Photoshop suggestions

Wizard65 said:

Then your mother-in-law needs to get a Yugo (Elements) ... like
your's! Yugo owners would obviously never understand a Ferrari.

Click to expand...

The point of this discussion was to help Patricia pick a photo editing program. She claims to be very new at digital photography. I believe that pushing her to buy an expensive, complex program like PS, is wrong. She would be better served by having something more user friendly and simple.

I have had PSE for a year and am still not using all the power inside. I was not a new user like Patricia. I think the analogy that PS is like a Farrari and Elements is like a Yugo is wrong. If we HAVE to use an automotive analogy, I think that Lexus and Toyota might be better? Both are high quality and reliable. Both built by the same company...one has lots more features...

--
Charlie Davis
CATS #25
'I brake for pixels...'

by the comment about fords vs ferraris, and if you read my posts you would have noticed I used to use photoshop, but not anymore.

Wizard65 said:

Up to now this was just good fun ... but you decided to escalate it
with your dictionary comment which insinuates that I am stupid ...
and that makes it a personal attack.

So in keeping with the policy of civility in this forum I will not
retaliate ... although I could have choosen to make such a comment
as ...

-- Sorry you are so sensitive about not being able to afford and
learn Photoshop.

or ...

-- Perhaps we could take up a collection to help you ... but that
would only help with the purchase. You would still have to learn
it.

I could have said something like that ... but I won't. Cheers ...

the wiz

Click to expand...

Your point is well taken ... but I disagree. A beginner will only be a beginner for a limited amount of time if they are serious about the undertaking. Why waste time and money with a beginner or intermediate application. Hit the road running ... get Photoshop ... learn Photoshop ... and never look back. I fully understand that if one does not have or does not want to lay out the high price for Photoshop, then Elements is an excellent choice (I think ... as I have never actually used Elements). However, Patricia pointed out that money was not the issue ... she has the money ... she wants to know the best application to go with. I stand behind my original statement that Photoshop is the way to go. I was just trying to have a bit of fun with the Ford-Ferrari thing ... still can't see why that would offend anyone ... but if it did ... so be it. I have nothing to applogize about. Cheers ...

the wiz

Patricia Guthy said:

I'm new to digital photography and will be buying my first software
program. Since it's tax return time and I can afford it would
anyone care to comment? Should I just go for CS and grow with it or
would you suggest something else or something better. The reason
i'm considering CS is this will be the only time of year I can
spend this much on software and I figure this program is all anyone
would need.

Click to expand...

Patricia,

If you are just learning, that is all the more reason to get Full Photoshop vs. Elements.

There are lots of free Plugins, Actions, Scripts, and Layer Styles contributed by the zillions of people who use Photoshop worldwide. Not all Actions, for instance, may run on Elements.

While you are learning, you just want to be able to do something for now and learn it later, so get a few Actions from Action Central to help you through something, like making a duotone or maybe you could download a few Action from Mike F's site to turn something into a sketch.

All the people on this retouch forum would love to help you step-by-step, as long as you have Photoshop... otherwise no one is really sure if their advise will work if you are using Elements.

That is the best reason I can think of to buy PSCS. You may spend a little more, but you will have the comfort of knowing that there isn't anything you can't do with the program and that there will always be someone here to help you 24/7!

Mike
---
http://www.pbase.com/mikew714

Wizard65 said:

Your point is well taken ... but I disagree. A beginner will only
be a beginner for a limited amount of time if they are serious
about the undertaking. Why waste time and money with a beginner or
intermediate application. Hit the road running ... get Photoshop
... learn Photoshop ... and never look back. I fully understand
that if one does not have or does not want to lay out the high
price for Photoshop, then Elements is an excellent choice (I think
... as I have never actually used Elements). However, Patricia
pointed out that money was not the issue ... she has the money ...
she wants to know the best application to go with. I stand behind
my original statement that Photoshop is the way to go. I was just
trying to have a bit of fun with the Ford-Ferrari thing ... still
can't see why that would offend anyone ... but if it did ... so be
it. I have nothing to applogize about. Cheers ...

Click to expand...

My mother-in-law has a Ford. ;-)

If Patricia can and will become a "wiz" like you, then a full-blown professional editing package is indeed appropriate. I don't know enough to make that assessment. Buying Elements is not a bad way to get to CS...it's a step in that direction. I know of several people who have full-blown PS and they were so put off by it that they gave up. It was simply too daunting for them to stay with it. By going the Elements route, Patricia can find out if she has the right stuff. I read that Elements will do 90% of what CS will. When Patricia decides she likes and understands PS, the upgrade path to CS (or what ever the latest version is) is easy and inexpensive. I see no downsides to this recommendation.

The absolutely worst car I had was a Ford (I tried to talk her out of it). But then, I've never had a Farrari (or any other Italian car) yet... ;-)

--
Charlie Davis
CATS #25
'I brake for pixels...'

Mike Warren said:

Patricia,

If you are just learning, that is all the more reason to get Full
Photoshop vs. Elements.

Click to expand...

AMEN! My point exactly ... and this from a true "wiz" and a highly respected contributer to this forum. My final comment on this ... get Photoshop ... learn Photoshop ... and you will never regret you did it ... PERIOD!! Cheers ...

the wiz

Patricia,

At one end of the cost spectrum is Photoshop CS, at the other is Gimp. Gimp is free, but incredibly powerful. In some ways, it's not as good as Photoshop, but in others, it's actually better (such as scripting). Each has features and capabilities the other doesn't.

I agree with wiz about Photoshop being like a Ferrari. I think it's a fair analogy because everyone knows a Ferrari is a fantastic car. It's expensive and it might be overkill for most people, but who would buy it without first counting the cost?

Judging by pricing alone, you can gather which is the most highly prized. Who would pay what Adobe charges if the product wasn't worth it? Not me!

Gimp is free and powerful, but in spite of that, people STILL buy Photoshop. That too should tell you something.

Photoshop is widely regarded by professionals as THE software to use. Sure there are people who prefer other software, and you can expect them to defend their choice. All I can say is, if you took a vote among retouching professionals, Photoshop would be the hands down winner. You can take that to the bank.

So if I were you, I'd take Vikki's advice and ask yourself if you are serious about retouching before you spend your hard earned money on Photoshop.

If you're really not sure that you're inclined to take it all the way, I'd recommend Elements or Gimp. You have little (Elements) or nothing (Gimp) to lose. But if your heart is set on going Pro, or you at least want to get to that level, get Photoshop.

If you end up going with Photoshop Elements instead, here is something that will interest you: http://hiddenelements.com
(I don't know if they have a version covering Elements 3)

Gimp: http://gimp-win.sourceforge.net
Photoshop: http://www.adobe.com/digitalimag/main.html

Bob Quinn

-------------------

Patricia Guthy said:

I'm new to digital photography and will be buying my first software
program. Since it's tax return time and I can afford it would
anyone care to comment? Should I just go for CS and grow with it or
would you suggest something else or something better. The reason
i'm considering CS is this will be the only time of year I can
spend this much on software and I figure this program is all anyone
would need.

Click to expand...

I am still a novice in photography and had used PaintShop Pro for several years. I was intimidated by Photoshop because everyone told me it was too hard to learn and very complicated. This year I had the opportunity to try PS7. I was amazed to find that I was already fairly proficient with it due to the fact that the concepts and interfaces were so similar. I think it made very little difference as to which program I began with.

That being said, since then, I have taken my hobby more serously and my photography skills have improved. So now I have become more interested and dependent on the power of Photoshop. There is a lot more free help out there - which has helped me learn even more. I would like to buy it, but it is out of my reach financially at the moment.

My advice to you is to consider just how passionate you are about photography/graphics etc.
How much do you enjoy it?
How much time do you spend on it?
Do you want to continue learning?
Will it hold your interest for the next year? Two years?

If this is a passing interest, (or you tend to jump around changing hobbies spontaneously) consider PaintShop Pro 9 - a very good program for much less financial investment. No shame in that - and it will likely serve almost all your needs.

But if you want to progress and your interest is strong enough, my own opinion is that Photoshop is worth investing in. Some may disagree that PS is the best in its class- but the fact remains that it is accepted as the industry standard. I believe its a program that continues to evolve, that we won't outgrow anytime soon, and would be a feather in your hat on a resume if you chose to go that route.

For me, if I am going to put in the effort to learn a program and become very good at it, I might as well put my effort into one that could take me places and become an asset in my career choices. But that's me.

If this isn't your passion, spend your money on something that is! No regrets that way

Good luck,
jonalisa