I'm a user of Photoshop Elements, and had used 9 for ages but when it came to my new build, I couldn't find the DVD (and therefore the key) to reinstall, and bought the latest version 14. I think I wrote here or elsewhere they seemed to have dumbed down the interface further, even though there were some new features in it.
Today I saw the dark side. Trying to open a raw, it asked me if I wouldn't want to try Lightroom instead? Did I buy a product, or an advertising platform?
<a class="bbc_url" href="http://snowporing.deviantart.com/">dA</a> Canon 7D2, 7D, 5D2, 600D, 450D, 300D IR modified, 1D, EF-S 10-18, 15-85, EF 35/2, 85/1.8, 135/2, 70-300L, 100-400L, MP-E65, Zeiss 2/50, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300/2.8, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Olympus E-P1, Panasonic 20/1.7, Sony HX9V, Fuji X100.
I hear you... I actually have LR and the "Big" PS as rental software, but I just don't like them that much, especially LR. Still being an Apple Aperture user, I'll have to switch to something else someday, even though there is no pressure, yet, Aperture still works fine on the latest OS X build.
But my feeling is that I'll rather switch to something like C1 combined with Pixelmator instead of an Adobe-only solution.
-- Markus
Editor
opticallimits.com
With moto - never change the winning team I still use PS CS5
For more serious work I tend to use DxO in the 1st instance anyway. The above was just for a quick and dirty, don't really care about quality conversion. If only I remembered to turn on camera jpeg...
Really wish I can find PSE9 again. It just had a better interface than 14, by not hiding things behind too many buttons, and a fixed layout that wastes precious vertical screen space. Really doesn't help on a 21:9 monitor...
<a class="bbc_url" href="http://snowporing.deviantart.com/">dA</a> Canon 7D2, 7D, 5D2, 600D, 450D, 300D IR modified, 1D, EF-S 10-18, 15-85, EF 35/2, 85/1.8, 135/2, 70-300L, 100-400L, MP-E65, Zeiss 2/50, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300/2.8, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Olympus E-P1, Panasonic 20/1.7, Sony HX9V, Fuji X100.
Quote:I hear you... I actually have LR and the "Big" PS as rental software, but I just don't like them that much, especially LR. Still being an Apple Aperture user, I'll have to switch to something else someday, even though there is no pressure, yet, Aperture still works fine on the latest OS X build.
But my feeling is that I'll rather switch to something like C1 combined with Pixelmator instead of an Adobe-only solution.
-- Markus
On Apple OS, we really have some nice/r alternatives than PS: PhotoLine32, Pixelmator or Affinity Photo. I lately became a big fan of the latter, Pixelmator rests on the drive but has no real advantages. And PhotoLine is very good for batch processing and PDF work, but it might be, Affinity Designer or Publisher can do the same or better.
Both very affordable and not too difficult to get used to, Affinity put some great tutorials on Vimeo. I'm also using Aperture until the bitter end, but will give C1 9 a try soon. The new version got some nice features, but so far I wasn't too happy about the uninspired picture management.
Quote:
On Apple OS, we really have some nice/r alternatives than PS: PhotoLine32, Pixelmator or Affinity Photo.
So many alternatives. Does it mean that no one is good :mellow:
Personally I chose Adobe Photoshop because there are so many tutorial.
Actually everyone gives good technical tutorials but only a few gives art tutorial.
And PS is class leading in this area.
PS: I hate Adobe marketing too
:wub: but there is no similar or beter alternatives
There is nothing as big and ressources-consuming as PS, but nothing better? Not agreeing on that one. Most of PS features are hardly in use at the majority of users.
Maybe you try for yourself, how good the alternatives are. 
Adobe has given us PostScript, which gave us the DTP revolution with the Mac in the 1980's. Derived from that they gave us PDF, which is what the graphics engine of OS X and iOS is based on.
They have PS, they broke up Quark's monopoly in the DTP area on Mac and Windows by bringing an alternative to the awfully buggy Quark Xpress with Adobe Indesign. The amazing Calamus SL DTP software for Atari (ST/TT) never made it on other platforms).
So far so good.
But Adobe also has done some nasty things. They bought Golive Cyberstudio, a (back then) great web development program, to compete with the popular but lesser Macromedia Dreamweaver (with the renamed Adobe Golive). Then they bought MacroMedia (Dreamweaver, Flash, Freehand). They then let Macromedia Freehand die in favor of their own Adobe Illustrator, a big shame. They let Golive die a slow death.
Apple picked up a team from Macromedia that was working on video editing software and developed Final Cut Pro. That angered Adobe so much (they had a big part of that market till then with the back then awful Adobe Premiere) that they threatened to drop PS for the Mac "because of the low marketshare" of Mac OS X (disregarding that PS on Mac had s much bigger share than PS on Windows).
I always disliked that they forced Photoshop upgrade sales with ACR, by making new camera RAW files only convertable with a new version of ACR which only works with the newest PS version. I also disliked the crazy high prices they asked for PS and such. Now you have to rent the software, something I have something against too.
So yes, I have a love/hate for Adobe. I use PS CS6 because of the layers in PS. The software has gotten so complex that it is very hard for new competitors to emerge.
That is why I am enthusiastic to see Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer, powerful software with a chance of becoming a real competitor.
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