Rating: 
Summary: One Drawback
Review: I am shooting with a Nikon D-70. The EXIF annotations visible during playback on the D-70 are terific. Elements 2.0, however, does not preserve the data regarding 'white balance' and apparently can't read the shooting mode (program, auto, manual) as it displays the message 'not identified.' Also, Elements 2.0 doesn't read exposure adjustments. I wish Nikon and Adobe would agree to 'gee and haw.'
Rating:
Summary: Great balance of simplicity and power
Review: This software is very well done -- exactly as software should be. The basic features that get you 75% of the way there are completely intuitive, really without using the manual. You can quickly adjust brightness levels of photos, crop, etc.But behind these simple but powerful starter features are an incredible range of really powerful photo editing tools. I just created an photo party invitation with a picture of our 4 year old and used layers to make it look like the cover of a popular magazine. The help files for the more complex features (texturing, text additions, rotations, etc.) are very clear and easily searched. This is a "killer app" for photo manipulation, at a great price. I highly recommend it for anyone with a digital camera.
Rating: 
Summary: If you're a beginner or novice, try another program first
Review: I'm writing from the viewpoint of a beginner transitioning into novice. Prior to purchasing this program I researched what appears to the leading affordable choices for beginners/novices: Elements 2.0 and Digital Image Pro 9.0. I have been using Adobe Element 2.0 for nearly a year now, and Digital Image Pro for only about 3 months, and I must say I can accomplish the same amount of work with Digital Image Pro in a fraction of the time compared to Elements. I actually enjoy using both programs for different tasks, but quite honestly, I find myself gravitating more and more to Digital Image Pro, as I wear "several hats" in my work and due to time pressures, I simply don't have the time to learn the full functionality of Elements, or its sometimes painstakingly unintuitive program design. In contrast, when I use Digital Image Pro, I feel I am "cutting right to the chase" and getting my task work done, without the need for wasting time constantly referring to a manual. This is not to say I plan to give up on Elements; quite the contrary! In time, Elements will likely be my choice program with it's powerful capabilities. But again, this review is meant to help the beginner/novice in the similar position I was in a year ago. For these users, Digital Image Pro 9.0 may be an easier, less frustrating, and more productive program to use.
Rating: 
Summary: Photshop Elements ...Great Program!
Review: There are so many things that you can do with Photoshop Elements. As a middle school computer teacher, this program helps me to show students how to edit and adjust photos for web pages, class projects, and eventually business projects. I like the way that you can take things out of the photos and blend the colors and use the tools to replace that part of the image so it looks like that item was never there. I really like the way I can adjust pictures so that I can make animations to go on PowerPoint presentations and web pages. I really enjoy using the program to create web galleries of photos. This is great when creating web pages of pictures that you want to share with others. I also enjoy the Photomerge feature of Photoshop Elements. My digital camera does not take panoramic pictures so this Photomerge feature allows me to create a panoramic picture out of several pictures. The program also has many filters and layers to touch-up photos and increase the quality of even the oldest photos. It allows you to layer these filters and adjustments so that you can always delete them an keep the original photos. This is one of the neatest programs yet for editing photos!
Rating:
Summary: Heavy on Hardware, Light on Support
Review: I've had PE2.02 for 3 months, after spending years using PhotoDeluxe (PD4.0). For the majority of tasks I have not yet found a compelling reason to use PE over PD. The first problem I ran into was that the Adobe Online "update" feature for the program will not work through a firewall (e.g. the Microsoft Broadband router, and quite likely software firewalls like those from Norton or included with Windows XP). This took over an hour on hold with Tech Support to clarify. Also, the PE2.0 support website is filled with 3-year-old information, broken links, and obsolete "updates". But their are *no* program updates available since November 2002 anyway. My system runs Windows 2000 SP4 on a P3-700, and had 256MB ram. PE2.0 takes 23 seconds to load the first time and uses 49MB ram when doing nothing (must be written in Java). The next problem I encountered was that when I loaded a 5Mpixel image and printed it, the program ran out of memory and froze. An upgrade to 512MB dram seems to have fixed that, but when I load 5 of these images as an experiment the program consumes 256MB dram and would take more if I allowed it to (a configuration option). So you need a powerful system to run this program and print at the same time. In summary, I will continue to use this program (since I have so much invested), but I encourage you to try an evaluation version before buying and get a powerful PC if you do buy PE2.0. In retrospect I would probably check out some of the Microsoft or ArcSoft editors if I had it to do over again. Their user interfaces are better, and their support could not be worse (at least for a Windows user).
Rating:
Summary: Bottomline between Photoshop Elements and Photoshop
Review: Photoshop Elements is the right software for you (and save you lots of money) if all you want to do is work with photos.
But if you're intending to use it to make a living and need more than photo editing, such as creating brochures or logos, than you would definitely need to get Photoshop.
Rating:
Summary: Moving Up in Digital Imaging Software
Review: When I was younger and had more time on my hands I was a very serious amateur complete with his own film darkroom (you remember those, don't you.) The advent of the digital camera and imaging software has actually allowed me to get back into the "digital darkroom" at a lot less expense and time commitment, and with a quantum leap (maybe even two or three leaps) in creativity opportunities. Also, I have a technical background and am very comfortable with software. My first experience has been with software that came with my digital camera, namely Photo Impressions 4, and with my computer, namely Dell Imager. I found both of these to be really good and user friendly for a beginner. These programs got me hooked on digital imaging. Once hooked, I wanted to move on to software with more capability, but didn't want to go the full Pro route. After researching the subject, I decided to download free trials of Adobe Photo Shop Elements 2 and Jasc Paint Shop Pro 8. I made the assumption, well supported by other reviews, that either program would have more than enough capability for my needs. I focused on user friendliness, ease of learning, and how likely I would remember how to use the software after a period of a month or so of not using it (probably typical for most beginners/amateurs). This last point is important, because it could become a barrier to continued use. Without going into all the gory details (see the other reviews - they make excellent points on technical details), here's how I reacted. After using the Adobe product for a few hours, I decided that it isn't particularly user friendly and would take quite a bit of effort on my part to learn how to use it with confidence. Also, I was convinced that after a month or so of non-use, I would have to retrain. I decided not to purchase the Adobe product. After using the Jasc product for about 15 minutes, I got hooked. It's user friendly, intuitive, fairly easy to learn, and I am sure that I'll be able to get back up-to-speed quickly after a few months of not using it. This is a no-brainer, I'm going to purchase Paint Shop Pro 8.
Rating:
Summary: OwnZ! This thing Rocks!
Review: This program is excellent, it could be used to fix up fix up old photo's, and great for web design. I love this program. It contains a better interface and almost the same possibilities as photoshop. Get a demo at adobe.com if your unsure. Its very good, the online photoshop tutorials all work great with Elements. Elements was originally based off Photoshop, this is like Photoshop LE pretty much...
Rating:
Summary: Photoshop Elements is a really useful tool!
Review: I don't really use Photoshop Elements for that many photos...though when I do use it for photos, it's really fun. I replaced the background of a photo of my parents, transporting them to a different setting- much like how one reviewer said he'd like to place Neil Armstrong on Mars. Another time I airbrushed the blemishes off a friend's portrait- he had a breakout, so Photoshop helped him look much better. I think if you want to be creative with your photos, you should definetely look into getting this program. I mostly use Photoshop to color art I've done. I've since moved on to 7.0, but I experienced most of my self-imposed "training" on Elements. It's simpler and more user-friendly than 7.0, so I think it gives you more brain power to think about your work rather than thinking about how to use the program. In one particularly complex coloring job, I was juggling about twenty five different layers, almost all of them set on different modes and transparencies. Yeah, Elements is pretty cool. It handled the thing without a glitch (the file was HUGE when I was working on it, since layers take up a lot space; I was scared that I didn't have enough memory). Great for someone just starting out, and also great for someone who isn't.
Rating:
Summary: A Lot To Learn
Review: Wow. After using the software that came with my Canon A70 this is a quantum leap in sophistication I'm not a computer geek but pretty familiar with various pieces of software. To say that this is going to take me a while to learn is an understatement. On the other hand, once mastered, this is going to make me very productive. I do have one major gripe....why isn't this program compatable with AOL? (Hey, Adobe, you have heard of AOL?) For crying out loud, there's no way to register the software online or access the tutorials if you're an AOL user!!! Pretty lousy support from Adobe. As mentioned, I'm pretty new to this particular software but it seems that everything is there if you're willing to invest your time and effort to extract it. I hope to post a follow up review in a few months. Meanwhile, if Adobe is listening....what were you people thinking (or not thinking) by making online registration impossible for a large number of your customers? Dolts!
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