Adobe released Lightroom 9.6 on September 29 with two additions that deserve the attention of real estate photographers for very different reasons.
The first is Prompt to Edit, an early-access generative editing environment inside Lightroom desktop. Instead of selecting a tool and moving conventional sliders, the photographer can describe an edit in natural language or choose one of Adobe’s prepared prompts. Adobe currently gives examples such as fixing dust and scratches, restoring color, unblurring an image, and performing more complex restoration or transformation tasks.
The second is an improved version of Reflection Removal. Adobe says the September release produces cleaner results on windows, glass, water, and other complex reflective surfaces with fewer smudges and ghosting artifacts. The same improvement is also included in Lightroom Classic 15.6.
For real estate photography, I expect Reflection Removal to become useful faster.
Prompt to Edit is the larger technological change.
Reflection Removal solves a problem photographers already encounter in actual houses.
My current recommendation is:
Feature REPT Recommendation
Lightroom 9.6 Update after a normal production-safe test
Lightroom Classic 15.6 Update after normal catalog/plugin checks
Improved Reflection Removal Adopt
Reflection Removal on batches Adopt selectively
Prompt to Edit Test
Prompt-based restoration / unblur Test on duplicate files
Prompt-based social or marketing variations Test
Prompt-based replacement of property features Avoid in factual listing media
Prompt-based landscaping, views, room geometry, fixtures, materials Avoid unless clearly handled as an approved visualization
Replacing normal Lightroom fundamentals with prompts Delay
Sending confidential property material through partner-model workflows without review Avoid
The release creates a useful dividing line for photographers.
Some AI tools are becoming mature enough to treat as ordinary production utilities.
Other tools remain powerful enough that they should sit behind deliberate quality-control rules.
Lightroom 9.6 contains both.
What Changed in Lightroom 9.6
Adobe’s September 2026 Lightroom desktop release contains four headline changes:
Prompt to Edit
Improved Reflection Removal
Support for additional camera profiles
Support for additional lens profiles
The camera and lens additions are routine.
Prompt to Edit is not.
Adobe describes the feature as a way to perform complex restoration, retouching, and transformation tasks through either prepared photographer prompts or custom instructions. It is currently marked Early Access in Lightroom desktop.
That puts a generative image-editing model directly beside the normal photographic workflow.
For years, Lightroom has primarily been a parametric editor.
Change exposure.
Move white balance.
Create a mask.
Adjust highlights.
Correct geometry.
Those instructions alter how Lightroom develops the original file.
Prompt to Edit behaves differently.
Adobe currently renders the requested edit as a new DNG file placed beside the source image or inside a Lightroom Cloud stack.
That distinction is important for production photographers.
Prompt to Edit Creates a New Image Rendition
If I move the Exposure slider by +0.35, I know exactly what kind of operation occurred.
If I ask a generative model:
Restore this image, reduce blur, improve detail, and clean distracting artifacts.
the model is interpreting an instruction and producing a rendered result.
Adobe says Prompt to Edit currently provides two output choices:
Nano Banana 2 — 2K
and:
Nano Banana 2 — 4K.
The generated result is saved as a DNG.
Adobe’s current partner-model documentation identifies Nano Banana 2 as Google Gemini 3.1 and describes it as a partner generative model for image creation and editing.
That makes Prompt to Edit a different category from:
Exposure.
White balance.
Highlights.
Transform.
Masks.
Normal sharpening.
Your quality-control process should treat it accordingly.
Prompt to Edit Is Currently Early Access
This matters.
Adobe explicitly labels Prompt to Edit an Early Access feature.
I would not immediately place an early-access generative feature in the middle of a high-volume listing pipeline where a photographer must deliver seventy files at 3:00 PM.
Use it first where failure is inexpensive.
Completed project.
Duplicate files.
Internal marketing image.
Archive restoration.
Non-critical social asset.
Then compare the result against an image whose correct appearance you already know.
The technology may be excellent.
Your production system still needs evidence.
What Prompt to Edit Can Currently Do
Adobe’s own prepared examples tell us something about how it expects the feature to be used.
Current example prompts include tasks such as:
Fix dust and scratches
Color restoration
Unblur
Adobe also describes broader restoration, retouching, colorizing, and image-transformation workflows, while allowing users to write and save their own custom prompts.
For photographers, the ability to save prompts could become particularly useful.
A working media company could eventually build a small prompt library for recurring tasks.
That could include carefully tested instructions for:
Archive restoration.
Marketing-image cleanup.
Social derivatives.
Certain rescue operations.
The phrase carefully tested matters.
A saved prompt gives you consistency of instruction.
It does not guarantee identical behavior across photographs.
Where I Would Test Prompt to Edit First
I would start with problems where the original property facts are already visible and the objective is easy to evaluate.
Old Builder Photography
A builder has five-year-old project photographs that need to appear in a new presentation.
Some files are:
Low resolution.
Slightly soft.
Compressed.
Noisy.
A restoration workflow may improve their usefulness without affecting a current listing representation.
That is a good test.
Slightly Soft Detail Images
Maybe the detail photograph of the range hood is a little softer than intended.
You have another clean wide image proving exactly what the hood looks like.
Try the unblur workflow.
Then compare the generated detail with the actual object.
Damaged or Scanned Archive Material
Older marketing images with:
Dust.
Scratches.
Compression damage.
Color degradation.
may be sensible Prompt to Edit candidates.
Marketing Derivatives
A finished client-approved image can be duplicated and tested for a separate marketing use where generative manipulation is clearly understood by the client.
The common thread is that you have a reference for reality.
Where I Would Keep Using Conventional Lightroom Tools
Normal listing photography still benefits from precise, predictable editing.
I would continue using conventional tools for:
Exposure.
White balance.
Highlight recovery.
Shadow control.
Lens correction.
Geometry.
Vertical correction.
Color.
Local masks.
Window balancing.
HDR development.
Flash / ambient integration.
Crop.
Standard sharpening.
These adjustments are controllable.
If the wall is too yellow, I want to know how I corrected it.
If the cabinets are too warm, I want to be able to pull them back predictably.
If the exterior through a window is too bright, I want exposure information from the actual capture.
Prompt-based editing can be useful when the task becomes tedious or technically difficult.
It does not need to become the default interface for adjustments Lightroom already handles very well.
A New DNG Deserves a Clear Workflow
Because Prompt to Edit creates a rendered DNG, I would keep the original and generated versions clearly associated.
Adobe already offers a Create stack option for Lightroom Cloud users so the generated DNG can remain grouped with the source.
For a production company, I would also preserve the distinction operationally.
Original RAW.
Normal edit.
Generated rendition.
Final approved deliverable.
That prevents a later editor from opening a generated DNG and assuming every visible detail came directly from the original camera file.
This becomes increasingly important as generative outputs become difficult to recognize by sight.
Output Resolution Needs to Be Checked
Prompt to Edit currently exposes 2K and 4K Nano Banana 2 output choices.
Do not assume the generated DNG has the same pixel dimensions as the original RAW.
Check.
Many MLS and web deliverables do not require enormous resolution.
Builder marketing, large prints, portfolio use, magazine work, and aggressive crops may.
A visually convincing result can still be the wrong production result if the output resolution does not meet the deliverable.
Generative Credits Are Part of the Workflow
The Prompt to Edit panel currently displays the user’s remaining credit balance.
Adobe’s broader partner-model documentation currently lists Nano Banana 2 at 20 credits for 2K and 30 credits for 4K image generations, while noting that rates are subject to change and that the listed rates apply to current app versions and plan availability.
For a photographer experimenting with five images, that may be trivial.
For a company considering generative editing across hundreds of listing photographs, the economics matter.
Do the math before turning a prompt into a batch-production philosophy.
Prompt-Based Editing Creates a Different QA Problem
The biggest risk is not an obviously bad AI result.
Obviously bad results are easy to reject.
The more difficult problem is a result that looks beautiful while quietly changing something.
Suppose the image contains:
Stone veneer.
Cabinet hardware.
Window grids.
Brick.
Wood flooring.
Pool tile.
Landscaping.
House numbers.
A complicated light fixture.
An AI system may reconstruct fine detail convincingly.
The output can look cleaner than the source while containing small visual information the camera never captured.
That is why my review process changes as the amount of generative reconstruction increases.
A Real Estate Prompt-to-Edit QA Checklist
After a generative edit, I would inspect:
Architecture
Did wall lines move?
Did trim widths change?
Did openings change shape?
Windows
Are muntins, frames, hardware, and actual exterior views intact?
Cabinets
Did handles, panel profiles, grain, or edge details change?
Countertops
Did veining become different?
Flooring
Did board patterns or grout lines change?
Stone and Brick
Did the model generate a cleaner pattern that no longer matches the actual material?
Fixtures
Did faucets, lights, appliances, switches, vents, or hardware change?
Exterior
Did landscaping, neighboring structures, utility lines, roof edges, fences, or driveway details change?
Text
Are house numbers, appliance labels, signs, or other lettering correct?
Furniture
Did existing furnishings change in ways that could affect how the room is represented?
That sounds cautious because it should be.
The more capable the model becomes, the less useful “does this look AI-generated?” becomes as a quality-control question.
Ask:
Does this still accurately describe the property?
Prompt Language Can Reduce Risk, but It Cannot Replace Review
For property work, I would write restrictive prompts.
For example:
Improve minor softness and restore natural detail while preserving the exact architecture, materials, fixtures, furnishings, landscaping, window views, room geometry, and lighting conditions. Do not add, remove, replace, enlarge, redesign, or relocate property features.
That is more appropriate than:
Make this house look better.
The first instruction communicates boundaries.
The result still needs inspection.
A prompt is an instruction to a generative system.
It is not a guarantee that every physical detail will survive unchanged.
Prompts I Would Avoid for Factual Listing Photography
I would be very careful with instructions such as:
Make the room look larger.
Replace the countertops with marble.
Add more mature landscaping.
Remove the neighboring house.
Make the lawn fuller and greener.
Turn this into sunset.
Add a fireplace.
Replace the view.
Add furniture.
Remove a permanent utility feature.
These may produce attractive advertising images.
A buyer could reasonably interpret them as documentation of the property.
For REALTOR® clients, NAR’s 2026 Code of Ethics says the obligation to present a true picture extends to internet content and images, and Standard of Practice 12-10 prohibits manipulation that produces deceptive or misleading results, including misleading images.
Zillow has also taken a clear public position that listing photography should accurately represent the home and that materially AI-altered property imagery should be transparently disclosed.
The media company should make accurate representation easy for the client.
Reflection Removal May Be the More Important Real Estate Feature Today
Prompt to Edit is likely to get most of the attention.
Reflection Removal is the feature I expect real estate photographers to put into production sooner.
Adobe’s September update says Reflection Removal now handles complicated windows, glass, water, and other reflective surfaces with fewer smudges and ghosting artifacts. The improvement appears in both Lightroom 9.6 and Lightroom Classic 15.6.
That directly addresses real scenes.
Luxury house with large glass doors.
Downtown condo.
Interior photographed toward a view.
Commercial lobby.
Home with a glass stair rail.
Exterior photographed through a window.
A photograph can be technically good and still contain a strong reflection that distracts from the intended subject.
That is an everyday photographic problem.
What Reflection Removal Actually Does
Adobe’s current workflow is straightforward.
Open the image.
Go to:
Remove → Distraction Removal
Apply Reflections.
Lightroom automatically detects the reflective layer.
The Amount slider then controls how much of the reflection is visible.
Adobe allows:
100 — reflection removed.
0 — original photograph.
-100 — reflection-only result.
That negative setting can be surprisingly useful for quality control.
It lets you inspect what Lightroom believes is the reflection.
If the isolated “reflection” contains important real property detail, slow down.
Use Best Quality for Final Delivery
Adobe currently provides three Reflection Removal quality levels:
Preview
Fast, lower-resolution processing.
Standard
Intermediate quality for normal screen viewing.
Best
Full-resolution processing.
For exploratory editing, Preview is useful.
For a client deliverable, I would use Best and inspect the result afterward.
Do not judge the final property photograph from the fastest preview mode.
Reflection Removal Can Be Applied Across Multiple Images
Adobe also allows Reflection Removal settings to be copied and pasted to other images, including multiple selected photographs.
This could matter on a glass-heavy property.
Imagine an oceanfront home with:
Large sliding doors.
Corner glass.
Primary-suite windows.
Glass railing.
Several photographs may contain related reflection problems.
Test one carefully.
Then copy the setting.
Review every image independently.
Glass geometry, camera angle, exterior brightness, and interior lighting change from frame to frame.
Batching can save time.
Batching does not remove the need to look.
Reflection Removal Is Different From a Window Pull
This distinction is important for real estate photographers.
A window pull or properly exposed HDR / flash-blend workflow addresses the brightness difference between:
Interior.
and:
Exterior view.
Reflection Removal addresses another problem:
The unwanted reflected image on the surface of the glass.
Imagine a bright living room facing a lake.
The window view is properly exposed.
You can clearly see:
Water.
Trees.
Sky.
But the glass is also reflecting:
Sofa.
Pendant light.
Photographer.
Interior wall.
The exposure may be correct.
The reflection is still there.
That is the problem this tool is trying to solve.
Reflection Removal Does Not Replace Good Capture
If reflections are severe, I still want to reduce them at the property first when practical.
Options may include:
Changing camera angle.
Turning off unnecessary interior lights.
Moving slightly closer to or farther from the glass.
Using a lens hood to block stray light.
Using a polarizer selectively when appropriate.
Changing the timing of the shot.
Small capture decisions can give the algorithm a much easier source file.
Software should clean up a difficult reflection.
It should not become the reason we stop noticing reflections during capture.
Where Reflection Removal Can Help Real Estate Photographers
Luxury Window Views
Large window walls often reflect interior furnishings and lights.
The buyer is supposed to see the view.
Subtle reflection cleanup can improve clarity.
Condos and High-Rise Properties
Urban views are frequently photographed through glass.
Reflections can be difficult to control because the room behind the camera is bright and the photographer has little freedom to change the window.
Glass Doors
Sliding and folding door systems can reflect the opposite side of the room.
Commercial Spaces
Storefront and lobby photography often involves glass between the camera and the intended subject.
Architectural Detail
Glass balustrades, glass walls, and reflective architectural surfaces can create confusing visual layers.
The tool becomes useful when the reflection is incidental and obscures the subject.
When I Would Use Reflection Removal More Carefully
There are cases where the reflection is part of the feature.
Mirror glass.
Highly reflective architectural panels.
Polished surfaces.
Decorative glass.
A pool whose reflected environment is part of the visual character.
A reflection can communicate:
Material.
Gloss.
Transparency.
Depth.
Lighting.
Removing it completely can make the surface look physically different.
Use the Amount control.
The best result may be 40, 60, or 80 instead of 100.
The objective is a believable photograph.
Do Not Remove the Visual Evidence of a Real Material
Suppose a glass wall has a highly reflective coating.
That appearance may be part of the architecture.
If the finished image makes the glass look perfectly transparent, the viewer gets a different impression of the material.
The same applies to:
Glossy cabinets.
Water.
Polished stone.
Mirrored panels.
AI cleanup is still editing.
The photographer needs to know what information is being removed.
Lightroom Classic Users Get a Different Update
Many working real estate photographers still use Lightroom Classic because:
Catalogs.
Local storage.
Large project archives.
Plug-ins.
Tethered or established desktop workflows.
For those photographers, there is an important distinction today.
Adobe’s Lightroom Classic 15.6 release notes list:
Improved Reflection Removal
New camera support
New lens support.
Adobe currently documents Prompt to Edit as an early-access feature in Lightroom desktop 9.6. The Lightroom Classic 15.6 September feature list does not include Prompt to Edit.
So a Classic photographer does not need to reorganize an entire catalog workflow today just to chase the headline.
You still receive the reflection improvement.
Prompt-based editing can be evaluated separately.
I Would Not Migrate From Classic Because of One Early-Access Feature
If Lightroom Classic already handles:
Ingest.
Catalog management.
Presets.
HDR.
Editing.
Export.
Archive.
Client workflow.
keep the system stable.
Adobe is clearly pushing new AI capabilities into its cloud-first Lightroom environment.
That may eventually change the production decision.
One early-access feature is not enough reason for me to move a mature high-volume catalog system.
Test the capability.
Watch the direction.
Then make a broader workflow decision if the benefit becomes large enough.
Prompt to Edit Uses a Partner Model
There is another operational detail worth understanding.
Adobe’s current Prompt to Edit interface offers Nano Banana 2. Adobe’s partner-model documentation identifies that as Gemini 3.1 by Google.
Adobe says partner models are developed outside Adobe and tells users that they remain responsible for determining whether a particular model is appropriate for the project.
That should matter to a professional media company.
The question is not only:
Does the edit look good?
Also ask:
Is this an approved production workflow for this client and this file?
What Adobe Says About Partner-Model Data
Adobe currently says content submitted through its integrated partner-model workflows is not used to train Adobe or partner generative models.
Adobe also says it sends the prompt and any required reference media to the partner model so the generation can be produced.
For an ordinary published listing image, that may be a straightforward decision.
For:
Confidential builder project.
Unreleased luxury home.
Sensitive commercial project.
Pre-launch development.
client-specific data policies may require more thought.
A media company should know which files are allowed in a partner-model workflow before an editor decides individually.
Build a Small AI Editing Policy Before the Tools Multiply
The easiest policy can fit on one page.
Normal Production Tools
Allowed:
Exposure.
Color.
Geometry.
Masks.
HDR.
Normal distraction cleanup.
Normal reflection reduction.
Generative Tools Requiring Review
Prompt to Edit.
Generative Expand.
Major Generative Remove.
Heavy reconstruction.
Creative upscaling.
Do Not Use for Factual Listing Media Without Specific Approval and Appropriate Disclosure
Changing:
Architecture.
Permanent fixtures.
Views.
Materials.
Room geometry.
Landscaping conditions.
Neighboring structures.
Major property defects.
Nonexistent furnishings or features represented as real.
That gives editors a boundary before the client asks:
Can you just make the backyard look better?
Prompt to Edit Could Become Useful for Media Companies Beyond Listings
The feature becomes more interesting when you consider the material a property-media company handles outside the MLS.
Builders have:
Archive photography.
Progress photographs.
Old project images.
Social assets.
Campaign graphics.
Printed collateral.
Agents have:
Portraits.
Marketing assets.
Listing announcements.
Educational posts.
Community content.
A generative restoration tool inside Lightroom can be valuable for those jobs.
The same photographer may therefore use Prompt to Edit aggressively on a creative marketing asset and conservatively on an MLS listing.
The intended use determines the acceptable edit.
Saved Prompts Could Become a Team Asset
Adobe currently allows users to save and rename custom prompts in Lightroom.
That creates a future operations opportunity.
A company could have approved prompts such as:
Archive Restoration — Conservative
Minor Softness Recovery
Old Marketing Photo Cleanup
Social Campaign Restoration
Each could contain explicit instructions to preserve property geometry and materials.
Then the team tests those prompts against representative files.
The useful part is not that everybody suddenly becomes a prompt engineer.
The useful part is that one tested workflow can be repeated.
Do Not Build a Prompt Library Before You Build a Visual Standard
A team needs to know what correct output looks like first.
Otherwise the instruction becomes:
Make this image professional.
Every editor interprets “professional” differently.
Define:
Wall color.
Window balance.
Brightness.
Perspective.
Sharpness.
Material accuracy.
Reflection standard.
Object-removal policy.
Then decide whether prompts can help reproduce those standards.
Automation gets much more useful after the visual target is already clear.
How I Would Test Lightroom 9.6 on a Real Property Set
Choose a completed job.
You already know:
What the house looked like.
What the client received.
Which source files were difficult.
Duplicate six files.
Image 1 — Normal Interior
No major problems.
Use this as the control.
Does Prompt to Edit leave correct details alone?
Image 2 — Slightly Soft Interior Detail
Test Unblur.
Inspect:
Cabinet edges.
Hardware.
Stone.
Text.
Image 3 — Large Window View
Test Reflection Removal.
Compare:
Original.
Amount 50.
Amount 100.
Image 4 — Difficult Glass Door
Use Best quality.
Inspect frames and reflected/interior detail.
Image 5 — Twilight
Try a conservative restoration prompt.
Look for changes in:
Roof.
Brick.
Grass.
Lights.
Image 6 — Older Marketing File
Give Prompt to Edit a more difficult restoration job.
Now compare:
Result quality.
Time.
Credits.
Resolution.
Manual cleanup.
You will know much more after that test.
Measure Total Production Time
AI demonstrations tend to measure the generation itself.
The production company should measure:
Upload / generation.
Review.
Regeneration.
Corrections.
Export.
Client revision.
If a prompt takes thirty seconds and then requires seven minutes of architectural repair, the operation took more than thirty seconds.
If Reflection Removal replaces fifteen minutes of cloning and needs one minute of review, that is a real productivity gain.
Track the whole job.
Update Now or Wait?
Lightroom Desktop Users
UPDATE AND TEST.
The release contains useful improvements.
Prompt to Edit is Early Access, so I would test it away from a critical client deadline before building it into production.
Lightroom Classic Users
UPDATE AFTER YOUR NORMAL PRODUCTION CHECK.
Reflection Removal improvements are directly useful.
As with any production software update, verify:
Catalog.
Plug-ins.
Export presets.
Tethering if used.
GPU behavior.
before putting the entire company on the new build.
High-Volume Editing Teams
TEST ON ONE WORKSTATION FIRST.
Document:
Output.
Credits.
Quality.
File handling.
Review time.
Then decide whether it belongs in the SOP.
Photographers Who Rarely Shoot Through Glass
Reflection Removal may be an occasional utility.
You do not need to invent a use for it.
Luxury / Architectural Photographers
TEST REFLECTION REMOVAL PROMPTLY.
Glass-heavy architecture creates enough real editing labor that an improved tool could provide immediate savings.
The Bigger Change Is How Lightroom Thinks About Editing
Prompt to Edit represents another step in a broader software change.
The interface increasingly allows the photographer to describe:
intent
instead of manually defining:
operation.
That can be valuable.
A photographer may know:
This old image needs to look clean and usable again.
without knowing the exact sequence of restoration tools needed.
The model can interpret that intent.
Professional work still requires the other half of the process:
Judgment.
Did it preserve the architecture?
Is the material still correct?
Did the view change?
Does the result meet the client’s standards?
The easier the edit becomes to request, the more important the photographer’s ability to evaluate the result becomes.
REPT Recommendation
Lightroom 9.6 is worth updating for real estate photographers.
I would put Reflection Removal into real-world testing immediately.
Its use case is clear, it addresses a genuine architectural-photography problem, Adobe has improved the exact artifacts that previously limited the feature, and the workflow remains controllable through an Amount slider and full-resolution Best mode.
I would treat Prompt to Edit as a serious early-access experiment.
The first good uses are:
Restoration.
Minor rescue work.
Archive material.
Marketing derivatives.
Jobs where you can easily compare the result with reality.
I would keep the normal listing edit centered around the conventional tools that already provide precise control.
And I would keep clear boundaries around prompts that can alter:
Property features.
Materials.
Geometry.
Views.
Landscaping.
Permanent conditions.
The interesting part of Lightroom 9.6 is that generative editing now lives directly in the photographer’s primary editing environment.
That makes it more accessible.
It also removes some of the friction that used to remind us we were leaving a conventional photographic workflow.
The final review matters more because of that convenience.
Use the new tool.
Know what it changed.
Then decide whether the photograph still tells the truth about the house.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is new in Lightroom 9.6?
Adobe Lightroom 9.6, released September 29, 2026, introduces Prompt to Edit, improves Reflection Removal, and adds support for additional cameras and lenses.
What is Prompt to Edit?
Prompt to Edit is an early-access generative editing feature in Lightroom desktop that lets users describe complex edits in natural language or select prepared photographer prompts.
Is Prompt to Edit available in Lightroom Classic?
Adobe currently documents Prompt to Edit for Lightroom desktop 9.6. The September Lightroom Classic 15.6 feature list includes improved Reflection Removal but does not list Prompt to Edit.
What AI model does Lightroom Prompt to Edit use?
Adobe currently offers Nano Banana 2 in 2K and 4K output options. Adobe’s partner-model documentation identifies Nano Banana 2 as Google Gemini 3.1.
Is Prompt to Edit an Adobe Firefly model?
Adobe currently lists Nano Banana 2 as a Google partner model rather than an Adobe-developed Firefly model.
Does Prompt to Edit change the RAW file?
Adobe says the generated result is saved as a new DNG beside the original or inside a Cloud stack.
Can I keep the original and AI edit together?
Yes. Lightroom currently provides a Create Stack option, although Adobe says stacking for this workflow is currently supported only in the Cloud.
What resolution does Prompt to Edit produce?
Adobe currently provides Nano Banana 2 at 2K or 4K in the output settings.
Does Prompt to Edit use generative credits?
The Lightroom interface displays the user’s remaining credit balance for Prompt to Edit. Adobe’s current broader Nano Banana 2 credit table lists 20 credits for 2K and 30 for 4K generations, with rates subject to change.
Can Prompt to Edit unblur a photo?
Yes. Adobe currently includes Unblur among its example prompt workflows.
Can it restore an old photograph?
Adobe specifically positions Prompt to Edit for restoration and provides examples involving dust, scratches, and color restoration.
Should I use Prompt to Edit on every listing photo?
I would not. Test it where it solves a specific problem and keep predictable normal adjustments in the conventional Lightroom workflow.
Can I use Prompt to Edit for real estate HDR?
Adobe continues to provide dedicated HDR merge and normal Lightroom development tools. Prompt to Edit is a generative editing workflow rather than a documented replacement for real estate HDR merging.
Should I use it for window pulls?
I would continue using properly captured exposures, HDR, flash, masks, or a normal window-blending workflow for dynamic-range problems.
Reflection Removal solves a separate problem: unwanted reflected content on the glass.
What changed with Reflection Removal?
Adobe says the September 2026 update produces cleaner results on complex surfaces including windows, glass, and water with fewer smudges and ghosting artifacts.
Is improved Reflection Removal available in Lightroom Classic?
Yes. Adobe lists the improvement in Lightroom Classic 15.6.
Can Reflection Removal work on RAW files?
Adobe’s current Lightroom documentation supports the feature as part of the normal photo-editing workflow and provides full-resolution output through its Best quality mode.
What does the Reflection Removal Amount slider do?
Adobe currently defines 100 as the reflection-removed result, 0 as the original, and -100 as a reflection-only view.
Why would I view the reflection by itself?
It can help you see what the AI has identified as reflected content and whether important real property detail has been included accidentally.
Which Reflection Removal quality should I use?
Adobe offers Preview, Standard, and Best. Best processes the full-resolution result and is the setting I would use before final client delivery.
Can Reflection Removal be batched?
Yes. Adobe currently supports copying the reflection settings and applying them to multiple selected images.
Should I remove every reflection completely?
No. Some reflection communicates the actual material and environment. Use the Amount control and preserve a believable rendering of the property.
Can Reflection Removal replace a polarizer?
It addresses some of the same visual distractions after capture, but a polarizer changes reflected light optically at the time of capture and behaves differently depending on angle and surface. I would still make good capture decisions first.
Should I remove my own camera reflection from glass?
If the camera reflection is an incidental photographic artifact obscuring the intended view, removal can be reasonable. Inspect the result carefully and make sure real architectural information has not been altered.
Could removing reflections misrepresent a property?
Yes, particularly when reflection is an actual visual characteristic of the glass, polished material, water, or architectural surface. Use restraint.
Can I prompt Lightroom to make a lawn greener?
Technically, a generative system may be capable of such an edit. For ordinary factual listing imagery, I would avoid changing property conditions in ways buyers could interpret as real.
Can I prompt Lightroom to replace a sky?
Adobe’s own Prompt to Edit interface currently includes examples of transformative editing. For real estate listing media, sky replacement should follow the client’s MLS, brokerage, platform, and disclosure requirements and remain consistent with accurate property representation.
What does NAR say about altered listing images?
NAR’s 2026 Code of Ethics says REALTORS® must present a true picture in advertising and extends that obligation to internet content and images. Standard of Practice 12-10 prohibits manipulating listing content in a way that creates deceptive or misleading results, including misleading images.
What does Zillow say about AI listing photos?
Zillow says listing photos should accurately represent homes and supports disclosure when AI materially alters a property image. Zillow also says its own virtual-staging experience is labeled and allows shoppers to compare staged and original imagery.
Does Adobe send my image to Google when I use Nano Banana 2?
Adobe describes Nano Banana 2 as a partner model and says required prompts and reference media are sent to the partner model to generate the output. Adobe says those inputs are not used to train Adobe or partner generative models within its integrated workflow.
Should a real estate media company allow Prompt to Edit on confidential projects?
Review the company’s client agreements, AI policy, Adobe account terms, and project confidentiality requirements before using a partner-model workflow on sensitive files.
Should I update Lightroom today?
The new tools are worth testing. For production computers, use the same discipline you would with any software update: verify active projects, compatibility, presets, plug-ins, GPU behavior, and export workflow before rolling it across a team.
What is the most useful Lightroom 9.6 feature for real estate photographers?
For many property photographers, I expect the improved Reflection Removal feature to create the fastest immediate production benefit.
REPT Training & Resources
AI editing becomes much more useful once you can recognize a technically and visually correct real estate photograph.
You still need to understand:
Exposure.
White balance.
Dynamic range.
Window balance.
Perspective.
Composition.
Color.
Material accuracy.
Capture technique.
Those fundamentals tell you whether the AI result is actually better.
Free REPT First Listing Starter Kit
If you are preparing for one of your first listing assignments, build the capture and delivery workflow before adding advanced generative editing.
The Free REPT First Listing Starter Kit is the best next step for that stage:Free REPT First Listing Starter Kit
Complete Real Estate Photography Training
For the deeper path through equipment, interior and exterior photography, HDR, lighting, editing, video, client work, and building a professional property-media business:Real Estate Photography Training Course & Products
Explore the REPT Knowledge Base
Continue through the connected chapters covering real estate photo editing, AI, HDR, video, business systems, and professional property-media standards:REPT Knowledge Base
Visit Real Estate Photography Training
Explore current REPT training resources and industry analysis:Real Estate Photography Training
Follow Malachi on Instagram
See current real estate photography, video work, editing examples, software observations, and field notes:Malachi Gobart — Real Estate Photography
Related Articles
Continue through the REPT Knowledge Base for connected training on:
• Real Estate Photo Editing Workflow
• HDR and Window-Balancing Techniques
• AI Editing and Ethical Property Representation
• Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop Workflow
• Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop Inside Gemini and Claude
• Adobe’s Acquisition of Topaz Labs
• Data Security and Client Privacy for Real Estate Media CompaniesExplore the REPT Knowledge Base
Logical Follow-Up Topics
1. Interview Lighting and Portrait Composition for Real Estate Media
The next evergreen Knowledge Base chapter remains queued, covering window light, fast interview lighting, practical fixtures, focal length, camera placement, eyeline, agent interviews, builder content, skin tone, and repeatable one-person setups.
2. Testing Lightroom Prompt to Edit on a Complete Real Estate Gallery
A controlled field test across white kitchens, dark interiors, window views, stone, brick, twilight exteriors, drone photographs, and detail images.
3. Reflection Removal vs. Window Pulls for Real Estate Photography
A practical comparison explaining when reflections, dynamic range, glare, window exposure, HDR, flash, masking, and polarizers solve different parts of the same window problem.
4. Building an AI Editing Policy for a Real Estate Media Team
A production-standard chapter covering approved tools, factual property representation, generative edits, client approval, disclosure, partner AI models, QA, file labeling, and editor accountability.
5. Which Real Estate Photo Edits Should Be Automated?
A workflow analysis separating predictable production edits from high-judgment edits where automation creates more risk than time savings.
Editorial Note
For real estate photography, the most immediately useful part of Lightroom 9.6 may be the least dramatic one.
Reflection Removal solves a recognizable problem.
You are standing inside a house with an impressive view.
The exposure is good.
The composition works.
The glass reflects a chandelier, sofa, or part of the room behind the camera.
You could clone.
You could blend.
You could accept it.
Now Lightroom has a better attempt at separating that reflected layer from the scene behind the glass.
If it works reliably, that saves actual editing time.
Prompt to Edit is more consequential over the long term.
It changes the way a photographer can communicate with the software.
Instead of deciding which tool will produce the result, the photographer can increasingly describe the desired result and let a model decide how to get there.
That will become useful.
It will also make it easier to perform edits whose technical complexity once forced the photographer to think carefully about what was being changed.
There is less friction now.
That makes standards important.
A real estate image has a job.
It should show the home clearly.
It should look good.
It should make strong photography out of the real conditions the photographer was hired to document.
Sometimes that means recovering a slightly soft archive photograph.
Sometimes it means cleaning an ugly reflection off the glass.
Sometimes it means correcting color or balancing the windows.
The moment the software begins creating a better version of the house rather than a better photograph of the house, the production company needs to recognize that change.
Lightroom 9.6 gives photographers more power to cross that line.
It also gives us some genuinely useful tools that can save time without crossing it.
I would use both parts of the release.
Reflection Removal goes into my practical editing tests immediately.
Prompt to Edit goes into a controlled test folder first.
Then I would keep the results that solve real production problems, build clear rules around the generative work, and continue judging the final image against the same thing that has always mattered:
the property in front of the camera.
Sources
Adobe — “What’s New in Lightroom”
Last updated September 29, 2026. Official release overview for Lightroom 9.6 covering Prompt to Edit, improved Reflection Removal, and new camera and lens support.Adobe — What’s New in Lightroom
Adobe — “Edit Photos Using Prompts”
Last updated September 29, 2026. Official documentation for Prompt to Edit, including Early Access status, prepared and custom prompts, Nano Banana 2 output, 2K/4K options, saved prompts, Cloud stacks, DNG output, and generative-credit balance.Adobe — Edit Photos Using Prompts in Lightroom
Adobe — “Remove Window Reflections in a Photo”
Last updated September 29, 2026. Official Lightroom documentation covering automated reflection detection, the Amount control, Preview/Standard/Best quality, full-resolution processing, recommended edit order, and batch application.Adobe — Remove Window Reflections in Lightroom
Adobe — “What’s New in Lightroom Classic”
Last updated September 29, 2026. Official Lightroom Classic 15.6 release overview confirming improved Reflection Removal and current camera/lens updates.Adobe — What’s New in Lightroom Classic
Adobe — “Partner Models in Adobe Products”
Last updated September 10, 2026. Official documentation identifying Nano Banana 2 as Google Gemini 3.1, current partner-model credit usage, model responsibilities, and Adobe’s treatment of prompts and reference media in partner-model workflows.Adobe — Partner Models in Adobe Products
National Association of REALTORS® — “2026 Code of Ethics & Standards of Practice”
Effective January 1, 2026. Article 12 and Standard of Practice 12-10 address truthful real estate advertising, internet content, manipulation of listing content, and misleading images.NAR — 2026 Code of Ethics & Standards of Practice
Zillow — “Zillow’s Take on AI-Generated Listing Photos, and Why Transparency Matters”
Published July 22, 2026. Zillow’s current position on accurate listing imagery, AI alteration, transparency, disclosure, and showing original imagery alongside materially altered versions where appropriate.Zillow — AI-Generated Listing Photos and Transparency