Luminar Neo

Luminar Neo puts generative AI editing inside a conventional RAW photo editor rather than a standalone web tool. GenErase, GenExpand and GenSwap remove objects, extend a frame or replace elements with AI-generated content that matches the surrounding image — the same category of tool as Photoshop's generative fill, built into an editor that also does layers, masking, RAW processing from over a thousand camera models and full portrait and landscape retouching.

Sky AI, Atmosphere AI and the portrait tools (Skin AI, Face AI, Body AI) automate the retouching a photographer would otherwise do manually, and batch tools — panorama stitching, focus stacking, HDR merge across up to a thousand images — cover volume work the web-based tools in this category are not built for. It is a desktop application for Windows and macOS, downloaded and licensed rather than used in a browser.

"Skylum" is a trading name of Shinyfields Limited, a Cyprus company, and its privacy policy names US affiliates, Skylum Software USA, Inc. (Nevada) and Photolemur, Inc. (Delaware), while its terms of use are governed by New York law, not Cyprus or EU law.

That is a real jurisdictional wrinkle worth knowing before it comes up in procurement, alongside Clipdrop's French-team-owned-by-a-US-company position. The app is free to try; a one-time licence starts at about €129, but the generative tools (GenErase, GenSwap, GenExpand) are included for 365 days only, then need a Luminar Prime subscription.

What Luminar Neo does well

• Generative erase, expand and swap inside a full RAW editor
• Automated sky replacement and portrait retouching
• Batch HDR, panorama and focus-stacking tools
• RAW support for 1,000+ camera models
• One-time licence from about €129, no forced subscription

Where Luminar Neo falls short

• Cyprus entity, but terms of use run under New York, US law
• Named US affiliates alongside the Cyprus company
• Desktop app, not a lightweight web tool
• Generative AI tools need Luminar Prime after year one

Standout feature. Generative erase and expand inside a real RAW workflow — Photoshop's generative fill logic, but built for photographers rather than designers.