ACDSee 19.3

ACDSee is intended to manage, edit and share photographs. Its interface is, in many respects, similar to those of other similar products; so, if you have previous experience in using any of them, it’s highly improbable you will have any difficulty to use ACDSee. The working area is divided into three sections: a left panel where you can browse folders, a right panel with the properties, and the obvious viewing area in the middle. The tabs at the top allow for switching between working modes, which are Manage, Photos, View, Edit and 365(photo upload to the Cloud).

It’s practically impossible to describe all the features available from ACDSee in such a short review. Instead, I’ll try to highlight those I found particularly useful or interesting. First, the program allows you to build a catalog. This ensures the so-called “non-destructive editing”, which means that you can make any changes without affecting the original files. Second, the program is distinguished by the speed at which you can browse through the photographs in the collection. Third, it comes with very accurate light equalizing tools, which are based on dragging sliders for the desired effects. Fourth, it supports some photo retouching tools that correct skin defects. Finally, to complete the list, it also has most standard tools, including red eye reduction, crop, sharpen and blur.

In a few words, ACDSee is probably among the best products of its type. It certainly has some features that may distinguish it from its competitors. However, in other aspects, it’s still behind the leading software as its corrections are not always as effective. I recommend you to try the standard version, and if you feel you need more, you should probably see if ACDSee Pro, a more complete suite by the same developer, has what you’re looking for. One thing I didn’t like about the program: the need to create an ACDSee account to be able to use it.