WANTED: advice/opinion on photo editing software.

[Richard Lane]

Hi JKP,


I don't know if you're a Windows user or a Mac user. I use Aperture from Apple to edit my Photos. It is great for importing, organizing, editing, and for publishing photos to the web or to e-mail. It also keeps track of the photo metadata from the Camera and Lens, handles Video files, (although I haven't really used this feature yet) and allows for easy printing and slide shows. It can also convert RAW or JPEG to TIFF, PNG or PSD format. It also uses keywords, and faces (face recognition detection) and places (GPS info). Aperture, like Lightroom, provides non-destrucive editing, so that you may revert back to the original photo.


I have used the 30 day trial versions of Lightroom 2, Lightroom 3 beta, and Lightroom 3. Lightroom 3 now offers Video support. Both Lightroom and Aperture do a fine job for organizing and editing photos. I feel that Lightroom is a bit more powerful then Aperture, however I find that Aperture is more intuitive and user friendly.


I view Photoshop CS5 or Photoshop Elements as an adjunct to either Lightroom or Aperture. I would suggest that you try the free 30 day trials of all the programs first. For reconstruction, deconstruction or manipulation of the photo, then Adobe Photoshop or Elements is a must. However, for Importing, Organizing and Editing, then Aperture or Lightroom is a necessity. If you do require Photoshop, then I would suggest Photoshop Elements 8 for $80 first, as CS5 is very complicated to start off with.


This may be more then you asked for, but hopefully it well help others as well.


<span style="font-size: 11.6667px;"]Rich

[scalesusa]

Photoshop is really heavy duty software intended for imaging professionals who use it every day. Photoshop Lightroom is aimed directly at photography professionals and enthhusiasts and is still heavy duty serious photography software.


To get the best benefit from either, you should be capturing images in RAW and then adjusting them with the software.


With your 50d, you got a CD with Canon's DPP image editing software. This is free, and is also heavy duty image editing software, its not a lite throwaway piece of software at all. The biggest disadvantage is that there is limited documentation as to how to use it, but the results are top drawer.


If you take images using jpeg, it might be a waste of money to pay for all the high technology RAW editing features, somethinng simpler like ACDSEE is easy to use, low cost, and very user friendly.