UTMike Loc: South Jordan, UT

I am a newbie (Although an old retired guy) with a Nikon D80 (more camera than I can master right now) and I just bought a 15-inch MacBook Pro. What photo editing program would you recommend?

dennis2146 Loc: Eastern Idaho

I also have a MacBook Pro and use the basic Mac Photos program for most of my editing. It is simple and does the basic chores for me of cropping and limited lightening/darkening of my photos. I also have Lightroom 6 but need to learn to use it.

Many people here on UHH use PhotoShop and/or a number of other post processing programs. I am sure you will hear from many of them. Those programs are truly excellent but some have a learning curve to get the most out of them. What you choose will depend on what you feel your needs are to bring your photos to their visual best.

Welcome to the UHH forum. You will find much here of interest and some mighty fine people. Everyone is helpful and eager to answer any questions you might have. In return we may look to you for answers or maybe a fresh spin on an old subject. Don't be afraid to submit photos for us to look at. Our members range from total beginners in photography to masters of photography.

Dennis

dirtpusher Loc: tulsa oklahoma

What ever your pocket can afford. Are you wanting to be able to make major changes like taking things our or putting in. I would at least get pse. If just make enhancements I would go with LR. there are tons of tutorials free online. Utube University is good place to learn

Base_fiddle

[quote=UTMike]I am a newbie...

I'm also a newbie, but I've been taking photos for many years...I too am retired. I started using Lightroom about 8 years ago, before it became "popular." You'll see a lot of posts on UHH about LR. It's a very good basic editing program and allows really good edits quickly. I'm still learning its nuances, but am sold on the program. If I ever get better, I'll combine LR with Photoshop. May I live long enough to accomplish my goal.

Have fun with learning more about photography in your retirement...it can addictive.

Treepusher Loc: Kingston, Massachusetts

Welcome to the forum! As with anything, you can get into editing a lot or a little. If you want an editing program that will do most everything you might want, try Photoshop Elements. If you're more ambitious, sign up for Adobe's Creative Cloud, about ten bucks a month and get the full version of Photoshop along with Lightroom. Neither is especially hard to learn, it just takes time. There are lots of online tutorials, and they are basically the gold standard of editing programs. Corel's PaintShop Pro is also very good.

There are freebies out there as well, like Gimp and Picasa, which will do a fair amount too. Up to you how much or how little you want to do. You can always try a freebie, and if you get into it and want to do even more, you can always move up to one of the bigger programs.

HOT Texas Loc: From the Heart of Texas

I recommend Luminar for Mac!!!!!

https://macphun.com/luminar-special?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Luminar%20brand%20(search,%20USA)&utm_term=%2BLuminar&utm_content=Luminar

UTMike Loc: South Jordan, UT

Thanks for all the comments! I have read the forum since the beginning of the year but this is my first post. The response is very helpful.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Welcome to our forum!

Try using the software on your Mac. There's also the new Affinity - good, inexpensive.

Others -

Affinity
http://www.shutterbug.com/content/affinity-photo-software-review-has-photoshop-met-its-match#d1c5lY5EQ03QoLjh.97
http://www.diyphotography.net/affinity-photo-can-give-adobe-run-money/
Others
http://digital-photography-school.com/a-beginners-guide-to-choosing-the-right-post-production-software/
http://www.digitalcameraworld.com/2015/03/23/best-photo-editing-software-photoshop-cc-and-7-photoshop-alternatives-tested/1/
http://www.redmondpie.com/best-adobe-photoshop-alternatives-for-windows-and-mac-list Affinity
http://www.shutterbug.com/content/affinity-photo-software-review-has-photoshop-met-its-match#d1c5lY5EQ03QoLjh.97
http://www.diyphotography.net/affinity-photo-can-give-adobe-run-money/

Free -

http://fieldguide.gizmodo.com/the-best-photoshop-alternatives-that-are-totally-free-5974500
http://lightzoneproject.org/

a6k Loc: Detroit & Sanibel

I am a Mac user and I have been experimenting with many of them.
First, in the free category, you already have Preview and Photos which are both quite good.
Of the ones I've tried that have a price, I like Luminar but Lightroom is just as capable if harder to use. I haven't yet tried Affinity.
I personally did not like ON or some other trial versions. YMMV.
Some of the free web-based stuff including Picassa are also good.

"Good" depends on what you want to achieve and it may become harder to get to as you "develop". Pun intended. Have fun or skip it. But be sure to try raw if you don't already.

DavidPine Loc: Fredericksburg, TX

Lightroom and Photoshop CC. $10. per month. Thousands of tutorials for free on Youtube. You have a good computer and lots of time. Good luck.

raypep

I have been using Luminar for about six months now and find it easy to use and an excellent editor .

sb Loc: Florida's East Coast

I would start with Photoshop Elements. A good basic program. The full PS program requires a monthly fee and has a steep learning curve.

CPR Loc: Nature Coast of Florida

If you enjoy post-processing as much, or more, than photography then the Lightroom/Photoshop/Bridge/ACR deal for 10 bucks a month will provide the tools for years of interesting times with photos and videos.
You would have software for any task that comes up from making panoramas to taking drunken Uncle Charlie out of the family reunion photo...............
Obviously I enjoy Photoshop - I'm in the process of adding a new window to a picture of the front of the house to see if it will look good.

Picdude Loc: Ohio

Mike, welcome to the forum. Editing software is always an often asked question on here, and for good reason. You have SOOoooo many options. I personally feel it is better to start with something easy, give your confidence a boost, then work your way up when trying to teach yourself

As a new user, I would recommend basic, easy, and already available to you. I know nothing about Apple's Photos, but many on here say it is quite good. You also should have software that came with your camera. If you are not able to find the software that came with your camera, try the link below, choose the Software button at the top of the page.

http://downloadcenter.nikonimglib.com/en/products/8/D80.html

Once you get started working with basic editing, you will probably figure out pretty quick whether basic software is enough or if you want to move up to something more in-depth.

I agree with those that say Phototshop is the Gold Standard. Photoshop does a LOT, some of which you may not use. But there are a ton of tutorials, both written and video; and you don't have to learn it all at one time. Find a function that you really want to use, load a tutorial, and master that. When you want to try something else , you'll be ready. Before you know it, you'll know more about the software than you ever thought you would learn.

Again, welcome to the forum, nd happy shooting.

rydabyk Loc: Florida Panhandle

Welcome to the forum Mike.

I'll chime in and second Lightroom and Photoshop. Not really too expensive at $10/month with the Adobe Creative Cloud, plus, you get all of the updates as soon as they become available. Alos, there are tons of free youtube videos (Anthony Morganti and Yuri Fineart are two I like) to get you started down the right path and help you establish a good work flow.