dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

Yes get it right in the camera is a goal, but I can do the mods in my PC fine, but when doing photo-art then the modifications have artifacts one wishes to remove or lines to add. I did a Picasso like photo, and there were heavy lines in the Picasso original that I used as a guide... making lines OK but guiding them with my track ball a difficult task.

I recently did a photo art rendition I called the "Three Faces of EVE." After modifying the layer blended photo composite, there were changes I made that took time, effort, and compromise. My feeling was that a graphics pad would have made life easier and compromises less. The multi Eve is at:
https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-795511-1.html

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Removing distracting things like power lines or paint blemishes is seldom an issue. It's when you start putting people or objects in a scene that obviously shouldn't be there that we cross the line into fantasy and falsehood or "artistic license."

I generally make clear when I do something unrealistic that it's an altered scene. I like extremes...

MJPerini

All new things have a learning curve, you need to be OK with that or it will be a waste.
I've had a medium sized wacom tablet for years and love it. They really come i to their own as your volume of editing increases. The Wacom smart buttons allow frequently used commands to bee mapped to a single button saving lots of time for receptive functions. What makes Wacom the one to buy is the finesse of control you get from their software and pen. It even has a replaceable stylus point. You do not need a huge tablet but really small ones are not too useful --something like 7x9' active area is a good size.
If you do a lot of editing you will love it once you take the time to program the buttons to frequently used commands. If you are an occasional editor, you probably do not need one.
There are lots of knock offs out there, I can't offer any opinion on those.

Jack 13088 Loc: Central NY

I bought an Wacom Intuos a few years ago to cure the frustration of trying to simply throw a lasso over something with a mouse. Perhaps, if I were younger? I got the small one because it takes up less room on my cluttered desk. I was concerned that the eye-hand-screen coordination would be difficult but especially at my age but that was a non issue. The setup of the Wacom is quite flexible and can be program specific. But I started with the way it came out of the box intending to eventually optimize the setup but I haven’t found time yet. Eventually to me is if I can’t find a better distraction before I die it will happen. The shakiness that I thought was an unavoidable consequence of aging has diminished. In fact, I thought I would only use the pen for Ps mostly but it turns out it has totally replaced the mouse in my world. In that regard maybe a larger Wacom would be a better choice but I just hate to think I was wrong.

Retired CPO Loc: Travel full time in an RV

It's up to the photographer! Personally, the only PP software I have is Picasa and I do very minimal post processing. A little light adjustment, crop, very little color saturation, rarely. I'm a photographer, not a computer graphics guy. If I can't get it pretty much SOOC I delete it and try again later! But, each to his own!!

dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

MJPerini Suggested a 7x9 is sufficient. I just looked up refurbished iPads the price is reasonable.

Presently and historically a mouse for many, but for me a trackball. If using a mouse we do not move it 27" to get across the screen... a few inches translates into a significant distance. Also, one does not see or look at the mouse to arrive at a point on the screen, we see the cursor. If using a pen on a pen-sensitive surface then that surface is much like the mouse pad and translates into cursor movement. Using a straight edge a line is easily drawn. To remove a blem on the photo the edit program is the controller the pen on the surface the tool. The edit program does not care what is moving the cursor. So when editing with a pad we still have the mouse or trackball right and left clicks active.

If my logic holds true, then the monitor pad type is not needed perhaps a $75 [non-monitor] surface would be all that is needed.

Someone complained, "my computer thinks my wacom tablet is a mouse. Making it usable as a mouse but not a tablet like I need it to be." In edit programs, the line width and opacity can be controlled. I would have little to learn ... use my fingers gripping a pen vs thumb on the trackball or whole arm up to the shoulder moving a mouse.
https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/all/my-computer-thinks-my-drawing-tablet-is-a-mouse/ec267d2f-6c26-490f-bbe4-dad7e9a1932f

https://www.wacom.com/en-us/discover/work-from-home/ergonomic-alternatives-to-a-mouse

Does my considering the pad surface/pen interaction as a more controllable curse mover sound logical?

BobHartung Loc: Bettendorf, IA

It depends. A monitor drawing tablet has the potential to have parallax mis-alignment due to the thickness of the screen. I understand the newer Wacom screen tablets do not suffer from that.

That said, I tried a tablet, but I found it much more cumbersome to learn/use than my trust mouse which I still use for all my editing.

You'll have to "buy to try".

tomc601 Loc: Gilbert, AZ

I used a Wacom for years until the model I had was no longer supported by the new MAC OS. I switched to a lower cost XP Pen and find it every bit as good as the Wacom I had been using at a fraction of the cost. You can buy one for as low as $20 to see if you like using a tablet and then step up. Also, I find using a tablet without a screen is just as easy as a mouse or trackpad as far as hand eye coordination is concerned.

47greyfox Loc: on the edge of the Colorado front range

I had a Wacom for years. Tried it off and on a few times; most were extended efforts. All were futile. I tossed the tablet, its box and documentation in the trash earlier this year. At this stage of my life, if it isn’t intuitive and comes quickly, it’s in a landfill or thrift store.

Strodav Loc: Houston, Tx

SOOC is a bit misleading. Cameras "see" differently than humans do and different humans see light differently, so there is no absolute standard. Say, I select a subject and take the photo with different manufacturers digital cameras, both new and old (different sensor size, older sensors, newer sensors, dslr, mirrorless, ...) then look at the results. They will all be different, yet they are all SOOC. If you had to choose one, you will select the one that "looks" better to you. So why not make the photos you take look better to you? That's the Art part of the Art and Science of Photography.

Why not remove a distraction (like a power line, garbage can, branch coming out of bird's head, ...) from an otherwise beautiful image if you can? What if your otherwise beautiful image is a bit soft? Would you fix it in Post? Is that SOOC?

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

Dpullum,

I found the XP-pen Star G640 to be a great digital drawing tablet for....$28.00. It has a resolution of 5080 lines per inch which is quite impressive and is the same resolution as the Wacom Intus Pro that sells for $500. I use mine with Photoshop, Lightroom, and Adobe Illustrator.

I've had three drawing tablets over the years and I found that there is a "user curve" getting comfortable with them. Most of us use our mouse without thinking about it as moving and clicking have become natural and intuitive. Using a pen is akin to patting your head and rubbing your tummy simultaneously. It takes practice, practice, practice to keep an eye on the screen while manipulating the pen on the pad without looking or thinking about it.

DWU2 Loc: Phoenix Arizona area

That's why I keep toying with the idea of a display tablet such as a Wacom Cintiq. Photoshop tasks like selections and the pen tool would seem to become easier.

griffzky

IMO, I think the people who have the best luck with those devices are people who draw, or are artistically inclined. Just my opinion.

Jack 13088 Loc: Central NY

Nobody has accused me of drawing or being artistically inclined and I find my tablet essential and much less frustrating than a mouse.

bdk Loc: Sanibel Fl.

I have a wacom and used it extensively for a few years. Then one day I stopped using it and havent used it since. and I dont miss it. With that said, maybe I'll go edit a pic with it and see if I remember how to use it. ( yes though not used its still attached to my computer