Back when Adobe upended their perpetual licensing, Capture One was touted as _the_ alternative and I gave it a try since my new Sony camera's RAW format wasn't supported by the last perpetual-license Lightroom version anyway. And man, coming from Lightroom, Capture One was one of the most horrendous usability experiences I have ever had in a creative tool. Even after keeping on trying for a long time, I could absolutely not find a workflow that worked for me and that wasn't filled with obstacles, pains, slowness, inexplicable UI design choices and illogical workflows that totally broke the creative process. It made me miss and appreciate Lightroom so much. But as a photo hobbyist I couldn't justify Adobe's then-new licensing model anyway and the hobby just dwindled away. I ended up finding other paths to express my creative side instead.

If Capture One still is like this, I wouldn't really be surprised if there's truth to the other comment here claiming that their current owners are trying to offload them.

I don't have spite for Adobe, that seems like a projection on your part. But I can't justify the purchase, and have adapted the way I take photos as part of that.

It's more like finding the subscription for a CAD program too expensive, and swapping to something more primitive instead. If that offends you, I think you gotta have a long hard look in a mirror some time.

Capture One is a shitshow, however, and their new owner is actively trying to offload them, so a risk.

Capture One still offers a perpetual license for US$349... it's the option down at the bottom, of course. And they still do discounted upgrade pricing on that, too.

Absurd? What's with you folks and your strongly charged language?

Please recommend these "powerful alternatives", because I have explored the space and found nothing that replaces Lightroom in a way that I find acceptable. Please omit Darktable and Rawtherapee as I've already evaluated those.