Native RAW development
A native Swift and Metal application for Apple Silicon with a GPU-first RAW pipeline. The site reports interactive Fit rendering of 0.6–3 ms and about 13 ms for a full 26 MP frame at 1:1 on Apple Silicon.
Redlamp
Redlamp is a native, open-source RAW photo editor for Apple Silicon Macs, with a Lightroom-style Develop workflow, GPU-based processing and non-destructive folder editing. It is free under MPL-2.0, with no subscription or cloud service.
Native RAW editing for Mac
Redlamp is a native RAW photo editor for Apple Silicon Macs, built from scratch in Swift and Metal. It provides a Develop workspace with familiar Lightroom-style panels, sliders and keyboard shortcuts while using its own GPU-first processing pipeline. The current application is marked pre-alpha 0.2.6 and requires macOS 26.
The product is designed for folder-based editing rather than catalog management. It opens folders of photos, keeps adjustments in sidecar files beside them, and does not modify the original files. Redlamp is free and open source under the Mozilla Public License 2.0, with no subscription and no cloud service.
Core features
Familiar Develop workflow
A Lightroom-familiar Develop workspace with matching panel organization, slider names, ranges, defaults and single-key shortcuts. It includes Basic, Tone Curve, Color Mixer, Color Grading, Detail and Effects.
Layered masking
Each edit is a layer with its own adjustments and a mask. Current tools include linear and radial gradients and 15 local adjustments; brush, colour-range and on-device AI masks are identified as next steps.
Scene-referred colour
The scene-referred, linear pipeline includes camera white balance, camera profiles, OKLCh Color Mixer processing, tone curves, colour grading and measured looks.
Detail and computational tools
Detail tools include camera-aware noise reduction, noise-aware sharpening, Texture, Clarity, Dehaze and highlight reconstruction. Redlamp also supports one-click focus stacking according to the product overview.
Recipes and LUTs
Recipes combine presets, profiles and LUTs in one open format, with 39 bundled recipes and support for .redrecipe, .cube and HaldCLUT import and export.
Practical use cases
Move a Lightroom-style workflow to Mac
Photographers who already know Lightroom's Develop conventions can work with familiar panels, slider ranges and shortcuts while keeping the editor native to an Apple Silicon Mac.
Edit folders non-destructively
Users who organize images in folders can open a folder, develop RAW files and keep adjustments in sidecars next to the photos without changing the originals.
Develop files from supported cameras
Photographers working with mixed camera files can use the LibRaw-based importer and Redlamp's camera-aware white balance, noise reduction and rendering pipeline, while checking whether their specific camera has been verified.
Build and reuse photo looks
Users building repeatable looks can combine presets, profiles and LUTs as Recipes, preview bundled looks and exchange recipe files in .redrecipe, .cube or HaldCLUT formats.
Make fast keyboard-led adjustments
Keyboard-focused editors can search for actions and Develop controls with Command-K, preview choices and adjust values without leaving the photo view.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Native Apple Silicon implementation built with Swift and Metal.
- Familiar Develop layout and keyboard workflow for photographers coming from Lightroom.
- Non-destructive folder editing with sidecar files and untouched originals.
- Open-source, free distribution under MPL-2.0 with no subscription or cloud.
- Scene-referred colour processing, layered masks, camera-aware detail tools and recipe/LUT support.
Cons
- The current release is pre-alpha, so the product is still under active development.
- The Mac editor currently comes first: the documented platform is macOS 26 on Apple Silicon, not a cross-platform desktop workflow.
- Redlamp is an editor rather than a catalog, and the site does not document broader catalog, team or external-application integrations.
FAQ
What platform does Redlamp support?
Redlamp currently requires macOS 26 and an Apple Silicon Mac. The site identifies the current release as pre-alpha 0.2.6.
How does Redlamp handle photo files and edits?
Redlamp is an editor rather than a catalog. It opens folders of photos and stores edits in small sidecar files beside the original files; the originals are not modified.
Which cameras and raw formats can Redlamp read?
Redlamp reads raw files through LibRaw 0.22.2. LibRaw reads formats from more than a thousand cameras, while Redlamp separately verifies a smaller set through its own decode tests and camera bench.
What editing tools are available?
The current Develop module includes Basic, Tone Curve, Color Mixer, Color Grading, Detail and Effects controls, along with masks, recipes, before/after views, snapshots and history.
What is Redlamp's pricing and licensing model?
Redlamp is free, open source under the Mozilla Public License 2.0, and the site states that it has no subscription and no cloud.
Quick Facts
- Category
- RAW photo editor
- Platform
- macOS 26 · Apple Silicon
- Status
- Pre-alpha 0.2.6
- License
- Mozilla Public License 2.0
- Workflow
- Folder-based editing with sidecar files
- Camera support
- LibRaw 0.22.2; 26 cameras verified by Redlamp decode tests
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