DaVinci Resolve Comes for Photoshop with $295 Photo Editor

DaVinci Resolve just put Adobe on notice. Blackmagic's new Photo Editor page brings its Hollywood color grading tools to still photography, and the pricing is aggressive. Studio costs $295 once. Adobe's Photography Plan runs $21.99 every month. Do the math and DaVinci becomes cheaper after about 14 months. For hybrid creators, that's video, color grading, and photos in one app.

The feature set reads like a wishlist. Magic Mask handles precise selections. Depth Map separates scenes in 3D. Relight FX adjusts lighting after the shot. Face Refinement, AI SuperScale for upscaling, UltraNR for noise reduction. All GPU-accelerated, processing at source resolution up to 32K (that's over 400 megapixels).

Native RAW support covers Canon, Fujifilm, Nikon, Sony, and iPhone ProRAW. The editing is non-destructive, so you can reframe and reinterpret your original sensor data whenever you want. Node-based workflows replace the layer-based approach most photo editors use. If you're already a DaVinci colorist, your skills transfer directly.

Hacker News response has been mostly positive, with particular excitement about a professional photo editor that actually supports Linux. Some users speculate Blackmagic subsidizes the free version through hardware sales.

Whether that subsidy theory holds or not, the math speaks for itself. Adobe's subscription model just got a real competitor.