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Any recommendation on software to replace iPhoto?
- Thread starter YS2003
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velocityg4
macrumors 604
I would say to organize all of your pictures in folders. Then do all of your photo work in Adobe Photoshop. Aperture didn't impress me that much, but it has a different function I suppose. If you don't have $600 to fork over get Photoshop Elements for $90. It may work fine but I haven't used a light edition of photoshop since '94.
If you are looking for a program to organize your photos, keep in mind that the Mac version of Elements does not come with the photo organizer that is included with the PC version of Elements.
crap freakboy
macrumors 6502a
BornAgainMac
macrumors 604
YS2003 said:
Assuming you do have the iLife discs that came with you Panther PB and you've got a legal copy of Tiger why not just find out what the install problem is? Any Apple genius should be up to the task and there's no reason it shouldn't work.
The answer lies in what functions of iPhoto are you trying to replace. If you want better image-enhancement, but not the learning curve of Photoshop, then get Photoshop Elements. You can use iPhoto to keep things organized and use Elements as the external editor.
If you need a real digital asset manager (DAM), the leaders are iView and Extensis Portfolio. I prefer iView; it comes in a "lite" version and a pro version. Release 3 is a very powerful application, and Extensis is releasing version 8 of Portfolio. Keep in mind, that both of these applications cost $200 (and you'll still want a real image editor like Photoshop or Elements).
The advantage to something like iView is that it can catalog all kinds of digital items, such as PDFs, font files, etc, and it can even catalog files from removable media.
I'm not a professional photographer, but I've been using Photoshop since day one. I was befuddled by iPhoto's "organization" scheme; I was expecting it to be like iTunes. Sadly, the Windows version of Photoshop Elements has a much better organizer than iPhoto; however, it is not as tightly integrated.
I use iPhoto for things like family photos, etc. I use iView for work-related image files. iPhoto is custom-made for things like that my family members are amazed when they ask me to post photos of some event, and I have it up on my .Mac site within minutes.
I have my own scheme for organizing work items, like Flash files, screen shots, PDFs, and other items. I can use iView to get quick snapshots of the files, organize them where I want to, and know I can quickly find them.
Aperture seems designed around a RAW image workflow, not general image files. A real DAM is a better investment if you need organization.
If you need a real digital asset manager (DAM), the leaders are iView and Extensis Portfolio. I prefer iView; it comes in a "lite" version and a pro version. Release 3 is a very powerful application, and Extensis is releasing version 8 of Portfolio. Keep in mind, that both of these applications cost $200 (and you'll still want a real image editor like Photoshop or Elements).
The advantage to something like iView is that it can catalog all kinds of digital items, such as PDFs, font files, etc, and it can even catalog files from removable media.
I'm not a professional photographer, but I've been using Photoshop since day one. I was befuddled by iPhoto's "organization" scheme; I was expecting it to be like iTunes. Sadly, the Windows version of Photoshop Elements has a much better organizer than iPhoto; however, it is not as tightly integrated.
I use iPhoto for things like family photos, etc. I use iView for work-related image files. iPhoto is custom-made for things like that my family members are amazed when they ask me to post photos of some event, and I have it up on my .Mac site within minutes.
I have my own scheme for organizing work items, like Flash files, screen shots, PDFs, and other items. I can use iView to get quick snapshots of the files, organize them where I want to, and know I can quickly find them.
Aperture seems designed around a RAW image workflow, not general image files. A real DAM is a better investment if you need organization.
This thread interests me. I've been looking at some of the apps posted, but, eh, do you have any free recommendations? I'm not stingy - I just don't want to pay $90 for a program that I'll only use to resize photos. Or maybe someone can tell me how to do that in Preview or iPhoto. :<
Man, I miss MSPaint. 🙁
Man, I miss MSPaint. 🙁
In iphoto: select the photo(s) you want to resize then click share and then export. GraphicConverter is also a pretty powerful app. Your computer may have come with that pre-installed. My PB did.
kodak easyshare
I would sell my granny (no extended waranty available) for ACDSee on mac. But failing that...
Check out kodak easyshare software. There is a new version just out and you can download it for free. I am going to try it out as I hate the iPhoto filing system. K Easyshare appears quite similar to iPhoto on first look but I think catalogues your photos without actually copying them to a new location. I am not absolutely sure of this however as I have only just downloaded it and not had a chance to play with it yet. Would love to hear from anyone else who has tried it and knows more than I do.......
I would sell my granny (no extended waranty available) for ACDSee on mac. But failing that...
Check out kodak easyshare software. There is a new version just out and you can download it for free. I am going to try it out as I hate the iPhoto filing system. K Easyshare appears quite similar to iPhoto on first look but I think catalogues your photos without actually copying them to a new location. I am not absolutely sure of this however as I have only just downloaded it and not had a chance to play with it yet. Would love to hear from anyone else who has tried it and knows more than I do.......
Azmodon said:
Canon also makes good software for managing photos it's actually a suite of applications, including an EXCELLENT image stitching application (some even prefer it to Photoshop). It's not technically "free"...you have to get the base software with a Canon camera. However, Canon keeps its Mac software up-to-date and generally on par with its Windows counterpart. (In fact, Canon's gotten cocky enough that the latest version of its software will replace iPhoto as the default application when digital media is inserted!)
Also, iView has a "lite" version which is $50 (it's just called iView Media. If you are looking for an application which has many features of its bigger brother, that is an excellent choice. It will even catalog your iPhoto library, so you can then organize it as you wish. I don't think it has "watch" folders, but that can be done with Automator (and yes, iView does come with Automator actions).
For less than $150 (iLife+iView), it's a solid package that most users would find sufficient.
If you absolutely must have free, and the software that came with your camera is even less adequate than iPhoto...hmm, I don't know. Graphic Converter is an essential tool, but I think you have to pay to upgrade to the latest version (if your late-model Mac came with it installed).
What I did was I did a clean install the retail version of Tiger on my 15" PB. Since this PB's original restore disks came with Panther and the rest of iLife suite, I tried to re-install those "bundled software" only from my OEM restore disks, after completing the Tiger install. Somehow, iPhoto did not get installed.mpw said:
The main reason I used to use iPhoto is it was easy to download from the digital camera to iPhoto folder and I can see those thum nail pictures so that I know which picture is which without opening them.Diomedes said:
But, since I have CS2 standard already, I should be able to use CS2 Bridge to have the nice thum nail views after creating the photo folders in the picture folders manually.
Kodak EasyShare is a pretty good app that works pretty similar to iphoto. an obviously different layout, but it organizes and puts them in order as well., then you also have the option to use ofoto express to upload online without a problem.