[Daniel Smith Participant Posts: 98]

Adobe Photoshop & Pixel Editing Applications

on: November 14, 2019 at 10:38 am

Currently using Photoshop CS6 and one of these days I’ll need to replace it. New computer and installing it and getting it to work took three hours on the phone with Adobe tech folks – most of them pushing me to sign up for online Photoshop. That isn’t going to happen. My work computer that has Photoshop on it does not go online. I just wanted to install it on the new computer(with the damnable Windows 10) and get to work. No such luck. This the calls and frustration.

Don’t push Lightroom as I won’t use it. Have a copy and it is so much different – and I’m not computer friendly – that I took it off and stayed with the familiar CS6.

So, what program out there will adequately replace Photoshop? One that allows me to keep using NIK Silver Efex Pro in my image workflow. Maybe even has a RAW conversion setup for Sigma DP Merrill camera files?

I know it is coming one of these days. Trying to put it off as long as possible and maybe I’ll never have to make the jump. Just surveying the field to face reality.

As far as computers go, I get a good, fast Gaming computer. All the weird add on programs are not on it so I can load Photoshop, AutoPano Pro, NIK Silver Efex pro and the like and work on images.

No need for internet hookup past possibly initial setup. After that I put finished work on a thumb drive and then into this internet computer for any emailing or lab transfer for prints. For me it works and the work computer does not get any over the internet viruses or whatnot.

Farm machinery always has the right of way. Always fun watching Combines at work. In the field or as they move to the next one. Our area is “Big Iron” country. 12 wheel Case/IH and John Deere tractors. Big TRAC models now being used a lot more with rubber tracs being easier with soil compaction and better on wet ground. When on the road we move over for these guys as a 40 foot wide header takes up a lot of space and if he has to move over and tips a bit the damage to it can be over $100,000 for a replacement.

Field work is enjoyable to work with. Medium format or smaller, it is a challenge to get images with weather conditions that can vary from high winds to impending blizzard conditions as farmers race the elements trying to get a crop in. When it is clear and warm it is a wonderful time to photograph. The open prairie, the quality of light here near Canada and the ever changing challenge of getting a good image while the farmers are actually working – not a set up for photos. Makes for some fun in the work.

"A good still photograph, studied by an inquiring mind, frequently yields more information than a mile of moving images". Walter Cronkite, New York, June 1989

[Andrew Rodney Participant Posts: 330]

Re: Replacing Photoshop – what works?

Reply #1 on: November 14, 2019 at 2:58 pm

Might want to look at Affinity Photo.

Author “Color Management for Photographers" & "Photoshop CC Color Management" (pluralsight.com)”

[Kevin Raber Silver Member Posts: 1217]

Re: Replacing Photoshop – what works?

Reply #2 on: November 14, 2019 at 6:54 pm

I second Andrew’s suggestion.  Affinity is slowly gaining a following.  Not sure about the NIK capability but there are other solutions to handle BW.  I use PS (subscription 58.00 month) and Affinity.  I have no issues with the PS option but then my needs and what I do maybe a lot different.  I also am using Affinity more and more.  It may take a while to get used to a new piece of software but once you master it, it does good.

[Mike Nelson Pedde Participant Posts: 641]

Re: Replacing Photoshop – what works?

Reply #3 on: November 16, 2019 at 4:54 pm

Daniel: Comparing Lr and Ps is a little like comparing apples and grapefruit, so we won’t go there. I still have Lr 6.14 and I use it largely for its DAM capabilities and a bit of processing. For my .arw files I mostly use Capture One, and I push stuff into Affinity Photo or Nik from C1 as required. It really depends on what you need the software to do.

Mike.

P. S. I love Autopano, but unfortunately Kolor has gone out of business. Affinity does do panoramic merges (as does Ps or Lr).

P. S. If you’re interested in photo books, Affinity has a suite of Photo, Designer and Publisher that work well together. Friesen Press recently announced they’ll be accepting Publisher as well as InDesign files. To know it was only InDesign or .pdf files.

_____
Mike Nelson Pedde
Victoria, BC
https://www.wolfnowl.com/

[John Sadowsky Participant Posts: 169]

Re: Replacing Photoshop – what works?

Reply #4 on: December 3, 2019 at 6:53 pm

And … at $50 you can’t beat the price of Affinity!

JSS

[Eric Brody Participant Posts: 51]

Re: Replacing Photoshop – what works?

Reply #5 on: December 5, 2019 at 12:33 pm

You could get rid of the “damnable” (your word not mine) Windows 10 and try a Mac. That would effectively end your concern about viruses (I’m only one person and this is an anecdote, and I shouldn’t say this as to not tempt the gods, but in 30 years with Mac’s I’ve not had a virus, nor do I use antivirus software). Your fear of being hooked up to the internet is well founded own the Windows world, I’m told. I’ll not try to convince you to use Lightroom, though it is a remarkable piece of software, not perfect but impressively useful. I’ll also not try to get you on the Adobe subscription model either but I have found it to be both helpful and economically reasonable. A frustrating fact of digital photography is the pace of change. If one paints, one can use the same tools essentially forever, not so in digital photography. I sympathize with you but urge you to start to rethink what you want to do with your images. The two you posted are pretty cool. I don’t live where combines rule but it must be interesting to watch them in action. I know nothing of alternative programs. I spend enough time just trying to keep up with the ones I use that I’ve not had a chance to try alternatives. Best of luck to you in your quest.

Eric

[Stephane Bosman Participant Posts: 32]

Re: Replacing Photoshop – what works?

Reply #6 on: July 21, 2020 at 5:59 am

Babbling about Windows 10 and viruses is just a display of ignorance. The cyber threats landscape has changed so much in the last few years, it is simply not how these things work anymore. Windows 10 is just as secure if not more secure than anything out there.

[Tommy Weir Participant Posts: 26]

Re: Replacing Photoshop – what works?

Reply #7 on: July 21, 2020 at 6:43 am

Yes, if you’re happy with Windows stick with it.  The Mac is my preferred platform by far but most Windows-using photographers are perfectly happy where they are and Microsoft have sorted out a lot of the prior security issues.

You can run Silver Efex Pro on its own, it doesn’t require launching from another app.   Affinity Photo has an extensive RAW processor within it, you can develop a TIFF there and then load it into Silver Efex no issues.

If you’re a Sony shooter you can try the Capture One for Sony and see if that does it for you better than LR.    Or DXO Photolab, some people swear by it,  of course has hooks into all the Nik applications and does an okay job of managing a library and is an excellent RAW processor.

[Mike Nelson Pedde Participant Posts: 641]

Re: Replacing Photoshop – what works?

Reply #8 on: July 28, 2020 at 3:56 pm

<span style=”color: #000000; font-family: barlow, sans-serif; background-color: #fafbfd;”>If you’re a Sony shooter you can try the Capture One for Sony and see if that does it for you better than LR.</span>

To follow Tommy’s comment, Capture One now has four versions. The most expensive option will work with most any raw file, but they also have versions for Sony, Fuji or (most recently) Nikon raw files. If you’re a registered owner of one of those cameras you can get Capture One Express for free, but in my opinion it’s not worth the price as it’s lacking the most fundamental features that make C1 what it is.

Still, it’s important to remember that programs like Lr and C1 are primarily database programs, designed for DAM (digital asset management) and raw conversion. Photoshop at it’s heart is a pixel editor. Ps doesn’t do raw conversion; that’s the role of Adobe Camera Raw. Ps doesn’t do DAM; that’s the role of Lr or (to a lesser extent) Bridge. Ps, ACR and Bridge are bundled into one suite. Affinity Photo is also a pixel editor, like Ps. It has it’s own accompanying raw converter (known as personas in Affinity terms) but Affinity Serif hasn’t (yet?) released a DAM component.

If you do go for Affinity Photo, I find that their learning channel is quite good. I’ve also learned a lot from both Affinity Revolution and Scott Williams Photography on YouTube.

Mike.

P. S. If you need Illustrator and/or InDesign in addition to Photoshop the rent for those will currently cost you some $600/year. You can buy Affiinity Photo, Designer and Publisher for less than ⅓ of that.

_____
Mike Nelson Pedde
Victoria, BC
https://www.wolfnowl.com/

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