Feature summary | Lightroom Classic (April 2023 release)

Learn about major new features and enhancements in the April 2023 release of Lightroom Classic (version 12.3).

Easily remove noise from images using AI-powered Denoise

Using artificial intelligence, Lightroom Classic can now efficiently remove noise from Bayer or X-Trans RAW images, while preserving all the finer details.

Watch this video to learn how to use the new AI Denoise in Lightroom Classic.

Follow the steps to apply Denoise

  1. From the menu, select Photo > Enhance or select Denoise in the Detail panel.

    Screenshot of Detail panel highlighting Denoise button
    Select Denoise in the Detail panel to reduce noise.

  2. Select Denoise to enhance your image. Holding Alt or Option while selecting Denoise from the Detail panel will set the intensity of the slider to the last set Amount value.

  3. Use the slider to adjust the intensity of the feature.

    An image of enhance preview window to showcase Denoise selection, and adjustment slider functions.
    Adjust the Denoise slider to improve image quality.

  4. You can press and hold on to the preview area to view the changes made to the image.

  5. Click Enhance to process the image as a new DNG file. The enhanced image is saved as a new DNG file with the filename in this format: <Original filename-Enhance-NR.DNG> and is placed next to the source image. 

Enhanced images will have a badge   in Grid and Filmstrip views. For easy identification of the settings used, a History step with the name Enhance-NR-<amount>(timestamp) will be visible. 

Enhance Badge in Filmstrip
Enhance Badge in Filmstrip

You can automatically add Keywords to images enhanced using DenoiseRaw Details, and Super Resolution. Go to Edit > Preferences, select the File Handling tab and check the Automatically add keywords to Enhanced images box. Select OK to make the changes.

Note:
  • Denoise can run only on Bayer and X-Trans RAW images.
  • We recommend to Denoise your image before applying other tools, including AI masks and Content-Aware, as using Enhance might change the result of the tools used.
  • Once the image has been enhanced with Denoise or Super Resolution, it can't be processed again. However, enhanced Raw Details DNGs can be processed with Denoise.
  • Denoise is a GPU intensive feature. Therefore, a faster GPU is recommended to Enhance images quickly.

Make crisp edits using new Masking features

New additions in People mask let you automatically select Facial Hair, Clothes, and more. Masking now also supports Curve, allowing you to make crisp local adjustments.

  1. In the Develop module, open the image you'd like to edit.

  2. Select Masking > People.

    Photo of two men to showcase masking people selection capability
    The People panel shows thumbnails of all people in a photo.

  3. Lightroom Classic will automatically detect and mask all people in the photo. You can select the person you'd like to edit in the photo and then select Facial Hair or Clothes to make adjustments. 

    An image of a man with masked beard to showcase automatic Facial Hair masking capability
    Facial Hair selection.

  4. To make further adjustments, open the mask in the Masks panel and select Add or Subtract according to your editing requirements. 

  5. Use the editing sliders in the right panel to make adjustments.

MAKE PRECISE EDITS WITH CURVE

Masking now supports Curve, and lets you make precise local edits, without affecting the rest of the image.

  1. In the Develop module, open an image you'd like to edit. 

  2. Select Masking from the tool strip and Create New Mask on the image.

  3. Select Curve in the Masking section.

  4. Make adjustments using the Curve to locally enhance an image. The local Histogram provides values for adjustments made to the masked section.

    Masking curve capability showcases with highlight on curve histogram to make local adjustments.
    Curve Histogram for masked local adjustments.

Quickly identify all tools used to edit images

Keep a track of your edits and tools used to quickly edit an image with the reconfigured panels. In the Develop module, an eye indicator has been added to all Edit panels, Healing, Redeye, and Masking tools. You can press and hold the eye indicator to temporarily hide the settings of the particular panel. This function lets you instantly view any changes made to an image.

The eye indicator will change color from dark to light to indicate if a particular panel is used. A dot will also be visible on the tool strip under the tool used.

Screenshot of panels highlighting new edit indicator and eye indicator feature.
Edit and eye indicators.

You can turn off a panel by holding Alt on Windows or Option on macOS to reveal panel switches instead of the eye icon. This function will also allow you to reset an edit within the panel. When you turn off the panel switch, the eye icon will be struck out to indicate the panel is disabled.

Screenshot of Develop Module panels with Eye icons on the left image and panel switches on the right image by holding the Alt or Option key.
Hold Alt/Option key to reveal panel switches.

Note:
  • A red dot will appear on the tool strip under Healing   when Content-Aware Remove spots need an update.
  • A red dot will appear under Masking if an AI mask needs to be refreshed. 

Edit in Photoshop

Lightroom Classic lets you open your photos in Adobe Photoshop and provides several options for making edits. You can edit the photo in its current format, open it as a Smart Object, or Open as Smart Object Layers in Photoshop. You can also merge a series of shots into a panorama, HDR, or open two or more photos as one layered image in Photoshop. When you save edits to a photo in Photoshop, Lightroom Classic automatically imports the new photo into its catalog.

  1. In Lightroom Classic, select Edit Preferences (Windows) or Lightroom Classic > Settings (macOS).

  2. Select the External Editing tab.

    If Photoshop is installed on your computer, it appears as the designated external editor.
    With the April 2023 release of Lightroom Classic (version 12.3), you can also select the Photoshop version of your choice to edit the photos. 

    Screenshot highlighting selection window of Photoshop version for Edit in Photoshop feature.
    Drop-down list to select the Photoshop version.

You can also change applications by selecting Application > Choose in the Additional External Editor section. See External editing preferences for more on the options in this dialog box.

Support for new cameras and lenses

Check out the following articles to find newly added cameras and lenses in the full list of supported profiles:

Other enhancements

  • Improved scrolling performance in the Library module for Published Grid scrolling, People View scrolling, Import GridImport Loupe, and Fullscreen walk on macOS.
  • Mask names will now be added to the History steps when mask settings, like Exposure, Contrast, and so on, are changed.
  • Advanced new Adaptive Presets added for the Adaptive: Portrait group, such as Polished Portrait, Darken Beard, and Enhance Clothes.
  • Updated embedded browser framework for Map and Web modules.

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