Why Did Photo Software Get so F***ing Expensive?
Photography is already an expensive hobby - cameras, lenses, tripods, the works. But in 2025, it isn’t the gear that’s breaking people, it’s the software. Once upon a time you could buy Lightroom outright for the price of a night at the pub. Now? You’re staring down endless subscriptions and annual upgrade shakedowns. This video is about why photo editing software has become so fucking expensive and what, if anything, we can do about it.
📝 For more in-depth articles and insights, check out my Substack: https://ahutchinson.substack.com
🌐 Connect with me across platforms:
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/andyhutchins...
Pixelfed: https://pixelfed.social/andyhutchinson
Flickr: https://flickr.com/photos/repomonkey/
Blog: https://andyhutchinson.com.au
All of my videos: • All videos
Chapters
00:00 Intro
01:35 The End of Software You Own
06:52 The Outcome
08:39 Why Did It Get So Expensive So Quickly
09:43 Version Hopping
12:11 Champion the Little Guy
13:33 Open Source
15:05 Piracy
15:37 The End of the Prosumer
16:57 Outro