MacBook Configuration for photo process: Dear All, Happy Thanksgivings! I have not used any Apply computer before. I am serious to consider switching to MacBook. I have two...

Richard HZ Loc: Indiana, US

Dear All,

Happy Thanksgivings!

I have not used any Apply computer before. I am serious to consider switching to MacBook. I have two options/configurations to consider buying new M3 MacBook.
1. M3 Pro, CPU/GPU: 12-core/18-core; RAM: 18GB
2. M3 Max CPU/GPU: 14-core/30-core, RAM: 36GB

The option 2 is obvious better than option 1, but also more expensive. I use computer to process photos with Elements or Lightroom. My question is whether the option 1 is good enough. Your suggestion is greatly appreciated.

Thank You!

Toment Loc: FL, IL

Both are fine but you can get incredible performance with the cheaper one.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

Richard HZ wrote:

Dear All, br br Happy Thanksgivings! br br I hav... (show quote)

The most important thing you want for photography is at least 16GB of Unified Memory. Either of these choices checks that box. The next thing you want is to be sure you get the most storage you can afford ABOVE 512GB. If it were my choice, for photography, I'd get the first option with at least 1TB Storage. I'd rather have more storage than an M3 Max. Other than giving you extra memory, the M3 Max option provides marginal performance gains for photo processing. Now, if you do a lot of video editing, the Max is the better choice. Those extra graphics cores and performance cores really help for video.

The reason you want a good amount of storage is that the operating system uses storage as virtual memory when you open so many applications that you run out of main memory. You will want at least a third of your drive empty at all times, to accommodate virtual memory demands.

Frankly, there is no reason to use Photoshop Elements if you are paying $10/month for Lightroom, Photoshop, Lightroom Classic, and Bridge. I ignore Lightroom and Bridge. I use only the latest versions of Lightroom Classic and Photoshop. Lightroom Classic is the hub, and Photoshop is one spoke of the rest of my workflow. All my images go through Lightroom Classic and come back to Lightroom Classic if they go out to another application.

I'm running a 2020 M1 MacBook Air with 16GB Unified Memory and 1TB SSD storage. It is plenty snappy for 98% of what I do. Neural Filters in Photoshop do take a bit of time to process, but I haven't waited longer than half a minute on anything. Rendering files from Lightroom to disc is so fast that I was able to quit drinking too much coffee! The only thing that slows this thing down is exporting long-form 4K video from Final Cut Pro.

If you really want some thorough test videos, head on over to YouTube and the MaxTech channel and watch all their reviews of various configurations of the M3 MacBooks.

The one thing you want to be sure to do is think ahead to three or five years from now. Be sure you get the memory and storage options you will need then! The new Macs CANNOT be upgraded later. Memory is soldered onto the System on a Chip, and storage modules are soldered to the motherboard.

Apple Silicon Macs are a huge leap forward in performance from Intel Macs. The biggest differences are increased speed, far less power consumption, and less fan noise. The M1 and M2 MacBook Airs don't even HAVE fans. Mine barely got warm once, rendering a 45-minute video.

Richard HZ Loc: Indiana, US

Toment wrote:

Both are fine but you can get incredible performance with the cheaper one.

Thank you very much for the message and the opinion!

Richard HZ Loc: Indiana, US

burkphoto wrote:

The most important thing you want for photography is at least 16GB of Unified Memory. Either of these choices checks that box. The next thing you want is to be sure you get the most storage you can afford ABOVE 512GB. If it were my choice, for photography, I'd get the first option with at least 1TB Storage. I'd rather have more storage than an M3 Max. Other than giving you extra memory, the M3 Max option provides marginal performance gains for photo processing. Now, if you do a lot of video editing, the Max is the better choice. Those extra graphics cores and performance cores really help for video.

The reason you want a good amount of storage is that the operating system uses storage as virtual memory when you open so many applications that you run out of main memory. You will want at least a third of your drive empty at all times, to accommodate virtual memory demands.

Frankly, there is no reason to use Photoshop Elements if you are paying $10/month for Lightroom, Photoshop, Lightroom Classic, and Bridge. I ignore Lightroom and Bridge. I use only the latest versions of Lightroom Classic and Photoshop. Lightroom Classic is the hub, and Photoshop is one spoke of the rest of my workflow. All my images go through Lightroom Classic and come back to Lightroom Classic if they go out to another application.

I'm running a 2020 M1 MacBook Air with 16GB Unified Memory and 1TB SSD storage. It is plenty snappy for 98% of what I do. Neural Filters in Photoshop do take a bit of time to process, but I haven't waited longer than half a minute on anything. Rendering files from Lightroom to disc is so fast that I was able to quit drinking too much coffee! The only thing that slows this thing down is exporting long-form 4K video from Final Cut Pro.

If you really want some thorough test videos, head on over to YouTube and the MaxTech channel and watch all their reviews of various configurations of the M3 MacBooks.

The one thing you want to be sure to do is think ahead to three or five years from now. Be sure you get the memory and storage options you will need then! The new Macs CANNOT be upgraded later. Memory is soldered onto the System on a Chip, and storage modules are soldered to the motherboard.

Apple Silicon Macs are a huge leap forward in performance from Intel Macs. The biggest differences are increased speed, far less power consumption, and less fan noise. The M1 and M2 MacBook Airs don't even HAVE fans. Mine barely got warm once, rendering a 45-minute video.

The most important thing you want for photography ... (show quote)

Hi Bill,
Thank you very much! You provided such incredible insight and information. This will definitely help me for the selection! I will go for just M3 Pro for now and will get 1TB or 2TB storage option. Thanks again for your super input!

lwerthe1mer Loc: Birmingham, Alabama

I purchased a new MacBook Pro today. The sales person told me the M3 pro is sufficient for photo editing. The M3 Max is extreme overkill unless I wanted to edit 3-D movies.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

lwerthe1mer wrote:

I purchased a new MacBook Pro today. The sales person told me the M3 pro is sufficient for photo editing. The M3 Max is extreme overkill unless I wanted to edit 3-D movies.

The M3 Max is a filmmaker's and video editor's computer. It makes multiple stream video editing wherever you are a feasible experience. Still photographers and occasional video producers can live with a lot less. The M3 Pro is going to amaze you! My son has an M1 Pro that he bought two years ago. It is still all he needs for his video editing and school work.

BobHartung Loc: Bettendorf, IA

Richard HZ wrote:

Dear All, br br Happy Thanksgivings! br br I hav... (show quote)

Get a 2 or 4 TB SSD drive.

Richard HZ Loc: Indiana, US

burkphoto wrote:

The M3 Max is a filmmaker's and video editor's computer. It makes multiple stream video editing wherever you are a feasible experience. Still photographers and occasional video producers can live with a lot less. The M3 Pro is going to amaze you! My son has an M1 Pro that he bought two years ago. It is still all he needs for his video editing and school work.

Thank you again, Bill!

Richard HZ Loc: Indiana, US

BobHartung wrote:

Get a 2 or 4 TB SSD drive.

Thank you, Bob!