which program to get?

[johnno02]

For great FREE editing and lots of other terrific fun things try PHOTOSCAPE at http://download.cnet.com/PhotoScape/...-10703122.html
For PANORAMA work try ICE (Image Composite Editor)from Microsoft at http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/...roups/ivm/ICE/
Simply put, they're FREE & EASY.

I totally agree PhotoScape is my favourite Editor,

Easy to use for us newbies,does everything I could ever want as an Amateur
Wildlife photographer.

Its at least worth a try.
Regards.
John

[salnel]

Being very new to both photography and editing programs, I did not know what to get but I downloaded the trail of lightroom 3 and I think it is brilliant. I also have PS cs5 but I am finding that 98% of my editing is done in lightroom.If I need to I can finish it in Photoshop. Lr 3 will also upload photos direct to flickr and facebook. I have yet to learn all the features but I find it so easy to use and it is non-destructive. You can make as many virtual copies of your original as you want and use the same image for all sorts of effects.I would recommend this to any one wanting a powerful but easy to use program (and, if you are a student) it is no where near as expensive as PS.

[Bubbleyboy]

After starting at 1000kph to learn "everything" about everything after starting a digital media course at tafe and stumbling onto this site some things have stood out.
*research as much as you can about anything before parting with any dollars.
*there is no "BEST" in most areas,just some that suit some better than others.
*most programs are available as a trial so try before you buy and see if it stacks up
*No programs come "naturally" all must be learned and used to hone your skills to a level that allows you to become comefortable getting it to do what you want it to.
*adobe LIGHTROOM seems to be a starter program and the one to start with for cataloging and simple adjusting of pictures . Not a simple program to master be more than capable of suiting the need of a beginner.
For me I am using (trying to) LIGHTROOM 3 on a trial for now and will trial PS5 when I am confident with LR3 . (Will probably purchase after trial is over) . Its a slower process than I thought it would be , you have to work at it and get assistance to progress.

Bubbleyboy

[theking]

I use iphoto as it came with the mac when I purchased it, I'm thinking about upgrading to Aperture- do anyone know where to a get a guide from?

[SNAFU II]

Hi,

I have Photoshop Elements 8, I brought it when I brought my new computer.
But when I went to try and use it, It was OMG... how will I ever learn to use this thing.
So I did a online search and came up with these guys,http://www.photoshopelementsuser.com/

And I have to tell you, they are fantastic. For me anyway, they have so many Tuts
and so easy to learn from, I learn best buy watching, they have a video on every Tut,
so easy to just follow along. There is also a fantastic forum, so you will never get stuck.
There is so much more.

Well worth it if you go PSE.

Cheers
couchie

Hi couchie and everyone..i am a new member and have just recently bought a SONY SLT-A33 camera and with my deal i got Photoshop Elements 8 with another disc Premier Elements 8..i installed the software and opened it and thought wow how do i use this..so thanks couchie for putting up that website,i now have a better idea on what i am doin......cheers Mick!!!

[Genna]

Forgive my ignorance but what is the difference between say Photoshop Elements, CS5 Photoshop and Photoshop Lightroom 3?

[Genna]

Does PhotoScape work on Macs??

[pkaye2004]

For many years before moving up to Photoshop CS3 I used a program called Photoimpact. Had many of the features of Photoshop especially layers, web publishing and was light on CPU requirements. Best of all the version was free without limitations on a magazine cover CD.

[Mikepaus]

I use a mac and have photoshop elements 7 Mac version. I am considering upgrading to elements 9 but have also looked at a Mac program called Pixelmator doe anyone have any experience with this program

[itybitypieces]

a few years ago in the days of jasc i would have recommended paintshop pro but these days with corel now doing it i cant ,for me paintshop pro x3 wont even load under windows 7 even in compatibility mode.and i tried every thing to get it to run,

i do run photoshop cs5 but i wouldnt recommend that either as it is not beginner friendly.

gimp or gimpshop are the way to go for a beginner.

picassa is also a great program even if its just to catalouge photos

[etherial]

Forgive my ignorance but what is the difference between say Photoshop Elements, CS5 Photoshop and Photoshop Lightroom 3?

Hi Genna, in a nut shell:

Photoshop CS5 - the full editing package, very complex, capable of amazing things, full layers etc, expensive and big learning curve.
Photoshop Elements - cut down version of cs5, for editing single photos using layers etc, cheapest of the three, reasonable learning curve.
Photoshop Lightroom - More suited to managing heaps of images as a full catalouge, has excellent imaging editing for multiple images and a basic set of adjustment brushes that do the job 95% of the time.

I use lightroom 95% of the time, and venture to cs5 when I need to do some complex editing which isn't often.

If I was buying just one, it would be Lightroom without hesitation.

[strictfunctor]

If you have an up-to-date Mac, the show-stopper of the new Mac App Store is Aperture for a lot less than it used to be (can't see the price as it just shows "Installed" for me. Aperture is not a whole lot harder to use than iPhoto, but much more capable. You can do everything in it that iPhoto does, and a lot of the jobs that you might otherwise use PhotoShop for. It takes plug-ins, and with particularly the Nik suite, you can do a lot * removed: Members with less than 50 posts and/or 30 days membership cannot complain about services/product/companies or people * . Since it's still available outside the App store, there's still the opportunity to try it for free.

[cowboydave]

Hi All, so the program you get with you camera is that just a very basic one? I have just bought myself a Canon 550D EOS and it come with its own program and I have been trying to play around with it a bit but apart from cropping and zooming dont really know what else to do with it. Did not come with a manual as such but a help guide on disc format but I still struggle a bit. I guess what I am asking is should I keep trying to figure this program out or am I better of getting something better..

Love to take the pictures but not enjoying the editing side of things yet, I know you can do allot in the editing side but just have not figure that out yet.

[itybitypieces]

have not used the canon software b4 ,as i own a pentax camera and is different software silky pix. my recommendations are if you are an absolute beginer with editing software give picasa 3 software a go.and when you feel comfortable with using that software ,give gimp a try.which is also free.just google it .

[strictfunctor]

Hi All, so the program you get with you camera is that just a very basic one? I have just bought myself a Canon 550D EOS and it come with its own program and I have been trying to play around with it a bit but apart from cropping and zooming dont really know what else to do with it. Did not come with a manual as such but a help guide on disc format but I still struggle a bit. I guess what I am asking is should I keep trying to figure this program out or am I better of getting something better..

Love to take the pictures but not enjoying the editing side of things yet, I know you can do allot in the editing side but just have not figure that out yet.

The Canon software does have its uses. There are multiple programs in there. One lets you do important configurations, like embedding your name in every photo and tethered shooting. If you shoot in raw, then Canon argue that the best conversion from raw for your camera is done with their software, and the only one that converts using the picture style you selected on the camera.