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#4206655 - 12/16/15 02:01 PM Alternatives to Photoshop?  
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RSColonel_131st Offline
Lifer
RSColonel_131st  Offline
Lifer

Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 25,138
Vienna, 2nd rock left.
Hi Guys,

I'm getting a new camera delivered... this will kind of formally retire my D200 (which hasn't been used for a long time) and mostly replace my 35mm Film Leica.

So, I need new software to go with it smile

I notice a recent (or maybe not even so recent) trend to heap a ton of filters on pictures. When I did this shoot:




I used a friend's copy of CS4 (we were using his Studio and it was convenient wink ) where with just a few sliders, I got from average flat looking skin tones to this kind of "mid-range contrast". I believe it was mostly the "Clarity" function descriped here:
http://layersmagazine.com/clarity-vibrance-and-saturation-in-adobe-photoshop-camera-raw.html

Stuff like that is really missing from my CS2 version.

But of course, a full CS5 is out of question. Been looking at On1 Photo 10, but they charge VAT and the price goes to 120USD. Photoshop Elements seems cheap enough, yet I'm not sure what I'd be missing.

What are your favorite afforable tools? Mostly for effects.

Inline advert (2nd and 3rd post)

#4206685 - 12/16/15 02:52 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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Paul Rix Offline
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Paul Rix  Offline
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I signed up for Adobe Creative Cloud Photographer package. It is $9.99 per month but it gives you the latest and greatest versions of both Photoshop and Lightroom. I figure it is good value when you compare it to the cost of both packages if you were to buy them outright. Another advantage of the subscription is that you always have the latest version of the package. You still download the programs and they can be used offline.

I had never used Lightroom before and now I find it a more important part of the post processing flow than Photoshop (although there are still times Photoshop is useful).



Link to Adobe Creative Cloud Photographer's plan.

<edit> I forgot to add that there is a free trial for this package. Also, if I recall correctly there is a minimum commitment period for the subscription, so definitely read the small print. I found the package to be well worth the monthly subscription (and I am not even a serious photographer).

Last edited by Paul Rix; 12/16/15 05:09 PM.

Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people.
Carl Sagan
#4206708 - 12/16/15 03:51 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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mdwa Offline
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Way over in Perth, Western Aus...


mdwa
#4206725 - 12/16/15 04:27 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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FlatEric Offline
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Hi RSColonel_131st, I mostly use Adobe Lightroom 6 - I shoot in RAW format and Lightroom does everything I need (and more) 99% of the time. Occasionally I'll use my old copy of Photoshop CS3 (e.g. for manipulating layers, fine selections, cloning / healing tools etc..), but only rarely.

You can buy a copy of Lightroom 6 outright, or 'lease it' as part of a Creative Cloud (CC) package as Paul Rix mentions above. The CC version (lease) will ensure you've always got access to the latest version of the software; buying a single copy of Lightroom 6 could be more cost effective (depends on how much you use the software and how much you value the latest 'bells and whistles').

Finally, there are tons of very good tutorials on You Tube to help you get the most out of it.

Good luck thumbsup

#4206838 - 12/16/15 09:07 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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Top Gun Offline
Lifer
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Lifer

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Roch-Vegas NH
read up about the CC light room, a lot of my photog friends aren't happy with LR and it's latest update. Something about not finding the right folders. I have PS Elements what ever the latest version is and then I bought LR 6 outright.


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#4206844 - 12/16/15 09:16 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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TheBigDog Offline
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I haven't run into any issues with LR6, I mostly use it but sometimes will pop into Photoshop. I quite enjoy LR6, actually.

#4207210 - 12/17/15 07:57 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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Top Gun Offline
Lifer
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Lifer

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#4207341 - 12/18/15 02:39 AM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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WolfDancer Offline
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War is the continuation of natural selection by other means.
#4207469 - 12/18/15 01:13 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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RSColonel_131st Offline
Lifer
RSColonel_131st  Offline
Lifer

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Vienna, 2nd rock left.
Hmm, LR6 is over 100 bucks around here. PS Elements is just 50. Perfect Photo 9.5 is 100...

Those filters look cool also, but lack some functionality I'd be wanting (RAW conversion for example).

#4207769 - 12/19/15 02:21 AM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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speedbump Offline
Hotshot
speedbump  Offline
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Edgewood TX
I use DXO Optics Pro 10 elite for my images and it's on sale now half off. 99 bucks in the states. It's mostly a RAW converter though. Paint Shop Pro is a worthy competitor to Photoshop and is not subscription and less than 100 dollars for the best version.

#4207813 - 12/19/15 09:25 AM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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FlatEric Offline
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Hi RSColonel_131st,
would strongly recommend that you take a free 30 day trial of Lightroom and give it a try. It's really very good thumbsup

Another key feature in Lightroom's favour is that it makes non-destructive edits to your RAW files. This has two advantages - firstly, and most obviously, nothing you do in Lightroom will change the original file. All your edits are stored in a separate database that you can apply / unapply / amend at any point. You will always have your original photo to go back to.

Secondly, this cuts down on storage. If you edit your photos in Photoshop or PS Elements and want to be able to go back and amend things at a later date, you're generally going to have to save your files as PSD files (e.g. keeping the original layers) or as fully editable TIF files. These generally take up (a lot!) more space than the original RAW photo file so you'll need a lot more storage space compared with editing in Lightroom.

I've tried lots of image editing software over the years and I can honestly say that Lightroom provides the best balance between features, useability and cost. And because it's so popular, you'll also find loads of very useful (and free!) 'How to ..' videos and guides on the internet on how to get the most out of Lightroom.

Finally, if you're on a tight budget and decide to go down the PS Elements route, you could also consider getting a slightly earlier version. Latest version, I think, is 14 - however, versions 13, 12 or even 11 will probably give you 95%+ of the same functionality as the latest version but at a fraction of the price (either pre-used or just old stock that hasn't been sold). It's worth comparing the features list to see if the differences are relevant to you.

Hope this helps smile

PS/. You could also try writing a nice letter to Santa ... santa

#4207924 - 12/19/15 05:07 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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RSColonel_131st Offline
Lifer
RSColonel_131st  Offline
Lifer

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Posts: 25,138
Vienna, 2nd rock left.
Hi all,

Thanks for the many and educated suggestions, but in the end Amazon dropped another 8 bucks off PSE 14, so that's what I purchased on a whim today.

I had good experience with On1 Photo Suite 8 but the 9 and 10 release keep crashing. And ultimatly the workflow from PS CS2 will carry over decently into elements whereas Lightroom would have been more expensive and a different idea to learn...

#4207949 - 12/19/15 06:13 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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RSColonel_131st Offline
Lifer
RSColonel_131st  Offline
Lifer

Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 25,138
Vienna, 2nd rock left.
Okay, that was a mistake...

The functionality of Elements is okay, but the GUI is absolute crap. Any tool you open costs you hundreds of vertical pixels workspace. Looks like it's designed for tablets (likely is). Should have trialed it first - my mistake.

#4207970 - 12/19/15 07:42 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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Aiobhill Offline
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If your new camera is a Nikon, you can give Capture Nx-D a whirl. It's free after all. I have limited experience with it. First impressions: usability is crap, but a powerful tool in the right hands. And I don't know even one ambitious amateur or semi-professional photographer who regretted buying Lightroom.

edited the product name, I'm getting old

Last edited by Aiobhill; 12/19/15 07:46 PM.
#4208023 - 12/19/15 11:05 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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RSColonel_131st Offline
Lifer
RSColonel_131st  Offline
Lifer

Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 25,138
Vienna, 2nd rock left.
The new one is a Fuji, of all things...

I "found" a copy of Perfect Photo Suite 8... I would really prefer to pay for it, but it's simple not sold anymore. Version 9 (which had a freeware partial release) and the trial version of 10 are crashing on my system, if their tech support can fix it then I'll purchase the full 10 Suite.

I also got the official Fuji Raw converter which isn't terrible exciting but does the job.

So between these two and Elements 14 I have now more options than I can shake a stick at... sadly none of it really all-in-one (that might have been CS5...)

Lightroom still seems too specific a tool for me for 100+ bucks. PPS9 and "Photo 10" as it's now called appear to be a bit more geared towards post-effect (face/eye/mouth recognition with automatic filters and such...)

#4208570 - 12/21/15 06:10 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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Top Gun Offline
Lifer
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Lifer

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Roch-Vegas NH
Originally Posted By: RSColonel_131st
Okay, that was a mistake...

The functionality of Elements is okay, but the GUI is absolute crap. Any tool you open costs you hundreds of vertical pixels workspace. Looks like it's designed for tablets (likely is). Should have trialed it first - my mistake.


Helmet, what do you mean by this, I've been using PSE for years and never had any of these problems?

#4208810 - 12/22/15 11:03 AM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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RSColonel_131st Offline
Lifer
RSColonel_131st  Offline
Lifer

Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 25,138
Vienna, 2nd rock left.
To borrow an image here...



The "Quick, Guided, Expert" bar at the top I want to be able and remove. There is nothing I need in daily use in there, once it's set to expert. But it cuts down my workspace.

The bottom bar with the "Photo Bin" I would also like to get rid of.

And the Crop Tool options itself open another bar at the bottom (instead of a popup, or a slim line of settings on top like my CS2).

Basically they are wasting tons of screen estate on menus and buttons you can press with your finger. I feel like I'm looking at my images trough a keyhole.

#4208884 - 12/22/15 02:30 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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Top Gun Offline
Lifer
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Lifer

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Roch-Vegas NH
go into expert, then go crop and under tool options you can put what ever you want. I have my screen always open in expert, the photo bin you just remove by clicking on the down arrow.

Can't you just go into window and uncheck the bars you don't want?


XboxLive Tag: DOBrienTG1969

Dave O'Brien,
Top Gun Photography
Nikon D500 & D7200
Nikkor 70-200VR AF-s F/2.8
Sigma 50-500 & 17-50 F2.8
Sigma 150-600
#4208944 - 12/22/15 04:29 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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RSColonel_131st Offline
Lifer
RSColonel_131st  Offline
Lifer

Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 25,138
Vienna, 2nd rock left.
Nope, the bottom and top bar are permanent, and the tool options you can set and forget... but any new setting needs it again.

It is a fatty-finger GUI made for tablets which looks like my CS2 (or the current CS5) took on 40 pounds extra for Christmas. And it seems Adobe doesn't want to offer flexibility... they want you to buy CS5 if you need a clean workspace.

I'm hoping we get Photo 10 running, tech support and me, then I can ignore PSE short of doing basic raw conversion, anti-shake and dehaze with it.

#4310590 - 11/09/16 08:38 PM Re: Alternatives to Photoshop? [Re: RSColonel_131st]  
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Yojimbo Offline
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