Today’s Question: Last night I tried out the new Distraction Removal feature [available in Lightroom Classic, Lightroom, and Camera Raw] to remove a person from an image. The three results were all ridiculous. I got a large window of new info about Generative Credits. Seems to be telling me my use of some features is going to be measured and it “uses one credit per generation unless you have a plan that gives you unlimited access.” What has happened here? Are we going to have to pay to use the Generative AI features now?
Tim’s Quick Answer: What has changed here is that Adobe has started enforcing the use of credits for generative AI features, and has made changes to the plans that provide access to Adobe Creative Cloud applications. With the Creative Cloud Photography Plan, for example, existing users will only get 100 credits per month, and new users will only get 25 credits per month. The credits do not roll over from month to month.
More Detail: I know I’ve talked a lot about the confusion that has been created over the years in terms of more than one Lightroom application and the name changes that have occurred over time. But I think the updates regarding the credit system for Generative AI features in Adobe products is even more confusing.
In the context of Lightroom Classic (as well as Lightroom and Camera Raw), the two features that will consume one generative credit each time they are used are the “Use Generative AI” option for the Remove tool and the Distraction Removal features associated with the Remove tool. In Photoshop there are more features that use generative AI, and which therefore consume credits.
There is a new Creative Cloud Pro plan that includes unlimited standard credits, and a limited number of credits for the more advanced premium generative AI features. This is the plan that includes access to nearly all Adobe applications, which of course means it is more expensive than the Creative Cloud Photography Plan.
As noted above, the Creative Cloud Photography Plan includes 100 credits for those who had subscribed prior to June 17, 2025, and 25 credits per month for those who sign up after that date. If you can purchase additional credits, such as by adding a Firefly subscription even if only for a short time, such as if you’ll be working on a project where you want to make more extensive use of the generative AI features.
One of the challenges, of course, is that sometimes the generative AI features produce results that you aren’t happy with. Unfortunately, using the feature consumes a credit, even if you end up discarding the work that consumed that credit.
You can learn more about credits for generative AI features in Adobe software on the Adobe website here:
https://helpx.adobe.com/firefly/get-set-up/learn-the-basics/generative-credits-faq.html
