Before You Switch To Capture One, You Beware!
Before you jump ship to Capture One from Lightroom, there are a few things you should know. Any frustrations you might have with Lightroom might not be enough reason to switch. Let's talk through the most significant (and probably most frustrating for many photographers) difference between the two.
The BIG Issue with Capture One:
Capture One doesn't offer some medium format camera support - Fuji GFX 50S being one. Plain and simple, that's a problem for a lot of photographers. Interestingly, Capture One is owned by Phase One, a manufacturer of medium format cameras. So, why not offer support for all cameras? Perhaps they want to protect their own medium format support system? We don't know, but in Capture One's newest version (introduced recently), we saw no movement on their part toward including this type of support.
The fact that Capture One doesn't support a broad range of camera formats should give many photographers some pause. In post-processing, Lightroom beats Capture One for its versatile support.
Capture One Advantage:
Capture One's performance is impressive as post-processing software goes. In a few things, Capture One seems like the advanced version of Lightroom, and its most recent release won't disappoint for most things. But, is that enough to stop using Lightroom in favor of Capture One? We don't think so. We've heard of too many photographers trying or working on Capture One for a while, only to find they prefer Lightroom.
It's difficult to accept a software program that seeks to block competition rather than creating a more versatile experience for its users. If you choose to buy Capture One, you should do so knowing that in the future you'll be restricted in how you can use it. Before investing in Capture One, we recommend you consider, not just how you're using it today, but how you might want or need to use it in the future. Purchasing and learning how to use software to match your current needs without regard to how you might be using it in a year or two is wasting money and time.
Considering Software, Support, and Systems:
Modern photography is in many ways tied to and significantly influenced by its technology. Cameras, support, and software are more technologically advanced than ever. And, while that's usually a good thing, it can also complicate matters for photographers.
When you are considering one of the three (camera systems, support, and software, you need to think about the other two as well to ensure all three will work together. If you are purchasing a camera system, it's always a good idea to be sure that your post-processing software and support can function with that camera.
You can think of it like a tripod where all three need to work well together. If one of the legs does not function well with or is not compatible with the others, you will need to change at least that one leg, if not more than one. Any time you switch the system, support, or software you use, you invest time, energy, and money. Before you make any of these purchases or changes in them, we strongly recommend you do your homework and do the research to ensure you're making the right choice.
Lastly, just because a camera manufacturer offers its version of post-processing software doesn't mean it will be the best suited to your needs. Camera manufacturers are good at building cameras. Typically, software designers are good at designing software. Each should probably stay in their "lane" rather than branching out into other areas. For example, at BeArt-Presets we specialize in creating presets for Lightroom based on our background and experience. We wouldn't want to build cameras or camera support systems. That's not our expertise just as it isn't necessarily the expertise of a camera manufacturer to create broad-use, versatile post-processing software.
Systems Supported by Capture One:
The answer seems pretty simple, if not frustrating. According to Capture One's recent release literature, it supports its Phase One medium format cameras as well as those from Mamiya. There doesn't seem to be any other medium format cameras supported by Capture One! Hasselblad and Leica S are still blocked as is Pentax likely because they're direct competitors. Most of the Fuji X-series is supported but not the GFX 50S, as we said earlier.
If you don't want to worry about medium camera support, you'll want to stick with Lightroom. Using Capture One could be an expensive complication only remedied by changing camera systems.
