Expand the Photos app’s toolset

1 Choose extensions

After downloading an app that can used as a Photos extension, go to Apple>system Preferences>extensions. In Photos Editing, tick the extensions you want to use.

2 Retouch your photos

This landscape is spoiled by power cables. We could spray the Retouch tool over the cables in an attempt to replace them with clear sky but the edited areas can look fuzzy.

3 One-click wonder

Click on the Extensions (…) icon to launch the Luminar Neo plugin. In the ‘Erase’ section of the Tools panel, use the one-click ‘Remove Powerlines’ button for great results.

4 The sky’s the limit

It’s not always possible to capturing a stunning sunset, but extensions such as Luminar Neo can help you add something spectacular to your landscapes.

5 Add new sky

For a more exciting sky, go to the Creative section’s Sky AI panel. Click ‘Sky Selection’ and choose a sky preset to add it instantly. It evens adds a reflection to water…

6 People pictures

Photo’s Retouch tool can reduce the presence of spots and wrinkles in portraits, but shiny sweat-induced hotspots are harder to fix. Luminar Neo has dedicated tools.

7 Perfect skin

In Luminar’s Portrait section, click on ‘Skin AI’. Here you can use sliders to reduce blemishes and shiny hotspots. The Face section’s Eye Enhancer makes them sparkle.

8 More presets

Photos only has a measly nine filters to change colour and tone. Extensions such as Luminar Neo give you access to many more themed one-click creative presets.

9 Layer effects

Photos doesn’t let you edit in layers. Luminar Neo lets apply a range of creative effects as layers. You can adjust layer blending and opacity to fine-tune the results.