cs or cs2

I had a few questions the other day and got some responses which I am thankfull for. But as I am just getting started into digital 4 months ago and photoshop this month I have alot of confusion. I shoot with a rebel xt and have a friends ps cs he is willing to sell if I like it. My questions are 1 Is there a big difference between cs and cs2, or is cs good to start with. I have shot film for years so I want to learn raw right away for photoshop. What is a good raw converter for cs if I buy it or a good one for another program if I dont and which program. I just need some guidence in this area as I am totally lost. Thank you very much for the help in all these forums so far, I have learned alot. Any feedback and oppinions is greatly appreciated.

Ben

If you use RAW then CS2 is better - the newest version of the RAW plugin only works on CS2. It's a worthwhile upgrade. One cheap way to get CS2 is to buy the upgrade, you can upgrade from PS7 which you can buy cheap and legally on ebay.de. Then just buy the upgrade from anywhere you like.

If you are using a Rebel XT (350D) then you will want CS2, since the cr2 files made by the XT are unsupported in PS CS. There is a work around, but as tim said, there many extra features in the latest version of Camer Raw.

Just remember that you don't need to use Photoshop to do RAW. RAWShooter Essentials (RSE) is free, and very good. RAWShooter pro (RSP) is $100 and excellent. DPP which came with the camera is very good. And there's also Breeze Browser, Capture 1...

And that's only if you shoot RAW.

Another thing to remember is that if you buy CS from your friend you can upgrade to CS2 for $150. Just make sure you get the original CD with the serial number on it. (Do they still print the SN on the CD? My original is version 3.)

I guess one question would be: How much is he going to sell CS for?

the others have made good points, I would go for CS2 if I were you. Particularly for the cr2 file support and better RAW processing capabilities. Scottes makes a good point about other RAW programs, but I guess that depends a lot on how much post-processing you will be doing with photoshop.

RSE/RSP is a great raw converter, might even be better than ACR. I just prefer ACR for it's tight integration with PS workflow.

I don't believe anyone has mentioned that there is a workaround for using PSCS v8.0 with your camera's RAW files.

Use the DNG converter to convert the RAW files to DNG. This must use the latest DNG, which is a stand-alone program.

Then upgrade your ACR ver 2.0 in PSCS to ACR ver2.4 (simple download of the upgraded plug-in).

Then you will be able to open your DNG conversions in PSCS.

The only thing you will be missing is the new "Curve" feature of ACR v3.3 and some other minor improvements.

could you please tell me if elements 4.0 is a worth while program and good to learn on? and is the raw program very good??? Thanks
Ben

Elements 4.0 is probably the 2nd most powerful and feature rich progam on the planet.

It is second only to PSCS2.

It will take a beginner a lifetime to become familiar with all the capabilities of either program, and there will be a new version every 18 mos or so. Conclusion, it's a moving target - therefore, there is no chance you or I will ever outgrow it.

Now, to the particulars - the RAW processing program, Adobe Camera RAW (ACR) v3.3 plug-in and the DNG stand-alone converter program - they are the state of the art for RAW processing. They both work with PS Elements 4.0. So, you are 100% safe with PS Elements 4.0. Just remember, that these programs are realeased and sold with earlier versions of ACR and don't even include DNG - you do have to download them and install them yourself. Piece of cake!

As if that isn't enough - if you have wide band, you can download PS elements 4.0 for free trial period (365 MB) and see for yourself.

I just finished a 30day demo/trial of Elements 4.0. I thought it was what I was going to purchase. But now I'm a week into a 30 demo/trail of PSCS2 and I think I'll will be purchasing it. I love being able to download "free" action sets, unless some can tell me I can do the same with Elements.