Which MBP for photography?

[lukegarnz]

Hi guys,

I'm hoping to start a photography degree next year and want to upgrade my MB to a MBP but can't decide which to get. I'm stuck between the 2 15" models as i want it to be portable so the 17" is out.

So is it worth the extra £300 to get the top 15" which all i can see means you get a better graphics card seeing as i can get a 320gb HDD for £100.

What do you guys think? the money isn't too much of an issue but obviously if i can save £300 that would be good.

Cheers

Luke

 

[Kebabselector]

What's wrong with the MB?

I use mine for onsite use during any photography work. Only limitation is the 1280x800 screen. The 15" MBP screen is only a little bit bigger (1440x900).

Or you could just get an external monitor for the MB

For photography work the video card seems almost unimportant, If it was an issue then I'd struggle using my MacMini which is where most of my photographs are worked on.

Next year might have a totally different range of MBPs and MB anyway, so if your not in a rush I'd wait.

 

[termina3]

Photo editing isn't often GPU intensive, so I'd suggest a lower-range MBP with more RAM and an external hard drive (both bought third-party).

As already noted, the MacBook has been known to work OK with photo editing as well.

 

[PkennethV]

though one thing to keep in mind is that Apple's Aperture does rely on the graphics card quite heavily. Also, the next version of Photoshop is rumored (or maybe confirmed?) to use CoreImage as well....
My personal suggestion would be to go for the higher end model since VRAM isn't upgradable whereas RAM is.

Also, if you could, wait for WWDC incase we see any upgrades.

 

[MadGoat]

Heck, I have the same MB as you and I use it on location at every photoshoot, when I get home, then I hook it up to an external monitor to work.

My next upgrade will be an iMac 24" or Mac Pro, my laptop is and will continue to be more than enough for photoshoots.

 

[lukegarnz]

Cheers for the advice guys, i thought that seeing as my MB struggles a bit and the fans get a bit excited when using aperture an upgrade would be needed. Well if i can carry using my MB effectively with my external monitor then that could mean i can get myself a canon 40d a bit quicker.

hmmmm decisions decisions!!!

cheers