Recommend a good, basic photo editor ?

Thanks again to all you folks who responded to my recent post about choosing
a lens or lenses. I got very good information on that which I appreciated,
and then the thread fell into a tailspin of insults and tirades. Be that
as it may, I still thank all of you that provided very good information.

I am very much a photo novice, but I read enough to know that a basic photo
editor is essential to getting decent final results on some images. I want
a very basic, (hopefully free, but not a requirement) photo editor. I
DON"T need anything fancy or with a high learning curve, or features that I
would never use. I don't want a program that takes control over the filing
and organization of my photos. I simply want to be able to adjust color/
sharpness/ contrast, etc.

I have read and heard of Picassa, Photoshop Elements (some folks have
said an earlier version was better, I believe Version 7 but not sure) DXO,
and Lightroom 3.

Can any of you comment on these four and similar photo editing tools?
Remember, just the basic, easy to use editor, with moderate learning curve
for an older fellow.

Thank you !!

James

 

For what you describe, Adobe makes a product called PhotoDeluxe, which
is sometimes bundled with inkjet printers. For a beginner, it's easy
and cheap (free). I use Paintshop Pro x3, but that's probably overkill
and costs $100 bucks. Dirt cheap is Hamrick's VurPro/VuePrint, which
allows you to resize, change tints, increase/decrease contrast and
brightness, but lacks the red-eye correction feature and saturation
control, as it is not oriented to correcting photos so much as images
in general. A recycled copy of CorelDraw Essentials would help, as it
contains a lite version of PhotoPaint. First, I would check the
software that came with your printer to see if you already have
something in house that you already paid for.

Alex

 

Quite simply, for now go with the current edition of Photoshop Elements
PE 9. That will give you all you need for RAW conversion, cataloging,
and more than basic editing.

It will also give you an upgrade path to full versions of Photoshop if
your interest develops further.

There are certainly other options such as Gimp, Picassa, which will all
have thier advocates, but PS-Elements is going to give you what you
need with the least frustration.

There are those who will talk of the bundled OEM versions of PSE found
with some scanners and other hardware. These are usually earlier
versions and might not be capable of processing RAW files once you take
that step.

Buying direct from Adobe you will be paying full price $99. Other
vendors will have fair discounts. For example Amazon has it available
for $69.99.
<
http://www.amazon.com/Adobe-Photoshop-Elements-Win-Mac/dp/B003YGMEAQ/ref=dp_ob_title_sw

 

Irfanview is a free download, has all the requirements you list.
Lots of free plug-ins also if you want to get sophisticated.

 

I could certainly recommend GIMP though it would indeed have a lot of
features you would not need for some time. It is reasonably small,
effective and free.

 

Very good recommendation
Though I have Gimp installed, Irfanview is what I use most of the time

 

For an inexpensive editor, I like Photoshop Essentials, or Corel Paint
Shop Pro. they are both easy to learn and not very expensive. You will
find lots of support on the web for both products. I personally found
Paint shop pro easier to learn, with less of a futz factor than
Photoshop Essentials. Both products have decent size adjustment algorithms.

Also, some of these programs are included free with many accessories.
Wacom tablets and some printers are examples.
There are also some programs available free. The devotees of those are
sometimes like religious fanatics. While they work, I am more interested
in the program with the lowest futz factor. I look to produce photos for
enjoyment. The means is just a tool. For me, the easier to use the better.
Although I currently use Photoshop CS5, because of its capabilities, for
some adjustments such as animal eye adjustment I use Corel's Paint Shop Pro.

 

OK, maybe I'm off base..... I thought GIMP was available only for the
Linux platform. DId I miss something here?

Alex

 

Good thought.

I have Irfanview on my main system, but can't remember when I last
used it. It's a freebie and good to use while you consider your other
options. Simple, virtually no learning curve, and reliable. Did I say
"free"?

Alex, slapping forehead

 

Thanks again to all you folks who responded to my recent post about

Yep, I'll tell you something that I've never seen posted here in over a
year. Assuming you are using a Nikon DSLR then fully learn all of its
Picture Controls and other adjustments and you will hardly ever need an
editor for anything other than levelling the horizon or copping and
scaling your images.

If you use a non-Nikon RAW converter you will be throwing away an
appreciable amount of money that you have spent on the excellent
firmware in the camera, which is the main thing that gets the cameras
rave reviews. By all means, use whatever editor and spend hundreds of
hours learning to tweak the adjustments until it begins to match the
camera JPEG or, if you don't like the camera JPEG then buy a Canon,
Sony, Pentax, or whatever you do like.

Gosh, I think I've just kicked a hornets' nest...

 

FWIW: PaintShop *Photo* Pro has, built in, some limited HDR apps. You
can't do totally awesome tonemapping, but it does allow the basics on
up to 9 images. I don't know about PSE, so I can't comment there. I
think that the one-touch correction in PhotoPaint, which is surprising
good for the novice, is also found in PaintShop Photo Pro. I'll have
to check.

Didn't Kodak have a mini app like this some time ago? I'm pretty sure
HP did. I Think HP used to bundle it with their printers.

Alex

 

GIMP works fine on my Mac, but you have to enable X11. Personally the
only thing GIMP has over CS is that it is free.
I continue with CS5.

James can certainly try GIMP, but I think he is looking for a simpler
solution, and my suggestion remains Photoshop Elements 9.
Sometimes you really get what you are paying for.

 

Color inversions, content aware fill, BW conversions that make the in
camera firmware look flat, masking, ultra sharpening, image
resizing......etc.

Nah! there will be no replies and even fewer that become acrimonious.

 

Yes, you did. Also available for MS and MAC.

 

My mistake, I thought this was a photography newsgroup.

 

Thanks, I didn't know that. From my kids, who use Photoshop in one or
another of its reincarnations, I understand PSE is stable, reliable
and mostly affordable. I might buy it one day, after I understand all
the features of PaintShop PhotoPro and Corel GSX4. Usually, just about
the time I get to understanding about 75%, there is a new version out.
<G>

Alex

 

I owe you one, James. I used GIMP in a previous life and just found a
download for it, that works in XP-Pro. I *will* visit that app again.
I appreciate your pointer.

Alex, whose kids all use MAC's.

 

Just to keep things straight. James is the OP making the request for
information.
Ray is the responder recommending GIMP and who noted it was available
for MS and Mac.

 

Noted. Time for bed. 'Nite, all.

Alex, with Brain-fade in effect.

 

Put me down for recommending Adobe Elements 9.0. It will do more than
you specify that you want to do, and it will cost you $70 to $90, but
it will allow you to grow in your editing. You can do the basics
without much of a learning curve. In fact, it has "auto" settings for
many of the adjustments.

There are hundreds of tutorials and video tutorials online that will
teach you how to improve your skills.