The inspiration for the console apparently came from the world of music. “Loupedeck’s design is reminiscent of a DJ-mixing desk,” said CEO Mikko Kesti in a statement. “It allows any aspiring or established professional working with Adobe Lightroom to level-up their productivity and efficiency, all the while staying focused on what is important — high-quality results.”
Loupedeck features dedicated buttons that replace keyboard shortcuts, such as copy and paste, undo, zoom, and toggling between black-and-white and color. Eight hardware sliders offer individual control over separate colors for hue, saturation, and luminance adjustments. Dedicated dials let users adjust white balance, exposure, saturation, and much more, while a large control wheel allows for rotating a picture and making fine horizon adjustments.
While Loupedeck is designed to save time in the editing process, that’s not the only thing it accomplishes. It provides a tactile approach to image editing that would seem to make for a richer experience than interacting with photos through software alone. Professional photographer Jere Hietala comments in the launch video that “it makes you feel like you’re doing handy-craft. It’s just fun.”
Made by a group of ex-Nokia engineers, Loupedeck is currently seeking funding on Indiegogo and has reached 84 percent of its 75,000 euro goal. During the crowdfunding campaign, customers can purchase Loupedeck for 229 euros (about $254). After the campaign, the console will launch globally for a price of 369 euros (about $410).
Loupedeck is expected to ship in December.
