[bigted]

I’m a Mac user (converted to an iMac in Jan of last year) and I am a very happy Mac convert (I wish I did it sooner). My laptop is an old PC and it needs updating. While I would love to get a Macbook Air I know it will not be very happy editing K-3 images so I have at least decided I need a Macbook Pro (I’m going with a retina version and probably 13" to keep it portable). What I am stuck with is how much Macbook do I need for image processing? For those using Macbook Pros what configuration do you have? Are you happy with it or do you wish you had bought something different? The Macbook will be used while I am out at the lake (one week out of every three from spring to autumn) so it won’t be my main work horse, but I want it to be capable for a long time. Basically I’m trying not to cheap out or overspend.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts,

Stevi

[waterfall]

I am on my third MacBook Pro and currently run with the 2.2 GHz Core i7 processor, 4GB of random access memory and a 500 GB hard drive. I back up images to LaCie 2TB hard drive and separately to another LaCie 500GB hard drive. This keeps my laptop drive relatively light, at about 50% used. I have always used the 15" MacBooks but my wife has the 13" Pro and I would happily use that as my main computer as well. The screen size difference is not a big deal.

(One MBP had an unfortunate encounter with a hot beverage. Another was simply old and slow and was the first model in the Pro lineup, so I upgraded. Never any problem with any of them other than the coffee incident.)

[Eric Auer]

DPR did a thing on the MB Air.....Fast and portable: Using the Apple MacBook Air in a pro workflow: Digital Photography Review

[AquaDome]

I too am looking at the MacBook Pro, and leaning toward the 13". I can't seem to get my 15" Lenovo ThinkPad [9 Lbs] to fit into any camera bag, and the iPad turns out to be for viewing pictures, not editing them.

[NZ_Ross]

I have a 13" MBP Retina with 2.9GHz i7, 8GB RAM and 500GB SSD. I brought it about a year ago and it was as fully specced as I could make it at the time.

The 13" retina is fantastic for photo editing. I shoot a K5 on RAW all the time, and it is plenty quick. The reason I didn't go for the MB Air at the time was the retina display. It makes a huge difference with photos. I use Aperture and Nik filters for editing, with a 3TB USB3 drive for back ups. The USB3 is quick enough - although a thunderbolt drive would obviously be quicker.

The 13" MBP is small enough and light enough for travel, and the screen/dimensions fit well on flight trays on smaller regional airlines (turboprops like the ATR72 and Q300)

If you can afford it 8MB RAM helps - but the really big difference in speed of use I have found over my previous MBP (13", 8MB RAM, 500GB HD) has been the SSD. We have also found this fitting SSD's to Toshiba and HP laptops. The SSD's are much faster than HDD's and make a real difference with photo editing - ingestion, snappiness of use and just generally how fast and responsive the computer is. If you can afford a SSD then this going to give you the most benefit.

I use my MBP for my main work laptop (running Parallels, Win7 and MS Office 2013), plus for my hobby of photography - hence the large SSD.

I am very happy with my MBP in general use.

[bigted]

I too am looking at the MacBook Pro, and leaning toward the 13". I can't seem to get my 15" Lenovo ThinkPad [9 Lbs] to fit into any camera bag, and the iPad turns out to be for viewing pictures, not editing them.

Ironically Apple steered me away from a Macbook Air, but based on the article Corto-PA found I am going back to revisit my original thought of a maxed out Air. I love the compact feel of an Air and given my health issues I'd prefer to make things as light as I can. Having said that a retina Macbook Pro does have it's appeal.

[reeftool]

I think your choice is going to depend on how much you will be carrying your laptop around. If you're just traveling by car to your vacation home and using it there, the size and weight factor isn't all that important. If you're carrying it around all day and using it on the run (like the guy in the article), then having the Air model might make more sense. I don't travel a lot and I have switched to a Retina iPad for viewing my photos on the road. I do my final editing after I get home. As stunning as the Retina display is, it's not a substitute for a 24 inch IPS monitor for my old eyes. If this laptop is going to be your principal computer at home and away, the Macbook Pro would make more sense. A lot of people just use a laptop for everything and plug in a large screen monitor for their home/office use and an external HD for storage. Of course, you could do that with the Air also.

[waterfall]

The most Mac Book Pro you can afford will prove to be the best buy.