[maca]

I just downloaded the trial of photoshop cs2 to see what it is like. It doesn't seem to recognise PEF or DNG formats though. This is obviously a bit rubbish if i want to shoot in RAW.

Was also thinking about photoshop element 7. This does open these formats but I would like opinions on photoshop. I don't have much money to spend!

Cheers

[Wheatfield]

You may have to download CS3 instead. Once a new version of Photoshop comes out, they stop updating Camera RAW on th eolder version to encourage users to update.

[AndrewG NY]

There were probably some updates of adobe camera raw after CS2 but before CS3 that would handle additional raw formats.

A few thoughts. Photoshop is a fairly expensive habit, and is hardly necessary as there are many alternatives. Much of your workflow can be done much more quickly and easily in more specialized programs such as Adobe Lightroom though this isn't super-cheap either. You start wanting full Photoshop when you want to make a lot of more localized edits, combining multiple images, layers, more advanced sharpening techniques, etc.

Not sure what platform you're using but FastStone can process RAW and is free, ACDSee is reasonably priced. The GIMP or Paint.NET are free and can do much of the core PS functionality. I believe there are add-ins that can allow the GIMP to process PEF/DNG but often what you'll want to do is do your initial raw conversion in a program like Lightroom, ACDSee, or FastStone to produce a TIFF or PSD that you can use for input in the editor of your choice, be it the GIMP or an ancient version of Photoshop.

[xs400]

Photoshop CS2 can be updated to read PEF files for the K100 and K10, but CS2 will not read PEF files from the K200 or K20. You will need CS3 or CS4 to read PEF files from the K200 or K20.

Photoshop Elements v 6 and v 7 can be updated to read K200 and K20 PEF files.

I have both CS2 and PS Elements 6. I find that PS Elements 6 does almost everything I need for the files from my K100 and K20. I don't use CS2 that much any more.

I would also suggest you look at Adobe Lightroom - I am currently taking a class on Lightroom and find the program very useful. I will probably switch from Photoshop to Lightroom for most of my post processing.

Updates for Photoshop and PS Elements can be found here > Adobe - Photoshop : For Windows

[Rhizo]

Why would you download CS2 trial? Just get CS4 and be worry free.

[WerTicus]

cs4 has been out for months...

[Marc Sabatella]

Was also thinking about photoshop element 7. This does open these formats but I would like opinions on photoshop. I don't have much money to spend!

If you don't want to spend a lot of money and don't already know in advance that you absolutely need the features the CS versions of Photoshop add over Elements, or over Lightroom, ACDSee, or any of a zillion other cheaper options, then no way would I even consider spending all that money on CS. I'd get a $100 program and spend the money you save on a nice lens!

[Canada_Rockies]

Photoshop CS2 can be updated to read PEF files for the K100 and K10, but CS2 will not read PEF files from the K200 or K20. You will need CS3 or CS4 to read PEF files from the K200 or K20.

Photoshop Elements v 6 and v 7 can be updated to read K200 and K20 PEF files.

I have both CS2 and PS Elements 6. I find that PS Elements 6 does almost everything I need for the files from my K100 and K20. I don't use CS2 that much any more.

I would also suggest you look at Adobe Lightroom - I am currently taking a class on Lightroom and find the program very useful. I will probably switch from Photoshop to Lightroom for most of my post processing.

Updates for Photoshop and PS Elements can be found here > Adobe - Photoshop : For Windows

Photoshop Elements 6 is in my list of programs, and does anything I cannot do in DxO and/or Lightroom. Lightroom can be purchased much less expensively using educational discounts. Find yourself a co-operative university student.

[nanok]

if raw processing is what you need, as others have said, better to use something designed for that (sidenote: i find that kind of software much much more photography oriented than the likes of photoshop and gimp, and much more natural to understand and work with for a photographer, it's software designed for dealing with photographs as we used to do in the darkroom, rather than manipulating images).

here are a few alternatives (assuming you use windwos):

ufraw (also as a gimp plugin, which basically opens the image within ufraw)
rawtherapee

-gimp for photoshop-like functionality (localized editing -- cloning etc, layers, and so on)
-imagemagick -- photoshop like, but more command-line oriented (for mass-editing), amazingly, it can do many things you can do with photoshop, and sometimes so much more elegantly.


besides them being free (ufraw is also opensource), you will never worry that a new camera's format is no longer supported and you have to pay _again_ (especially in the case of ufraw/dcraw, which is probably the source of all knowledge and wisdom as far as raw processing software is concerned -- meaning most third party raw processing software is said to rely on dcraw to keep up with new formats, and in some cases even for the demosaicing algorythms and such)

i personaly use ufraw for most of my processing, and imagemagick for stuff like sharpening, resizing and so on (i find it much smarter for that kind of stuff, a hell of a lot easier to run convert -unsharp [unsharp options] -size x800 -resize x800 original.tiff web-image.jpg than to open each image in gimp or the like and do all the steps required for unsharp mask, resize, and converting to jpeg)

i'd give some of this software a try before spending cash on adobe and such, you might find yourself with cash for a nice lens at the end of the day, or for a trip to your favourite location

[janosh]

Start with Lightroom 2.2. It's great as a stand-alone, even better when it's paired with CS2 (which I do). I use them both with K20D and scans...no bother, beautiful. You do want Lightroom (or Aperture) for file organization as well as post-processing.

I like Photoshop because it works so well and because professionals use it, which means I don't have to trust hobbiests for guidance and support. Money's tight but time is tighter...I'm not into reinventing wheels, ie I don't want to "try" something to "see if I like it" because we all do know what works and some of us are more into photography than playing more than necessary with computers.

I'm not familiar with recent Elements..if it allows local adjustments (eg burning in a detail, as in a darkroom), that might be good too.

PEF has no advantage except smaller file size, which is irrelevant if you have a reasonable amount of disc space. Disc memory is incredibly cheap..it's dumb to consider new lenses if one lacks good software and adequate memory. PEF's possible disadvantage is that no other camera manufacturer uses it.

IMO Lightroom's more important than any new lens could possibly be unless that new lens is necessary to pay the bills (c'mon, who would believe that?)

[nanok]

choose lightroom, choose canon (oh, alright, or nikon), choose mac (or at least windows if you have no balls), choose big hard drives and more ram, chose to be a pro, chose life.

i chose not to choose life, i chose to choose the sensible and sustainable choice instead, and be called "a hobbiest"

these "hobbists" seem to have given us more of the confort, convenience and perhaps even fascination in our daily lives today than "the pros". the fact that "the pros" made a choice does not invalidate one's other possible choices, or the usefulness of one's brain to chose for one's self. i hope.

[Canada_Rockies]

Start with Lightroom 2.2. It's great as a stand-alone, even better when it's paired with CS2 (which I do). I use them both with K20D and scans...no bother, beautiful. You do want Lightroom (or Aperture) for file organization as well as post-processing.

Agreed, but Elements 6 or 7 will do 90% of what CS will do at 1/10 the cost

I like Photoshop because it works so well and because professionals use it, which means I don't have to trust hobbiests for guidance and support.

The same applies to Elements for a lot less moola

Money's tight but time is tighter...I'm not into reinventing wheels, ie I don't want to "try" something to "see if I like it" because we all do know what works and some of us are more into photography than playing more than necessary with computers.

I'm not familiar with recent Elements..if it allows local adjustments (eg burning in a detail, as in a darkroom), that might be good too.

It does, and it has layers

PEF has no advantage except smaller file size, which is irrelevant if you have a reasonable amount of disc space. Disc memory is incredibly cheap..it's dumb to consider new lenses if one lacks good software and adequate memory. PEF's possible disadvantage is that no other camera manufacturer uses it.

No other manufacturer offers the option of DNG (Samsung excepted)

IMO Lightroom's more important than any new lens could possibly be unless that new lens is necessary to pay the bills (c'mon, who would believe that?)

I agree. Lightroom is the answer to organization. It's all there, and you can find that special image very quickly. I suggest that you make a deal with a university student to buy it for you so you can get the significant price reduction for educational.

[Wheatfield]

PEF's possible disadvantage is that no other camera manufacturer uses it.

This is like saying NEFs are at a possible disadvantage because only one manufacturer uses that format.
The same could be said of any manufacturers proprietary format.

[Parallax]

I have to agree that it is unlikely that you will want or need to do anything to your pictures that PS Elements won't do, and a whole lot cheaper than CS4.

[Canada_Rockies]

I have to agree that it is unlikely that you will want or need to do anything to your pictures that PS Elements won't do, and a whole lot cheaper than CS4.

And even paying retail, $ Lightroom + $ Elements 7 = (1/2 x $ CS4).