markc2 Posted January 31 Share #1 Posted January 31 Advertisement (gone after registration) Hi all, I'm about to get a digital camera, I used photoshop forever, but I recently updated my computer and voila my ancient version of CS no longer works. I really like my updated computer, and I have a gaming PC computer that could rip thru photo's as well. I hate that Adobe has moved to a subscription service and I would actually have to see how many photo's I took to see if that is worth it. I have a lot of other subscriptions, is this one good to add, and are there other options as well? It's amazing how much AI algorithms have moved into photography, I just feel like since Im getting a modern camera I should try some modern software as well. Thanks for any ideas and help! Mark Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted January 31 Posted January 31 Hi markc2, Take a look here Photo Editing software which one do you all prefer. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
wda Posted January 31 Share #2 Posted January 31 Mark, there has been much discussion of this subject. Have you searched the forum? 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anbaric Posted January 31 Share #3 Posted January 31 3 hours ago, markc2 said: I'm about to get a digital camera, I used photoshop forever, but I recently updated my computer and voila my ancient version of CS no longer works. I really like my updated computer, and I have a gaming PC computer that could rip thru photo's as well. I hate that Adobe has moved to a subscription service and I would actually have to see how many photo's I took to see if that is worth it. I have a lot of other subscriptions, is this one good to add, and are there other options as well? You'll find most of the discussion over on this forum: https://www.l-camera-forum.com/forum/55-digital-post-processing-forum/ If you want a powerful but reasonably priced photo editor, an obvious choice is Affinity Photo: https://affinity.serif.com/en-gb/photo/ It's an excellent alternative to Photoshop, but it doesn't have the image management or lightbox-style previewing tools of software like Lightroom (for those functions, you might look at ON1 or DXO). It might still be possible to get that old copy of CS working again - which version is it, and what problem did you have on the updated PC? 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlesphoto99 Posted January 31 Share #4 Posted January 31 Go with the Adobe Lightroom/Photoshop sub. At $10 a month it's pretty inexpensive. And since you'll be spending all of your time now shooting and processing, maybe you can drop a less used sub. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
markc2 Posted February 1 Author Share #5 Posted February 1 20 hours ago, Anbaric said: It might still be possible to get that old copy of CS working again - which version is it, and what problem did you have on the updated PC? Thank you Anbaric, It was a Mac version; I went from High Sierra to Mojave. I could go back but I get a lot of my music stuff working better so it's good. Thanks for the links as well!! Mark 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
huwm Posted February 1 Share #6 Posted February 1 Mac Photos, Raw Power, Photomator all as little as possible, time is precious even to us retired types 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
250swb Posted February 2 Share #7 Posted February 2 Advertisement (gone after registration) If you've used Photoshop already stick with it, you still have the tools to make it a faux darkroom workflow, and many others suitable for the digital age. You only need to learn as much as you need, many people only use a fraction of it's abilities anyway, and ACR is now a powerful tool in it's own right which you'll want for a digital workflow. As for the subscription it's two cups of coffee and a bun once a month, it works out at no more than any regular Adobe updates used to cost years ago, and you also get Bridge as your image browser and organiser. 2 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpitt Posted February 2 Share #8 Posted February 2 (edited) On 2/1/2024 at 6:30 PM, markc2 said: Thank you Anbaric, It was a Mac version; I went from High Sierra to Mojave. I could go back but I get a lot of my music stuff working better so it's good. Thanks for the links as well!! Mark Same here a year ago. Classic LR could not be installed. CS stopped working. First I dabbled around with free/open source software like Darktable and Rawtherapee, very good and they get the job done. I still use Digikam, not for editing my files, but to manage, tag, search them. When I found a discounted version of Capture One Pro, I jumped in. This is for me the perfect merge of the power of Photoshop with the convenience of Lightroom and they sell perpetual licenses. Mind you perpetual is relative. Upgrades are free for a year, after that, only essential updates, but I paid only 200€, so if it keeps running as it is now for more than 18 months (end of 2024), it is break even compared to the Adobe subscription. Which is a given for me, because my hardware is not the latest anyway so my Macbook is stuck on Mac OS Monterey for a while. So if you do not need the latest and finest, wait for a discount or just jump in. Edited February 2 by dpitt 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anbaric Posted February 3 Share #9 Posted February 3 2 hours ago, dpitt said: Upgrades are free for a year, after that, only essential updates Not any more, sadly: https://support.captureone.com/hc/en-us/articles/7998068628637-New-License-Model-Changes-to-the-way-licensing-updates-and-upgrades-work Read the comments below the announcement for how the C1 user community has reacted to this change. They will also be killing off the free Express versions this month, apparently by remotely disabling them. C1 has become a pretty customer-hostile company since it was sold off to private equity investors. Which is a shame, because the software itself is excellent. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpitt Posted February 3 Share #10 Posted February 3 17 minutes ago, Anbaric said: Not any more, sadly: https://support.captureone.com/hc/en-us/articles/7998068628637-New-License-Model-Changes-to-the-way-licensing-updates-and-upgrades-work Read the comments below the announcement for how the C1 user community has reacted to this change. They will also be killing off the free Express versions this month, apparently by remotely disabling them. C1 has become a pretty customer-hostile company since it was sold off to private equity investors. Which is a shame, because the software itself is excellent. Agreed, this is worse than I described. But still it is a perpetual license for all features that are there at time of purchase + bug fixes are free, which is the least they can do of course. Call me old fashioned, but I prefer ownership over 'renting' which is what a subscription model looks like to me. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlickM Posted February 3 Share #11 Posted February 3 (edited) On 1/31/2024 at 5:23 PM, markc2 said: Hi all, I'm about to get a digital camera, I used photoshop forever, but I recently updated my computer and voila my ancient version of CS no longer works. I really like my updated computer, and I have a gaming PC computer that could rip thru photo's as well. I hate that Adobe has moved to a subscription service and I would actually have to see how many photo's I took to see if that is worth it. I have a lot of other subscriptions, is this one good to add, and are there other options as well? It's amazing how much AI algorithms have moved into photography, I just feel like since Im getting a modern camera I should try some modern software as well. Thanks for any ideas and help! Mark I’m a bit late to the party. However, I use the Adobe photographers package which is now, I think, about £9.99 a month. As you’re used to Photoshop, it would make sense to stick with Adobe, and you have the benefit of the latest versions with your subscription. You get Photoshop, Lightroom and Lightroom Classic. Lightroom now has some fantastic tools that make photo editing much simpler, including precisely selecting sky so that you can edit its exposure independently. I have Affinity Photo on my computer, and it IS a very good deal financially, but I don’t like the way it renders the colour of RAW files. Also it’s a bit bewildering to learn at first. I've tried Capture One and really liked it, but it’s quite a bit more expensive than the Adobe package. There are other packages out there. If you’re undecided, many software packages have a free trial so that you can experiment. Beware of Capture One, though, once you’ve activated the serial number, they count it as “opening the “box” so they won’t refund, even within the 14 day cooling off period. Edited February 3 by FlickM 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlickM Posted February 3 Share #12 Posted February 3 On 2/2/2024 at 8:13 AM, 250swb said: If you've used Photoshop already stick with it, you still have the tools to make it a faux darkroom workflow, and many others suitable for the digital age. You only need to learn as much as you need, many people only use a fraction of it's abilities anyway, and ACR is now a powerful tool in it's own right which you'll want for a digital workflow. As for the subscription it's two cups of coffee and a bun once a month, it works out at no more than any regular Adobe updates used to cost years ago, and you also get Bridge as your image browser and organiser. Absolutely all of this - though Bridge is free for anyone, regardless of whether they use the rest of the suite 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted February 3 Share #13 Posted February 3 On 1/31/2024 at 6:23 PM, markc2 said: Hi all, I'm about to get a digital camera, I used photoshop forever, but I recently updated my computer and voila my ancient version of CS no longer works. I really like my updated computer, and I have a gaming PC computer that could rip thru photo's as well. I hate that Adobe has moved to a subscription service and I would actually have to see how many photo's I took to see if that is worth it. I have a lot of other subscriptions, is this one good to add, and are there other options as well? It's amazing how much AI algorithms have moved into photography, I just feel like since Im getting a modern camera I should try some modern software as well. Thanks for any ideas and help! Mark I have been using Photoshop for decades, am conversant with C1, Lightroom, Luminar, ON1, DXO, etc. and I always return to Photoshop. If you have an old version, PS2024 will be a bit of a learning curve, but it is absolutely the industry standard. I think the subscription is well worth its money. BTW, if you want to make life easy on yourself and simplify your editing , use the Topaz Photo AI plugin as a start of your PS workflow. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LocalHero1953 Posted February 3 Share #14 Posted February 3 I have never thought of the subscription vs outright purchase as innovative vs old-fashioned. It’s more whether you wish to be tied to a company’s offering, or independent. The trouble is, it is becoming harder to remain independent as outright purchase models are restricted, and the subscription models are (for the moment) so affordable. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anbaric Posted February 3 Share #15 Posted February 3 (edited) 11 hours ago, dpitt said: Agreed, this is worse than I described. But still it is a perpetual license for all features that are there at time of purchase + bug fixes are free, which is the least they can do of course. Call me old fashioned, but I prefer ownership over 'renting' which is what a subscription model looks like to me. I don't think you get bug fixes for a year any more, though - they now only promise to provide them until the next dot release, which isn't on a fixed schedule (and can be shortly after you bought the licence if your version has been out for a while). It looks a lot like they are trying to push everyone towards the subscription by making the perpetual licences less attractive, a strategy many users don't like (to put it mildly). You also have to trust C1's interpretation of 'perpetual', because without the cooperation of their activation servers you certainly can't install and maybe not even use the software if it regularly phones home (as the way they are killing off Express implies). Various companies, including Adobe, have switched off activation of older applications after a decade or so, which can make 'perpetual' licenses more like long-term subscriptions with unknown end dates. Unfortunately nearly everything that isn't Free and Open Source needs online activation these days (even Affinity, which added it in version 2). Edited February 3 by Anbaric 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted February 3 Share #16 Posted February 3 So many things in life are a subscription, from the rent of a house, a lease of a car to a season ticket to your football club. What is so bad about a software subscription? 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpitt Posted February 3 Share #17 Posted February 3 1 hour ago, LocalHero1953 said: I have never thought of the subscription vs outright purchase as innovative vs old-fashioned. It’s more whether you wish to be tied to a company’s offering, or independent. The trouble is, it is becoming harder to remain independent as outright purchase models are restricted, and the subscription models are (for the moment) so affordable. This. I like to be independent, and I like to choose when I need to upgrade. My current version of C1P does what it needs to do. Hardly any issues. I love to be in control of my stuff, down to the software I run on my computer, and when and where I update. 37 minutes ago, jaapv said: What is so bad about a software subscription? In a way you are right. Main reason is that I come from software development and know how it works. The so called continuous improvement can be a rat race in itself, and being in control of updates is crucial for a stable system. There is no need what so ever to upgrade 2023 software if your hardware and system software is years older than that. My camera's are from 2006 - 2017, my Mac's are from 2012 - 2015, they are stuck in the past OS anyway. Chances that an upgrade breaks compatibility are much higher than it is worth. Photography is a hobby for me. I do not want my hobby applications unnecessarily disturb my hardware and software setup, which I use for other domains too. C1P subscription is 25€/month. At this rate, I am already on break even since I paid 200€ in April 2023. I received the last update a few weeks ago. I would be happy if it keeps running without any updates. Maybe I will upgrade my Macbook Pro in a while, but the hardware will be bought used and it will be older than today's current OS for years to come. You could argue that Adobe is only half that, but that is the way it feels to me. LR is half of C1P, the other half is in PS. I love the way C1P works. e.g. I would miss the power of layers in LR, and hate the back and forth switching to PS for that. That alone would keep me in C1P, apart from the fact that C1P often provides equal or better results than LR. Maybe, I will reconsider this in 2029 when I retire 🙂 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke_Miller Posted February 3 Share #18 Posted February 3 Everyone has their favorite, but what is intuitive and easy to use for them may not be for you. I suggest trialing several mainstream programs and finding the one that is easiest for you to understand and use. They are pretty much all good. The best results with your shots will come from the one with which you are most proficient. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted February 3 Share #19 Posted February 3 37 minutes ago, dpitt said: This. I like to be independent, and I like to choose when I need to upgrade. My current version of C1P does what it needs to do. Hardly any issues. I love to be in control of my stuff, down to the software I run on my computer, and when and where I update. In a way you are right. Main reason is that I come from software development and know how it works. The so called continuous improvement can be a rat race in itself, and being in control of updates is crucial for a stable system. There is no need what so ever to upgrade 2023 software if your hardware and system software is years older than that. My camera's are from 2006 - 2017, my Mac's are from 2012 - 2015, they are stuck in the past OS anyway. Chances that an upgrade breaks compatibility are much higher than it is worth. Photography is a hobby for me. I do not want my hobby applications unnecessarily disturb my hardware and software setup, which I use for other domains too. C1P subscription is 25€/month. At this rate, I am already on break even since I paid 200€ in April 2023. I received the last update a few weeks ago. I would be happy if it keeps running without any updates. Maybe I will upgrade my Macbook Pro in a while, but the hardware will be bought used and it will be older than today's current OS for years to come. You could argue that Adobe is only half that, but that is the way it feels to me. LR is half of C1P, the other half is in PS. I love the way C1P works. e.g. I would miss the power of layers in LR, and hate the back and forth switching to PS for that. That alone would keep me in C1P, apart from the fact that C1P often provides equal or better results than LR. Maybe, I will reconsider this in 2029 when I retire 🙂 Actually the continuous update system works flawlessly with Adobe. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LocalHero1953 Posted February 3 Share #20 Posted February 3 57 minutes ago, jaapv said: Actually the continuous update system works flawlessly with Adobe. I am a subscriber and I have certainly known times when bugs have been introduced. Anyone remember the Lightroom memory leak problem a couple of years ago? Watching RAM usage soar during a session until it maxes at your 16Gb or 32 Gb? They solved that with a later release, but I am having similar occasional repeats - I haven't looked online yet to see if others have the problem or if it is my hardware. In trying to find out why my C: drive was so full, Treesize discovered two separate folders full of Adobe crash reports occupying about 500Gb. Adobe has a cavalier attitude towards users' RAM and disk space. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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