sorry if i sound like a newb but I'm in the process of getting a canon digital rebel XTi and plan to shoot in RAW. I'm also in the process of getting adobe design premium (for other work also) and I'm wondering if photoshop can do everything aperture can? or would it be worth it to get aperture also?
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Does photoshop CS3 do everything that aperture 2 can?
- Thread starter NRose8989
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They're two entirely different apps with very different purposes/workflows.
Aperture is the equivalent of Adobe Lightroom - it allows you to maintain a photo library and do basic manipulations (think of it as a digital darkroom).
Photoshop is a whole other animal - it doesn't have the library management functions but allows you to alter and re-touch photographs to a much more significant degree - it can, however, be something of a sledgehammer to crack a nut, and for adjustment of exposure on RAW images, for instance, it's often simpler to do the job in Aperture or Lightroom.
Most pros would own both, but it really depends on what you need.
Aperture is the equivalent of Adobe Lightroom - it allows you to maintain a photo library and do basic manipulations (think of it as a digital darkroom).
Photoshop is a whole other animal - it doesn't have the library management functions but allows you to alter and re-touch photographs to a much more significant degree - it can, however, be something of a sledgehammer to crack a nut, and for adjustment of exposure on RAW images, for instance, it's often simpler to do the job in Aperture or Lightroom.
Most pros would own both, but it really depends on what you need.
If you only count image manipulations, yes Photoshop can do la lot more than Aperture. But image manipulations is only about 40% of what Aperture does. The two programs have overlapping abilities.
What I suggest is that you start out with iPhoto. The combination of iPhoto and Photoshop will do almost everything a photographer needs to do. Later it is very easy to convert from iPhoto to Aperture (Apple made sure of that in order to be able to sell Aperture to iPhoto users. It is a one-click operation)
What Aperture does for you is speed up your workflow. It can only make minor adjustments to the image but it is very good at sorting and catalogging and searching and making quick adjustments. Typically if I shoot 200 photos I'll imort them to Aperture, rate and adjust them add metadata tage then maybe the ones I really like might get fuether treatment in Photoshop but most of my work never goes through Photoshop. Aperture is so much faster.
If you are just starting out I'd suggest the combination of iPhoto and Adobe Photoshop Elements 6.0. Upgrade later. Yu don't loose in the upgrade as Adobe gives you a good upgrade deal a iPhoto -> Apterure upgrade is also painless.
I really hate posts like these. Yes, it's been answered a lot, but is it really that hard to just answer the question for someone? If everyone just searched the forums for the answers to their question then forum activity would just disappear.
To answer though... Aperture is great for adjusting a well done image. It does not do layers, allow you to add text or create layout documents (other than the book), etc that you would use Illustrator or Photoshop for.
Not to mention that we have to hear from both types of @$$holes... the ones that scream "search the forums" and the ones that whine about old threads jumping back to the top of the stack.
Both parties need to shut up and get a grip.
As for the OPs situation, your question has been pretty much answered already, so I hope no one repeats what has been said, but what hasn't been said is your ability to use Bridge and Finder if you wish.
The main reason to get Aperture is because it combines Photo Mechanic, Bridge to a certain extent, Photoshop, various plug-ins and Finder into one application. If you aren't looking to spend that amount of cash, you can use iPhoto, which is a bit of a nuisance for editing and toning, or Bridge and organize your photos via the Finder.