Aperture 2.1 updates various features of the application and addresses issues related to performance and overall stability. The updates include the following:

• Dodge & Burn Plug-in. A sample plug-in is pre-installed, taking advantage of the Edit API introduced in Aperture 2.0. The plug-in adds brush-based tools for Dodge (Lighten), Burn (Darken), Contrast, Saturation, Sharpen and Blur.

• Customize Default Adjustment Set. You can now specify which adjustments appear by default in the Adjustments Inspector/HUD.

• Updated Crop Tool. A simplified UI makes it easier to preserve an image's original aspect ratio, match the aspect ratio of your display, or use one of the standard preset aspect ratios.

• Sorting in All Projects View. A contextual menu allows you to sort the All Projects view in ascending or descending date order.

• Show on Map. A contextual menu allows you to choose the Show on Map by right-clicking (or Control-clicking) on an image that contains GPS data.

• Access to Toolbar on Second Display. When using multiple displays in Full Screen mode, the Full Screen toolbar is now accessible on a second display.

• "Snapshots" book theme. This additional theme includes new "photo border" frames in which to place images.

• Flip Images. You can now flip images horizontally or vertically within Aperture.

• Vignette. The range of gamma and exposure settings available has been expanded.

• Save Books as JPEG or TIFF images. Automator actions have been added to Save as PDF pop-up menu in the Print Book window to automatically generate JPEG or TIFF images from book pages.

• Update EXIF from Master. This command allows Aperture to reread EXIF from a master images after they have been imported.

• Extended AppleScript support. The "Reveal" verb in the AppleScript dictionary has been extended to include containers such as projects and albums.

The update includes fixes that impact the a number of areas, including:

• Image import

• Image migration

• Erasing memory cards after import

• Quick Preview

• Batch Change

• Auto-stacking

• All Projects view

• Tooltips

• Smart Albums

• Tethering

• Adjustments inspector

• Viewer

• Loupe

• White Balance

• Definition

• Lift & Stamp

• Handling of externally edited images

• Reconnecting referenced files

• Keyboard customization

• Deleting images

• Metadata presets

• Book themes

• Borderless printing

• Web Page/Web Journal export

• Exporting versions

• Export Plug-in support

• AppleScript support

For further information about this update, see Late-Breaking News About Aperture 2, available at http://manuals.info.apple.com/en/Aperture_2.0_lbn_z.pdf

The Aperture 2.1 Update is recommended for all Aperture 2 users.