Adobe Photoshop CS

Rating:
Summary: Worst installation experience ever and they ripped me off!
Review: I spent $500 upgrading to CS, and I spent two days trying to install including hours and hours on the phone with their own technical support staff. The end result? It would not load correctly. This is on a primo IBM machine that has all the capabilities of handling pretty much any program! The problems from their viewpoint varied from "You have to uninstall Adobe Acrobat because there is a conflict with that program (their own program?" to uninstalling numerous other programs that had to be reinstalled "Gee, that should have worked!" The tech support guy finally admitted that they have had a terrible time with call-ins of people who can't get CS to load correctly. Finally, they told me to send it back for a full refund. The end result? It has been over two months and they still have my money and the software. Stay with PhotoShop 7!

Rating:
Summary: An Advice for Beginners
Review: I totally agree that Photoshop is an excellent software to use in editing images and making original art from scratch. This version of Photoshop, CS, brought with it many new improvements and enhancements that have already been taken up by previous reviewers. What I don't agree with is that most people say it is difficult to learn when in fact, it isn't! Those of you who wanted to own Photoshop and not afraid of experimenting, this is the perfect time to buy Photoshop and be counted as one image editing savvy person!

For newcomers and prospective buyers, don't let the "steep learning curve" routine preached by other folks discourage you. Photoshop is no more difficult to learn than any other software like Paintshop or PhotoImpact. I have tried all three and settled on Photoshop as THE EASIEST! All you need to have to learn it is a desire to improve your digital images, the knack to experiment, and a good book to guide you along (if you're learning on your own, like myself.)

Open Photoshop and you will see an almost unremarkable, unassuming interface which belies its true power. But this is a good thing because Photoshop functions can be simple or sophisticated as you like. It has a much neater interface compared to the above other softwares which means you can open functions only when you need them.

Get a good book that starts with simple concepts and go one step at a time. The beauty of going from simple tasks first (like how adjustment layers work) to more complicated ones (like layer mask compositing) is that you gradually develop your confidence. Pretty soon you will begin to discover on your own! Practice with you own photos and see the results immediately! Who said you have to be a professional to use a professional caliber software?

I agree on the saying that Photoshop is difficult to learn BUT only on the concept of making art. Not everybody have that eye. If you want to create works of art, then it only follows that you invest time in learning how, steep learning curve or otherwise. But this applies not only to Photoshop but to other softwares you might be using!

Now if most of your editing consists of uploading your digital images from camera to PC, enhancing exposure, cropping, framing, optimizing for email, boosting resolution to uncover detail for printing, how difficult can Photoshop be? It's easy! It's specifically designed for these tasks! Of course, other software can do this too at a much lesser price but I am assuming you want the top gun. With Photoshop, you can totally, CLEARLY do loads of other things. Because when you're ready to do more elaborate compositions, Photoshop will be there with even more specialized tools at your disposal.

If you like all the good things that you've heard about Photoshop, if you want a totally flexible, CLEAR tool to use in editing your images where all the non-destructive adjustments are right there at your fingertips CLEARLY laid out for you to turn on or off or adjust so you can instantly see how they affect your image, then do yourself a favor and buy a copy.

Just about the only reason I would recommend Paintshop or PhotoImpact (respectfully capable softwares, too) over Photoshop is the high price of Photoshop. On the other hand I understand you can take Photoshop classes and get BIG student discounts on Photoshop saving you hundreds of dollars. Read the reviews on beginning books on Photoshop and select one you believe will suit your taste. I strongly suggest one with practice images on CD and color pictures in the book itself.

Good luck and have fun!

Rating:
Summary: The Best Just Got Better
Review: It's hard to believe that Adobe keeps finding ways to make the new version of Photoshop better than the last, but they've gone and done it again. If you use and like Photoshop 7, you're gonna love Photoshop CS. As with any other version of Photoshop, all the same stuff is there that's in version 7, along with some new and improved things. I got this the day it hit the shelves and was immediately able to work with it and catch on to the the new features as well. As the hype suggests, the browser is much better than the one in version 7, and one other new tool that I really like is the color replacement tool. This little number is right out of Photoshop Elements version 2. In Elements, it poses as the red-eye tool. In fact, in Photoshop CS, even though Adobe calls it a "color replacement tool", the icon in the tool bar is the same red-eye icon that's in Elements. This is a Godsend. I used the hell out of this tool in Elements and I was thrilled to see it in Photoshop CS. Now replacing color in anything is a breeze. Without getting long-winded here, everything about this new version is a plus. There's more layer options, also the ability to match color between images, and a whole lot more that space doesn't really allow going into. You'll have to trust me on this. I do photography for a living and use Photoshop every day, and believe it or not, with this new version, Photoshop just got easier to use.

You can't go wrong with this one. Definitely worth the cost of upgrading.

Rating:
Summary: Adobe wins!
Review: My last version of Photoshop was 4.0, and that was quite impressive in itself. However as the price of the software increased, I decided to look at other alternatives which were cheaper. I'd played with Macromedia Fireworks for a while, actually up to MX, and even JASC Paintshop Pro. While these programs work, they're often too slow compared to Photoshop and not as intuitive. So I went back to Adobe with version CS, and I must say, I was coloured impressed. With intuitive features like colour matching and the healing brush, it just fit right into my workflow. I was even able to select paths and copy and paste into Macromedia Freehand. I got this software at a special Adobe discount, so the price wasn't a big hurdle, but I must say for what I can do in Photoshop today in five minutes, would've taken an hour in Fireworks. Any graphics program can do anything if you work at it long enough, but who has the time these days to spend hours on one photograph? Adobe understands our changing needs and priorities and I give this product a big thumbs up.

Rating:
Summary: The only PRO photo/paint package but not the only package
Review: Okay here is the lowdown on why you should get this product and why you should not get this product.

You should get this product if:
- You want to learn the #1 photo/paint package that is an industry standard.
- You do not mind the massive learning curve.
- If you do not want something that you pop out of the box and use right away without spending weeks learning it.
- If you want total control over every aspect of paint/photo manipulation.
- If you do not mind it being a bit slow on anything less than a cutting edge computer.
- If you do not mind it taking up a lot of hard disk space.

You should not get this product if:
- You do not need to learn an industry standard package.
- If you want to use something right away out of the box.
- If you do not need total control over every aspect of paint/photo manipulation.
- If you want a fast package.
- If you want to conserve hard drive space.

If you are looking for a paint/photo package that you can use out of the box and has lots of features then use Paint Shop Pro. If you are looking to learn the industry standard with the most features then learn and use Photoshop.

However I would like to finish this off by saying that I have worked for various multimedia groups that have demanded experience with this package and yet when it came to working for them they used 10% of this package and should have been using Paint Shop Pro instead. If you mention Paint Shop Pro in an interview then the interviewer will look at you sideways. What a load of mumbo-jumbo. They simply use this package because it is the "industry standard" instead of actually looking at a package that suites their needs. If you are an interviewer and someone says they also use Paint Shop Pro then you should actually listen to them for not toeing the official line. You might learn something there that will save you time, money and wasted space. Why bother training people for a couple of months to learn this package when they can do your intermediate tasks on a package they can use out of the box? That is the bottom line.

Rating:
Summary: Something in it for designers and photographers as well
Review: Photoshop CS (forget the numbers from this point on, think "CS") comes back with an improved File Browser, with very nice features such as the ability for users to add keywords to the files, PhotoMerge (which will allow you to seamlessly put together two or more pictures that were shot "side by side" as in a landscape picture of a city, for instance), and a number of great features that will make the application friendlier to photographers.

Among the photographers' goodies comes embedded support for the Camera Raw file format (previously only available through a paid plug-in) and MatchColor to allow you to apply the color of one image to another. Those that scan multiple prints at once are up for a great surprise: the Cop and Straighten feature which does just that... as unbelievable as it sounds, it crops all the scanned pictures and rotate them so as to make them perfectly straight, eliminating the guesswork and the rework from this tedious process.

Once again, for image processing there just is no better option (considering it comes bundled with Image Ready as usual, Macromedia Fireworks' direct competition). Photoshop has something in it for all, designers and photographers.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful Product
Review: The review average for Photoshop CS is at 3 stars, don't let that fool you, it is a beautiful product. I downloaded the generous demo two days ago, and it enhanced my workflow so much that I immediately brought it. I live at an FPO-AP address hopefully my new CS will get here before my demo runs out.

I am a Graphic Design student/photo hobbyist. As far as my design workflow I haven't made use of any of the new features YET. I am sure that the layer comps and typeing on a path will be useful when I start doing that.

As far as photgraphy PCS has been a boon. The new Photoshop enables me to load RAW images directly from my Canon 10D into Photoshop. I can correct exposure and white balance discrepenices ( of which there are many )much faster then the imaging processor that came with the camera. Once that is done I can further correct my photos in 16 bits rather then 8 bits. The new Photoshop allows the use of layers and various other image alterations in this mode. This is hell on my processor and hard drive because every file size is doubled, but when I print a 16 bit photo out, it is so worth it.

Thats what sold me on the new PS. I am also very attracted to the intergration with the other Adobe products.

In conclusion I think that Adobe Photoshop CS is a must grade.

Rating:
Summary: Great Addition to the Photoshop line
Review: This is an amazing program if you know how to use its power. For an amature just looking to touch up his photos, this may seem like a confusing and expensive program. But if you take some time to learn how it works, try some things and ask around for advice from experenced people, in no time you can have enough skill to really make this worth the money. Any negative things you hear about Photoshop are from people who probably never used it before, this is not comparable to any other image software i've ever used it's just way ahead of them. If you're looking for something that will give you amazing results and tons of customization this is a worthwile buy. You get lots of features unique to photoshop, new and old, some of which are really obvious, some you have to be experenced with the old photoshop to be able to admire. Definetly upgrade if you already own Photoshop, and you should definetly look at it if you're interested in a top notch profesional product. If your a casual digital photographer and all you want to do is crop and touch up, I would suggest something else. Personally, I'm satisfied compleatly.

Rating:
Summary: Phenomenal, but not for everyone
Review: This is more than a mere software application; Photoshop is a multifaceted platform for creative expression. You can of course use this program to perform routine tasks such as cropping and touching up photos. However, you can also use it to design complex works of digital art. The top Photoshop gurus can create original photorealistic artwork that is virtually indistinguishable from the real thing.

Photoshop is used to create print ads and logos, and the program even has its place in the creation of special effects for film. If you want to do professional-grade graphic design work, then you will want to buy this program. It simply has no competition at the higher end of the design spectrum.

Nonetheless, there are a few caveats to consider. Photoshop has a hefty price tag. It is priced for professionals, not for hobbyists. Before you spend the money, ask yourself if you really need all the features that Photoshop has to offer. If you simply want a program that will allow you to retouch and crop personal photographs, then either Photoshop Elements or PaintShop Pro will be more than adequate, and much cheaper.

Photoshop also has a steep learning curve. Casual users will likely be overwhelmed by the interface, with its multitude of tools, commands, and palettes. Don't expect to produce great results the first time you use PS. However, if you decide to commit yourself to learning Photoshop, there are plenty of tools on the market that can help you. An entire cottage industry is devoted to teaching neophytes and advanced users alike about the intricacies of alpha channels, layers, clipping masks, etc.

Finally, Photoshop requires a powerful computer in order to run efficiently. Before you buy it, make sure that your machine exceeds the minimum hardware requirements specified by Adobe. If you are using the same computer that you bought three or four years ago, then you will likely be looking at an additional hardware investment before you can take advantage of Photoshop.

In summary, this is a phenomenal program, but look before you leap. The investments of time and money needed to purchase and learn to use Photoshop are substantial. However, the results that a dedicated user can achieve with this program are truly amazing. If you are serious about graphic arts and/or photography, then Photoshop is a must-have piece of software.

Rating:
Summary: Pulling it through
Review: Well what can I say? This is an excellent program, no matter what way you look at it. True, there isn't much difference between this and 7.0, but if you do not currently have a Photoshop, this is the one to get. With a few added features and effects and such, it is a slight upgrade. I received Photoshop as part of the bigger suite, but I mainly use this. There is quite a learning curve to it, and it will take weeks of messing around to unearth the true potential of Photoshop. Nevertheless, it is an excellent program, and can be used for a variety of things, such as photo manipulation, site layouts, graphics, and banners. I would recommend this to anybody who is in need of a decent design program and doesn't already have one.