Photoshop program

Ok I bought the DSLR camera and ready to take some cruise photos. Do I need a photoshop program or not? If not why and if so what one is good for someone who has never used one?

Ok I bought the DSLR camera and ready to take some cruise photos. Do I need a photoshop program or not? If not why and if so what one is good for someone who has never used one?

Adobe Photoshop would be a poor choice to start out with. If you are new to photo editing, Photoshop's little sister, Photoshop Elements is an excellent place to start. The newer versions (11 or 12) have a lot of tutorials and guided editing modes. Even though they are supposed to be a reduced version of Photoshop, I have found that I use the increasingly powerful tools in Elements about 99% of the time vs. Photoshop and do not intend to upgrade my current Photoshop. I will continue with Elements instead.

You will also want to make use of an organizational software. Elements has Organizer built in and Google's Picasa (free) is another great starter with a lot of good basic editing tools built in. Eventually, you may want to move to Adobe Lightroom. In addition to providing a good organizational framework, Lightroom has very powerful adjustment and editing tools built in. I mentioned that I use Elements far more than Photoshop and while that is still true for editing like spot removal and big changes, I find that I use the adjustments in Lightroom for 95% of my images without going to any other editor. If the math suggests that I use the full version of Photoshop almost not at all, it is correct.

Bottom line:

Get Elements.

Learn to organize your photos and use the Organizer in Elements or Picasa to do so.

Consider Lightroom as a long-term solution for organizing and managing your photo collection. (You will still need something like Elements for major edits.)

My 2¢..

Dave

Saw Elements at the Big box Xxxxco, for cheap, just saying.

John

Another alternative worth mentioning would be Paint Shop Pro. It's nearly as full featured as the main Photoshop, yet priced as little or less than Elements. Most people seem to agree that the interface can be easier to use for new beginners - it actually has three different display/user modes with one very simplified and easy to understand, then an advanced mode once you know what you're doing. I've used Elements and Paint Shop Pro for many years, and prefer Paint Shop Pro myself.

However, to answer the OTHER question you asked - do you need photo editing software...the simple answer is NO. You can take marvelous photos right out of the camera with a DSLR and never need to process at all. However, it takes quite a bit of skill and knowledge to be able to do so in varying conditions, and if you're not at that stage, you're likely going to experience some not-so-great results sometimes - having some form of editing software can help improve or even save some photos that might be important that you didn't get right, so it still might be something you WANT, even if you don't NEED it.

It's getting into another whole argument as to whether you actually enjoy post processing, and want to do it because it's enjoyable and gives you your best possible results, or whether you decide to shoot in RAW to take over some control of various shooting conditions or settings after the fact, with more flexibility than can be done in JPG shooting. Some people love to post process, some are indifferent, and some hate it. You can be a great photographer no matter which person you are, and whether you post-process or not...just as you can be a bad photographer whether you post process or not! The main thing is to learn all you can about exposure, and what all the various settings on your camera do to your output, so that you get your best possible results out of the camera, and then you can decide if you want to start post-processing your results as well. No matter what, getting good results out of the camera - good compositions and proper exposures - should be the main goal for a photographer.

To just get started in working with your photos, dowload Picasa 3, it free. You will have most of the basic tools for editing and it's fast. Give it a try and like the above post, you can move on to more powerful editing tools, just an easy way to get started.

Good luck!!

Tom :cool:

I use Elements, and have found it to be a lifesaver on some of the shots that I messed up with incorrect exposures.

For those important shots, I really enjoy playing with the exposures, contrast, etc to improve the quality of the shot.

If you have a Mac, you already have a photo organizer [iPhoto].

I use Elements & Camera Raw the majority of the time and find that it has most of the features I need.

Not sure which DSLR you have purchased but Nikon usually includes an editor program (not sure if the other camera manufacturers do too) which is also pretty good to get a feel for the editing process.

I purchased a Nikon D5000 with a 18-55mm AF-S VR lens and a 55-200mm AF-S VR lens

Nikon offers the ViewNX for free. It is usually provided with their DSLRs but if you don't have the disk it can be downloaded from the Nikon website. They also have the CaptureNX but that one has a cost associated with it. I haven't used the free program as I have been using Elements & Camera Raw so can't really say what Nikon's programs are like. I did play with ViewNX briefly but not long enough for a proper review or recommendation. I think it would also depend on how much editing you'd like to do. For me, Elements & Camera Raw has been working well. I have pretty much everything I need in those two programs. I may consider Lightroom in the future though.

thanks for all your replies it is very helpful

I cast my vote for Lightroom 5. As long as you don't want/need to do heavy editing like layers and stuff if shokd be fine for you. It is a pretty powerful editing program in its own right. (The healing brush, cropping and straightening tools work well. Plus the ability to recover highlights is nice for when you miss the exposure). I have elements 9 and don't think I have even opened it in a couple years. I do everything in LR these days.

Sent using a small piece of fruit.

I cast my vote for Lightroom 5. As long as you don't want/need to do heavy editing like layers and stuff if shokd be fine for you. It is a pretty powerful editing program in its own right. (The healing brush, cropping and straightening tools work well. Plus the ability to recover highlights is nice for when you miss the exposure). I have elements 9 and don't think I have even opened it in a couple years. I do everything in LR these days.

 

Sent using a small piece of fruit.

Using Lightroom, you will not destroy your original photograph but merely make a small corrections file for the original that allows saving a new combinmed file with all of the corrections.

If you can move a slider from right to left to see how you are changing your image, you can use Lightroom. It provides a great database for photographs also allows inputting keywords for easy searching.

Using Lightroom, you will not destroy your original photograph but merely make a small corrections file for the original that allows saving a new combinmed file with all of the corrections.

 

If you can move a slider from right to left to see how you are changing your image, you can use Lightroom. It provides a great database for photographs also allows inputting keywords for easy searching.

I just save all the originals on my external hard drive as a backup. I don't keep all the adjustments just the dng files. (I just manually copy the November 2013 folder for example). That way I always have the master files on the external drive but can only keep the "good" ones on the laptop. The system works for me anyways. ;)

Sent using a small piece of fruit.

Reading this thread I was going to ask about LR when I read the last two posts. Any other comparisons between Elements and LR? Also, how about the RAW editor between the two. I have Elements 9 and saw the $49 price on Elements 12 but am considering LR instead.

Reading this thread I was going to ask about LR when I read the last two posts. Any other comparisons between Elements and LR? Also, how about the RAW editor between the two. I have Elements 9 and saw the $49 price on Elements 12 but am considering LR instead.

The raw converter in LR5 is the same one in the full photoshop. The one in PSE is a stripped down version.

Sent using a small piece of fruit.

Reading this thread I was going to ask about LR when I read the last two posts. Any other comparisons between Elements and LR? Also, how about the RAW editor between the two. I have Elements 9 and saw the $49 price on Elements 12 but am considering LR instead.

After a long software journey, I have ended up with Lightroom as my main organizational/correction program with Elements and a few plug-ins for modifications that Lightroom isn't really made for. Lightroom will do a lot, but if you are going to make any modifications to a photo beyond cropping or color/exposure/noise adjustments (removing drunk aunt Edna from the family group photo:o), you will still need something like Elements. I like the fact that you can right-click on a photo in LR and choose which external editor you want to open it in. It even asks you if you want to edit the original or create a copy to modify, leaving the original untouched.

Like cameras, sometimes the best program for all purposes is two (or more) programs!

Dave

After a long software journey, I have ended up with Lightroom as my main organizational/correction program with Elements and a few plug-ins for modifications that Lightroom isn't really made for. Lightroom will do a lot, but if you are going to make any modifications to a photo beyond cropping or color/exposure/noise adjustments (removing drunk aunt Edna from the family group photo:o), you will still need something like Elements. I like the fact that you can right-click on a photo in LR and choose which external editor you want to open it in. It even asks you if you want to edit the original or create a copy to modify, leaving the original untouched.

 

Like cameras, sometimes the best program for all purposes is two (or more) programs!

 

Dave

Sounds like your recommendation is to get LR, but keep Elements 9 around. Also, is there enough in Elements 12 to warrant the upgrade from Elements 9?

Thanks

Sounds like your recommendation is to get LR, but keep Elements 9 around. Also, is there enough in Elements 12 to warrant the upgrade from Elements 9?

 

Thanks

I still use PSE5!!! Does what I need it to do. Like removing drunk Aunte Edna ;) I use Oloneo, but have asked for LR from Santa :D

Sounds like your recommendation is to get LR, but keep Elements 9 around. Also, is there enough in Elements 12 to warrant the upgrade from Elements 9?

 

Thanks

12 has some auto-selection and removal features the are pretty cool but if you only use Elements occasionally to clone out an offending feature or remove dust or bugs from a flower, 9 is still a pretty effective editor. I am using 11 now and haven't been tempted to 12 by any big feature changes. I do like the layout and tool controls in 11 better than 9 but that is mostly cosmetic. The tools perform the same as far as I can tell.

Dave

Reading this thread I was going to ask about LR when I read the last two posts. Any other comparisons between Elements and LR? Also, how about the RAW editor between the two. I have Elements 9 and saw the $49 price on Elements 12 but am considering LR instead.

The two programs do different, complementary functions.

Lightroom is primally an organizer or 'digital asset manager'.

Photoshop [Elements] is a pixel by pixel photo editor [layers, masks, cloning, healing….]

A program like Lightroom [i use Apple's Aperture] helps in organizing and finding images [assign all sorts of metadata describing the when, who, where and why of each photo]. Lightroom can do raw to image file conversion, and allow you to create, adjust and export multiple versions of each imported picture, without altering the original file [non-destructiive workflow].

When that is not sufficient [e.g. remove the tree growing out of someones head] LR can do a 'round trip' to an external editor - like Photoshop. After editing, the edited image is linked to the original [This is called 'stacked' in Aperture] and either the original or the edited picture can be used as a 'master' to export new versions.

The two programs do different, complementary functions.

 

Lightroom is primally an organizer or 'digital asset manager'.

 

Photoshop [Elements] is a pixel by pixel photo editor [layers, masks, cloning, healing….]

 

A program like Lightroom [i use Apple's Aperture] helps in organizing and finding images [assign all sorts of metadata describing the when, who, where and why of each photo]. Lightroom can do raw to image file conversion, and allow you to create, adjust and export multiple versions of each imported picture, without altering the original file [non-destructiive workflow].

 

When that is not sufficient [e.g. remove the tree growing out of someones head] LR can do a 'round trip' to an external editor - like Photoshop. After editing, the edited image is linked to the original [This is called 'stacked' in Aperture] and either the original or the edited picture can be used as a 'master' to export new versions.

Not quite, LR5 is a pretty decent editing program in its own right. It is moving closer to elements with each new version. While it can't do layers and masks, it does have the cloning tool and healing brush. Plus the GND filter and new vertical and horizontal straightening tool are pretty sweet.

Sent using a small piece of fruit.

I collect software. I have Photoshop and use it a lot for heavy-duty manipulation of images. But if you're just starting out, I have some other software suggestions. XNView is a freeware photo organizer and lightweight image adjustment tool. Fastone (I think that's the name) is another freeware program along the same lines. They're good for when you want to see thumbnails of all the images in a folder, resize, crop, move or copy them, and it does simple adjustments of contrast, levels and hue. IRFanview is another freeware image viewer with thumbnail display capability.

One thing to watch for is that programs like XNView and Picasa, and probably Lightroom, create a database of thumbnails which will take up a lot of disk space over time. If you have a newer computer with a terabyte-size drive, this may not be an issue. But look in their "settings" or "options" panels for tools to compact or optimize the database in order to keep the size reasonable.

Take lots of pictures!