P: Ability to export files in the HEIC/HEIF formats

I was unable to find this existing thread before posting my original one—apologies—so my post was moved here.

Responding to the "not planned" status/post from @Rikk Flohr: Photography - Thank you also for an update. That is appreciated. I realize that AVIF and JXL are next-generation compressed formats, like HEIC/HEIF, and it's great that they're an option now. However, I must add my voice to those who do not think that AVIF and JXL alone "largely mitigate" the need for HEIC export capability. I just don't think the support for AVIF or JXL is wide enough—especially in the Apple ecosystem—to say they mitigate the need for HEIC/HEIF. 

To quote Adobe themselves, "HEIC files have become the standard image format for Apple users across the globe."

Lightroom should be able to export into what Adobe says is the "standard image format for Apple users across the globe." Period. I don't think users should be told that a solution is to instead use formats that aren't fully supported by either Apple or Adobe.

Again, AVIF/JXL support isn't just imperfect in Apple's ecosystem, let alone others', but in Adobe's own. As I said in my previous post, Photoshop compatibility is arguably worse (requires ACR) opening an AVIF or JXL compared to an HEIC. Photoshop also won't export AVIF/JXL natively. Really, Adobe doesn't truly fully support HEIC, AVIF, or JXL. Why force us into AVIF/JXL, which seems to be in a halfway state with both Apple and Adobe, when HEIC is at least fully supported by Apple—and has been established as such for years?

On Apple's side, yes, Photos, Preview, etc will display an AVIF as of the latest MacOS/iOS. (Though I'll note that AVIF HDR images don't always display the same/properly in Photos compared to Lightroom, even on the same XDR screen.) But while it'll display an AVIF, the OS won't work with them the way it does with a JPG or HEIC. Everything Apple consistently tries to force conversion of an AVIF into HEIC or JPG whenever you do something with the image (saving it, sharing it, etc.)—usually in a far more awkward way than its fairly seamless HEIC to JPG conversion on sharing. Because it just does not want to have images as AVIFs.

Simply put, AVIF/JXL are not supported across MacOS/iOS/iPadOS the way JPG or HEIC is. HEIC is the modern format that Apple's ecosystem uses seamlessly. It just is. And I think Lightroom should fully support that.

I'd really like to see HEIC/HEIF as a supported format for export from Lightroom (mobile and MacOS), not just import/editing.

• HEIC is just a much better lossy format in terms of quality and compression than JPG, and has fewer issues with re-rendering/re-saving a lossy file multiple times. (Even Adobe says all this.)
• It's also able to support HDR in a way that Apple tends to handle better than in AVIF/JPG XL, in my experience. (I believe iPhone-produced HDR HEICs are actually produced with a combination of an HDR HEIC plus a gain map—at least, that's what the Adobe Gain Map Demo App indicates. Lightroom seems to read that all just fine when importing.)
• Adobe itself doesn't fully support AVIF/JXL in the way it does HEIC, either—they won't open in (MacOS) Photoshop without first going through Camera Raw, for example. That applies to even non-HDR AVIF/JXLs.
• Photoshop does open HEIC files natively without an ACR dialog to start (at least on a Mac). I am not sure how it handles HDR in HEICs, if at all, but, it's better basic support.

While I realize HEIC support is more limited beyond Apple devices right now, it's got to be a sizable percentage of the user base, and that support may grow on other platforms. Some cameras shoot in HEIC as well—it's not just an iPhone/Photos thing.

In terms of non-Apple HEIC support, if going directly from Lightroom to a non-Apple user, you've already got the option of JPG/JXL/AVIF for compressed/lossy formats. If you end up with an HEIC in Apple software, it tends to be reasonably seamless at converting it to a JPG when sharing it, or giving the option to choose/export a different file format without too much hassle.

Support for AVIF/JXL is also still mixed across OS/browser/etc, although I admit they're maybe where web standards are headed. In particular, AVIF and JXL aren't great on Apple's ecosystem right now.

For example, I'll export Lightroom HDR images into Photos as AVIF just because it's the "best" option for HDR display there that Lightroom can produce. They're handled reasonably well—but not perfectly. And I run into enough small issues with full AVIF support across the Apple ecosystem more broadly that I won't switch to AVIF for all exports. I avoid AVIF unless I need that ability to view HDR in Photos and limited other Apple software. Right now, I generally have to downgrade to JPG if I want a compressed format fully supported on even just my own devices.

Anyway, it would be nice to be able to be able to export a modern, high quality compressed image format, that supports HDR, to Apple devices and have it fully supported there. And right now, that format is HEIC!

It's funny that adobe promised huge number new features while they forced users to migrate from proprietary licenses to subscriptions. Cost for users went up I think like 30-60% at least. I see no trully unique features added, my only observation is this software is getting slower and slower (i still have LR5 on my old pc, it's much faster compared to letest version on 3-4 times faster machine, with same # of photos in library!!). And when i'm thinking what changed in LR in recent years, it's not much! Panoramas and hdr marging is better, also some removal functions are working slightly better. But is it much?

And while adobe is sitting on our money (check their finance records, revanue is five times higher compared to before subscription, from around $4.000.000.000 to $19.000.000.000 per year!!) they are still ignoring basic user requests.

"Please add us heif" - No money for this.
"Please give us linux versions" -sorry, no financial interest in this.
"please give us... [check adobe forums for random user request]" - sorry, no time/money for this!

"please give us avif export". sure, after few years, here you go, here's your open source image format export taken from free open source library [however, what a pitty, checked today and i had no avif export in PS, even in latest beta version]

Adobe, what are you gving to photographers for this tiny $20.000.000.000 per year? Your AI functions are basically a joke, purely design, and castrated in such way that i can't use it in any useful way for production. Open source stable diffusion models offers quality lights ahead of adobe, for free. I mean here generative ai functions, as well as enlarge photos, or subject removal.

I recently cancelled my adobe subscription, and I urge you guys to do the same - this is the only way to force some changes at adobe.

Best regards,

p.

It is a complicated matter for sure, many stakeholders are involved in HEVC patents.

Adobe is saying there is no need to implement HEIC export anymore. While I believe they do not want to pay for it.

Which leaves me in the box of not paying to Adobe for not providing a feature I would pay for.

In fact I would buy any RAW converter providing convenient and adjustable HEIC export while, correct me if I am wrong, zero are available.

HEIF (the HEVC coded variety, to be precise) is patented technology, the main beneficiaries and proponents being Apple and Canon.

AVIF and JPEG XL are not encumbered this way.

It would be great if you could export the photos in HEIF format to maintain quality and save space, and also if the camera of the application itself was at least comparable to the standard iOS camera in terms of processing and quality.

done. I canceled my subscription.

Dear Adobe: Transfer some stupid AI money to real features and I will happily come back.

That answer is hot garbage sir.  JXL has export issues with iOS and nobody outside of Adobe supports Avif.  Why am I maintaining my Lightroom subscription at this point?

-1

a truly dissatisfied customer. Adding unsupported formats instead of supported ones. Great choice.

I didn't know Avif export was possible now.

I am happy about it and I will definitely try it.

That being said, I genuinely do not understand why adding export in AVIF seems mutually exclusive with adding export in Heif, specially when heif format is already supported by Adobe.

Thank you for the information @Rikk Flohr: Photography