ACDSee Systems has released ACDSee Pro 4, a comprehensive graphics package that can help you import, manage, view, fix, edit and share your digital photos.

New features this time around include improved metadata handling. A separate metadata panel makes it easy to edit IPTC metadata for individual images, or an entire batch, and you can even save frequently used metadata as presets, then apply them to a group of images in a single operation.

ACDSee Pro 4 is now location-aware, too. You can browse your images on a map, clicking on a marker to view the photos taken in that location, and if your shots don’t have location data then you’re able to add it with a drag and drop.

Professional additions to the program’s editing capabilities include a smart vignette correction tool, along with new image processing options that will quickly fix chromatic aberration and defringing issues.

Time-saving tools include the new ability to monitor specific folders, and automatically upload new photos to your preferred online space (there’s support for Flickr, SmugMug, Zenfolio, and ACDSee Systems own ACDSee Online service, which then lets you post to Facebook, tweak your album links on Twitter, and more).

And of course these just build on the ACDSee Pro’s existing features: the excellent thumbnail browser, easy image categorisation, powerful search tools, quality RAW and HDR processing options, and essential image correction and editing functions.

If there’s a down side here, it’s the price, an eye-watering $239.99, which is going to considerably limit ACDSee Pro 4’s audience.

The program really is packed with impressive features, though, in particular its image correction options, and its intelligent workflow will help you organise and process large numbers of photos with the absolute minimum of hassle.  If that sounds appealing then try it out for yourself – a 30 day trial of ACDSee Pro 4 is available now, or if you’ve a Mac, grab ACDSee Pro for Mac 1.7.