Please Adobe, I have been requesting H.265 support for Lightroom on Windows for over 3 years now, I am not asking much as I am not even asking to view the files I am only asking to get the files imported at the same time as images.
I have reached out to support multiple times over the last years and only answer is it is coming soon, or the latest ones have been get a MAC, I mean come on, how hard can this be? I use it all the time in Premiere and have for a very long time.
I am almost giving up on keep paying and paying without any updated to the Classic version as you seem to mostly focus on the consumer orientated version and ignoring the Pro market. Shame on you.
As far as I know none of the apps listed in the article support video? Maybe I wasn't clear what I meant; if LR does not support my video files, video support is no longer a competitive advantage of LR over other non-video supporting apps.
I've started syncing all my mobile generated content to OneDrive and to Google Photos, and I synced my entire video and image catalog to Google Photos using the Google Backup and Sync desktop app. I get 1TB of original file storage space on OneDrive via my Office Home subscription, and I get unlimited "high res" storage in Google Photos for free. Both OneDrive and Google Photos have no issues with any of my (HEIC, HEVC, MTS, MP4, DNG, RW2, NEF, etc) image or video formats, automatically tags based on image recognition, allows me to tag, automatically builds albums, has ok editing. Yes, nothing like LR in image editing features, but my requirements for cataloging video was never editing, just archiving and cataloging. So maybe I don't need LR for video any more, maybe one day I will not need LR for any cataloging, just occasionally a RAW image editor.
Why bother doing video with HEVC? I imported all the HEVC video I'd shot on my phone using Lightroom Mobile and the files arrived in my catalogue on Windows with blank thumbnails. When Lightroom eventually reads them, great, but for now at least they are managed in the catalogue. But then I switched my phone to non-HEVC formats. I can wait, and wait and wait for Adobe....
Those "competing" apps are mostly just raw converters. It's not as if Lightroom is good at editing video but they can't do anything at all, not even catalogue.
> Why bother doing video with HEVC?
well one reason is because some devices will only write HEVC. For example, the DJI Mavic 2 Pro, probably the most popular high end drone for landscape photography, will only write this format if you want to use DLOG (video equivalent of raw) as most professionals will do.
Please note that this codec does not affect Lightroom Classic - which does not yet have HEVC (H.265) support. The Classic team continues to work on providing support in a future version. Unfortunately I have no ETA to share at this time.
The Classic team continues to work on providing support in a future version.
I do hope they will get on with this. As of 8.3.1 Lightroom Classic (on Mac) is still in the embarrassing mess of throwing a meaningless error message when we import H.265 videos from a DJI Mavic 2 Pro, one of the most popular drone cameras for professional users. We can import the raw stills but not the raw video. This is a complete pain for our workflow.
Actions speak louder than words and I think it's pretty obvious they are trying to sunset LR desktop/classic. if you look at the update frequency between Classic and CC or whatever they're calling them these days, Classic isn't the priority. When really there are just a few features Classic needs to make us happy right now, when instead there are many CC updates. That tells the story. Now, I'm not opposed to moving more to CC, *if* I can either be selective about the GB's of photos I have not all going to the cloud and making me pay more, or if I don't have to pay more than I am now for moving my collection up. But feature parity should be the new priority. Like tag import (Adobe: I am NOT re-tagging my 10 x 1000's of images to get them into CC). Also graphics accelerator usage would be nice. Really I think they need to make 1 product but call it Lightroom and Lighrroom Professional or something. And better communication would be nice too. This isn't Instagram. Your users are heavily invested in your products.
All that further application of GPU acceleration in 8.4 tells a different story. That said, I am mystified why Lightroom on Windows still doesn't support HEVC video.
To me that was low-hanging fruit on Classic. They already tapped the GPU. To me the non-support of HEVC and tagging are more of a red flag. Maybe their views are evolving but communication would be great.
It's significant work, not low hanging fruit, which you wouldn't do if you were trying to sunset the product. Just like all the other things they've done on classic Lightroom since they introduced Cloudy. This HEVC problem is a mystery, and I just wouldn't draw any wider conclusions.
I'm happy to stand corrected on that. But every week or two when I get a CC update, but go months without a Classic update, that makes me skeptical. Hopefully you're right.
> But every week or two when I get a CC update, but go months without a Classic update, that makes me skeptical
Every time there's been a Cloudy desktop update, there's been a Classic desktop update too, other than the occasional double dot update on either to fix an urgent bug. Mobile ones may get bug fix updates in between as they're easier to push out, but feature wise, they're all on the same release schedule. Releases over the last year have been every 2-3 months across the board.
Maybe my Cloud app doesn't always show me. I'll have to log when I get CC notices vs. Classic. But from what I have seen, the ratio is like 3:1 (CC:Classic) on the update cycle for Win10 in the US on my computer.
There has been one additional update to the Lightroom Desktop app that was not released with a Lightroom Classic update as well. That was 2.3.1 which was a special release to put Lightroom Desktop in the Mac App Store.
Otherwise - they've had the same number of releases. Sometimes Lightroom Classic gets more features added than Lightroom Desktop...
Rikk, Maybe another way to ask... do you know of a roadmap for Classic? Do you have any documentation where Adobe is re-affirming support? Do we know if they're even working on the HEVC problem, or the CC tagging issue?
> Do you have any documentation where Adobe is re-affirming support?
I'm busy working on a blog post of what's changed in Classic since LR6. It's currently 23 pages... I'm trying to trim it down! Honestly, going back and working on the foundations for things like GPU and folder enumeration (new in 8.4 alone) is absolute proof that this is not sunset.
Any plans to develop a more robust version of Lightroom that doesn’t corrupt via mobile sync leading to endless sync inconsistencies? For a user that produces hundreds if not thousands of assets, LR remains very “rinky dink” pardon my French
The Classic team continues to work on providing support in a future version.
I do hope they will get on with this. As of 8.3.1 Lightroom Classic (on Mac) is still in the embarrassing mess of throwing a meaningless error message when we import H.265 videos from a DJI Mavic 2 Pro, one of the most popular drone cameras for professional users. We can import the raw stills but not the raw video. This is a complete pain for our workflow.
LR support for Windows HEVC isn't technical, since end users can buy an HEVC codec from the Microsoft store for $0.99. Since it's not technical, perhaps the problem is caused by the HEVC/H.265 patent-licensing mess, e.g.
Most of the industry biggies are backing the Alliance for Open Media, which is developing AV1, a royalty-free alternative to HEVC, due to be released "soon".
Unlike Apple and Mac OS, Microsoft doesn't bundle an HEVC codec in the default Windows 10 installation, though supposedly some computer manufacturers do in their OEM installations. The description of the $0.99 HEVC add-on says, "Play High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) videos in any video app on your Windows 10 device" (emphasis added). The license agreement doesn't mention HEVC/H.265, but it does have a paragraph for the older H.264, restricting the use of Microsoft's H.264 codecs to personal and noncommercial use by consumers.
So perhaps the Microsoft license terms for the HEVC codec have similar restrictions, such that Adobe lawyers feel it necessary to negotiate a separate license for Creative Cloud products, for which Adobe doesn't want to pay (remember the Dolby legal fiasco)? Or maybe there are other uncertainties about the Microsoft licensing (e.g the patent-licensing mess) that Adobe lawyers are balking at.
And whatever the detailed reasons, maybe Adobe has decided to stop putting more effort into Windows HEVC licensing, hoping that AV1 will supplant HEVC "soon"?
Lots of maybes. It would be naive to expect Adobe to shed any light on this. Licensing contracts usually have confidentiality clauses. And like most other large companies, the suits at Adobe often treat customers like growing mushrooms -- keep them in the dark and shovel in lots of organic material.
Also eagerly awaiting HEVC support for Lightroom Classic CC. Even if there is a new standard coming I have hundreds of existing HEVC files that I'd like to be able to view in Lightroom.
There is still no support for HEVC (H.265) on Windows 10. So I am neither able to integrate my smartphone videos (Samsung Galaxy S10) nor my GoPro videos into Lightroom Classic CC. I asked the support today and their response was that there is no information available when this functionality will be available for windows. And I think this is really bad. Yes I know there are similar posts but they have been added two years ago. And I hope to add a new one might help.
Hi, I just bought an iPhone 11 Pro just to realize that the regular iphone files HEVC and HEIC are obviously not supported. at least the greyed out pictures won't open. when I tried to download and opend the files in the Windows (19) Photo viewer it told me that a codec was missing and I should downloadit for 99 cents (euro). after I did, at least windows could open the images, but LR is completely dead on those formats. In a way the new iPhone seems to be useless for LR users, all other solution a waste of time. Also PS refuses the task.
Any idea what could be done?? I consider giving the iPhone back. Unfortunately I haven't got a clue why Apple is using such an unusual format for their RAW (and is it really a sensible solution??
It's frustrating when this stuff festers for so long out here, but there isn't much you can do about it. Absent of some direction/communication from Adobe, your only option right now is to change your phone settings to save in the old formats. You can do this by going to Settings --> Camera --> Format --> Most Compatible.
"[Windows] LR is completely dead on those formats" Support for HEIC photos was added to Windows Lightroom Classic CC 7.5 and Lightroom CC 1.5 (now called "Lightroom Classic" and "Lightroom" respectively). If you're not able to import .heic files into your LR, do Help > System Info and verify you're up-to-date (the most recent version of LR Classic is 9.0). Windows Photoshop still can't read HEIC photos. Windows Lightroom Classic and Lightroom still don't have support for HEVC (H.265) video. See here for more details on the workarounds mentioned by Tom Mickow: https://helpx.adobe.com/lightroom-cc/kb/heic-files-support.html
Responses
TomM
636 Messages
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11.4K Points
2 y ago
1
0
olafur_haraldsson
22 Messages
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404 Points
2 y ago
I have reached out to support multiple times over the last years and only answer is it is coming soon, or the latest ones have been get a MAC, I mean come on, how hard can this be? I use it all the time in Premiere and have for a very long time.
I am almost giving up on keep paying and paying without any updated to the Classic version as you seem to mostly focus on the consumer orientated version and ignoring the Pro market. Shame on you.
0
keith_beecham_1d4y23x270hh4
1 Message
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62 Points
2 y ago
1
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TomM
636 Messages
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11.4K Points
2 y ago
9 months ago, Barry Young, Director of Engineering, Lightroom products posted -
"HEVC support is coming soon. As I mentioned earlier, I cannot discuss release schedules. Please be patient."
Perhaps he could be troubled to give an update to those of us who have been waiting (semi) patiently?
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anonymess_98765
34 Messages
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782 Points
2 y ago
0
0
pieter_viljoen
17 Messages
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352 Points
2 y ago
https://petapixel.com/2019/05/21/alternatives-to-adobe-lightroom-in-2019/
7
Rikk
Adobe Administrator
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10.1K Messages
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135.8K Points
2 y ago
Please note that this codec does not affect Lightroom Classic - which does not yet have HEVC (H.265) support. The Classic team continues to work on providing support in a future version. Unfortunately I have no ETA to share at this time.
Quality Engineering - Customer Advocacy
14
alan_mccluney
7 Messages
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122 Points
2 y ago
1
0
arjan_mels
1 Message
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62 Points
2 y ago
0
0
dmitri_ivanov
3 Messages
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102 Points
2 y ago
Guys, a year of complaints and nothing is done? What do you do?
0
0
John_R_Ellis
Champion
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5.8K Messages
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100.4K Points
2 y ago
LR support for Windows HEVC isn't technical, since end users can buy an HEVC codec from the Microsoft store for $0.99. Since it's not technical, perhaps the problem is caused by the HEVC/H.265 patent-licensing mess, e.g.
The Future of HEVC Licensing Is Bleak, Declares MPEG Chairman
The HEVC IP Mess is Worse than you Think
Most of the industry biggies are backing the Alliance for Open Media, which is developing AV1, a royalty-free alternative to HEVC, due to be released "soon".
Unlike Apple and Mac OS, Microsoft doesn't bundle an HEVC codec in the default Windows 10 installation, though supposedly some computer manufacturers do in their OEM installations. The description of the $0.99 HEVC add-on says, "Play High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) videos in any video app on your Windows 10 device" (emphasis added). The license agreement doesn't mention HEVC/H.265, but it does have a paragraph for the older H.264, restricting the use of Microsoft's H.264 codecs to personal and noncommercial use by consumers.
So perhaps the Microsoft license terms for the HEVC codec have similar restrictions, such that Adobe lawyers feel it necessary to negotiate a separate license for Creative Cloud products, for which Adobe doesn't want to pay (remember the Dolby legal fiasco)? Or maybe there are other uncertainties about the Microsoft licensing (e.g the patent-licensing mess) that Adobe lawyers are balking at.
And whatever the detailed reasons, maybe Adobe has decided to stop putting more effort into Windows HEVC licensing, hoping that AV1 will supplant HEVC "soon"?
Lots of maybes. It would be naive to expect Adobe to shed any light on this. Licensing contracts usually have confidentiality clauses. And like most other large companies, the suits at Adobe often treat customers like growing mushrooms -- keep them in the dark and shovel in lots of organic material.
1
karsten_raecke
2 Messages
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82 Points
1 y ago
There is still no support for HEVC (H.265) on Windows 10. So I am neither able to integrate my smartphone videos (Samsung Galaxy S10) nor my GoPro videos into Lightroom Classic CC. I asked the support today and their response was that there is no information available when this functionality will be available for windows. And I think this is really bad.
Yes I know there are similar posts but they have been added two years ago. And I hope to add a new one might help.
1
0
christian_f_rst
148 Messages
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2.4K Points
1 y ago
Hi,
I just bought an iPhone 11 Pro just to realize that the regular iphone files HEVC and HEIC are obviously not supported. at least the greyed out pictures won't open. when I tried to download and opend the files in the Windows (19) Photo viewer it told me that a codec was missing and I should downloadit for 99 cents (euro). after I did, at least windows could open the images, but LR is completely dead on those formats. In a way the new iPhone seems to be useless for LR users, all other solution a waste of time. Also PS refuses the task.
Any idea what could be done?? I consider giving the iPhone back. Unfortunately I haven't got a clue why Apple is using such an unusual format for their RAW (and is it really a sensible solution??
1
0
John_R_Ellis
Champion
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5.8K Messages
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100.4K Points
1 y ago
Support for HEIC photos was added to Windows Lightroom Classic CC 7.5 and Lightroom CC 1.5 (now called "Lightroom Classic" and "Lightroom" respectively). If you're not able to import .heic files into your LR, do Help > System Info and verify you're up-to-date (the most recent version of LR Classic is 9.0).
Windows Photoshop still can't read HEIC photos.
Windows Lightroom Classic and Lightroom still don't have support for HEVC (H.265) video.
See here for more details on the workarounds mentioned by Tom Mickow:
https://helpx.adobe.com/lightroom-cc/kb/heic-files-support.html
0
0
platt_johnson
6 Messages
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272 Points
1 y ago
0