Simple image digital management software

simonmorton · Aug 8, 2004

Hi there.

A friend of mine is making the leap from film to digital. She's a pro photographer and looking for a programme to store and manipulate images but it has to be simple!!! Photoshop looks great but seems to be pretty heavy going. I use iphoto on a mac which seems very simple. It must be PC based. Any ideas welcome. Cheers Simon

rangefinder · Aug 8, 2004

Personally I think Photoshop is the best.

If she wants some simple then I would suggest Photoshop Elements, runs about $99. Lot of the features that Photoshop has. Be a good way to grow into Photoshop.

Digital Matt · Aug 8, 2004

If she is a professional, then she must be willing to step up to professional software. If she's going to digital from film there is already a learning curve assumed, and you can assume the same with software.

I agree that Photoshop Elements would be a good starting point, but I would certainly be looking to get into the full version at some point.

drdan · Aug 21, 2004

If she wants a clean simple program to play around and get her feet wet with I would recommend Printshop Photo Pro 2.0. Here's one for $10 on ebay.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=43457&item=3834402816&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW

Sooner or later though she is going to need to learn Photshop. Elements can actually be had on ebay fo about $40 and will let her start learning that system. Some of the basics are very easy despite it's intimidating complexity. Make sure and get PS Elenments 2.0, it's a very capable program.

Dwain · Sep 26, 2004

Try irfanview. It's simple and accomplishes many of the tedious task of management and basic editing. It's also free but you could contribute a little to Irfan. He takes suggestions and incorporates them into the sofware. I highly recommend www.Irfanview.com

drdan · Sep 26, 2004

Irfanview is a great program and I also recommend and use it sometimes. It is not as user friendly though unless you are above average in computer skills and understanding. Some of the commercial products spend a little more on researching what the average person wants and how they think which makes it easier for many beginners to use.

Now that I am more experienced with Adobe I rarely use Printshop but for a good while, even when I had better programs like Adobe and other excellent programs like irfanview, Printshop was my "go to" program because it was so easy to use.

mavrik · Sep 26, 2004

I'm with Rangefinder and Digital Matt - if she's a pro and going to be pro with the digital, she HAS to learn Photoshop or Paint Shop Pro 8.

M

rangefinder · Sep 26, 2004

Adobe is releasing PhotoShop Elements 3.

Dwain · Sep 27, 2004

I agree that a pro should be using Pro software. Many film people making the conversion to digital are overwelmed by Pro Software. It's good to get your feet wet with something a little more basic and grow towards the pro packeges as your needs and expertise grow.

Since the request said "must be simple", I took that to mean entry level computer skills as well. Whether you want Pro editing software or full print package and file management capabilities, there are several to chose from but all require much more than basic entry level. The teminology alone stops many cold in their tracks. If Photoshop is the target then it makes sense to start out with Elements and "Learn" your way up.

nomav6 · Oct 23, 2004

I just downloaded, GIMP, its pretty easy to figure out but I've been messing with photoshop for a long time so I dont know how easy it'll be for a beginner, but it is free

Goofup · Oct 24, 2004

I got that she's a pro and needs a "pro" program.
I got that she needs it to be simple.

I've had Elements 3.0 for a couple of days now and I'm quite impressed. It's a major upgrade over 2.0, and should be in the stores any day now. Considering the price (and learning curve) difference between the full Photoshop and Elements, there's not that much missing. Here's a comparison between the two:

http://www.photoshopelementsuser.com/misc/Photoshop_compared.pdf

She might also want to check out Paint Shop Pro 9. It's a little more complicated than Elements, but *that* close to being just as powerful as Photoshop, but not as hard.

I have both. Elements 3.0 wins, hands down, IMHO.