# Using Bridge along with  RAW-capable post-processing programs like Luminar,  Photoshop Elements, GIMP, etc.



## Myron Kuziak (Dec 13, 2018)

Since Adobe apparently permits non-subscribers to their Creative Cloud software suites to get an Adobe ID,  create an account andget access to Bridge, and even Portfolio  (I believe I am correct about that) , does anyone know if it makes sense to use Bridge to manage photographs and  link to non-Lightroom Classic CC and non-Photoshop CC software applications?  I have a Photography sub myself, but I would like to advise other photographers.


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## Linwood Ferguson (Dec 14, 2018)

Adobe's raw processing techniques are only compatible between products, so the edits in Bridge work with Lightroom and also with Photoshop (maybe some others), they will not work with non-Adobe applications that are also NON-destructive editors.  Let's say you used something like Capture One with Bridge as a browser front end.  If Capture One did non-destructive edits and did not output a preview or TIFF or JPG file, then Bridge would not be able to show the Capture One edts.  To do that you need Capture One to (for example) render the result as a TIFF (i.e. not be a pure non-destructive editor) and then Bridge can read the standardized TIFF format (probably -- it's possible to have all sorts of proprietary stuff inside a TIFF, I cannot say everything can be rendered by Bridge).

So if you wanted to use destructive editors, or let them work and render TIFF's or JPG's, then Bridge could brows them, display them, and I think even invoke the editor (I have not used it in a long time to be sure). But it's not a good solution if your 3rd party programs are non-destructive tools, it loses that nice feature.

I'm not sure if you can get ACR free or not.  If you can, with bridge (and I didn't know that for sure either) together they make a decent little browsing and editing system, at least they did pre-lightroom, unless Adobe has broken something.  But I'm not sure you can get both of those legitimately -- someone more versed in the nuances of adobe licenses will have to comment.  Remember -- that a program might allow you to do it technically does not mean it is license conforming.


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## Myron Kuziak (Dec 14, 2018)

Thanks, Ferguson.  Very helpful, but disappointing, since I like Bridge a lot.  If you know of a photo organizer like it that would work with other non-destructive editors, let me know,  but I suspect you would have mentioned that,  if you were aware.  Merry Christmas and all the best to you and all other viewers.


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## Linwood Ferguson (Dec 14, 2018)

Myron Kuziak said:


> Thanks, Ferguson.  Very helpful, but disappointing, since I like Bridge a lot.  If you know of a photo organizer like it that would work with other non-destructive editors, let me know,  but I suspect you would have mentioned that,  if you were aware.  Merry Christmas and all the best to you and all other viewers.



Merry Christmas to you as well. 

I do not.  There is no standardization for non-destructive edits beyond some minor stuff like crops, and even less for how they are saved (in a catalog somewhere, sidecar file, format of sidecars, inside DNG, is DNG even supported).  The best you might possibly maybe get somewhere is one that builds a preview and stashes it inside a DNG, then bridge could refer to it, but it's highly unlikely you will ever find compatibility that would allow it to actually display the edits from a 3rd party editor that have not been rendered to TIFF (etc). 

Most non-destructive editors have some kind of browser of their own, however.

Lack of compatibility is one reason people feel a bit trapped in Lightroom, not because of the subscriptions per se, but because if you have tens of thousands of images edited only non-destructively, migrating to a different editor means giving all that up OR rendering destructively to TIFF if you change. I keep hearing of migration tools, but have yet to hear of any being very effective.  Maybe someone will completely re-engineer Adobe's LR edits to translate to their own, though using bridge would require they go the other way, and create adobe XML sidecars for Bridge to be able to browse them, for which I think they have much less motivation, since that permits one to migrate from the 3rd party to Adobe not the reverse.


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## Myron Kuziak (Dec 14, 2018)

Ferguson said:


> Merry Christmas to you as well.
> 
> I do not.  There is no standardization for non-destructive edits beyond some minor stuff like crops, and even less for how they are saved (in a catalog somewhere, sidecar file, format of sidecars, inside DNG, is DNG even supported).  The best you might possibly maybe get somewhere is one that builds a preview and stashes it inside a DNG, then bridge could refer to it, but it's highly unlikely you will ever find compatibility that would allow it to actually display the edits from a 3rd party editor that have not been rendered to TIFF (etc).
> 
> ...


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## Myron Kuziak (Dec 14, 2018)

Good Discussion.  Thanks.  I guess my quest is futile., except......  Last question - I haven't used Elements for years, but I understand it can process RAW images non-destructively.  If that is true, then it might be a worthwhile option, along with Bridge, for someone who doesn't want to commit to Lightroom/Photoshop.  Just a thought.  I will follow that up.


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## Linwood Ferguson (Dec 14, 2018)

Someone else will have to jump in on Elements, I have not used it.  I thought it was photoshop lite (i.e. destructive) but I really do not know.


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## Rob_Cullen (Dec 15, 2018)

Myron Kuziak said:


> Good Discussion.  Thanks.  I guess my quest is futile., except......  Last question - I haven't used Elements for years, but I understand it can process RAW images non-destructively.  If that is true, then it might be a worthwhile option, along with Bridge, for someone who doesn't want to commit to Lightroom/Photoshop.  Just a thought.  I will follow that up.



TBMK-   Some thoughts:
Photoshop Elements comes with a version of 'Camera Raw'.  It needs to otherwise Elements could not edit proprietary raw images.
There is no reference to Adobe Bridge anywhere in the Elements Help Reference-
https://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&...eference.pdf&usg=AOvVaw3kWEXzYP2q_Tlf7PnmB1pe
My  Elements version of Camera Raw 9.0.2.219 does not save edits to XML sidecar files, but the Camera Raw edits remain visible in the Bridge thumbnails (and open with CR edits in ACR if 'opened' with Photoshop-CC from Bridge).

Elements comes provided with Elements Organizer .
https://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&...eference.pdf&usg=AOvVaw3uxOpdNfwJfd1aPiwKZvYb
Without having Elements, I cannot comment on the capabilities of 'Organizer' but it looks like an alternative to Bridge.

Bridge now  needs 'online' activation. I doubt very much that a "free" version of Bridge will be available in the future. Or even if 'old' versions will continue to work without a subscription!  (Advise "other photographers" to not upgrade if using "Free" ) or better still- suggest they subscribe to a Photography Plan for the ultimate package (Lr-Classic, Ps-CC, Br, Lr-CC, Portfolio, Web Mobile)
"Bridge now provides a new sign-in and sign-out model.... "  New and enhanced features | Latest release of Bridge CC

And "Portfolio" - I believe is only available with a Photography Plan Subscription.

My Adobe Bridge has a menu item [Open with], but it is very restricted. If Elements were installed then [Open] would only open the file in the default Elements Editor (or my Photoshop-CC). 
 [Open with] only works if you change a File Association in Preferences.  
Eg. Set TIFF to [Open with--- Nik Silver Efex] works. But then [Open ] will now open in Nik SE every time.  You need to choose [Open with]  to be able to select Elements Editor! There is no way to have multiple programs to [Open with] as possible in Lightroom.


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## Ed Anderson (Jan 1, 2019)

Adobe tends to keep it quiet, but there is a free level of Creative Cloud.  You still need to create an account though, Adobe ID and Password.  ProDesignTools at this link:  What’s Included with Your Free Creative Cloud Membership   gives the particular apps that are free.  #4 is Bridge CC.  From what I can find Bridge works with all Adobe apps, to include the latest versions of Elements.

As mentioned, Elements does come with it own organizer. I had found it quite easy to use but haven't used a version of Elements since 2009.


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## PhilBurton (Jan 1, 2019)

Ferguson said:


> Merry Christmas to you as well.
> 
> I do not.  There is no standardization for non-destructive edits beyond some minor stuff like crops, and even less for how they are saved (in a catalog somewhere, sidecar file, format of sidecars, inside DNG, is DNG even supported).  The best you might possibly maybe get somewhere is one that builds a preview and stashes it inside a DNG, then bridge could refer to it, but it's highly unlikely you will ever find compatibility that would allow it to actually display the edits from a 3rd party editor that have not been rendered to TIFF (etc).
> 
> ...


What Ferguson is all_ technically feasible_, given enough time and money.  But would the products that emerge be_ commercially successful_?  Doubtful, which is why we aren't seeing them.

Of course we in this forum may all be "trapped" with Lightroom, but so are the users of any other non-destructive editor.  

Standardization among the various non-destructive editors?  That would require agreement among some/most of/all of the vendors?  Just how likely is that?  Certainly Adobe has no incentive for such an initiative.  In 2006, there was a Quixotic effort called "OpenRAW," which argued that Nikon and Canon and others should all standardize on a standardized publicly documented  RAW format.  That was 12 years ago, yet Nikon still has its RAW format and Canon still has its CR2 format, and so on.

Phil Burton


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