What photo editor do u use

im going to download the CS3 Beta

You have to have a license for CS2 to download the beta CS3.

oh nevermind them lol - thats sucks - i was looking at the lightroom beta - that is an ok program - no blur option though

cs2 and infranview for quickies

themtkid wrote in post #2456323
oh nevermind them lol - thats sucks - i was looking at the lightroom beta - that is an ok program - no blur option though

That's because Lightroom is a RAW processor and converter, not an image editor in the same way as Photoshop. Adobe expect the two programs to be used together, RAW processing and conversion to TIFF or JPEG in Lightroom, then export to CS2 for any further editing that would be required, including blur etc.

I can understand Adobe only making the CS3 beta available to current CS2 users, the whole point is to get usable feedback on the software and that will only come from people who have a fair working knowledge of the current software. Besides, I'm sure they don't want it downloaded by people who don't want to pay for CS2, even though the beta will probably expire when the final version is released.

all above except CS3 as it is still Beta, when full official version then i will get it.
Oh i have CS3 i forgot but i didn't installed it yet.

I guess I'm the only person that uses Elements 5. I find it quite adequate for most things I need done on my photos. Besides, CS2 cost about $700 CDN plus taxes, whereas Elements cost me $100 plus taxes. That's was enough of a difference that bought me the 85 f/1.8.

[QUOTE=sandpiper;24571​03]That's because Lightroom is a RAW processor and converter, not an image editor in the same way as Photoshop. Adobe expect the two programs to be used together, RAW processing and conversion to TIFF or JPEG in Lightroom, then export to CS2 for any further editing that would be required, including blur etc.

i was wondering is elements is a RAW processing program ?? -

infranview - what is this used for - >>????

Ronald S. Jr. wrote in post #2455924
You have to have a license for CS2 to download the beta CS3.

You can download it and install it but you can only run it for two days (WOW!) without a code -

"A licensed copy of Photoshop CS2, Creative Suite 2, Production Studio, Adobe Web Bundle, or Adobe Video Bundle is required to use this technology beyond a two-day trial period. After installation you will be prompted to enter a CS3 beta serial number for Photoshop
To obtain a beta serial number, visit www.adobe.com/go/photo​shopcs3beta_serialnumb​er and enter your CS2 serial number. Although the beta is available only in English, all language versions of Photoshop and the products mentioned above qualify to participate."

So make the most of the two whole days!!

CS2 here also. Learned the basic use of CS2 on my own and the more technical end by working here in the colleges digital imaging lab as an aide.

As for a lens ... I do most of my shooting in NW Montana in the summer and Yellowstone in the winter. My equipment of choice?

20D with the 100-400. Only way to go...

I use Gimp. It's legal, free, and I haven't found anything I can't do with it yet. I'm new to photo editing, but I've been reading PS guides on curves, channels, etc and I'm able to follow along in Gimp just fine. ...so far so good!

themtkid wrote in post #2457541
i was wondering is elements is a RAW processing program ?? -

infranview - what is this used for - >>????

I'm not an expert on elements as I've only opened it up twice, both times I gave up quite quickly when I wanted to do something I'm used to doing in Photoshop and found that the appropriate tools weren't there.

I presume that it will have a version of Adobe Raw Converter included in the package, in the same way that ACR is a part of CS2, so it probably will process RAW files. Elements is mainly a conventional image editor though, the same as Photoshop but only the basics.

It will do a good job at regular processing tasks to tweak an image, eliminate red eye, resize, sharpen and so forth. The difference only becomes noticeable when you start wanting to do more advanced things and get more creative.

The fact that so many people are happy to pay several times the cost of elements in order to have the full monty CS2, should give you an idea of how much better it is when you take your work to that level. For regular image editing though, Elements will do as good a job as any.

One other program worth looking at, as an alternative to Elements, is Paint Shop Pro. It is quite easy to learn and does the basics well enough. I started off with PSP and was quite happy with it until I started to play with Photoshop 7. My first thoughts about PS were that it was slow and clunky compared to PSP and I initially dismissed it for that reason. However I wanted to do some things that PSP couldn't cope with and gave PS another go.

Once I had learnt the basics, using the tutorial DVDs that come on photo mag covers, I realised that the reason it is so much more complicated than the opposition, is because it has so much more control and variables available, which enabled me to get superior results to PSP. I still have PSP installed on my PC but the last time I used it was over 2 years ago.

It all comes down to how much you want to do. There are a number of relatively cheap programs which are capable of basic image editing, but there is only one that has the capabilities that you get with CS2, coupled with the wide availability of plug-ins, tutorials and other extras, there is really only the one choice for serious editing, if that is the level you want to take your work to.

See how you go with Elements (it should be packaged with your 30D) and that will teach you some of the photoshop basics, then consider upgrading if you feel that it is limiting your creativity.

No idea what Irfanview is capable of, I've never used it.

cs2

"Gimp" Freeware user. Comparable results and GUI layout to Photoshop without the big price tag. With your canon camera you will find the packaged RAW converter free and quite useful.

In future I may switch to Photoshop and a more robust RAWconverter, but for the moment I am content/satisfied with Gimp and the Canon software. The balance of my time is out shooting so I don't spend too much time behind the monitor, when this balance is more in favour of post-production I would more seriously consider some workflow upgrades ( computer, software and a comfy deskchair).

Money spent on software so far ZERO. *Thinking* I would opt for another killer lens instead of workflow upgrades.