sodapop Loc: Bel Air, MD

Definitely the right recommendation..

:thumbup:

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

What part is crippled?

joer Loc: Colorado/Illinois

Nikon cameras come with VieweNX2 which along with Capture NX2 are the very best raw converters for Nikon raw files.

View NX2 will allow her to do all that is needed and the learning is easy even for geezers.

Capture48 Loc: Arizona

I will disagree with people who say learn photography, then learn tp PP. Post Processing is part of photography since the digital age period. They can't be separated, and younger people can learn both at an accelerated rate.

I use the Adobe products, and thik the elements is a fine idea, but a years subscription to Adobe CC will cost the same as Elements and you get lightroom and photoshop. I would do that if I believed she will stick with it. I would go the free program route if she tends to do these things as a fad, like a lot of kids.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

Earlier than that! It was called the "dark room" or "darkroom". Photography never existed with out post processing.

abc1234 Loc: Elk Grove Village, Illinois

Why is nobody listening to Gene! It is about her, not you.

Like so many original posts, this one lacks enough information for a meaningful answer. Is she interested in photography or just taking pictures? Does she really care about knowing what the difference between shutter speed and aperture are? Is she really interested or does grandpa want her to be? Does she even know what processing means? Will she have the time? Does she learn on her own or really needs a class? Not all teens are interested in computers. Is she?

And most of all, can grandpa help her? If so, she might learn more than just photography and he might learn more about his granddaughter.

Gene, thanks for your wonderfully insightful question.

anotherview Loc: California

Ditto:

sodapop Loc: Bel Air, MD

Why make this so complicated? He wants her to share and appreciate and something he loves. Just give her the camera and a good PP program and see what happens. Teens don't always know what they want ya know...

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

Now that you asked, I can brag about two successes.

My granddaughters are now 12 and 14. A couple years ago I listened when there was a slight interest in making video. I provided the stuff needed. Now both, know what is involved and can make one when and if they want or need.

Shortly after video, came some interest in photo processing. It was largely fueled by interest in capturing a new puppy doing it's amazing tricks. Now both understand and can use photography.

When the video part was going on, I got the offer of a very tiny "grant" from an Adobe friend. Basically he offered to give me some software if I got my granddaughters to do a kid-to-kid tutorial on how to make videos. It didn't work. It was not their idea.

The trick as a grandfather is to follow and support, not lead. When they showed interest, I helped with what they wanted to do. They tried to help with the tutorial project, took it seriously but it was summer and interest was not there.

Oddly, I got to support an alternate project. They had interest in remolding a childhood tree house into pre-teen standards. We dropped the cameras and camcorders to pick up hammers and saws. Supporting their learning to use a nail gun will never be forgotten!

To summarize for the OP, the Nikon may get no traction. Software you pick out may get nowhere. If they discover their iPod will take a picture, you might be able to follow with helping your granddaughter discover how to use it. In fact, it might be that she would "discover" photography if you had spent your $400 on an iPod.

Grandpa, don't lead. Spoil her with support and interest in what she wants to do. My granddaughters know I'll back them unconditionally on anything they are interested in.

mikedidi46 Loc: WINTER SPRINGS, FLORIDA

I started using Picassa from Google for many years and found that it was a program to learn about processing. It is free to use and has many interesting quality's.

sirlensalot Loc: Arizona

Picasa is quick and easy. Not what I would call a true editor, but a great place to start. Budget wise, Gimp, would be a logical progression. PSE is always a good option. If she is as computer savvy as most teens are, LR would not be a problem. With the grand kids, I find the journey more fun than the destination. Great satisfaction to see them grow in both skills and knowledge. It's fun to be a granpa these days.

Soul Dr. Loc: Beautiful Shenandoah Valley

I would get her to download FastStone Image Viewer. It is a free program that will give her the basic tools needed to PP her photos. It is easy to understand and use, and once she has mastered the basics she can then move on to something more complicated like PS or Lightroom.

don26812 Loc: South Bay of Los Angeles, CA

A 14 year-old does not have the same interests as an adult. Photoshop and Lightroom do not offer the same fun-type tools that come with PSE, things like the special effects in the Guided Edit mode. Invest the $100 in PSE 12, let her have fun with her photos.

Maybe she will outgrow it in a year or so, maybe not. PSE's UI is reasonably close to Photoshop, so that when/if she is ready, adapting to Photoshop will be easy for her.

Although they will not publically admit it, there are plenty of experienced photo enthusiasts out there that use PSE. I suspect some are even professionals.

abc1234 Loc: Elk Grove Village, Illinois

PSE was my go-to choice from LR for a few months. Then, I got tired of having to make the 8-bit file because it slowed down my work flow. And I was using the expert tools which are similar to PS. Consequently, I now use PS exclusively.

I was also using Viveza and dfine. With LR5's radial filter and the need to make a tiff, I have given up on Viveza. As for dfine, finito too. It duplicated LR's and PS's sharpening tools but had the advantage of selecting areas to use for setting up the noise reduction. However, since the results were not significantly better than Adobe's and I had to make a tiff, I have since returned to LR/PS.

A program called Perspective Pilot was mentioned in another thread. I went to that website and based upon what I saw, this project seems to produce the same results as LR/PS with a possibly slightly easier interface. I thought the post was a bit misleading about what Perspective Pilot can do.

My point to all this is for beginners, stick with the basic editors. These other programs probably add no functionality but may be easier to use. I can see using alternative basic editors because of money or convenience.

GaryS1964 Loc: Northern California

IMHO Photoshop CC and Lightroom are overkill. Photoshop Elements 12 would do her well. It will help her keep track of her photos, do some nice PP when required plus she can learn to use layers if she wants. It also has "creative" tools that she will probably like. If she shows real aptitude with Elements and wants to do more then consider Photoshop CC.