Capture NX vs Photoshop

[budsk]

Hi.. newbie here

I plan to buy my first photo editing software. I shot with D80, so I'm considering to buy the Nikon Capture NX or the photoshop. I dont have much info about them. Do you guys think it would be better for me to go get the Capture NX or Photoshop?

I try the search function on this forum but can't get what I'm looking for.

Thanks a lot

 

[AduNeButt]

unless you have knowledge on the Capture NX software then i'd recommend Photoshop merely because of the endless amount of tutorials and information that can be found about using Photoshop. also, it's usually accepted that Photoshop is the highest end photo editing software available at the moment.

 

[smadab]

Actually, I think comparing Capture NX to Photoshop is like comparing apples to oranges. Capture is Nikon's RAW conversion software - it's akin to Adobe's Camera Raw and/or Lightroom.

I'd suggest you try both Capture NX 2 and Lightroom 2. Nikon and Adobe both offer free trial versions. If you find the image editing capabilities in Capture or Lightroom do not meet your needs then pick up Photoshop.

 

[smadab]

Also, it's important to keep in mind that it's perfectly reasonable to use Capture NX2 (or Lightroom) to handle your RAW conversion and asset management, and Photoshop to handle your image manipulation.

That is, if you have an extra $1000 sitting around to buy Capture (or Lightroom) for ~$200 and Photoshop for $700...

My approach has been to start with Capture and Lightroom then eventually, if needed, pick up Photoshop.

 

[budsk]

Thanks for the response. Photoshop can read Nikon's .NEF right? so if I buy photoshop, I dont need Capture NX, is that correct?

If I go with photoshop, for my amateur needs, is it worth the money to take the CS4, or will the Element 7 adequate?

 

[smadab]

Yes, Photoshop (with the Camera Raw plugin) will read NEF files.

I can't speak to the Elements versus CS4 comparison. But I've read that Elements lacks many of the features that make Photoshop the #1 choice for photographic image manipulation (like auto-HDR, Color balancing, Layers, etc...)

 

[budsk]

Thanks again for the response smadab

 

[smadab]

No problem. You should definitely download the free trials for Adobe Lightroom 2 (30 days) and Capture NX2 (60 days). I think you'll be pleased with their basic image manipulation capabilities and fantastic image management (importing, metadata, keyword tagging, rating...etc).

Adobe Lightroom 2
Capture NX 2