MikeC

I've just recently joined a camera club and one of the more advanced members suggested downloading the free Picasa software for enhancing/editing my non-raw images? can anyone give me some insight on using this software for a beginner editing his images. I'm not ready yet to shot in RAW mode.

tarsen Loc: Minneapolis MN

I have been using Picasa for years. It is a great program. It does not need to import pictures into its own file system like Apple Photo and iPhoto does. It has good edits and allows rotation by degree. It also will backup pictures to Google Photos for free and not use up space if photos are 2048px. (Full size will use up your cloud space) It is not being updated but still works fine.

tarsen

tsomes Loc: Fargo ND

Picasa is fairly intuitive to use. Once you download it, you can drag a photo or photos over to the icon on your desktop and it will open the photo. Then just play around with it. There are various icons you can use, such as straightening a photo, change density, alter lighting, special effects, etc. You will have fun with it.

warrior Loc: Paso Robles CA

Check out http://www.geeksontour.com. They are big into Picasa.

pithydoug Loc: Catskill Mountains, NY

You ARE ready to shoot RAW! Shoot RAW plus jpg. Even if you don't use them now, somewhere down the line if you get more serious, you may want to go back. 8 Bits vs 14 when you need to make adjustments. The fact that your member is good and uses Picasa is simply his biasness. Maybe that is the first one he used and learned to be proficient. My club also has some folks that do it for a living and while they use primarily use photoshop(there isn't much you can't do and LR was not available) they all recommend LR/PS CC. if you are just starting. You can do 95-100% with LR and jump into PS from within LR for those times you need some more advanced work(layers, etc). It has a powerful catalog and search mechanism and is non-destructive - you can NOT edit the raw file.

Kickback - it's $10 a month charge for both and there is a learning curve as with any tool. There are tons of videos that you can watch for just about any Post process tool. Since you are a virgin to the PPing side and have joined a camera club, it sounds like you are looking to take you game up notch. You find that out if you club has critique sessions. If money is an issue then use it Picasa, Gimp, etc. If not, get started on the right foot.

DWU2 Loc: Phoenix Arizona area

Quoting from Wikipedia,

"On February 12, 2016, Google announced it was discontinuing support for Picasa Desktop and Web Albums, effective March 15, 2016, and focusing on the cloud-based Google Photos as its successor.Picasa Web Albums, a companion service, was closed on May 1, 2016."

Take a good look at Lightroom.

BudsOwl Loc: Upstate NY and New England

When I taught Picasa at the local community college, I recommended the class buy a book entitled Picasa for Seniors. Works no matter how old you are.

mffox Loc: Avon, CT

I have used Picasa for a number of years. For photo editing it's good BUT 1) I lost a bundle of image files that disappeared into the Google cloud, never to be found again, and, when I upgraded to Windows 10 on my PC and bought a MAC, Picasa support and performance fell apart on both platforms. I'm back to PSE 14 and experimenting with Affinity Photo on the MAC.

Kuzano

Picasa is DEAD! Google killed it. Google no longer supports it. Where the hell has everybody posting here been. It's been 6 months now.

Krikey!!!! Maroons all!!

Google was trying to get everybody using picasa to transfer to their cloud program, and were incredibly unsuccessful....

SO THEY KILLED PICASA AND STARTED GOOGLE PHOTO.

You can still use Picasa, but with NO training and only if you downloaded a copy before they dumped it.

AND So Much for your "advanced" member of your photo club. Photo club politics have always driven me away from them. My you luck out and get some good out of yours before the bottom falls out.

pithydoug Loc: Catskill Mountains, NY

Bingo!

And this is one of big issues with free stuff. There is always the case where it suddenly dies. The usual thought process says " I'll still use use it, I don't need support. True until the time your Operating System gets updated and some or all of it goes toes up. If you hook into a tool that has formal support, i.e you pay for it, you will not be left stranded. Even if they kill it, you will get early notice to go to the newer release or have time to find another.

The general consensus, picasa should be the last place you want to edit photos. I still think LR/PS cc is you best choice for today and many tomorrows.....

Photocraig

I started with Picassa and liked it. But I moved to the Adobe Creative Cloud which includes Lightroom and Photo Shop and adobe Camera Raw (which I haven't tried). Even on my limited budget, it is worth the $10 a month. And there are more hours of free tutorials and training on Adobe and You Tube that most of us have to spend watching. I agree, if you're going to learn a tool, learn one with long time support, automatic upgrades and tons of Developer and third party education available.
Start by Googling Lightroom tutorials and see, first, how many pages show up. Then pick one by Tim Gray, Julianne Kost, or if you're good with a French Accented English, Serge Ramelli. Watch a few and see if this Digital Post Processing thing is for you, and if they give you the confidence that you can learn yourself out of problems you will encounter along the learning curve. Which I think you will.

Welcome and good picture making to you. Sometimes, even Free can be very expensive, because time is the most precious thing you have to invest. Often, "Free" turns out to be value priced.
C

pithydoug Loc: Catskill Mountains, NY

Add Anthony Morganti to the LR youtube pool.

bull drink water Loc: pontiac mi.

I still use it I was able to download a copy after google announced it's dropping of it. i'll keep using it as long as I can still get copies of it.

brucewells Loc: Central Kentucky

I do photography for my pleasure/relaxation/creativity. I don't sell my images, but I would if someone wanted to buy them. I'm not a professional in any form. I simply love doing it. A few years ago, I realized that premier editing tools came from Adobe. That's what they do. They provide software tools for the graphic (2-dimensional) arts. I gritted my teeth and bought a LR/PS bundle from B&H. It cost me over $900. Then, to keep the software updated (a must in my opinion), I had to spend another $275 every year. Then came the Creative Cloud. What a dream!! A measly $10/month to get the premier software that I had spent so much to acquire was a Godsend. And the updates came freely!!

Just because I'm not a professional photographer doesn't mean I don't want to do the best I can do with my images. I also subscribe to Kelby One for instructional purposes. I frequent this forum, 500px, DPReview, and a host of others just to keep creative juices flowing. My point is simply that if we really want to pursue this craft, we must be willing to invest in it. Just my thoughts.

pithydoug Loc: Catskill Mountains, NY

AMEN!!!!