View, process and convert photos quickly and for free with Nomacs

Many users only need a program to view images and easily edit them. And for that, we don't need heavy editing tools. In general, what we are looking for is an app that is lightweight and as fast as it gets, with a few extra features that can give it more value and functionality for sporadic situations. These are the main features of the program that we are going to describe.

Nomacs, simple viewer with additional tools

Nomacs is an image viewer free and open source which can be used on Windows, Mac OS and Linux. It supports the most common image formats including the formats RAW and PSD . The application has semi-transparent widgets that will allow us to display additional information about the photo such as thumbnails, metadata or histograms. Besides, it allows you to search for images hosted in zip archives or Microsoft Office documents which can be extracted to a directory. In addition, it includes a panel of file browsing which does not allow you to switch between folders.

In any directory that we open with Nomacs, we can perform file filtering , so that it only shows us the images of certain names or file formats. By having cache activation, this will allow us to instantly switch between different images. We will also have a basic editor with which we can adjust the brightness, saturation, contrast, tonality, range and exposure of images. Moreover, it has a unique feature such as sync between multiple instances, which allows you to easily compare two images by simply zooming them in or overlaying them with different opacity.

View and edit your photos quickly and comfortably

Once we launch Nomacs, its main menu appears with an interface that at first glance reminds us of other image viewers, although it is fully in English . This is something that will put many users back. When inserting, we can drag and drop images or folders into its interface or use the "File" tab or use the icons in the toolbar.

To navigate between the different images, we can use the keyboard or the mouse, being able to customize keyboard shortcuts because it has many options in this regard. Navigation is fast even between large photos. Maybe we can detect a slight delay between charges, but it is hardly noticeable since we will only be able to notice it if we pay close attention to it.

In the "Edit" tab, we can configure small parameters such as copy, paste, delete, rotate 90 degrees clockwise or counterclockwise, undo and redo. It also has the “Keyboard Shortcuts” tool, which will allow us to configure various keyboard shortcuts. In addition, it has a settings menu (parameter) from which we can make color adjustments and apply different configuration options.

Make adjustments to photos

From the “Settings” section, Nomacs offers us the possibility of automatically adjusting the image, inverting it, flipping it or rotating it. We can also resize it, change threshold, background color, hue and saturation, exposure, change line size, crop an image, among other functions. In the "View" tab, we can see the images in full screen, zoom to adjust, zoom in or out, change or toggle the opacity, lock the window, etc.

The possibility of synchronization is another of the most interesting features of Nomacs, as it allows us to control multiple instances of the program simultaneously. Basically what this allows us is to compare two images side by side. This allows any action we perform in one to be performed automatically in the other as well. In this way, we can zoom, scroll or load different files using this function.

In the "Tools" folder, we will find other additional features that Nomacs integrates. Among them, batch processing can be very useful . We can use this function to change the size of all the selected images, rotate or flip them, crop them, change the filename by adding text or numbers and convert the format to another type of image.

conclusions

Nomacs is a fast and smooth image viewer that has a nice set of additional features that set it apart from other similar viewers. While these aren't enough to switch to if we're already using a fast photo viewer, this can be a good option to consider if until now we've only been using Photos as our default photo viewer. Since then, with this program we will gain speed and additional options that can be useful at times.

Download Nomacs for free

Nomacs is an open source program under the GNU license, so it is totally free and can be downloaded directly from its Website . It has both a version of installation and a portable version . This allows us to run it from any external storage device such as a USB drive without having to install it on the computer. In addition, it is compatible with Windows in its versions XP, Vista, 2000, 7, 8 and 10 for 32-bit and 64-bit systems.

The latest version available for Nomacs is the 3.16 corresponding to July 17, 2020 , it therefore has a good update policy and the support of its developers.

Alternatives to Nomacs

If we're looking for a light, fast, and free image viewer, we've got a few alternatives to Nomacs to consider.

IrfanView

This program stands out for being a complete lightweight and fast image viewer that has compatibility with over 90 image formats. It also supports drag and drop, TWAIN, automatic photo slide, format converter, and full directory view. Moreover, it allows you to convert the images to other formats different from the original, being highly customizable thanks to the quantity and variety of plugins available. We can download IrfanView for free from the developer's website.

Apowersoft Photo Viewer

This tool stands out for its compatibility with popular formats like JPG, PNG, BMP, PSD, CRD, RAW, among others. It also offers compatibility with the HEIC format and allows us to perform small editing functions. Moreover, it has the ability to open PDF files, so we won't need any other additional program to view it. Apowersoft Photo Viewer is a free image viewer that we can download from its website .