I’m thinking about getting my sister some photo editing software for Christmas. I use Photoshop at work so I know what it can do (not that I can do it, mind you). Photoshop CS is more dinero than I can afford, and it’s probably more than she needs.
I remember the days of Photoshop LE, but I can’t tell if Photoshop Elements is really a “lite” version CS or something more akin to iPhoto, i.e., lots of capability for organizing and sharing photos but only fairly basic editing tools.
Because of the kind of artwork she does, I think she would want the abilitiy to work in layers and create masks, for example. Does Photoshop Elements provide that? Or is there another option (for Windows) out there that I’m not aware of?
In my limited experience of it Elements seemed quite simmilar to CS but lacks a number of features which are mostly of interest to the professional in preparation of images for publication etc. These tutorials would suggest the creative possibilities are immense.
Elements is “Photoshop Lite” in that it comes with the Photoshop basics, but lacks ImageReady, curves, color balance, and all those other nifty toys. As ticker noted, there is a wealth of tutorials and plug-ins out there for Elements which, in effect, can make it as powerful as regular Photoshop.
– Kiz, dedicated PSE user who also cannot afford regular Photoshop
PSE 3.0 was included with a camera my husband bought from an acquaintance. We’re taking a lot of photos of high school sports, and it’s pretty easy to turn out good looking photo montages. I walked through a sports memorabilia shop in our local mall just looking for ideas and almost everything I saw could be duplicated easily with our dated version of PSE.
Photoshop Elements: 90% of Photoshop for 50% of the price.
Great program for the non-professional, highly recommended. You might want to look into a book or two as well, since it’s not a pick-up-and-use program, but it’s still great.
I’ve used both the “full” version of Photoshop and the “Elements” version. (for the record, I am not a professional photographer or anything related to that field).
It does everything I need it to do, and does it well. I’ve created some pretty attractive pieces of art with it. And, although it does have something of a learning curve, it was fairly easy to pick up and use.
I agree with the others that Elements gives the most bang for the buck. However, there are some critical limitations that may limit more advanced users.
The lack of curves has already been mentioned but it should be pointed out that layer masks are also missing. I haven’t used Elements since version 3 but, as far as I know, no version of Elements has included them. Since you specifically mentioned masks as a criteria, you might want to consider other alternatives. PaintShop Pro is one possibility. I haven’t used it for years but when I did, it included curves, layers masks and a host of other functions.
If you still plan on getting Elements, you can’t go wrong with Scott Kelby. His books are aimed at photographers and largely avoid technical jargon so are very easy for a beginner to follow. Photoshop Elements 5 for Photographers looks like his latest in a long line of Photoshop and PS Elements books.
[HIJACK]I have Photoshop Elements at work, and Photoshop CS2 at home.
At work, when I drag an image onto another one, it has a box around it that I can use to adjust the size of the picture. I just drag out the corner or side and can even rotate the picture a little bit. It’s great for matching the sizes perfectly.
At home, on the CS2, the box is not there when I drag over the picture. I have to resize the picture first. I’m sure this is because some option or tool is turned off but I dont know what it is. Can someone help?[/HJ]
