Blackmagic's DaVinci Resolve 21 takes on Adobe Lightroom with a new Photo page
TL;DR
Many creators have already switched from Adobe Premiere to DaVinci Resolve, and now the developer, Blackmagic Design, is going after Lightroom and Photoshop. The Australian company just unveiled DaVinci Resolve 21 in beta at the NAB 2026 broadcast convention with a brand new page called Photo designed to let you do things like crop and color-correct still images. At the same time, the new version introduces video AI tools that can age a subject or reshape their facial features. DaVinci Resolve has always let you edit photos as clips on a video timeline, but now it's greatly simplified with the Photo page. You can import and manage photographs, including RAW files, directly into the new page. Then, you adjust them using the node-based Color page that offers similar and arguably even more powerful tools than Adobe's Lightroom. Just as with video, the Color page includes primary color corre.
Nauti's Take
DaVinci Resolve 21's new Photo page is a real win for creators – those already using Resolve for video can now drop Lightroom from their workflow entirely, for free. For Adobe, it's another sign that subscription fatigue is pushing even professionals toward alternatives.
The new AI video tools for aging subjects and reshaping facial features offer compelling creative possibilities, but raise obvious questions about misuse and consent.
Summary
Many creators have already switched from Adobe Premiere to DaVinci Resolve, and now the developer, Blackmagic Design, is going after Lightroom and Photoshop. The Australian company just unveiled DaVinci Resolve 21 in beta at the NAB 2026 broadcast convention with a brand new page called Photo designed to let you do things like crop and color-correct still images.
At the same time, the new version introduces video AI tools that can age a subject or reshape their facial features. DaVinci Resolve has always let you edit photos as clips on a video timeline, but now it's greatly simplified with the Photo page.
You can import and manage photographs, including RAW files, directly into the new page. Then, you adjust them using the node-based Color page that offers similar and arguably even more powerful tools than Adobe's Lightroom.
Just as with video, the Color page includes primary color corre
Video
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