The new Ashampoo Photo Commander 18 is a comprehensive software solution to view, edit, and organize digital photos. With advanced filtering and grouping options, users can easily manage even massive photo collections. The program supports geotagging to sort photos by location and allows for visualization of it's locations on a map. Photo Commander's image viewer features seamless transitions and is perfect for multi-display environments with high 4K resolutions. Photos can be automatically enhanced or manually edited with the help of various effects. Faded photos, photos with scratches, red eyes, or digital noise can be easily restored. The integrated batch processing is ideal for large numbers of images and supports conversion as well as common image manipulation. This feature allows for automated sequential conversion and editing of any number of images. 

 



Users can also create individual collages, calendars and photo cards based on multiple included templates and frame designs for quick results. Creation of such is very straightforward and allows for quick creation, fast and efficient! Similarly, slideshows can be easily generated, complete with background music and seamless transitions. Image loading speeds have been improved, and a progress bar now provides users with progress feedback on running tasks. With support for numerous new image formats, and the ability to filter by XMP and EXIF data, the software meets the latest standards.

Ashampoo Photo Commander 18 is your essential tool for digital photography!

 


 

• Organize your photo collections.
  
  Ashampoo Photo Commander 18 turns chaos into neat photo collections but it also turns good into great shots. Smart-group and sort by capture date, time, or file name. With Ashampoo Photo Commander, you always stay on top of your photos. Clever filters and grouping options help you keep track no matter how large your photo collections are! Sort chronologically, thematically and by location or apply custom filters and instantly find every shot! Convert your photos, even automatically and in batches, add watermarks, and sort your files by location for instant visual clarity. 
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Improved photo browsing speed and edit rendering.
  
  Ashampoo Photo Commander sports a new, adaptive screen layout, significantly improved photo browsing speed, and powerful new formats! Instantly see where photos were taken, apply new effects, and use XMP and EXIF data for quick filtering! With handy new switches and an interface designed to support your workflow, you’ll experience Ashampoo Photo Commander like never before!
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Find duplicates, edit metadata, smart-search for files.
  
  Ashampoo Photo Commander 18 eliminates duplicate images using four techniques simultaneously! Equipped with a four-way fingerprint technology, it scans your library for duplicates and helps you filter your photos by name, EXIF/IPTC data, or comments. Looking for a needle in a haystack has just become super-easy! 
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Auto-enhance your photos.
  
  Smart algorithms for better colors or contrasts and less noise. Even underwhelming shots turn into precious vacation memories thanks to image auto-correction. Remove scratches and eliminate image noise or red eyes instantly! Auto-correction does most of the heavy lifting for you–even in batch processing mode so you can polish your entire library in one go! Optimize colors or contrasts and get rid of compression artifacts at the click of a button!
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
• No more confusion about shooting locations.
  
  Modern cameras and cellphones use geotagging to save location information along with each shot. Ashampoo Photo Commander not only uses these tags for sorting but can also edit and create them. You'll get precise information down to street level! Want to see all photos from Paris? No problem. You can even view each location in Google Maps instantly!
   
  
  
  
  
• Full Windows 11 compatibility and 64-bit support.
  
  Ashampoo Photo Commander is not only Windows 11 compatible but has also been completely overhauled for true native 64-bit support and optimal memory management. It's the best-looking, fastest, and most stable Photo Commander yet. Whether you're editing single images or entire libraries, you'll feel the difference right away!
  

 


 


New features of Ashampoo PhotoCommander 18 (from Ashampoo Support):
 

• Automatic duplicate photo filter for quickly finding and grouping duplicates
  
• Four-way fingerprinting for precise image comparison and duplicate detection
  
• Auto-adaptive UI layout for portrait or landscape orientation
  
• Faster thumbnail loading, including subfolders
  
• Support for SVG, AVIF, and the latest RAW formats
  
• Progress display for running tasks
  
• Up to 50% faster PNG load times
  
• New Pop Art, color, and artistic frame effects
  

 


 
 


 
 



OBSERVATIONS 

Here are some observations on Ashampoo Photo Commander 18 specifically the interface issues. To start off, there are a lot of features in Ashampoo Photo Commander v18 (as with version 17) but one thing you will see is that the user interface is "cluttered". The developers must have had a hard time 'trying' to show all relevant features and functions in start-up view. Hid the 'Menu' content perhaps to have more space for the actual interface. Made icons small (enough) so as to give more to the interface. This has been the same with version 17 previously. The developers 'tucked-in' most of the commands in the 'Menu' but left icons via 'ribbon-style' in the start-up interface. 

 


Ashampoo developers can benefit with a more "uncluttered interface" by ditching the 'ribbon style' and just use the old-trusted 'Menu Bar' with drop-down menus. The 'redundant' features displayed as icons in the start-up view aren't needed at all because when you select an image for edit and double-click it the image goes directly to 'Quick-Fix' and you have "all features" accessible from there. I mean 'it's all there' THUS the icons there are 'redundant' and only add clutter to an already "cluttered" interface. 


Create 'Frame Card'

When creating a 'Frame card' there is panning is 'limited' to the 'pan box' provided. You cannot 'pan' inside the work area or the user is left to use the "zoom slider".  

 


The interface is too small and 'cramped' making it difficult for the user to see 'all' elements being created. The 'pan box' should be made movable because the 'work area' is small. For comparison see images above of Ashampoo Photo Commander v17 versus v18 create 'Frame card' interface. 

Let it also be noted that the 'Select Object' (Object Properties pane) in version 17 was actually placed at the top of the work area. This allowed more work space for the user. See comparison of version 17 and version 18 'Object properties' below. 

 


Zoom control is good but should be compensated by something like what is seen below. When you select an image for edit, say, 'Quick-Fix > Full Optimization' there is a 'zoom control' in addition to the 'zoom slider' provided. If you will see the image below, the 'image status toolbar' where the user will compare image states is too small to be seen also. Zoom controls could be place together with 'pan/zoom' so only the 'image status toolbar' will remain. 

 



As mentioned, the preview windows are small (period!). Why not make the 'Select Object' portion movable/retractable like what is shown in the 'Folder Area', 'Content area' and 'Preview area'. Better yet, the 'card selection' should also be retractable to give 'more' space to the work area. Nobody wants a 'cramped' work area (marked# 5 in the image). The ‘Task Pane” in PowerPoint can be closed/opened. That sort of ‘task pane’ “Select Object” in the left portion of the interface stays there even if you don’t use it. You can’t close it either. It just lingers there “hoping” you’d use a tool/object. 

 



Frame card render

Switching from 'Greeting Card' to 'Vignette' the previously selected 'greeting card' remained BUT the newly selected 'Frame card' has already been rendered. Had to select a different 'vignette' and then re-select my 'preferred vignette' to get it corrected. 

 



Image states toolbar / Compare image states

When working on editing an image you always want to see the original image versus the edited image prior saving or undoing an operation (if you do not like it). I'd like to point out AGAIN that the 'image status toolbar' is VERY small and it located at the right-most corner of the interface. This is the same as of Ashampoo Photo Commander 17 and it AGAIN the same in version 18. I specifically 'dislike' it. The interface is already full thus perhaps the developers wanting the user to focus on the image, made it that small. Someone forgot about ease-of-use and just threw in all that needs to be in the user interface. Look at it my dear reader. Even the symbols of the icon appear cryptic because of the small size and even the tooltip (text) is too small. There is nowhere in the setting to adjust how to adjust the 'view' also. 

 


For comparison v17 is compared with v18 below. One thing that v17 has visually is it's variance in 'color' of it's image states icons. The color variance (orange color and some...) is much better to see EVEN when it is small. 

 



Miniature preview -- truly "miniature"

Kindly take a look at the images below. You will see that the 'content preview' at the bottom of the interface, and, you will see that it is small. Ashampoo calls it "miniature preview". True it is miniature! Now if you want to make it bigger or want to see better, at the same time retaining your work area, you'll be in a fix. That portion isn't resizable! Even if you reduce the image size of the work area there is no way to resize it. So, IF you want to view something in that 'small content preview', you have to exit the work area or scan/shift to the 'arrow-left / arrow-right' in the work area itself.

 


Tooltips too small

Tooltips are very useful for any user. That is IF you can see them properly. As in the "Image states toolbar / Compare image states" issue, if not for the tooltips I would not even know what those icons are for. BUT as mentioned it was small and I had a hard time reading it. Some photo editors have a function to "increase/decrease" the font size as well as icon size. This "too small/miniature" scheme/theme was done on purpose (I think) so as to give more to the previews/content. 
 



Clean Skin?

'Clean Skin' smoothens out skin tones. I tried that feature to smoothen a "pimpled guy" image. Well, I was looking for a way to smoothen the tone and then remove the blemishes. I failed. I did not see any skin "cleaned" so to remove a "blemish" or something in the skin, I used the "clone tool". I failed the guy again. I had some success with the "Repair pen" though the result will need further work. Still "some" of the "acne/blemishes" got "erased/repaired". See image below. 

 


For a less "blemished" skin I used the "clone tool" to remove a "tattoo" on a woman's arm. I succeeded. See image below. 
 


For a quick comparison, I fired-up PhotoDemon 9.0 portable (check it out HERE). 

Now PhotoDemon is a free, portable photo editor that has lots of features and capabilities (promising app too!). It has less flair as compared to any paid product BUT it can hold it's own in some editing endeavors. As mentioned, for comparison, see the interface of PhotoDemon 9 below. The interface is a bit outdated if compared to other photo editors but you will see how it ISN'T cluttered and allows the user more ample space for editing. The old 'Menu Bar' is there safely "tucked" on top (as old apps have been since ages). All the features can be accessed via the 'Menu Bar' there you can see. 

 


Now to demo what PhotoDemon 9 can do I will show how it "heals" an image. Using the same image used with Ashampoo Photo Commander v18 --"acne_guy.png", I tried to used it's "healing tool" in removing, at the very least, some of the acne/blemishes in the image. See images below. 

 


Now as mentioned, PhotoDemon 90 is freeware. So, performance wise (as most of freeware) it isn't that tailored for such an endeavor. I mean just look at the image! One thing I noticed is that "healing" the image took some time --around close to 1-hour! The engine is too slow! Patience is needed here. To really improve the end-result the user will have to clone some of the good skin to cover-up the "cannot-be-healed" portions. I did not do that. 

Ashampoo developers did a great job making Ashampoo Photo Commander v18 perform faster and efficiently, cutting work time to almost half. 

That said, the "healing" feature of PhotoDemon 9 has some plus points! It cleaned most of the acne/blemishes better than APC v18. See comparison below. 

 



Watermark seen on Web Photo Album

This is a paid product. Then why does the 'Create > Web Photo Album' have a "watermark"? For freeware products, a watermark is okay BUT for a paid product...NO!

 



Faster response time and rendering

Since I can compare both Ashampoo Photo Commander v17 and Ashampoo Photo Commander v18 (installed on 2 mirror partitions also with PhotoDemon 9), I noticed a faster response time and render in Ashampoo Photo Commander v18 as compared to version 17. 0.3. Rendering seems to be half of version 17. Tried it using the same images for creating "Frame cards", "Slideshow" as well as normal edits. Performance wise you'd never have to wait long for rendering. It will render any job faster and better than Ashampoo Photo Commander v17 and PhotoDemon 9. Great job on the speed boost there Ashampoo!




FINAL NOTE 

Ashampoo Photo Commander v18 is a very good photo editor. It isn't Adobe and, in my opinion, will not be at that 'level' (still) but it can hold it's own in some aspects of editing and effects application. It will be a "sin" to compare it with the latter. 

Now every photo editor (or any app classification for that matter) has it's own "Achilles' heel". This is room for improvement and continuous development. Those who evaluate and review an app have the responsibility to "suggest" and "provide feedback", at the very least, give points for improvement to help the developer make a "better" product the next time around. That is how the cycle of "continuous improvement" goes --forward, towards improvement. Take the case of APC v18's faster response and great rendering! Now that’s a great improvement! Congratulations there Ashampoo! 

That said, Ashampoo Photo Commander v18 isn't, (again) "Adobe" and is tailored more for "beginner-to-intermediate” and "casual editor". Features are good and edit/corrections including additionals such as greeting card, slideshow creations are easy to understand especially for a beginner. These are great additions too because it'll take some time to create those from scratch. 

For advanced users, (or intermediate-to-advanced level) who do a lot of heavy editing, they better look for something else because definitely "they" will find APC v18 lacking to some extent. 

Ashampoo Photo Commander v18 user-interface, in my opinion, needs a lot of work. A "cluttered" interface isn't great especially when working with an image. I prefer the interface of the old version 17 with the variance of colors pleasing to the eye espacially the 'Frame card' work area. BUT both version 17 and version 18 user-interface needs improvement. Get rid of the excess clutter Ashampoo..please! 

The "ribbon-style" toolbar isn't helping also. Interface looks good BUT functionality wise, it is so cramped that you'd need a bigger monitor just to have more space for your work area. Icons, tooltips are small too! You'll need to look at it twice to be sure. Even the "panning" is limited. 

If Ashampoo developers can make some adjustments to make the "work area" be a bit bigger by making components "retractable" or apply a "dock/undock" feature then great. Right-click functions per "edit feature" should also be improved. I remember when studying AutoCAD v13, I relied most on the right-click functions because the ribbons (new at that time) were confusing/cryptic. Even an ordinary user of MS Office, say, PowerPoint, benefit from the 'Menu bar', right-click functions and retractable 'Task Pane'. The 'ribbon-style' is there but it can be hidden also. So, features wise, Ashampoo Photo Commander v18 is very good but, the interface and then some, aren't.   

Ashampoo Photo Commander v18 'Edit' features are good and can get the desired work done but, in this day, and age, you can get more "better" effects via freeware. 'Effects' is now a 'standard thing'. Just take a look at the new smartphones with all the free, extra in-built apps!

Standalone freeware photo editors nowadays are getting better (take the case of PhotoDemon 9) and of course there are the online editors that use a lot of AI to work your photos with half the time you'd spent via your resident photo editor. Such "online photo editors" will do ALL the heavy editing for you while you munch on your burger. AI is creeping onto photo editors, video editors (almost all apps) that most, because of their reliance on AI, forget (or will soon forget) how to edit manually. There lies the rub of AI and it's creeping in all software apps now!

For the "not-so-frequent-editor", beginner-to-intermediate user (those that do not do "heavy editing"), Ashampoo Photo Commander v18 can suffice. Yes, definitely! It can do more for them. Fast great edits and optimization right there instantly!

The "blemish repair" done was to show IF version 18 can rival the new edition editors coming out with AI. It cannot, thus Ashampoo can benefit from adopting an AI engine. AI will help especially with such an example. The "acne_guy.png" example is a bit "grave" there but this shows apps can hold their own at some extent and will rely on the talent of the user to "repair/heal" such example (if he has the time -- look at the face!) 

Still Ashampoo Photo Commander v18 is still a very good photo editor. Really depends on the edit and the "user/editor". I don't mind hanging-on to Photo Commander for some fast edits. Take the case of APC v18’s  “CutOut” tool (see 7th image from top). It ‘cut-out’ the source item efficiently and I was able to replace the background fast! 

There are tools that everyone will need to have for the "non-tedious" edits and this is where Ashampoo Photo Commander v18 falls into (well to me that it is...) and it can stay there in your software niche as an additional tool. I mean, why would anyone want to fire-up Adobe Photoshop just to 'transform' an image to 'greyscale'? See!

Cheers guys!