Silkypix vs. Lightroom 4 ?

Colbyt · 02-19-2013, 08:56 AM

Originally posted by Brownie4u

Thanks for the reminder. I forgot I have a copy of Elements 8 that came with one of my cameras or scanner.

Is anyone familiar with real world improvements between PSE 8 and PSE11 or LR4?
Is PSE8 outdated by todays standards?
I did check out the comparison chart as far as features but the chart does not take ease of use or quality of results.

I might consider the $79.95 upgrade price for PSE11 if it is hugely improved.

Before I bought the scanner, I downloaded a 30 day trial of E11. The scanner came with 9 and real world I did not see much difference. Due to file association I am not sure you can test 8 and 11 on the same computer.

I think 11 has a pef codec but your camera will do dng support of which is native.

The RAW developer seems to be separate from the main program. You load, you tweak, save changes or don't (it creates a new RAW file, does not modify your original) and then you have the option to open the changed RAW file in Elements as a jpg.

The weather hasn't been all that great and I tend to be a fair weather picture taker so I haven't worked with it all that much. I will try to answer any questions you have.

Allison · 02-19-2013, 08:42 PM

Originally posted by Brownie4u

Thanks for the reminder. I forgot I have a copy of Elements 8 that came with one of my cameras or scanner.

Is anyone familiar with real world improvements between PSE 8 and PSE11 or LR4?
Is PSE8 outdated by todays standards?
I did check out the comparison chart as far as features but the chart does not take ease of use or quality of results.

I might consider the $79.95 upgrade price for PSE11 if it is hugely improved.

PSE11 is based on photoshop CS6 and I think that PSE8 is based on photoshop CS3, so there should be significant differences between the two versions.

As to going with PSE or LR, I would consider what you want to do in post. LR is about cataloging and organization. It also features RAW processing and the develop module. It is great to develop your picture with curve enhancements, saturation changes, black and white processing, etc. The processing is strong in LR, about 90% of my wedding shoots never leave LR, and the remaining 10 are in PS. PSE is not about cataloging the images at all, but you have more powerful editing tools. PSE has layers and, really, a big chunk of why people buy PS. If you are looking to do some serious post processing, then go with PSE.

baldrick · 02-26-2013, 05:44 AM

I don`t think it`s fair to compare the latest version of Lightroom to an old version of Silkypix ( version 3) that has been butchered by Pentax. (although they do make great cameras) The reason Pentax gave for basing their software on the Silkypix raw conversion engine, was that it gave the best colour rendition from the Pentax sensors. I think that this still holds good today. The latest version of Silkypix v 5.0.28 is at least as good in all departments as any raw converter on the market today and better than most (including Lightroom) I`ve tried almost all and my rankings would be :
Silkypix
Capture one pro
Bibble pro (or whatever they call it now)
Lightroom.
Simmo

kh1234567890 · 02-26-2013, 01:45 PM

Originally posted by baldrick

I don`t think it`s fair to compare the latest version of Lightroom to an old version of Silkypix ( version 3) that has been butchered by Pentax. (although they do make great cameras) The reason Pentax gave for basing their software on the Silkypix raw conversion engine, was that it gave the best colour rendition from the Pentax sensors. I think that this still holds good today. The latest version of Silkypix v 5.0.28 is at least as good in all departments as any raw converter on the market today and better than most (including Lightroom) I`ve tried almost all and my rankings would be :
Silkypix
Capture one pro
Bibble pro (or whatever they call it now)
Lightroom.
Simmo

The major problem with Silkypix 5 is the lack of lens correction profiles. A major omission these days - CA and distortion can be corrected manually, but it would be nice to be able to do it automatically as Adobe ACR and others do. It also has some annoying quirks - halos in overexposed areas such as tree branches against blue sky for one. ACR handles these much better. I've also tried them all and as far as intuitiveness of the interface goes I would agree with your rankings.

Brownie4u · 02-27-2013, 10:59 PM

A friend of mine just told me Adobe has released some older software for free, CS2 as well as many other programs.

https://www.adobe.com/downloads/cs2_downloads/index.html

It is outdated but for those who want to have it why not.

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02-19-2013, 08:56 AM	#16
Colbyt Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Central Kentucky Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,417	Originally posted by Brownie4u Thanks for the reminder. I forgot I have a copy of Elements 8 that came with one of my cameras or scanner. Is anyone familiar with real world improvements between PSE 8 and PSE11 or LR4? Is PSE8 outdated by todays standards? I did check out the comparison chart as far as features but the chart does not take ease of use or quality of results. I might consider the $79.95 upgrade price for PSE11 if it is hugely improved. Before I bought the scanner, I downloaded a 30 day trial of E11. The scanner came with 9 and real world I did not see much difference. Due to file association I am not sure you can test 8 and 11 on the same computer. I think 11 has a pef codec but your camera will do dng support of which is native. The RAW developer seems to be separate from the main program. You load, you tweak, save changes or don't (it creates a new RAW file, does not modify your original) and then you have the option to open the changed RAW file in Elements as a jpg. The weather hasn't been all that great and I tend to be a fair weather picture taker so I haven't worked with it all that much. I will try to answer any questions you have.

02-19-2013, 08:42 PM	#17
Allison Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 667	Originally posted by Brownie4u Thanks for the reminder. I forgot I have a copy of Elements 8 that came with one of my cameras or scanner. Is anyone familiar with real world improvements between PSE 8 and PSE11 or LR4? Is PSE8 outdated by todays standards? I did check out the comparison chart as far as features but the chart does not take ease of use or quality of results. I might consider the $79.95 upgrade price for PSE11 if it is hugely improved. PSE11 is based on photoshop CS6 and I think that PSE8 is based on photoshop CS3, so there should be significant differences between the two versions. As to going with PSE or LR, I would consider what you want to do in post. LR is about cataloging and organization. It also features RAW processing and the develop module. It is great to develop your picture with curve enhancements, saturation changes, black and white processing, etc. The processing is strong in LR, about 90% of my wedding shoots never leave LR, and the remaining 10 are in PS. PSE is not about cataloging the images at all, but you have more powerful editing tools. PSE has layers and, really, a big chunk of why people buy PS. If you are looking to do some serious post processing, then go with PSE.

02-26-2013, 05:44 AM	#18
baldrick Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Bulli, NSW Australia Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 67	I don`t think it`s fair to compare the latest version of Lightroom to an old version of Silkypix ( version 3) that has been butchered by Pentax. (although they do make great cameras) The reason Pentax gave for basing their software on the Silkypix raw conversion engine, was that it gave the best colour rendition from the Pentax sensors. I think that this still holds good today. The latest version of Silkypix v 5.0.28 is at least as good in all departments as any raw converter on the market today and better than most (including Lightroom) I`ve tried almost all and my rankings would be : Silkypix Capture one pro Bibble pro (or whatever they call it now) Lightroom. Simmo

02-26-2013, 01:45 PM	#19
kh1234567890 Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Manchester, UK Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,653	Originally posted by baldrick I don`t think it`s fair to compare the latest version of Lightroom to an old version of Silkypix ( version 3) that has been butchered by Pentax. (although they do make great cameras) The reason Pentax gave for basing their software on the Silkypix raw conversion engine, was that it gave the best colour rendition from the Pentax sensors. I think that this still holds good today. The latest version of Silkypix v 5.0.28 is at least as good in all departments as any raw converter on the market today and better than most (including Lightroom) I`ve tried almost all and my rankings would be : Silkypix Capture one pro Bibble pro (or whatever they call it now) Lightroom. Simmo The major problem with Silkypix 5 is the lack of lens correction profiles. A major omission these days - CA and distortion can be corrected manually, but it would be nice to be able to do it automatically as Adobe ACR and others do. It also has some annoying quirks - halos in overexposed areas such as tree branches against blue sky for one. ACR handles these much better. I've also tried them all and as far as intuitiveness of the interface goes I would agree with your rankings.

02-27-2013, 10:59 PM	#20
Brownie4u Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Vancouver Photos: Gallery Posts: 53 Original Poster	A friend of mine just told me Adobe has released some older software for free, CS2 as well as many other programs. https://www.adobe.com/downloads/cs2_downloads/index.html It is outdated but for those who want to have it why not.