What to purchase (Page 2): you are soooo right. it's the water I don't like. unfortunately, I imported the original into the new app and saved it from there. i'm learning from my...

cindy11 Loc: Honeoye Falls, NY

Erv wrote:

Yes, did you add a lot of contrast and sharpening? Do you have the original? If you can post it we could play with it a little.
It is mostly the water not looking natural that I don't like.
Erv

you are soooo right. it's the water I don't like. unfortunately, I imported the original into the new app and saved it from there. i'm learning from my mistakes. i would have loved you to work on this picture.. i'll keep searching, but I think the original is gone. again, I am learning.

PNagy Loc: Missouri City, Texas

I have a Mac. I use Photoshop CS5, the industry standard. Unless money is an issue it is your best bet. Some bewail its learning curve, but if you do buy it, you will find you can do things with it right away. You may never master all of its features, but you will learn to do what you need, and growth with it never stops.

aaron Loc: brooklyn ny

Take a look at acdsee . Has elements of LR but it's less and easier to use. They have pro & easier levels.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

cindy11 wrote:

MWAC wrote:

If you have it in your budget go with CS5, followed by LR then Elements.

what is cs5?

Very expensive.

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

cindy11 wrote:

I have a Mac, I use iphoto for my pictures. I have had a trial for Aperture, not too impressed. Who owns a Mac and can advise me the best program to buy-----PS, Lightroom, etc.

I have an iMac and use Aperture 3. I am very happy with it.

Brucej67 Loc: Cary, NC

CS5 is great, however I agree with you, for beginners CS5 has a steep learning curve and unless an individual is willing to put in the time and effort learning it (which could be half a year) the $700 investment might be better spent elsewhere.

CaptainC wrote:

I would seldom disagree with MWAC. but in this cas... (show quote)

DAG

As a long time user of all things Mac, I do love iPhoto it's still the best for straightening, cropping, and basic corrections.
My first purchased program was photoshop elements and it does (almost) everything I'd ever want it to and compared to full blown Photoshop (CS5±) it is a piece of cake to learn the basics so that you're up and running in no time then, you can start learning the 'fun' stuff! Stick with Elements.

grayfox5

I have and use CS5 and Lightroom 3. These are a bit pricey and more than most folks would ever use. Elements 10 is inexpensive and a very powerful photo post processor. It also has a less steep learning curve compared to the others I mentioned. Elements is what we are recommending to people in the West Valley Photo Club where I am Ed Committee chair. Elements is probably all you will ever need.

George H Loc: Brooklyn, New York

cindy11 wrote:

I have a Mac, I use iphoto for my pictures. I have had a trial for Aperture, not too impressed. Who owns a Mac and can advise me the best program to buy-----PS, Lightroom, etc.

Cindy,
I have a IMac24 that I use extensively for my editing, I use a number of programs. ACDSee Pro for Mac is relatively cheap and works great. Then you have Lightroom 3 probably one of the most versatile programs around, I use its tether capability all the time. If you have the money Photoshop is the ultimate. Just remember you have to play with any program to the learning curves are extensive.

George

CAM1017 Loc: Chiloquin, Oregon

cindy11 wrote:

I have a Mac, I use iphoto for my pictures. I have had a trial for Aperture, not too impressed. Who owns a Mac and can advise me the best program to buy-----PS, Lightroom, etc.

I use Mac's and have used I-photo and Aperture for many years and have looked and used other programs. My recommendation would be to stay with Aperture 3. You will not find a better program. If you have specific questions on using it, I will try and help.

cindy11 Loc: Honeoye Falls, NY

CAM1017 wrote:

cindy11 wrote:

I have a Mac, I use iphoto for my pictures. I have had a trial for Aperture, not too impressed. Who owns a Mac and can advise me the best program to buy-----PS, Lightroom, etc.

I use Mac's and have used I-photo and Aperture for many years and have looked and used other programs. My recommendation would be to stay with Aperture 3. You will not find a better program. If you have specific questions on using it, I will try and help.

Gosh thanks, I'll keep your site on my computer as I'm sure I'll have questions.

cindy11 Loc: Honeoye Falls, NY

CAM1017 wrote:

cindy11 wrote:

I have a Mac, I use iphoto for my pictures. I have had a trial for Aperture, not too impressed. Who owns a Mac and can advise me the best program to buy-----PS, Lightroom, etc.

I use Mac's and have used I-photo and Aperture for many years and have looked and used other programs. My recommendation would be to stay with Aperture 3. You will not find a better program. If you have specific questions on using it, I will try and help.

Gosh thanks, I'll keep your site on my computer as I'm sure I'll have questions. And you are from Rochester, me too!

CAM1017 Loc: Chiloquin, Oregon

Yes, I was born in Rochester, Moved to Macedon, N. Y. and later Ithaca, N. Y. before giving up on the weather and moving to the West Coast. Would be happy to help with Mac/Aperture questions. I can be contacted directly at chas.matuk@gmail.com. When I was a kid my family vacationed at a lake near where you live.
Charlie Matuk

julesreyesmarko Loc: Los Angeles

choose a pic, make a copy, play with the program and learn the controls. Check out tutorials on youtube.

jackinkc Loc: Kansas City

cindy11 wrote:

I have a Mac, I use iphoto for my pictures. I have had a trial for Aperture, not too impressed. Who owns a Mac and can advise me the best program to buy-----PS, Lightroom, etc.

Cindy, I also use Mac computers (before I switched I used PCs - from the early '80's until four years ago) and I really don't think that Macs have special special requirements for photo processing software. I have used a number of photo programs, with varying degrees of success and ease. I know that there is no single program that can be used without careful study because none of the better ones are exactly intuitive. I prefer to use Lightroom and Photoshop CS5. I am acquainted with a number of pro photographers who use this combination. Some of my friends use only Lightroom and some only CS5. I think that if one does not wish to spend a high price for their software either Photoshop Elements 10 and/or Lightroom would be good choices.