Do you want to edit RAW photos professionally on your iPad? Or you may be looking for an app which is suitable for the beginners. Whether you are looking for any sort of photo editing app for your iPad, I am going to give you numerous options to choose from.
I saw a lot of people on the internet asking about which is the best RAW photo editing app for iPad and iPad pro. But, as you know, everyone has different requirements.
So, there is no such thing as the perfect raw photo editing app of software for any operating system. However, we can know about their offerings by user-ratings and reviews.
In this article, I am going to give you an extensive list of 10 most popular, highly-rated, and mostly utilized raw photo editing iPad apps by beginners and professionals as well.
If you read this article till the end, I promise, you will be able to make a wise decision for you.
So, let’s get started with our first photo editing software for iPad.
List of Best Photo Editing Software for iPad [2020]
I have ranked these iPad photo editor apps after considering several things such as app store ratings, user-satisfaction, reviews, and lastly my friend’s suggestions who are iPad owners.
1. Adobe Lightroom
Adobe Lightroom is a ruler of the photo editing domain. For iPad users, this software has excellent offerings to edit any sort of images using its excellent tools and world-class features.
Although Lightroom is not so much easy to use for beginners but to learn something well, you will have to invest your time. And when you use it with the Apple Pencil, your iPad becomes an editing machine with some world-class editing features and excellent performance.
To keep details and highlight them properly, Lightroom is the best app which will never distort your photos or over-expose them.
The app comes with its two different versions in which one is free and another one if Premium. The free version offers numerous editing features.
But, for RAW editing, you will have to purchase Lightroom’s Premium plan.
Some of the major features of the app are as follows.
Key features of Illustrator’s free version:
- Different Presets
- Color, tone, contrast, and exposure curves
- Tools to adjust texture and clarity of photos
- HDR and RAW camera modes
- Use professional camera control using your phone
- Masking, vibrance, saturation, sharpening, tools
Key features of Illustrator Premium:
- Selective adjustment to edit small detail precisely
- Healing brush
- RAW editing for Photographers
- Batch Editing
- Adobe Sensei to give your editing power of AI
- Access to Creative cloud storage
Adobe Illustrator is pretty much the industry standard when it comes to RAW Editing although you will have to pay for it. But, US$4.99 per month isn’t much when you look its excellent editing features.
2. Affinity Photo
Whenever you open a RAW file in Affinity Photo, it comes up with numerous basic editing tools. In this section, you get sliders to adjust brightness, sharpness, saturation, clarity, vibrance, temperature, and a lot more.
These options are enough to get the desired results if you want to do basic RAW editing like getting proper highlights and adjust colors. The histogram interface gives it a more technical look and hence great usability.
But, when it comes to advanced editing works, you can make use of its different retouching and correction tools. You get access to various tools such as dodge, clone, blemish, patch, etc. Also, you can make use of its precise object removal tools along with professional inpainting brushes.
If you want much more professional features and advanced presets, you can go for its pricing plan at just US$9.99.
Key Features of Affinity Photo:
- Unlimited layers and mask options
- Lots of effects, blend modes, live filters, and adjustment options
- Supports Apple Pencil along with pressure, tilt, and angle sensitivity
- Non-destructive editing features
- HDR Merge, Focus Merge, and Tone mapping features
3. Darkroom
Darkroom is another great option to choose for RAW photo editing as well as video editing. Most impressively, this software allows you to edit RAW and other sorts of photos for free. So, whether you want to add mesmerizing effects to your photos or adjust their properties, you can make proper use of Darkroom.
Lots of selections tools are there which offers simplicity to your basic editing tasks. Along with that, you also get access to its amazing curve tools to adjust colors, brightness, sharpness, clarity, and a lot more.
When it comes to RAW editing, Darkroom has a number of tools to help you highlight the details effectively and get fantastic results for any sort of editing task.
Also, the app allow you to create your own filters and then add them to your photos in the way you want. Lots of premium filters are there to make your photos look natural and eye-catching.
Batch processing, Hashtag manager, full album management, and SIRI Shortcuts are some of the others features which you get along with Darkroom.
When it comes to the premium plans, you have numerous options to choose from. As per your choice, you can choose from different packages ranging between US$3.99 to US$49.99.
Key Features of Darkroom:
- Selective Color tools and curves
- Blur editing tools
- No complex import function, just get your photo ready to edit
- Effective live photo editing features
4. Snapseed
Snapseed is another highly advanced and effective, layer-based photo editing app for iPad. With its impressive photo editing tools and features, you can easily use it for RAW and HDR editing tasks.
Developed by Google, this app is equipped with numerous advanced editing features that you get only with premium editing apps. Especially for RAW editing, you get 29 different editing tools and features such as healing, perspective, HDR, etc.
Its non-destructive editing features also help you to edit your native camera files effectively. Image tuning, color adjustments, detaining, healing, vignette, Lens blur, and curve features are there to offer you a feel of full-fledged editing platform on your iPad.
For fashion portraits, this app has a separated function known as Glamour Glow.
When it comes to the features, you get numerous offerings from this app. In this way, it becomes one of the most suitable for not only RAW but any other type of photo editing work.
As compared to the other apps, Snapseed is completely free to use. So, make sure to give it a try for sure.
Key Features of Snapseed:
- Face Enhance feature to focus on eyes and skin smoothening
- Double Exposure
- Healing tool for removing unwanted elements
- Control Point technology to allow you add enhancements in different place with a single click
- Exposure, Saturation, Sharpness, Clarity, and brightness brushes
5. VSCO
VSCO is another great option to choose when it comes to RAW or other general photo editing works. The app comes along with 10 presets which are most suitable for professional photographers. So, whether you want to make any sort of adjustment to your photos, you can first try to add these presets.
But, if you want precise editing that starts from scratch, you can use its amazing editing tools and features which makes your editing process smooth and fast.
You can also take images from your iPad and start editing them as the RAW files. Also, for color adjustments and initial refinements, this app can be used to receive excellent results.
Although, the app is completely free to download but you can do its in-app purchases to receive additional features. With its premium plan, you will receive an updated preset library with more than 200 presets. You also receive some other features with its paid plan such as HSL, Split Tone, Film X, etc.
The yearly VSCO pricing plan comes at US$19.99.
6. Photoshop Express Photo Editor
This is another great photo editing app which you can easily use to edit your RAW and other sorts of images. For RAW editing, this app has excellent filters and effects which are pretty easy to apply. You get all the basic and popular photo editing features and tools for free in this app.
Using Blend effects, Color adjustment, and various other refinement features, you can easily convert your images into a professional work very easily. When it comes to removing the undesired elements such and objects, backgounds, and distortion, you can easily use its rich features in your iPad and even iPhones.
Quick fix tools for crop, rotate, flip are available. Also, you will receive various other features to adjust brightness, contrast, sharpness, clarity, etc. Removing pet-eye and red-eye is also very easy with this amazing iOS app.
Various noise removal, blur, healing, correction, and other adjustment tools are available in this app for free. However, you can go for its paid plans to receive some additional and advanced features. The monthly Premium plan is priced US$4.99. However, the full package is for 49.99US$.
Key Features of Photoshop Express Photo Editor:
- Various features to enhance imagery and colors
- Create amazing photo collages
- Amazing typography with Pan, Zoom, and rotate tools
- Use vignettes to add emphasis
- Reduce noise and sharpen your images
7. RNI Films
RNI Films is a less-known but a fully-functional RAW photo editing app for iPad. You can use it for other sorts of editing tasks too. But, because we are discussing the most effective packages for RAW editing, this app was worth mentioning here. With RNI Films app, there comes numerous editing tools and filters along.
But, the thing for which this app is widely popular is its film filters. In other words, you will be able to add some professional film-like effects in your photos. This is one of the main things for which this app is highly appreciated by professional photographers.
Like any other photo editing app, you will get numerous adjustment tools to adjust contrast, brightness, sharpness, color, shadows, etc. Also, you can make other changes such as cropping, rotating, mirroring, etc.
While editing RAW photos, according to the official app store page, you may see some image artifacts inside your projects. But, they are promising that these elements will not be there once you export your RAW file.
Key Features of RNI Films:
- Easy to use and straightforward editing tools
- Easy to share your work on social media
- Insert artistic effects to your photos
- Free to use [With additional paid extensions]
8. MaxCurve
MaxCurve is another good but not best option to choose for photo editing for your iPad. You can even use it for professional editing works such as RAW and HDR.
The app is highly popular for its advanced color adjustment features which are available for free. You get access to its different kits such as RGB, CMYK, HSL, LAB, and various other kits. In other words, the app makes your color management and adjustment tasks pretty simple and easy.
You can use its curve tools along with 40 layers and make adjustments in a smooth manner. Also, adding color layers and self-blending layers become easy with this app. Masks are also there to make your editing tasks easy.
You can also use its manual camera feature to click some professional shots using your iPad. Lots of presets will be there for you. Also, you can easily sync your work to Adobe Photoshop and continue you work from where you have left.
The price of its paid version is US$2.99.
Key Features of MaxCurve:
- Share curves for future use
- Editing becomes easy with gradient and histograms
- Open in Photos app
- Save your work without decreasing the resolution
9. RAW Power
RAW power is a great JPEG and RAW editing app for iOS devices but less known because of its poor UI (as per the user rating). But, various users have found this app to be extremely helpful when it comes to the RAW photo editing works.
Its developers have promised that the app will give you the results like Apple’s Aperture software because of unique editing features. Various filters and editing tools are there to help you make your RAW photos look much more professional.
This app allows you easily sync your photos with iCloud Photo library.
Smart color management and correction tools are there to help you with professional editing tasks. The app offers non-destructive editing features whether all the changes can easily be stored on the cloud. Also, you get various presets along with auto-enhance, auto levels, auto curves, and differnet other adjustment tools.
Depth effect and chromatic Aberration features are also there for the advanced users. You can also use its numerous features to adjust artifact, B/W, vignette, and perspective.
Key Features of RAW Power App:
- Deep color imaging engine
- Real time sliders with GPU Engine
- LUTs features are available
- Hot-pixel overlay with Histogram
- Use customized presets to more than one image
10. ProCam 7
ProCam 7 will allow you to take amazing shots using its highly customizable camera interface. The app will help you to get 4K, HD, 1080P, and 3D clicks just by using your iPad. Night mode, Burst mode, time lapse, and various other camera adjustment options are there to offer you an immersive photography experience.
You also get various manual controls to adjust your photography parameters without hassles. You will receive manual exposure, ISO, White balance control, Zebra stripes, and various other controls to customize the photo-taking abilities of your iOS devices.
When it comes to the RAW editing, first of all, you get its non-destructive editing features which you can change anytime because they are not permanent until you are fully satisfied with them. Also, you will receive 60 excellent filters to add in your images and transform them in the way you want.
ProCam 7 comes along with 17 different lenses in its free version. Also, various adjustment tools are there to make necessary changes to your desired images. Simple adjustment tools for trimming, cropping, mirroring, and straightening are available for you.
However, you can’t use it for in-depth RAW Editing because the app is focused more on manual photography. The full paid package of this app comes for US$5.99.
Key Features of ProCam 7:
- Suitable for professional photography tasks
- Basic photo and video adjustment tools are available.
Conclusion:
I hope you will now be able to choose the best RAW photo editing app for your iPad. If you liked this article, make sure to share it with others too.
I have written another article on best RAW photo editing software for Windows and Mac. If you are interested, read it too.