I'm new to the whole world of photoshop and I need some help. I'm looking for the best program to purchase for my PC. As of right now, I know nothing about making my own pics. What do you reccomend? I'm looking for one that has lots of different options, makes high quality pics, and if fairly easy to use. Thanks to anyone who replies!!
You may want to start out with Photoshop Elements. It's much less expensive than the professional version of Photoshop, about $100 compared to $650. It's also a great gateway into the world of digital imagery.
OK thanks. I forgot to mention that the program I'm looking for doesn't have to be limited to the Photoshop name. If there's something better or cheaper than Photoshop lemme know. I'm also looking for a program to create cool backgrounds and signatures. Does Photoshop or a similar program do that too? Keep 'em coming!!
I guess you could try gimp, but then you'd be one. ArtRage is a great program which mimics traditional media (Similar to Corel Painter) and only costs twenty or so bucks. Painter X is also great--you can get a free 30 day trial from the Corel site...Photoshop CS3 (or CS2, which I use) will, of course, be your best bet if you're doing anything other than mimicking real world materials. It has the most options and flexibility. I wouldn't bother with Elements, unless you're my mother and only want to crop photos and fix demonic red eyes. Go forth, young man! You're in for quite an adventure. If you're just learning, Lynda.com is a great resource, and well worth the monthly fee. Good luck!
GIMP is awesome and it doesn't cost anything to try (or use). There's also paint.net (getpaint.net), though it's Windows-only (GIMP is available on everything). Oh yeah - kasper0v, you're entitled to your opinion about GIMP, but your "then you'd be one" line was unnecessary and offensive.
Paint.net is a solid (and FREE!) program, especially for a beginner. I've tried GIMP, but I've never gotten it to work right for some reason. Admittedly, I didn't try very hard, and I wanted it to do something that I had no idea how to do. No point in paying for anything just yet - get some experience in the free stuff first.
I have no knowledge of digital imaging (not even sure if this is the right word), but sort of manage with GIMP. It's neat once you sort of get used to it. I know I used "sort of" twice. Still learning
"in computer role-playing game slang, a gimp is a character, character class or character ability that is underpowered in the context of the game. Gimped characters lack effectiveness compared to other (similar) characters." Until someone makes a convincing argument that Gimp is more powerful than Photoshop, I refuse to retract my earlier statement. Has the idiom "you get what you pay for" ever been more true?
not to get into the "how useful is gimp" argument, I've used both gimp and paint.net, as I see no reason to pay $100+ for photoshop. I used gimp for a year or two, and did a few neat things with it, but found it so cumbersome (ps may be the same way) that I stopped using it. paint.net seems a little easier for doing real simple things, and that's what I use now.
All I know is I recently downloaded the newest version of gimp for the hell of it and realized it's feature set is damn near identical to Photoshop CS 2, as far as "you get what you pay for" Mozilla Firefox, AVG Anitivirus, VLC Media Player, and countless other programs would like to have a word with you. It is very elitist and downright ignorant to assume just because something is free or open source that it is automatically bad. Gimp may not be as intuitive or easy to use as photoshop, it's free - let me repeat, FREE AS OPPOSED TO 600+ DOLLARS and if you take the time to dig around in it it is equally as powerful.
I don't know about it being more powerful or anything, but I'll take the slightly less powerful free version of something over the $600 version any day. If I really "got what I paid for", that $600 should be buying me a program light years in advance over the free choice - which, by all accounts I've seen, is not the case. So, yes, "you get what you pay for" HAS been more true - by far.
I’ve been using Photoshop for about 12 years and I have to say that other than a few aesthetic issues and menu items gimp is just the same. I can do nearly everything in gimp that I can in PS…imo it’s easier for me to move around in PS because I have been using it so long…but there shouldn’t be much of an argument….you use what you are comfortable with.
Sort of on topic but: As a total and complete idiot when it comes to photo editing software, does anyone know where I can find a simple, easy to understand tutorial or something for Gimp? I've had it for a while, played with a few things, but I just have *no* clue as to what in the hell I'm doing.
Photoshop is only really nessesary for those in the industry or are capable of using some of the more advanced features. There may also be compatibility issues with other programs that would make photoshop the better program to use.I use DVD studio Pro and a few other programs that would require photoshop files to work right, But for a beginner starting out on a cheaper program is fine. If you need the extra features or have to use it for something else then I would move up to a more advanced program. Photoshop is the standard for all art colleges and for 90% of the art industry though.
I purchased the education version of Adobe CS2 mainly because I like golive, and at times need illustrator, but I have also used photoshop for quite a while, so I am used to it. It's spendy. Very spendy, even with the education version discount. Try Gimp, I think you will like it.
I dont use any free programs, but if you do go the photoshop route..........the program has remained pretty much unchanged since 6 we have cs2 suite at school and so far i havent found a new feature worth a damn as compared to photoshop 7.0 that i run on mine so you could save some money buying an older version, or try to find someone in an art school to hook you up as most people who use it in school can get it at a discount for around 100 bucks
The features of GIMP and Photoshop are very comparable. Ive not used Paint.net, but Im thinking of trying it just for fun.
