular distributions (versions) like Ubuntu or Linux Mint. The open source nature of Linux has led to many different flavors with different advantages. However, unlike those platforms, it's free and open source. Linux is an operating system (OS) that powers computers, much like Windows or MacOS.
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