Just a few weeks after announcing the revolutionary AI Sky Replacement we’re ready to tease the second innovative technology that comes with Luminar 4 later this fall. It’s the content-aware AI Structure tool that helps add detail to a photograph automatically without negatively affecting people or other subjects. Here at SLR Lounge we got to get hands on to test out this plugin (in a very BETA way and we can’t show the UI yet so forgive me there), and honestly, i’m impressed!
Full disclosure – In the preview images I created from my own library, i’ve applied the AI Structure filter pretty heavily, anywhere from 70-100% in intensity with an added boost of 10-40%. And most of these images were shot pretty shallow, from f/4 to f/2. The purpose is to show how with doing NOTHING else, the filters can hit the structure and details HARD, all the while leaving the skin and important details alone. So keep in mind, these edits aren’t typically what we’d do in practice, but it’s proof of the pudding as they say!
Usually, adding more structure, details or clarity to images means unpredictable results with very little control. These filters can also adds noise, artifacts, and halos to the skies and make the people in your shot look really…well…strange, to put it mildly.
The AI Structure Plugin in Luminar 4 automatically identifies objects like people and their faces, skin, skies, buildings, and more, and adjusts them intelligently. Instead of adding structure to an entire photograph on a global level, it selectively does so. Meaning photographers no longer have to mask or brush out the effect – no more tedious editing needed.
The new machine-learning technology boosts hidden details and improves local contrast, making for results that are both expressive and natural Users can expect to see additional machine learning tools present in Luminar 4, in addition to an easy-to-use interface and sensible workflow that existing users and long time Adobe Lightroom users will feel right at home with.
“We’re really excited to see Luminar 4 develop more as we approach our fall launch date,” said Alex Tsepko, CEO of Skylum. “With the new AI Structure tool, we know photographers will love the control and content-aware technologies that let them enhance their photos like never before.”
Let’s Look at the Full Press Release Below
Why AI Structure?
Past methods of adding more Structure, details or clarity to images meant that photographers would get unpredictable results with very little control. If a person was present in an image, it would add more detail to their skin, which was often unwanted. Traditional Structure tools often added noise and halos to images. For photographers, it meant fine-tuning the Structure controls and even masking out parts of their image, making for a long and tedious editing process.
With the AI Structure filter, photographers can take advantage of content-aware algorithms to automatically enhance a photographs Structure without negatively impacting certain objects. The new machine-learning technology boosts hidden details and improves local contrast, making for results that are both expressive and natural.
How does it work?
AI Structure in Luminar 4 automatically identifies objects like people and their faces, skin, sky, buildings and more, and improves them intelligently, instead of globally across the photograph. It adds detail and clarify to areas that otherwise wouldn’t have much, boosting the structure and making for a much more pleasing image.
What this means is that instead of adding Structure to an entire photograph, it selectively does so, meaning photographers no longer have to mask or brush out the effect. Photographers can also take it an extra step further, with special “Structure Boost
Technology” controls, allowing users to make extremely detailed photos for creative image looks.
“This technology is truly one-of-a-kind — it’s unmatched in the world today. AI Structure is a tool that will make your photo not only expressive, but also help to transform it from flat to dramatic,” said Skylum CTO Dima Sytnik.
AI Structure works with any type of photo, and doesn’t add additional artifacts like noise or halos. It perfectly combines with other Luminar 4 filters, and removes the need to use manual settings of Structure, Clarity and Microstructure in most instances. AI Structure is a smarter filter, helping photographers bring out the details, but also knowing where and when to stop.
Pricing and Availability
Luminar 4 is set to be released this fall. Pre-orders are now available on skylum.com.
My Personal OPINION
So far, I have honestly been blown away with both of the “Sneak peeks” that Skylum has offered to their new software. Granted we’ve not been hands on with the sky replacement tool yet, but all reporting and impressions are it works as good as the demos so that filter alone was worth the price of admission for me! As for the AI Structure, well this has always been something i’ve struggled with in my images. Increasing and Decreasing to the levels that are appropriate for each image, and a greater challenge when you have people in your shot. It’s still pretty easy to go overboard and blow the contrast out of the water for the “Details” but as you can see from my before and afters in the post here, it really does incredibly well avoiding hurting your subjects details and presence in the image.
I legit TRIED to make it break my models skin tones and hair and just couldn’t. Even blowing the sliders up to 100% on everything, all i managed to do was make the backgrounds look insane while my models just got a touch more contrasty in the shadowed areas. For an environmental portrait photographer that does’t have the time to spend all day in photoshop, between the sky replacement filter and this new structure tool, Luminar 4 may just be the perfect tool! The crazy bit is, there may be even more “previews” of crazy new tools coming before the application launches later this fall.
In the meantime, i’ve put in a request to get hands on with the Sky Replacement Filter to test it out on my images, and when the application is ready, i’ll be sure to give you all a full review and opinion piece. Until then, let me know what you think about these features and any questions you may have for me to address to the Luminar Press & Dev teams! Any guesses as to what the next “preview” may be? Have you tried Luminar already and will you be upgrading or giving it a shot once it’s released? Let me know in the comments below!
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