Photo editing program...

Systems

Hello

My wife is wanting to get a photo editing program for her laptop. Its running Vista 64 bit, 4 gigs of ram, Core 2 duo, 7200 rpm drive, and ATI video card.

Was just wondering what you guys use, she doesn't want anything pricey or overly complicated. We looked at the Adobe photoshop elements 8 last night and seemed to be a good choice...

Thanks for any input!!

maximillian

Photoshop elements is a good choice. I use Paint Shop Pro 7. Later versions are bloated. Don't forget about Irfanview (freeware but limited). There are some version of the Gimp (open source) out there that try to make them better to use but I never liked any of them.

bruss

I use fireworks but i guess it just depends on what you want to do

Jstas

I use GiMP. Works well enough for me and is fairly simple to use. Best part, it's free!

http://www.gimp.org/

wayne3burk

I've been using photoshop since 1991... so it's the only program i know how to use.

That said -- if she's not already biased or ruined by having already learned one program, I'd recommend Xara Xtreme 5.

Nope, I've never used or tried it.

But I'd still recommend it.

.. wayne ..

shack

Lightroom. It is designed strictly for photography by Adobe.

Photoshop (even elements) and Paintshop are image/graphic editing programs and have so much stuff that the average photographer never uses. Lightroom will do almost everything that photoshop will do from a photography standpoint. It is faster, more intuitive for the photgrapher and really just easier to use. Lightroom 3 is just coming out soon if not already. I have seen the beta and it is fantastic. I have Lightroom 2 and the few things I miss from Photoshop are now there. I pretty much quit using Photoshop except when I really want to fix or manipulate a photograph. The kind of things I use it for are not available in elements. In addition to the editing functions, Lightroom has one of the best photo organization/file programs around bar none.


A FREE alternative is GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program). It will do a lot of basic stuff. It worked pretty good for me in my early stages of digital photography. Here is the link.

http://www.gimp.org/windows/

Now I find I need a lot more than it offers, but it is not bad for the basic user.

AsSiMiLaTeD

Shack, does Lightroom offer alot of functionality over Elements? I'm asking because it's a couple hundred bucks more. I'm assuming it does, but enough to warrant the $300 price tag?

wayne3burk

if there are free downloads -- 30 day trial periods... I"d recommend you try before you buy -- at any price over free.

wayne

shack

AsSiMiLaTeD wrote:

Shack, does Lightroom offer alot of functionality over Elements? I'm asking because it's a couple hundred bucks more. I'm assuming it does, but enough to warrant the $300 price tag?

Yes. Elements is really just a "very basic photoshop"...but still not 100% dedicated to photography. Lightroom is. Everything about Lightroom is easier and faster than elements. Batch processing is great and saves a lot of time and as I said, the file organization is the best I've seen. Well worth the money. Everything to edit your photos is easy and right there...not like the multitude of menus and options in Photoshop. Of course I need to tell you that I was able to purchase Lightroom for $99 as a "student". Most universities will sell a student version and will give you the license to use it. I had my daughter puchase it for me, just because she was there. Of course the $200 I saved has been more than offset by the $10,000 a year I spend on tuition. :rolleyes: I was taking some non-credit courses as well and quailfied to buy the student version. Once you have it you never lose the license to use it.

Having said that, as someone who really enjoys photography...I would be willing to pay the premium for Lightroom over Elements. It really depends on your level of involvement. I think the learning curve for Lightroom vs Elements seems to really favor Lightroom. It is just easy to use. A casual user may do just fine with something like GIMP, Elements, Paintshop or even the editing software included with almost any digital camera (ie: Canon's Digital Photo Professional). If you are a little more serious, Lightroom is something to consider.

AsSiMiLaTeD

Cool, I'll check it out. The to OP, depending on what you need, Picasa by Google is also another good program, for basic editing.

Sami

I would start with GIMP or Paint.NET.

shack

AsSiMiLaTeD wrote:

Cool, I'll check it out. The to OP, depending on what you need, Picasa by Google is also another good program, for basic editing.

Try the free demo download. I was able to play with a Lightroom 2 Beta program and it sold me. Try it out before you spend the $ and see if it works for you.


http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshoplightroom/

If you try it and like it....wait for Lightroom 3. It is not very far off as I understand (first of summer maybe) and even better than 2.

Systems

Hello

Thanks for the input, yes Lightroom does look good alright. The $300 price tag is a bit of an issue though...

She does work for the school district as a home school liason, not sure if that would qualify for a "teachers discount" though...

I called them and all they need is the school photo id and a pay stub from the district to qualify, so shouldn't be a problem...

dee1949

......I have Photoshop cs 4 but learned on Paint Shop Pro 7. Paint Shop Pro is a lot cheaper and does about everything Photoshop does. Find myself using it more often than Photoshop....probably because I am more familar with it. Photoshop has a higher learning curve, but it it the industry standard. I believe Paint Shop Pro later additions might have been acquired by another company....Corel.

http://www.ulead.com/paintshopphotopro/setA_cpsprox3.html