What software do you use regularly?

[Abstract]

Right now, I see all this photo-related software on my Dock, and I'm trying to figure out what I should get rid of. There are 2 pieces of software I'm just playing with based on what RacerX said he uses, but one of them seems good.

What photo editing or organizing software do you use regularly? Anything related to looking at, organising, editing, or playing around with photos counts, I guess.

I currently use iPhoto because I really don't believe I need something like Aperture, and I don't believe many people who have it are benefitting as much as they should be when paying for software that expensive. I'm sure it's great, but iPhoto 6 seems fantastic for organizing photos.

I use Image Capture to import my photos into a folder on my Desktop before importing into iPhoto, then I rename the folder and all files inside sequentially like this: Year-Month-Day: Name of Event. After that, I import the folder into iPhoto.

I use iPhoto Buddy to manage my other iPhoto Library that I keep on an external HD. It has all my photos, while my laptop iPhoto library keeps everything within the last 2 years.

Photoshop CS is sometimes used, but I'm no expert and other programs seem to do many of the things I want to do, but in an easier way.

PixelNHance seems fantastic for editing and viewing the original and edited photo side by side. There's nothing else like it, really. It's something I'm experimenting with (since yesterday ). Oh, and it also seems to be really good at removing noise without making the photo seem blurry.

My new MacBook didn't come with GraphicConverter, and I had to get it! I loved using it on my old PowerBook, so I bought it since it does so much for $30. I mean, it practically does everything I'd want to do except for that magnetic lasso tool in Photoshop.

I often use an Automator script I made to change the image size and then appear in Preview so that I can see the new size. Very useful if you want to resize lots of photos for emailing or posting at MacRumours.

After some testing, ToyViewer is going to be deleted because there are so many different programs that seem to do the same thing. Seashore is way too basic, so it's also gone. Yes, it's supposed to be loosely based on what GIMP is, but it's not nearly as useful. GIMP may be horrible to use and look at on a Mac, but at least it has useful features.

 

[beavo451]

Nikon Capture to open and convert RAW files to TIFF.
Photoshop CS2 to correct, enhance, and touch-up photos.

 

[ipacmm]

Aperture and Photoshop CS2...does everything I need it to do.

 

[fireball jones]

iPhoto to organize my photos for showing them to people (and I print through it), I've got a demo of Lightroom I've been playing with, although it's a bit taxing on my G4 mini, so only on photos I really like.

I do use Seashore to crop and resize (it's quick), and Automator to batch resize photos. I organize them online with Coppermine.

 

[Butters]

I use iPhoto usually when I've been shooting jpeg.. say like family photos and when I've just been out with friends, that kinda thing.

and I use lightroom when I've been taking serious photos, and if I've shot using raw ( becuse iphoto doesn't support my camera's fuji .RAF raw format )

 

[ksz]

Until the 2nd generation Mac Pro comes out I'll continue to use my homemade Athlon X2 (dual core) PC. Every component was cherry picked, from the motherboard to the matched pair of Corsair TwinX memory to the nVidia 7800GT graphics to the twin 320GB SATA-II hard drives in RAID-0 (which approximately doubles the disk I/O) to the high-efficiency power supply.

I have a 1.25 GHz PowerBook G4, but it's too underpowered for the images coming off my D200. So on the PC side my favorite graphics software is:

1. ACDSee Pro 8.0. Fully supports D200 NEFs. ACDSee is both a catalog/album manager and an image enhancer. Wondeful UI and very fast.

2. PaintShop Pro X. Photoshop is too expensive, but I'll pony up for the Mac version of CS3 next year.

Back on the PB, I use iPhoto occasionally and only to order photo books. Apple's book service is a bit expensive, but they do a great job.

 

[spicyapple]

1. Photoshop CS2
2. RealViz Stitcher
3. Bridge

and possibly Aperture when they release the next version.

 

[Clix Pix]

Aperture and CS2 -- that's it, that's all I need. I put my images into folders in a Pictures section rather than into iPhoto. I tried the free beta of Lightroom but haven't really used it all that extensively, as I really prefer Aperture.

 

[Kernow]

I use the following:

1. iPhoto - for importing, organising, slideshows etc
2. Photoshop CS2 - for editing (obviously)
3. Bridge - if I am just doing little bits of editing or touching up, I will just use iPhoto & Photoshop, but if I am working on a lot of images, I will export them into a new folder and use Bridge & Photoshop

 

[Grimace]

Aperture and occasionally Photoshop CS2.

 

[QuantumLo0p]

Bye bye PS

I find myself getting more and more away from Photoshop because I have chosen to limit myself to minor level correction, cropping and resizing. That's it.

Part of my photographic style is not to do any major retouching or adding anything that is not in the original photo. I will not add poeple, animals or moons where they did not exist to any of my photos unless that is what the customer wants. And they like the purity very much. I used to charge $100/roll but with digital I have had to change everything and redefine my services.

As my photographic style standards have matured I've found myself using less and less of Photoshop. Pop Photo might disagree with me, but oh well.

I do photographic work, not graphic publishing. Photoshop is turning out to be overkill for me. I will probably keep my Gimp up to date but that's it.

 

[Clix Pix]

Quantum LoOp, you might want to check out Aperture, then....it works great for doing exactly what you've said: the basic, minimal PP. That's the way I work, too: I try to shoot the image right in the camera the first time so that when it comes up on my computer monitor it has accomplished my creative vision so that all I need to do is maybe a little sharpening, a little levels correction if needed, a little cropping if needed and of course if I'm planning to share on the web, resizing for the web. That's it. I do not get into extreme image manipulations in Photoshop and I am not one to say, "oh, if I make a mistake, I can always fix it in PS!" No way....

 

[QuantumLo0p]

Quantum LoOp, you might want to check out Aperture, then....it works great for doing exactly what you've said: the basic, minimal PP....That's it. I do not get into extreme image manipulations in Photoshop...

It's good to hear that somebody else besides myself still shoots like that. I know some sports and motorsports photographers who do not do much manipulation and I try to apply the same philosophy to all my work.

I suppose the line between photography and graphic publishing can get blurred from time to time but to me photography is still clear cut.

Thanks for the tip on Aperture. I'll check it out on my next trip to an Apple store.

 

[shecky]

Capture One Pro for RAW import and adjustment
Photoshop CS2 for all the usual editing and whatnot
iView Media Pro for organization and viewing

 

[Buschmaster]

Here is my entire sequence:
Camera -> iPhoto -> Photoshop CS2 -> Coppermine Photo Gallery (Using Firefox)

I could go more in depth, but I'd simply be saying what you guys are

 

[Kartel]

I pretty much just use iphoto for the organizing and minor editing. For more extensive editing, I use Gimpshop.

 

[Mike Teezie]

Image Capture, and Photoshop CS 2.

iPhoto for personal stuff.

 

[bigbossbmb]

iPhoto for my Point and Shoot

Aperture and Photoshop CS2 for my DSLR

 

[ChrisA]

... I try to shoot the image right in the camera the first time so that when it comes up on my computer monitor it has accomplished my creative vision so that all I need to do is maybe a little sharpening, a little levels correction if needed, a little cropping if needed... I do not get into extreme image manipulations in Photoshop and I am not one to say,

That is one view point. But have you ever read any a Ansel Adam's books? He very strongly takes the oposite view point and extensivly manipulated everything. Of couse he did not use a computer but used hi hands and chemicals.

In his tie straight photography was concidered at best a "graphic art". He wanted to elevate photos to the level of fine art. He and the others in his "camp" thought that the image should convey the "feeliing" of the subject but did not have to exactly represent the subject as seen by the eye. This much hs said directly but if you read into it I think he ment that if the photographer does not add something to what a camera does automatically then how is a photographer an artist. Or put another way if you simply take a nice snapshot of a pretty model then all the "credit" goes to the model and photography is simply a kind of reportage.

OK I can argue. A photographer always adds something to a photo. If nothing else he decides where to aim the camera and when to trip the shutter.

Here are some images I put happen to have on the web right now.
http://albertson.dyndns.org/~chris/OML42/Photos.html
All of then were highly "tweeked" using Gimp. The animals that live in alifornia waters are camoflaged and don't stand out, well they don't untill you learn to see them. I used off-camera flash and then changed the backgrounds to that the animals show. The manipulation plays on the fact that human vison is "relative" A color looks bright if next to something dull. So I'll dull down the non-subject

Back on topic. What software did I use:

1. Image capture to download from camera
2. Import to iPhoto to do selects and tags and rate
3. Gimp to edit, blurr backgrounds darken edages, selectivly sharpen areas of the subject and so on.
4. iWeb to make this site
5. Apache to serve the web pages to you.

 

[law guy]

iPhoto for 99% of everything I do - downloads my .jpeg fine + RAW files from my 30D and stores them just fine. If I need to play with a RAW file (very rare, but I like having the RAW file in addition to my fine JPEG as a digital negative), I use the Canon software.

 

[BakedBeans]

Photoshop CS2 and Lightroom.

 

[snap58]

Quantum LoOp, you might want to check out Aperture, then....it works great for doing exactly what you've said: the basic, minimal PP. That's the way I work, too: I try to shoot the image right in the camera the first time so that when it comes up on my computer monitor it has accomplished my creative vision so that all I need to do is maybe a little sharpening, a little levels correction if needed, a little cropping if needed and of course if I'm planning to share on the web, resizing for the web. That's it. I do not get into extreme image manipulations in Photoshop and I am not one to say, "oh, if I make a mistake, I can always fix it in PS!" No way....

For Pictures it's 90% Aperture and 10% CS, I do use an automatic backup program to copy the pictures to an external drive every couple days in addition to Apertures Vaults.

I am lazy and hate to do any PP, so I rarely go out of Aperture unless I want to do a tri or duo tone, then I do use CS. I also hate to crop, so what's in the picture is generally what I wanted in it.

 

[cookie1105]

PSCS + Lightroom