Lightbox → "Photo Studio": 4-panel layout with a section dropdown on each panel #488

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opened 2026-10-06 14:10:01 +00:00 by sky_line · 1 comment

sky_line commented

2026-10-06 14:10:01 +00:00

Owner

Idea from the owner: make photo work easier by letting you see several Lightbox settings tables at once.

What

Rework the Lightbox window into a 4-panel layout (2×2 grid, or a 4-column / quad split that suits the window shape). Each panel has a dropdown at its top choosing which section it shows:

the current tabs: Look (exposure, colour grading, LUT), Lens, Scene, Sky, Cam
possibly finer sections (e.g. just Color Grading, or just Depth of Field) so one panel isn't a long scroll
possibly Scopes (histogram / waveform / vectorscope) as a panel choice

So you can, for example, keep Sky, Color Grading, Lens and a histogram all on screen while you work, instead of flipping tabs.

Details to settle

Layout presets: 1 / 2 / 4 panels, with the 4-panel layout the default for the new UI. Remember the layout and each panel's choice between sessions.
Same section in two panels: allow it (both stay in sync) or grey it out in the other dropdowns.
Top bar stays shared: Looks, Save/Revert, Undo/Redo/History, Find. Find should switch a panel to the section it finds (the one with focus, or the first panel).
Tear-off: the current "take a tab out into its own window" could become "pop this panel out".
Size: each panel needs a sensible minimum width; the window should be resizable, with panels scrolling vertically. Check at UI size 100% and 125%+ (see #460 for UI-scale pitfalls).
Keyboard: F1 still opens it; maybe Ctrl+1..4 to focus a panel's dropdown.

Rename to "Photo Studio"

Rename Lightbox → Photo Studio to give it our own identity, separate from Alchemy's Lightbox.

user-facing strings: floater title, the Me menu item, toolbar button, tooltips, the How-To entry, and the wiki page (wiki/docs/lightbox.md, with a redirect from the old page)
keep saved Looks, settings and the LUT folder working: migrate or alias the setting names and folder, with no lost presets
internal file and class names (alfloaterlightbox, panel_lightbox_*) can move to our own names at the same time

Related: Alchemy-origin features are back-burnered under #442; this rename also helps with that.

Idea from the owner: make photo work easier by letting you see several Lightbox settings tables at once. ## What Rework the Lightbox window into a **4-panel layout** (2×2 grid, or a 4-column / quad split that suits the window shape). Each panel has a **dropdown at its top** choosing which section it shows: - the current tabs: **Look** (exposure, colour grading, LUT), **Lens**, **Scene**, **Sky**, **Cam** - possibly finer sections (e.g. just Color Grading, or just Depth of Field) so one panel isn't a long scroll - possibly **Scopes** (histogram / waveform / vectorscope) as a panel choice So you can, for example, keep Sky, Color Grading, Lens and a histogram all on screen while you work, instead of flipping tabs. ## Details to settle - **Layout presets:** 1 / 2 / 4 panels, with the 4-panel layout the default for the new UI. Remember the layout and each panel's choice between sessions. - **Same section in two panels:** allow it (both stay in sync) or grey it out in the other dropdowns. - **Top bar stays shared:** Looks, Save/Revert, Undo/Redo/History, Find. **Find** should switch a panel to the section it finds (the one with focus, or the first panel). - **Tear-off:** the current "take a tab out into its own window" could become "pop this panel out". - **Size:** each panel needs a sensible minimum width; the window should be resizable, with panels scrolling vertically. Check at UI size 100% and 125%+ (see #460 for UI-scale pitfalls). - **Keyboard:** F1 still opens it; maybe Ctrl+1..4 to focus a panel's dropdown. ## Rename to "Photo Studio" Rename **Lightbox → Photo Studio** to give it our own identity, separate from Alchemy's Lightbox. - user-facing strings: floater title, the **Me** menu item, toolbar button, tooltips, the How-To entry, and the wiki page (`wiki/docs/lightbox.md`, with a redirect from the old page) - **keep** saved Looks, settings and the LUT folder working: migrate or alias the setting names and folder, with no lost presets - internal file and class names (`alfloaterlightbox`, `panel_lightbox_*`) can move to our own names at the same time Related: Alchemy-origin features are back-burnered under #442; this rename also helps with that.

sky_line added the

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2026-10-06 14:10:01 +00:00

sky_line added this to the Slipstream project

2026-10-06 15:04:14 +00:00

sky_line referenced this issue

2026-10-06 16:07:42 +00:00

Rename internal Alchemy names/settings to Slipstream (hard fork) #126

sky_line referenced this issue

2026-10-07 01:46:14 +00:00