billybaseball Loc: Bel Air MD

So, I've always used my iMac but it is old and looking at the new MacBook pros with the new touchbar. I always stayed away from editing on laptops bc the screens vary in brightness based on the viewing angle but the MacBooks have the Retina display which looks great from every angle. The biggest screen is 15.4 inches while the iMac has a 27 inch 5k Retina display which is awesome but the laptop gives me the flexibility to edit from anywhere and not be locked away in the office. Opinions? Comments?

Mac Loc: Pittsburgh, Philadelphia now Hernando Co. Fl.

I use a 27 inch iMac. I've thought about a 15 inch MacBook Pro, but I like the larger screen of the iMac.

twowindsbear

Get the laptop but use the monitor on your desk

Best of both worlds

IMHO, of course

orrie smith Loc: Kansas

I use both, mainly because of the limited drive space on a laptop.

PixelStan77 Loc: Vermont/Chicago

Bill, You can have the best of both worlds. I use a MacBook Pro for all my photographic programs like Lightroom and PS BUT with a Thunderbolt cable,your MacBook pro programs appear on your IMac.

tramsey Loc: Texas

I bought a laptop thinking the very same thing as you. It sits on my desk right alongside my desk top. It has never moved off the desk. I'm going to give it to my grandkid in college and get a new desk top.

bull drink water Loc: pontiac mi.

I have used both, but my laptops are sitting in my chest of drawers , while I am using my desk top 98% of the time.

dkguill Loc: Elkhart, IN

A laptop is nice while traveling so you can download to it from your camera each day. I have PS 6 on my laptop to provide initial viewing while on the road. I also add an external HD so I can backup my originals as well. Since I shoot in raw, ACR with PS6 is handy. I can also convert selected images to lo-res files which are saved for web for e-mailing while traveling. More importantly, I have the original raw images for serious post when I return home to my desktop which provides two large monitors and PS CC for the serious post work. I know you can connect one external monitor to most laptops, but I don't think I have seen one that would accomodate two monitors. Having double monitors has spoiled me for post work. I DO NOT mess with LR...personal preference.

dcampbell52 Loc: Clearwater Fl

The only time I use a laptop (and I do use one extensively) is on trips. But, my needs may be different from yours. I do post processing entirely on my desktop because it has many times the power, memory, speed, and storage of my laptop. I use my laptop ONLY for downloading images and reviewing them before uploading them to my cloud to get them off the trip and back to the office where they are protected by backups etc. My desktop is where 85% of the work is done on post processing etc. The laptop just gives me the ability to take a quick look at the images I just shot to see what may have to be redone or rethought before I leave to go home. Its easier to view the images on the "larger" screen of the laptop than the screen on the back of the camera. But, my screen on my desktop is considerably larger than the laptop (probably it is to the laptop as the screen on the laptop is to the camera screen). For me, it is just a part of the post shooting process on a trip. Besides, I don't want to carry a laptop that has my entire library of images from previous shoots. Those are at home and the laptop ONLY has the current shoot until I upload them to the office. Your process may (probably will) be different but this works for my needs.

whitewolfowner

My son has the Mac Book Pro; not he new one, but the model before and he absolutely loves it. The new one costs more and most that know the line would not touch one, so take it from there for yourself.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Similar discussion here. I prefer desktops, but that's just me. I also prefer DSLRs over smaller cameras.

http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-423098-1.html

mborn Loc: Massachusetts

At home. I utilize a Desktop with dual screen 27" and 24". Traveling, I utilize an ASUS Zen 350 with a 13 " screen which is good as a Mac Retina, so I can do some posting. I wait till home to do final processing

Morning Star Loc: West coast, North of the 49th N.

I have a Windows laptop, but I think this applies to all laptops:
I calibrate the monitor regularly (Spyder 4).
I make sure that the screen is always at the same angle when editing my photos. Easy to do: Once you find the right angle for you, measure from the top edge of the monitor to the front edge of the laptop and check that measurement every time you edit.
I make sure that I have the same type of light around me, every time: away from sunlight, neutral-coloured walls, an Ott-light placed so that it doesn't shine directly on the monitor.
That's about it.

dcampbell52 Loc: Clearwater Fl

Jerry, I don't disagree. I think, also that you have to consider how many photos that you are uploading/processing at a time and what you are using as an editor. If you are only doing 15 or 20 shots at a time and using View NX, or one of the free / general editors that may not require as much power or computer speed, then one type of computer will work fine. If you are using Adobe Lightroom / Photoshop, Corel or some of the higher end and more complete or powerful programs and or uploading 50-300 or more shots at a time and doing it daily or every two or three days, then you will probably want or need something more powerful. When I look at my needs, they are considerably higher than what a friend that I sometimes shoot with needs. He uses Elements and has a much less powerful machine. But he also will only work on 30-50 shots over a week or two.

tpelczy

if your only going to have one computer buy a laptop.