poor mans photo shop

jaycar85 · May 17, 2015

I just got a dslr, and now I have a lot of questions. I would like to use my camera to its full potential and i assume that includes tweaking photos in light room or photo shot. after doing a little research it appears i have to pay for photo shop or light room. i guess my first questions is their any free photo shops and if so are they the same and if not how do they differ? I do not feel my current skill set justifies me paying 10 a month for a photo shop. also if i do not use a photo shop should i still shoot in raw or just stay to jpeg

480sparky · May 17, 2015

Try using the software that came with the camera.

Derrel · May 17, 2015

Thom Hogan has been suggesting that Pixelmator is a powerful, pixel-level editor that can take the place of Photoshop for some users...
Pixelmator

I have read about Windows users who like GIMP.

dennybeall · May 17, 2015

One way to improve your photographic skills is to work on having your shots ready to go right out of the camera. Composition, framing, lighting and focus can all be done in camera.
Combined with the software that came with the camera the shots can be a good start.

jaycar85 · May 17, 2015

all good sugestions like i said this is all new to me so all this helps. i purchased aused d7000 and it did not come with the any software so im out of luck using the software that came with it. and i have a mac so can i still use gimp?

480sparky · May 17, 2015

Go here for Nikon's free stuff.

Microbois · May 17, 2015

You must make the difference between software like Lightroom and Photoshop. They are different animals.

If I can recommend a very good alternative to Lightroom, I would suggest ACDSee Pro 8. It's selling right now for 60$ at 40% off. This is a very capable piece of software, that you may never outgrow. That's what I'm using and I'm very happy with it.

As far as an alternative to Photoshop, there are many products out there. Among the free ones, Gimp comes to mind, but I've tried it, and don't like it. You can try it out and see if it works for you. I happen to have a few similar products installed in my computer. Namely Corel Photo-Paint (bundled with CorelDRAW!), and Corel Paint Shop Pro which sells for about 64$. Paint Shop Pro is pretty decent actually. You may also consider Perfect Photo Suite from OnOne Software if you are into working a lot on your pictures.

Don't get too hung up on using Photoshop or Lightroom just because this is what the rest of the world is using. Truth is, if you know your software well, you will pull off just about anything. I'm always amazed by people who spend money for Photoshop but use only 1% of its capacities.

jovince3000 · May 17, 2015

if you don't have the CD, you can also try to get the software from nikon directly : Current Versions of Nikon Software

I'm not a Nikon user and I'm not informed on which of the software listed on the website it is you need, but if I'm not mistaken, nikon give their software for free from a download on their website. So you shouldn't require a liscence key.

Edit : I got bested, darn you sparky

jaycar85 · May 17, 2015

thank you 480 and every one els im not trying to be lazy i just dont know anything about this stuff

480sparky · May 17, 2015

jaycar85 said:
thank you 480 and every one els im not trying to be lazy i just dont know anything about this stuff

None of us were born knowing anything about this stuff. We all learned it.

So stick around, and we'll be happy to pass what we know on to you!

jaycar85 · May 17, 2015

well after reading all these responses mabe i dont eaven know the dif. between the software it comes with it light room and something like gemp. fig they all do the same thing but it doesn't appear that way. you can also buy software that is just a one time fee and you are good to go? that seems like the way to go. once again thanks for the help

Microbois · May 17, 2015

Lightroom, or its alternative, is pretty much like a wet "darkroom" in the old days of film. You edit each pictures, tweaks levels, adjust colors, contrast, crop, dodge/burn, etc. Some software are more sophisticated than others, but essentially, that's what it is, and you can proceed in batch.

Photoshop on the other hand can do pretty much all you would do in Lightroom, but would let you work at a much higher level. You can repair pictures, add or remove objects, use layers, etc. There are also a lot of plugins available to enhance pictures. Photoshop is a great piece of software, but there are other alternatives that may suit your needs just as well.

If your intention is only to take pictures with your camera, do some basic editing so your pictures look nice and you can have some of them printed, then all you need is Lightroom or one of its alternative. Actually, you can download ACDSee Pro 8 and try it out for 30 days free. Best way to make yourself an informed opinion is to try it out.

I'm old school, and I don't like the new licensing model that software companies are putting forward where you "rent" software for a monthly fee. I prefer to pay up front, get to use the software for as long as I want, then upgrade whenever I feel like doing it. I don't know if it's true, but I've read all your files made on software rented monthly can no longer be opened if you stop paying and decide to no longer use the software. If so, you may end up screwed pretty badly in the future if your computer is full of files, but you have stopped using those "rented software".

Tinderbox (UK) · May 18, 2015

I have tried a few of these free image program, but since i shooting in raw, it`s not just raw support, if you have a small camera, the optical distortions in the images can be really bad, and a nightmare to compensate for manually as it changes depending on focal length.

Abode is the best, see if you can get an older version that supports your camera, I have bought a few camera`s that come with older version of lightroom or photoshop that people do not use, It would be great if we could give them to people who dont have the money to buy software.

I think i have Adobe Lightroom 3, i got sent two copies with my Panasonic DSLR, are they locked to that brand or model?

John.

jaycar85 · May 18, 2015

so since i will not be a pro in a form of photo shop at the start should i still shoot in raw? other than being less compressed if it better tht jpeg if i never use editing software?

Ysarex · May 18, 2015

jaycar85 said:
so since i will not be a pro in a form of photo shop at the start should i still shoot in raw? other than being less compressed if it better tht jpeg if i never use editing software?

Depends on how far you go and how much you want to learn. If you do progress and become proficient your future self may really want to kick your past self for not saving those raw files now.

Shoot raw + JPEG and select from one of the free raw file converters to start: LightZone, RawTherapee, Darktable, UFraw.

LightZone and RawTherappe are very good and will edit JPEGs as well as raw files. Darktable is MAC/Unix exclusive so no version for a Windows system. Darktable is excellent software. Tutorials are available for all and you can give them a try without financial investment. You can get help here.

Joe