Looking for temporary alternative to CS3.

[Rychy]

Well I was in the middle of building myself a nice little studio (I'm kind of starting a new career path hopefully)... and then I decided to move, so I'm a little short on cash for the time being. I planned on buying CS3, but I think I'm going to have to hold off for a few months.

I was wondering if the combination of Pixelmator, VectorDesigner, and Pages (08) could suit as maybe a poorman's CS3? I'm kind of new to graphic design, so I'm just wondering if it would be even worth my time learning these programs. I already have them all, so it's not like I'm buying anything. I have a friend that wants me to try doing this wedding book for them, and I'd actually really like to start it, but I guess if I don't have the right tools...

Currently I would consider myself much more of a video editor, but I'm quite looking forward to starting some design stuff, and taking classes in the future.

 

[LeviG]

try gimp first, its free and is highly regarded by a lot of people (myself included).
Pixelmator (although good) appears to have some limitations that photoshop users miss

 

[ChrisA]

try gimp first, its free and is highly regarded by a lot of people (myself included).
Pixelmator (although good) appears to have some limitations that photoshop users miss

I agree with the above Gimp works well if you don't need 16-bit per channel color. Web designers don't.

But do concider Adobe Photoshop Elements 6.0. ("PSE") It was everal advantages. (1) Adobe will allow you to upgrade to the full PS CS3 and you can then recover the full price of PSE. (2) The user interface in PSE and PS CS3 is very, very much alike so you effort to learn PSE are not wasted and (3) PSE integrates with Adobe Bridge and the other CS3 apps. (4) PSE is bundled with some scanners and most Wacom tablets however it is the older 4.0 version that is still inside most retail boxes. You will need a scanner and tablet.

But as said above Gimp is free and very powerfull.

 

[ezekielrage_99]

GIMP, Pixelmator and Pages might be able to get you the results although I'm not 100% you need to produce

 

[Kwill]

One of the main things missing in Pixelmator are CMYK support, specialized font palette and color picker. However, it is a very robust application that should suit your needs starting out. Keep in mind, though, that for a wedding book, you might be able to do everything in iPhoto - even order a hardbound book with professional full-color cover. Even though I have CS3, I have impressed friends with iPhoto books.