Clifster

I am currently using an HP Envy desktop for all my Lightroom and Photoshop work. I have remodeled a storage unit into a photo workshop and I want to put a new PC in it for Photo work only. Any recommendations on processor power, gigs of RAM. I have some slowdowns with previews and the like on my current unit.

Second, I have a Plustek slide/neg scanner that is great, but slow and a new print scanner that I will be using a LOT once the shop is fully operational. I know that a lot of hard disk space (and an equal or greater backup system), but that is just good fast drives.

Third, I will be on the road a lot this year all over the US and would like a laptop for at least first-pass Lightroom and Photoshop work while I am living out of a motor home. I know there will be some performance trade-offs there, but are there any suggestions on a good one to use for the preliminary work?

Thanks in advance to any replies.

Clif Hunt

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

Here's the fine fine fine super computer that I had custom built for my needs: <url>http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-461559-1.html</url>

The builder delivered it a week ago and I'm enjoying every minute of it. I now can have all my daily programs open and at the ready on my computer: Adobe InDesign, Adobe Bridge, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Lightroom, Chrome, Corel Draw, Corel Photoshop, Excel, Word. My Topaz plugins, which used to crash my Windows 7 computer, now run on 6000x4000 pixel files in about one second. That's the kind of speed I needed because I spend each day from 0600 to 1200 out & about taking pictures and 1400 to 2400 processing those pictures. Processing now is a joy.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Boy, this is the week for people to buy new computers. So many requests for info! Photo processing is not like making a full length movie. Core i5, 16GB of memory are two items to include. You could get a Core i7, but you won't notice any difference in anything but the cost. An SSD as a C drive will get you going faster. I always add a second drive - HGST Ultrastar 3 or 4TB. A fantastic, expensive graphics card isn't necessary. Read reviews.

WayneT Loc: Paris, TN

As far as processors go an i5 would be your bare minimum preferably an i7 or AMD Ryzen. Get a motherboard that has Thunderbolt connectivity (preferably a 2011 v3), a minimum of 16Gb of ram, a 1070 (or better) 8Gb Nvidia (or equivalent) graphics board and go with a one Tb .m2 or standard SSD Drive as your C-drive (I have a one Tb .m2 as my C and a 1Tb Samsung SSD as my D drive). A good rule of thumb is to go with the largest and fastest system you can afford, they tend to last longer. This combination will give you a very fast and effective system. As far as a Laptop is concerned, consider a Surface Pro or a Vaio Canvas for one simple reason; you can edit on screen. I have a Vaio Canvas and I use it for both photography and art and the combination of both. The new Surface Pro looks like your best bet at this point but look at the specs on both.

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

Depends on what one does. I have an i3, an i5, an i7, and now an i7 super computer. There is a huge difference between the i5 and i7, and an even huger difference between my i7 and my i7 super computer. Of course, we might have to define "expensive." For me, it is expensive to sit here for 30 minutes waiting for an i5 computer to execute an action after, say, clicking on OK in a Topaz plugin. The i7 (16 GB of memory and a standard graphics board) took about 5 minutes, and the i7 super computer (32 GB of memory, a 1TB SSD, and an "expensive" graphics card) takes about 1 second. My i3 cost $399 nine years ago. My i5 cost $599 five years ago. My i7 cost $699 two years ago. My i7 super computer cost a little over $2,000 two weeks ago. Can I justify that $2,000 when it saves me 5-30 minutes processing for EACH & EVERY picture? Absolutely. If one doesn't make money with one's photography, then an i5 probably is all one needs. As my wise old grandmother told me back in 1966: "Time is money!"

FotoPhreak Loc: Whittier, CA

I purchased a new PC several months ago, so here are a few thoughts based on my purchase and experience with the new PC. I purchased a custom HP (HP DeskPro 400 G3) computer with a core i7 processor. It has 4 processors but uses Hyperthreading so it can run 8 threads at one time. I see almost no delays when using LR (or anything else for that matter). The PC has 8 GB of memory. I determined the memory size by looking at the amount of physical memory I was using on my old PC (which also had 8 GB) and it generally used about 6.2 GB of memory when I have the usual number of applications open. On the new PC, I find that the amount of physical memory is normally just about the same. Use the Windows Task Manager to see how much physical memory you are using on your current PC and use this to determine how much memory you should get on your new one.

I looked for a PC that provides at least a few expansion slots and had a large number of USB slots since I have 2 printers (a photo printer and a generic printer), 2 scanners (flatbed and film), and a number of external backup drives. The expansion slots were important to me because I have a very high end monitor (Eizo) that I use for editing my photos and a generic Viewsonic monitor that is my main monitor. I mention this because I believe that it is essential to have a good graphics card. I had an ATI FirePro V3900 card in my old PC. When I got the new PC, I plugged the monitors into the graphics slots that came with the PC. Several weeks ago, I moved the FirePro card into the new PC and after I calibrated the monitors, I was amazed at how much the image quality improved on both monitors, especially the Viewsonic. The color gamet on the Viewsonic was almost as good as the Eizo. If you are as anal as I am about color fidelity, I would suggest also getting a good graphics card. It does not need to be a high end gaming card, but does need to support high end graphics. The other reason I needed several expansion slots is so I could migrate a USB 3.0 expansion card from my old PC. When looking at the HP consumer grade PCs, I found that they didn't have much in expansion slots or the number of USB slots that I needed, so I ended up looking at their business models and the they met my needs. The prices were not that much more than the consumer grade PCs and had the real bonus of a 3-year on-site warrantee.

Hope this gives you something useful in selecting your new PC. I don't use laptops, so I can't help in that area.

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

The Windows Task Manager is very interesting to watch when one is running Photoshop Plug-ins like Redfield and a couple of the Topaz ones. I have 16 GB of memory on my i7 that I bought three years ago. Redfield was using almost all of it and it took up to 5 minutes to complete the task. My new i7 supercomputer has 32 GB of memory, an i7 quadcore with hyperthreading and a 1TB SSD. I have lots of memory and processing power left over when Redfield and Topaz are running. Redfield takes about 30 seconds now and the Topaz plug-ins are pretty much instantaneous; I would need a stop watch and a helper to time them they are so fast.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

http://gizmodo.com/dont-waste-money-on-intels-top-processor-1791426602
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2404674,00.asp
https://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/intel-core-i5-vs-i7/


The two Core i7s I bought cost $345 and $328. My computer cost $1,554 to put together. The Samsung 500GB M.2 drive is more than large enough for me, with 398GB free of free space. I have an HGST 4TB internal drive for the data.

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

Hi,
I have a desktop: i7, 32GB RAM, SSD for operating system, NVidia GeForce 750x graphics card and two internal data drives, one for photos and one for all other data. I can run PS CC,
LR CC and multiple other programs simultaneously without any drag. I have an ASUS( i7, 16 GB RAM, SSD) laptop that almost mirrors my desktop. Not quite as fast, but I only use it for travel. What really helps online is 200+ Mbps service from Optimum.

If you really want processing speed, go for the new AMD RYdex motherboard and processor. It's probably 50% faster than the i7.
Mark

LouV Loc: Juno Beach, FL

Clif. I just bought a Dell xps 13 laptop w/ i7 6560u processor w/16gb ram and 512 SSD and a very hi-res display. It runs LR with no problem. The 13in screen is usable for LR but challenging so at home I will be buying a larger monitor. I bought the 13 cause I travel a lot and it fits in my camera bag. The machine is super thin and only 2.9 pounds. It's very fast and half the price of a comparably equipped MacBook Pro which still uses the i5 processors.

Between cheap external drives and cloud storage I wouldn't get too concerned about the size of the hard drive.

Costco has the machine online for $1299 BUT when I called my local store to see if they had it in stock I was told they had one for only $999. It's a different Costco item number (1073323) than the one online (1131821) but the same machine. Even the Costco people were confused by that but I and they confirmed that the specs are identical. In fact if you search their site for the 1073323 it takes you to the 1131821. Different stores have it for different prices based, it appears, on how many they have left.

I've had it only a few days but, so far, I couldn't be happier with it.

Mary Kate Loc: NYC

Wow ....there goes your day and night.

Ted d Loc: Green Valley, AZ.

I use a Dell Workstation laptop for traveling, and a Lenovvo Think Station workstation desktop. both have 16GB of ram. There is not enough room in the laptop for another ssd drive so I have partitioned the C drive. The lenoveo has a 500 GB ssd C drive, a TB ssd D drive and a TB hybred drive(came with computer, Lenove did not have SSD drives at time of order) and a 250GB SSD The processors are Intel Xeon 8 core,10MB cash. I like the way Lonovo has made room for extra drives(not using all the compatments, also they receive SSDs, OS is windows 10 pro. Graphics Nvidia Quatro K4200 4 GB open GL (need for on 1). Both my desktops run 2 monitors, the Dell for business use has a 30' and a 17' in vertical. The Lenovo has a Dell 24' graphics monitor and a Dell 20' LCD monitor(couldn't afford another graphics monitor. Although I understand the price has droped as they have learned how to make them) The graphics printers are Epson P600 and a R1900, now obsolete but I use it because it will take 2' roll paper as well as the other sizes the P 600 only takes 13' rolls. the business computer uses a canon MX922 all in one.(cheap ink $2.00/cart) The scanner is a Epson V700 photo.

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

LOL.........Day and night went by-by around 1977.

Mary Kate Loc: NYC

??????? Has the meaning changed? Well maybe by late 2017 you will find a life.

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

My wise old grandmother taught me to treat each day like every other day. That way there would be no laziness on Fridays waiting on the upcoming weekend, no Monday blues because the weekend has ended, no looking forward to the holiday. Just lots of days and hours to make money so that when I am no longer physically or mentally capable of making money, I won't be a burden on society. I'm also what doctors now call a "polyphasic sleeper." Prior to 1994 we were called "catnappers." I don't sleep more than 3 hours at any one time, and never reach REM sleep, which means I don't dream, either. I have taken advantage of my condition to make myself available to my clients 24/7. Been doing that since college graduation in 1977, ergo the 1977 reference. Doesn't mean I work 24/7; that's physically impossible. But if I happen to be napping and the phone rings, I answer the phone, solve my client's issues, and move on, which usually means working for several hours. If I can get in a 30-minute nap, I can give you four solid hours of work, 24/7, in perpetuity. My wise old grandmother also taught me to take care of #1, and that's me, by scheduling time for myself each day. That I also have done since 1977, and if the phone rings and interrupts my time, I just carry on by extending by an appropriate amount my time for myself. My competitors have always hated me, every industry I've been in, because they get tired and need their 8-10 hours of sleep so they close up shop and go home. To provide 24/7 service like I do means that they would have to hired someone to work graveyard shifts and such.