Welcome to the forum …
I see this request occasionally, and it always makes me curious;
- Why do you need the history of every single adjustment you’ve made to an image across multiple sessions … How would you use it ?
Regards, John M
It would be very useful if I want to continue modifying an image across sessions. Many people don’t use this feature at all. I use the advanced history as a significant tool In my development workflow.
Mark
I know we’ve had this same conversation for a while now, Mark - but it still intrigues me …
So, how do you manage now, without history across sessions ?
Do you really refer back to the history in order to continue work on an image ? - I cannot imagine that.
John
I think we discussed this when the feature was implemented. I go back and forth to try different things as I develop… I also create VCs and go back and forth in their histories. It allow me to easily add edits reverse them and reapply new edits as needed… Or, I can go back a bunch of edits create a VC and then go forward again. The history list provides a lot of development flexibility, and the version in Windows would be even more valuable if the history list was available across sessions. It is a tool that helps me expand my creativity. I use it all the time. Many, if not most photo software these days has a similar tool. I have always been curious why some people don’t use it.
Mark…
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If permany history were introduced I hope it were an option as I don’t use it and really don’t want more clutter to be permanently added to eather sidebar or database.
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well, an option to make it permanent and to delete it, when not needed anymore
Nope. can’t see the point personally. But then not everybody creates the perfect images I do in the camera 
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I see this request occasionally, and it always makes me curious;
Why do you need the history of every single adjustment you’ve made to an image across multiple sessions … How would you use it ?
Regards, John M
Hey John,
Thanks for welcoming me here.
I really like working with histories across many different tools - it is kind of my workflow; not only with DxO PL. Just like mwsilvers mentioned: I often have to start back at a project I left a longer time ago and don’t quite remember at what step at my workflow I left. A short look at a history tool and BAM I’m back into business. At the moment DxO PL only shows “imported on…” as if the photo ist just unedited.
Now think of a multi-user environment on shared photo data base and this get’s extremely annoying.
Other tools are able to provide this feature. DxO even lists it as a feature “advanced history” which is just not true at the moment.
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PL does not really have the concept of a step-by-step list of operations applied to a photo but rather a list of tools that are either used/adjusted or not as indicated by the little blue on/off switch. All changes are applied in a pre-defined order when the photo is exported.
If you want to see what adjustments you have made you can click the button to show only those tools that have been adjusted. The order or history is actually irrelevant.
The order of history is not irrelevant. It is also not a question of just identifying which features have edits applied.The Advanced History serves a completely different purpose as part of the editing tool set. There are many uses for it in an almost infinite number of scenarios.
Here is an example. With the Advanced History you can step back in the order that edits were applied. You can therefore go back to a specific point in the editing process in one jump and apply different edits from that point, or you can create a virtual copy of the image at that earlier point in time, jump back to the top of the history stack in the Master in one jump and then edit your newly created VC from the earlier point in time to take a different development approach. It is one of many useful scenarios that the Advanced History allows you to do.
I struggle to understand why so many here can’t see the added functionally that the Advanced History provides.
Mark
Ok, I accept your very valid uses for the history! I guess I just don’t work that way as I simply edit my photo until it is as I like and make tweaks of desired later. I also very seldom use VCs. I mainly do wildlife and landscape and try to replicate what the eye sees so no real artistic stuff.
Everyone to their own way of working!
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Mark - - I understand that you value this feature, but … you may be giving new PL users the wrong impression by your starting point; I know you know that the order of applying corrections has no impact on the order in which PL actually applies the corrections … but new users, coming from other tools, may misunderstand your comment - and, as a consequence, they may feel it’s necessary to “back-out” any corrections in order to change some setting made “n” steps ago … Whereas, more experienced PL users understand that that’s not necessary at all.
Note:
- I do understand that you’re making a different, creative argument to the reason for using history … and that’s why I’m clarifying this (for other readers, not intending to “teach you how to suck eggs”).
John
John,
My response was posted explicitly because I felt challenged to explain the value of this feature. A visual history list that allows you to move back and forth between edits to an earlier point in time.is a common feature available today in image editing software. PhotoLab is far from the only software to contain a visual history list. Lightroom has one, PhotoShop has one, Affinity Photo has one, Exposure X6 has one, On1 Photo RAW has one, Luminar has one, and there are others. Even Gimp has one. I don’t believe what I posted will confuse new users any more than most of what is posted here. In fact new users who are familiar with the software titles I mentioned may be pleased to find that a visual history list is also available in PhotoLab. It was one of the features I missed most when I migrated from Lightroom to PhotoLab 1 in late 2017. It is basically just a visible history stack. Those who don’t see its value are free to ignore it just like any other feature they don’t find useful.
Mark
Yes, but, for PhotoShop and Affinity, (to cite just two of your examples that I’m sure about) the order in which corrections/adjustments are applied is critically important - and, for those tools, the ability to “back-out” thru previously applied adjustment steps is essential - - But that’s not the case with PhotoLab.
For PL, yes … and that’s the distinction I hope readers appreciate.
John
Can you or somebody else explain that? Not with examples but why.
George
Hi George !
Because PhotoLab collects all adjustments/corrections we have applied - and then applies them in a prescribed order (that’s determined by DxO developers) - - regardless of the order in which we applied them.
For example, in terms of light-related corrections; DxO staff-member Benoit advises: “Vignetting is corrected first (as it depends on calibrated data), then exposure, smart lighting, selective tones, contrast, clearview, microcontrast and then custom tone curve”
I cannot quickly find more details on the sequence in which corrections are applied - but I know I’ve seen reference to the list (perhaps someone else can help us out here).
Regards, John M
Note: There is one specific exception to this “rule” (that sequence/order of corrections is unimportant) and that’s related to geometry corrections. They should be applied before Local Adjustments - because the specific location in the image to which LAs apply can be impacted by shifts in the image caused by geometry changes.
I’m not sure what distinction you’re referring to. The visual history list of all the software to which I referred appear to be nothing more than a visual history stack similar to PhotoLabs. I’ve used almost all of them and they all worked the same way.
Mark
What are you basing that statement on? While DXO suggests a basic approach towards editing, every step is not written in stone, and further in every editor there are certain tasks that should probably best be done before others. Using a history list effectively in any editor implies that you understand the software sufficiently enough to use it wisely. New users to any editing software are likely to make many many poor tool use decisions before they attain the knowledge and competence of how of how to best use their software. A history List is just one more tool.
Mark
So … Am I correct to understand you’re saying that the order in which corrections/adjustments are applied in PhotoShop is equally relevant to the order in which they’re applied in PhotoLab ?
I suspect we’re somehow at cross-purposes here, Mark.
John
John.
I never said or implied that. What I said was, “The visual history list of all the software to which I referred appear to be nothing more than a visual history stack similar to PhotoLabs”. Most software has a similar undo/redo stack, visible or not, that just lists the order in which commands were executed. All that PhotoLab and the other image software I mentioned do is to make it visible so you can navigate the stack more easily. It is just a visible undo/redo so you don’t have to use Ctrl+Z and Ctrl+Y multiple times to step back and forth. It’s a feature that always existed in Photolab except that now you can see all the edits in a list. I’m not sure why there is such a fuss about it. .
Mark
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