CS2 or not CS2

THAN THE SWORD · 12-05-2008, 09:08 PM

My girlfriend has just told me what she is "thinking" of getting me for Xmas. It is a bummer getting older when they have to get preapproval.

But on the other hand she wants to get me Adobe Photoshop. We can't afford the full price for the new CS4 so she is thinking about CS2 instead which appears to be half the price.

Currently I use Corel Paint Shop Pro X having started years ago with version 7 or maybe 6. I like it and have had lots of success using it but I know I could do more with Adobe. My chief complaint has been that there are no real tutorials or step by step guides for Corel the way there are for Adobe.

So the question is - Is it a good idea to go cheap and get CS2? If I do get it will there be opportunities to upgrade or would I have to get the latest version at some time in the future?

And where is the best place to buy CS2? Amazon? EBay?

Thanks for any help you can provide.

Tim

systemA · 12-06-2008, 02:46 AM

You want CS3 to import RAWs. For CS2, a plugin is required.

**Damn Brit** · 12-06-2008, 02:57 AM

You could always go for Elements and Lightroom, with these two you can do nearly everything you can do in Photoshop.

jlamorie · 12-06-2008, 07:33 AM

For what its worth, I'm using PSE7 and the program is chucked full of editing tools as well as a very good cataloging feature. The results for the most part have been good, but the other day I was having difficulty getting that certain look I wanted in a picture. I fired up my old PS7 and was amazed at how much better the control and fine tuning was in the PS7. I was able to get, very quickly what I was looking for in the scene. I'm waiting for delivery of CS4 and hope that it will meet my needs without a huge learning curve. Its just an assumption but I think the editing tools and controls are better in the PS/CS versions as compared to the PSE ones. If I had to choose I would reach for the CS2. Regards

*graphicgr8s* · 12-06-2008, 10:38 PM

I started with PS5 and worked my way to CS4 but I don't have a choice. It's my business. You really can't go wrong with Photoshop even if you do need a plugin for raw on CS2. And there is definately a learning curve between versions. The one thing I always recommend to my clients that use PhotoShop is to join NAPP. Photoshop User magazine is just one of the great benefits. But it is $99 per year