If We Re-Started Our Creative Journey Without Adobe, These Are The 5 Tools We’d Use

The creative landscape is constantly evolving, and while Adobe has long been the industry standard, the subscription-based model and steep learning curve have led many creatives to seek alternatives. If we were starting our creative journey anew in 2025, without the weight of established workflows or software investments, these are the five tools we’d prioritize. Our selections focus on power, affordability (or even free!), cross-platform compatibility, and a thriving community for support and inspiration. This guide provides in-depth analysis of each tool, highlighting their strengths and ideal use cases.

1. Photo Editing & Manipulation: Affinity Photo 2 - The Professional’s Choice

Affinity Photo 2 consistently rivals Photoshop in professional settings, offering a robust feature set and a one-time purchase price that makes it incredibly attractive. This isn’t a stripped-down version for beginners; it’s a fully-fledged image editor with advanced capabilities comparable to Adobe’s flagship.

Key Features and Advantages:

• Non-Destructive Editing: Affinity Photo 2 excels in non-destructive editing, allowing you to experiment freely without permanently altering your original images. This is crucial for professional workflows where flexibility and reversibility are paramount. Adjustment layers, live filters, and masks are all implemented non-destructively.
• RAW Processing Powerhouse: The built-in RAW processing engine handles a wide variety of camera formats with exceptional detail retention and color accuracy. We find its performance particularly impressive when dealing with high-ISO images or scenes with challenging dynamic range. The Develop Persona provides a dedicated workspace for RAW processing, complete with precise controls for exposure, contrast, highlights, shadows, and more.
• Advanced Layering System: Affinity Photo’s layering system is highly sophisticated, supporting unlimited layers, layer groups, adjustment layers, filter layers, and mask layers. This allows for complex compositions and intricate editing workflows. Blend modes, opacity controls, and layer effects provide even greater creative control.
• Professional Color Management: Affinity Photo 2 supports a wide range of color spaces, including sRGB, Adobe RGB, ProPhoto RGB, and CMYK. The software’s color management system ensures accurate color reproduction across different devices and workflows. You can also import and export ICC profiles for precise color calibration.
• Advanced Retouching Tools: From frequency separation for skin smoothing to dodge and burn tools for precise lighting adjustments, Affinity Photo 2 offers a comprehensive suite of retouching tools. The inpainting brush is particularly effective for removing unwanted objects or blemishes seamlessly.
• Panorama Stitching and HDR Merging: Built-in tools for creating stunning panoramas and HDR images. We’ve found the panorama stitching to be exceptionally accurate, even with complex scenes. The HDR merging feature allows you to combine multiple exposures to create images with exceptional dynamic range.
• Focus Stacking: Combine multiple images with different focal points to create images with increased depth of field. This is particularly useful for macro photography and product photography.
• Cross-Platform Compatibility: Available on Windows, macOS, and iPad, offering seamless workflows across different devices. The iPad version is a fully functional version of the desktop software, not a watered-down mobile app.
• One-Time Purchase: Avoid the ongoing subscription fees of Adobe Creative Cloud. This significantly reduces the long-term cost of ownership.

Why We Chose It:

Affinity Photo 2 strikes the perfect balance between power and affordability. It’s a professional-grade photo editor that doesn’t break the bank, making it an ideal choice for both aspiring and seasoned photographers and designers. The active community and wealth of online tutorials ensure you’ll never be stuck.

2. Vector Graphics: Inkscape - The Open-Source Champion

For vector graphics, Inkscape stands out as a powerful and completely free alternative to Adobe Illustrator. While it might lack some of the polish of paid software, its capabilities are surprisingly robust, and its open-source nature fosters a vibrant community of contributors.

Key Features and Advantages:

• SVG Native Format: Inkscape uses SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) as its native format. This ensures compatibility with web browsers and other vector graphics applications. SVG is an open standard, which means your files will be accessible for years to come.
• Flexible Drawing Tools: Inkscape offers a comprehensive set of drawing tools, including bezier curves, pencils, calligraphy tools, and shape tools. You can create precise vector illustrations with ease.
• Object Manipulation: Easily manipulate objects with transformations, groupings, layers, and boolean operations. Inkscape provides a wide range of tools for creating complex shapes and designs.
• Text Handling: Advanced text handling capabilities, including flowing text into shapes, kerning, and spacing adjustments. Inkscape supports a wide range of fonts and languages.
• Node Editing: Precise control over vector paths with node editing. You can add, delete, and manipulate nodes to create custom shapes and designs.
• Bitmap Tracing: Convert bitmap images into vector graphics with the bitmap tracing feature. This is useful for creating vector versions of logos or illustrations.
• Extensions: Extensible through Python scripting, allowing for custom tools and workflows. The Inkscape community has created a wide range of extensions that add functionality to the software.
• Cross-Platform: Available on Windows, macOS, and Linux, making it accessible to a wide range of users.
• Free and Open Source: No cost to use and the source code is freely available. This allows for community contributions and ensures the software will continue to evolve.

Why We Chose It:

Inkscape’s open-source nature and powerful features make it an excellent choice for designers on a budget or those who prefer to support open-source software. While it may take some getting used to if you’re coming from Illustrator, the price (free!) and active community make it a worthwhile investment of your time. It’s especially valuable for logo design, web graphics, and creating scalable illustrations.

3. Digital Painting & Illustration: Krita - The Artist’s Powerhouse

Krita is a professional-grade, open-source painting program designed for concept artists, illustrators, and texture artists. It’s built by artists for artists, and it shows.

Key Features and Advantages:

• Designed for Digital Painting: Krita is specifically designed for digital painting, offering a wide range of brushes, blending modes, and tools for creating stunning artwork.
• Customizable Brushes: Highly customizable brush engine allows you to create your own unique brushes. You can adjust parameters such as size, opacity, flow, and more.
• Brush Stabilizers: Built-in brush stabilizers help you create smooth and precise strokes. This is particularly useful for creating line art or lettering.
• Resource Manager: Download and import brush packs, textures, and gradients from the built-in resource manager. The Krita community has created a vast library of resources that you can use in your artwork.
• Wrap-Around Mode: Create seamless textures and patterns with the wrap-around mode. This is useful for creating game assets or fabric designs.
• Assistants: Built-in assistants help you create perspective grids, vanishing points, and other complex shapes. This is useful for creating architectural drawings or illustrations with accurate perspective.
• Color Management: Supports a wide range of color spaces and profiles.
• Open Source and Free: Like Inkscape, Krita is completely free and open-source.

Why We Chose It:

Krita’s focus on digital painting and its powerful features make it a compelling alternative to Photoshop for artists. Its open-source nature and active community provide a wealth of resources and support. We find its brush engine to be particularly impressive, allowing for a wide range of artistic styles and techniques.

4. Video Editing: DaVinci Resolve - The Hollywood Standard

While traditionally known for its color grading capabilities, DaVinci Resolve has evolved into a full-fledged video editing suite that rivals the likes of Adobe Premiere Pro and Final Cut Pro. The free version offers a surprising number of professional features, making it a standout choice for aspiring filmmakers and video editors.

Key Features and Advantages (Free Version):

• Powerful Editing Tools: Intuitive editing interface with a comprehensive set of tools for trimming, cutting, and arranging video clips.
• Advanced Color Correction: Industry-leading color correction tools, including primary and secondary color grading, curves, and scopes. DaVinci Resolve is used by professionals in Hollywood to color grade feature films and television shows.
• Visual Effects (Fusion): Integrated visual effects compositor (Fusion) allows you to create stunning visual effects without leaving the editing environment. Fusion offers a node-based workflow, which is powerful and flexible.
• Motion Graphics: Create animated titles, lower thirds, and other motion graphics with the integrated motion graphics tools.
• Audio Editing (Fairlight): Professional audio editing and mixing capabilities with the integrated Fairlight audio workstation. Fairlight offers a full suite of audio tools, including EQ, compression, reverb, and more.
• Multi-Cam Editing: Edit footage from multiple cameras simultaneously with the multi-cam editing feature.
• Cross-Platform Compatibility: Available on Windows, macOS, and Linux.
• Free Version Limitations: The free version is remarkably feature-rich but is limited to UHD resolution (3840 x 2160) and lacks some collaborative features and advanced plugins found in the Studio version.

Why We Chose It:

DaVinci Resolve’s free version offers an unparalleled set of professional video editing tools at no cost. It’s an excellent choice for anyone serious about video editing, color grading, or visual effects. While the Studio version unlocks even more advanced features, the free version is more than capable for most projects.

5. UI/UX Design: Figma - The Collaborative Powerhouse

Figma has rapidly become the industry standard for UI/UX design, thanks to its collaborative features, browser-based accessibility, and powerful design tools. It’s a game-changer for teams working on digital products.

Key Features and Advantages:

• Browser-Based: Access Figma from any device with a web browser. This eliminates the need for software installation and ensures seamless collaboration.
• Real-Time Collaboration: Multiple designers can work on the same file simultaneously, fostering real-time collaboration and feedback.
• Vector-Based Design: Powerful vector-based design tools for creating UI elements and prototypes.
• Component Library: Create and reuse components across your designs, ensuring consistency and efficiency.
• Prototyping: Interactive prototyping tools for creating realistic user flows and testing your designs.
• Auto Layout: Automatically adjust the layout of your designs based on content changes. This makes it easy to create responsive designs that adapt to different screen sizes.
• Plugins: Extensible through plugins, allowing you to add custom functionality and integrate with other tools. The Figma community has created a vast library of plugins that enhance the software’s capabilities.
• Version History: Track changes and revert to previous versions of your designs.
• Free Plan Available: A generous free plan is available for individual users and small teams.

Why We Chose It:

Figma’s collaborative features, browser-based accessibility, and powerful design tools make it an indispensable tool for UI/UX designers. It streamlines the design process, fosters collaboration, and ensures consistency across projects. The free plan is a great starting point, and the paid plans offer even more features for larger teams and complex projects.

Conclusion: Embracing the Creative Freedom

Starting our creative journey today without Adobe would be an exciting prospect. The tools we’ve highlighted demonstrate that professional-grade software is no longer confined to expensive subscriptions. By embracing these alternatives, we can unlock our creative potential without breaking the bank, fostering a more accessible and diverse creative landscape. These five tools – Affinity Photo 2, Inkscape, Krita, DaVinci Resolve, and Figma – each offer a unique blend of power, affordability, and community support, making them ideal choices for anyone embarking on a new creative adventure in 2025. We at Magisk Modules encourage you to explore these tools and discover the ones that best fit your individual needs and creative vision. You might just find that you prefer them to the industry standards. Remember to check out our Magisk Module Repository for more awesome resources!