The launch of Skylum’s Luminar 3 set a major change in the features of the program and turned Luminar into a complete all-in-one photo-editing tool. Now Skylum makes a new move by creating Luminar Flex, for all those who want to use Luminar’s extensive creative tools and filters with their previously existing workflow. I’ll show you all the new features in this Luminar Flex Review.

What is Luminar Flex?

Luminar Flex is a suite of filters that allows, in a few clicks and without the need for extensive knowledge in photo editing, get powerful results in the photos. Unlike Luminar 3, Flex is designed to be used only as a plug-in: this software will work as an add-on for Photoshop, Lightroom Classic, Photoshop Elements and even Photos for macOS. It offers the more than 50 filter effects included in Luminar 3 software, customizable workspaces and more than 70 one-click looks, including some new ones for this version.

Luminar 3 Evolution

When Skylum launched Luminar 3, its main novelty was that it included a library module from which all photos could be cataloged and organized. This new functionality made sense if you decided to use Luminar as a unique application: you can catalog, reveal and add filters to your photos without using another software.

However, there is another type of user who continues to use Luminar as a simple filter pack, launching it as a plugin from Photoshop, Lightroom, or other editing software. For this group, they have created Flex: a Luminar 3 without library that can only be used as a plugin.

The separation of Luminar and Luminar Flex is an interesting move, Skylum has decided to split these two products, with two future development plans and separate purchases.

In other words, Luminar will continue to offer an all-in-one photo-editing and organizing app for users who want a single, complete program for all their photo-editing needs. Meanwhile, Luminar Flex will work alongside Photoshop, Lightroom, Photoshop Elements and Photos for macOS, as an additional creative tool for more advanced photographers who already have a photo-editing workflow they don’t want to change.

Features

Luminar Flex offers the same editing tools as regular Luminar, with more than 50 filters that can be used individually or in combination, and organized into custom “workspaces” for a cleaner, more efficient workflow. It also has an extensive collection of one-click looks, which you can customize.

The company claims that Luminar has settings and effects that cannot be found anywhere else, including the artificial intelligence filters Accent AI and AI Sky Enhancer, Golden Hour, Details Enhancer and Image Radiance, along with a LUT assignment tool.

Luminar Flex vs Luminar 3

The advantages of Luminar 3 reside in its cataloging and in that you can copy and paste settings from one photo to another. If you don’t use any of these functions or your workflow is managed from another software, Flex is your best option, because:

• Supports Smart Objects: If you turn a layer into a Smart Object before you apply the filters to it when you finish working in Flex and return to Photoshop, you can open that Smart Object again in Flex to see what filters have been used and what values they have. They can be modified, added or removed, and so on. Until now this was not possible, because when you returned to Photoshop from Luminar, the filters were applied on the layer that was active without being able to readjust later.
• Supports actions: The Flex plug-in can be included in the action flow to automate work in Photoshop. Luminar 3 did not allow it.

Luminar Flex Version 1.1

In this part of our Luminar Flex Review, we’ll look at how you can use the plugin, and what it costs. 3 months after its launch, Skylum released an update for Luminar Flex, which brings a couple of improvements:

Accent AI 2.0

Accent AI is a filter capable of generally improving any image with just one slider, thanks to its new artificial intelligence system. It makes dozens of adjustments aimed at balancing the lighting, contrast, hue, and saturation of photos.

With version 1.1, Flex comes the second version of this filter, far more powerful, as it is able to detect people in the photo and apply adjustments selectively to achieve more natural finishes. You can replace your usual developing process by touching exposure, lighting, shadows, contrast, saturation, etc. with this single slider.

Customized workspaces

Luminar has several predefined workspaces. Each one is made up of a different set of filters so that depending on the type of photo you are going to edit, you can choose one or the other.

If the ones you have do not match your tastes, you can create a custom one as you could do in Luminar 3. A single click will load all the filters you usually use, without having to search the list.

You can also make that custom space to be the one that is loaded by default each time you open Luminar Flex.

Other improvements

There are other small changes that are not as eye-catching but do improve the program:

• The filter catalog will be displayed as soon as Flex is opened.
• Looks are easier to manage.
• Performance has been improved to make it work faster.
• Several bugs reported by users have been fixed.

Luminar Flex Pricing

There are different ways to get Luminar Flex. At the time of writing this Luminar Flex Review, for example, the basic Signature edition package was listed at a reduced price of $59.00.

• Old users: Flex was released free of charge to all users of Luminar 3 or Luminar 2018 at the time of its launch on April 5, and can be downloaded from a Skylum account.
• New users: If you want to buy the software separately, “Luminar Flex plus Toolbox Looks Pack”, the pack that Skylum is offering, has a one-fee cost of $69.
• Buyers of the Luminar 3 + Aurora HDR pack will get Luminar Flex for free.

It is also possible to download a trial version and use it for 14 days without any restrictions, to find out if it really is what you need.

Luminar Flex Review | Final Words

Skylum made a move little expected by its users, but interesting at a general level, by separating its star software into 2 versions. There is no doubt that Luminar Flex is a very useful tool for all those users who want a quick edition of their photos or do not want to spend hours moving adjustments to achieve a professional finish, so if you are from that group, this software is ideal for you.

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If you would like to learn more about photo editing software check our Lightroom Review article.