Official press release / Updated September 9, 2026
Monochrome Lab PRO 4.6.0 brings professional multi-image workflows to the monochrome darkroom
The $129.99 Apple silicon Mac editor adds Compare, read-only Reference, selective Sync Settings, configurable controller commands, native high-bit Batch Export, and complete Export Presets.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — September 9, 2026 — Monochrome Lab PRO 4.6.0 for macOS is available now, extending its focused black-and-white darkroom from one photograph to a complete professional workflow.
Most photo editors are designed to do a lot of jobs. Monochrome Lab takes a narrower approach on purpose. The workspace centers the decisions that shape a monochrome photograph: tone, contrast, channel response, texture, detail, diffusion, and local control.
Version 4.6.0 preserves the established M2, M3, and M4 monochrome rendering and adds the tools needed to work across photographs. Compare places two Library photographs together with one active editable side. Reference keeps a companion photograph read only, with linked or independent zoom and pan.
Selective Sync Settings transfers chosen editing groups across a set while keeping ratings, tags, albums, and IPTC photograph-specific. Crop, Masks, Spot Remove, and Layout remain opt-in so composition-specific work is not copied accidentally.
The app was created by Nashville-based photographer Tony Shepherd. It grew out of his own editing workflow and a straightforward question: what would a photo editor look like if black and white were not one mode inside the application, but the reason the application existed?
“Most photo editors have to be everything to everyone. Monochrome Lab can be much more specific. The goal was to build the kind of digital darkroom I wanted to use — focused, fast, photographic, and entirely centered on black-and-white work.”
The macOS edition is built for Apple Silicon and includes full RAW support with a 16-bit processing workflow. JPEG, PNG, and TIFF files are supported as well, so Monochrome Lab can sit naturally inside an existing photographic workflow rather than asking photographers to rebuild one around the app.
Monochrome Lab PRO uses floating-point 3D LAB Profiles before monochrome conversion. Six included responses and compatible imported .cube LUTs provide intentional starting points through one authoritative Profiles selector.
The editor also includes a luminance Tone Curve, masks, Dodge & Burn, Spot Heal, Definition, sharpening, Black Mist, grain, crop, perspective, frames, and finishing controls. Presets and image-scoped snapshots carry non-destructive editing decisions without duplicating source photographs.
Configurable application commands support TourBox, TourBox Elite, and Logitech MX Creative Console profiles without installing device drivers. Optional rating auto-advance supports rapid review while keeping ordinary text entry intact.
Native high-bit Batch Export now runs in the background with progress and cancellation. Complete Export Presets retain format, JPEG quality or 16-bit TIFF, color space, size, PPI, sharpening, filename, metadata, and destination behavior.
The local Catalog coalesces writes in a worker, while acknowledged annotation changes use a SQLite recovery journal. Missing-folder relink and Library migration use a transactional recovery path. The release adds no remote processing, photograph-content analysis, or telemetry.
There is also a free browser edition. It gives photographers a quick way to experience the Monochrome Lab approach without installing anything; the macOS edition extends that workflow with full RAW support and 16-bit desktop processing.
Monochrome Lab PRO is not trying to be another all-purpose color-first suite. It is a focused, local-first black-and-white workflow for browsing, organizing, developing, finishing, and exporting photographs.
Professional delivery supports JPEG at 80%, 95%, or 100% quality, lossless PNG, true 16-bit TIFF, explicit sRGB or Display P3 output profiles, PDF and contact-sheet workflows, layouts, and native print. Camera RAW and supported raster sources use the native-resolution render graph rather than promoting the bounded Editor preview to final output.
Monochrome Lab PRO 4.6.0 for macOS is available now for $129.99 USD at monochromelab.app.
Review copies are available to photography journalists, reviewers, educators, podcasters, and creators covering photography or creative software.
About Monochrome Lab PRO
Monochrome Lab PRO is a dedicated local-first black-and-white photography workspace for Apple silicon Macs. Version 4.6.0 combines camera RAW development, M2/M3/M4 processing, eight-band Color Response, Profiles, Tone Curve, local adjustments, Library, Compare, Reference, selective Sync Settings, and native high-bit Batch Export. The free Monochrome Lab browser app remains available separately.
About Tony Shepherd
Tony Shepherd is a Nashville-based photographer, Ricoh and Tamron ambassador, and author of Nashville: A Photographic Journey Through Music City. His work spans street, documentary, and monochrome photography. Monochrome Lab grew out of his own black-and-white editing practice and his desire for an editor designed from the photographer’s side of the screen.
Review copies are provided for independent editorial evaluation. There is no obligation to publish and no expectation of positive coverage.