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Adobe Photoshop Elements 4 for the Mac is here (almost)!

VanNess

VanNess

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Mar 31, 2005
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California
Adobe is preparing to release Photoshop Elements 4.0 (all the Photoshop I'll ever need) in March. Details here.

Apparently incorporates an Elements version of Bridge from the CS suite among numerous other features. Personally, if it just gets rid of that God-awful Opera-based help app (which takes about as long as Elements does to launch, as it's the Opera web browser by any other name) and just uses the good old Mac help system - I'm in.

Also of note is special upgrade pricing for existing owners of Photoshop Elements.

By the way, bad news for universal binary fans - it's PPC as of this release.
 
VanNess said:
By the way, bad news for universal binary fans - it's PPC as of this release.
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No surprise at all although this will not come as welcome news to many.

Does this mean Elements 5 will be the first Universal version (could be some time away) or will Adobe release a patch/updater/whathaveyou? I would wager not.
 
I'm not surprised that it's not universal binary either. Whether it will take until version 5 is anybody's guess, but given that Adobe has about an 18 month version cycle for new product releases, early intel mac adopters are bound to be disappointed. But, maybe it will be okay in Rosetta as I suspect most Elements users are likely to be less demanding than full-bore Photoshop CS pros. In any event, the upgrade path to intel hardware isn't a static event that happens overnight for every user, and it will be years in some (if not many) cases before users naturally upgrade their machines. By then software won't be an issue.

I also think Adobe is taking an unfair hit for not having their universal binaries ready yet. Apple did release the intel macs (as a surprise) way ahead of the schedule outlined in last year's WWDC conference, so the fact that are still applications that are in the forthcoming state isn't exactly shocking.
 
Great news, and since I have no intentions of buying an Intel Mac for quite smoe time, I'll most likely be picking this one up. :cool:
 
BornAgainMac said:
Didn't Adobe get that memo! It was almost a year ago. :mad:
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They have 15 years to undo before they can create a Universal Binary. Don't think about Lightroom--that's a Macromedia application.

I pre-ordered PSE 4, so I'll see whether it's as interesting as it should be. They actually ported the goodies this time, but batching RAW development is not allowed through Bridge.
 
My copy has already shipped from Atlanta, GA, no less. Unfortunately, it's coming by DHL, ground or air, it'll probably take 2 weeks.
 
bousozoku said:
My copy has already shipped from Atlanta, GA, no less. Unfortunately, it's coming by DHL, ground or air, it'll probably take 2 weeks.
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Please let us know when it arrives and what you think of it bousozoku - I'm considering picking up a copy myself if the reviews come back positive. I'm not planning on moving to an Intel Mac for at least another year as well, so the whole universal binary thing isn't a big deal for me either.
 
~Shard~ said:
Please let us know when it arrives and what you think of it bousozoku - I'm considering picknig up a copy myself if the reviews come back positive. I'm not planning on moving to an Intel Mac for at least another year as well, so the whole universal binary thing isn't a big deal for me either.
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I will, of course.

I'm interested in how all of the little projects work since this will be a first for the Mac version. I don't think they've had any since PhotoDeluxe 2.0. Of course, how they stack up against iLife '06 should be interesting, too.
 
bousozoku said:
I will, of course.

I'm interested in how all of the little projects work since this will be a first for the Mac version. I don't think they've had any since PhotoDeluxe 2.0. Of course, how they stack up against iLife '06 should be interesting, too.
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Yeah, it will be interesting to see how much value this would add to an iPhoto. iPhoto suits almost all of my needs, almost all of the time, but sometimes I just need that little bit more in terms of editing and the like... ;)
 
Artful Dodger said:
Well since I have the Intel iMac I wanted to buy PSE4, hoping that would be UB, but I'll still pick it up with hopes later of a patch :cool:
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Let me know how well PSE4 works in an Intel iMac. I'm getting my own Intel iMac in 2 weeks and I want to get PSE4 as well even if it's not UB yet. :)
 
I'm probably going to pick up a copy for my wife. PSE3 is rather lacking in my opinion but I did play around with PSE4 for the PC and it's a big improvement over version 3.

I use Photoshop CS2 but it's too much of a learning curve for my wife so PSE allows her to edit pictures easily.
 
I have been looking around at the Wacom tablets (I have a 6x8 now) but I was thinking of going bigger, which would mean that PSE4 might start shipping with it. If that happens It wouldn't be worth it for me to buy a copy then sell it later on when I get a bigger tablet. But I'll see since I really need to learn it sooner than later ;)
Katya, I'll let you know either way.
 
Artful Dodger said:
I have been looking around at the Wacom tablets (I have a 6x8 now) but I was thinking of going bigger, which would mean that PSE4 might start shipping with it. If that happens It wouldn't be worth it for me to buy a copy then sell it later on when I get a bigger tablet. But I'll see since I really need to learn it sooner than later ;)
Katya, I'll let you know either way.
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what a saving idea. I did a similar one too.
 
It incorporates Adobe Bridge! Oh dear...

Bridge is a horribly slow, resource hungry piece of crap that's like a parasite, sucking the life out of photoshop...

Bring back Browser it was fast and didn't eat memory for breakfast...
 
hmmm...i'm torn. i like some of the new features of v.4, but not being a UB is a bummer...will probably wait until v.5 w/UB comes out next year unless i hear some great reviews from you guys :D

v.3 actually runs very well on my intel imac...but i'd hate to buy v.4 and then have to shell out for a UB v.5...i guess i'm not certain that adobe will make a v.4 UB patch rather than making us shell out for a new version.
 
My main reason for wanting PSE4 is I like what is done on CGtalk.com but I'm leaning (almost on top of) Painter and what it can do. Yet still having something to correct my so-so photo skills with is nice ;) Since I don't use PS everyday I really can't tell speed/performance issues with my Core Duo at this point :cool: As long as Flash 8 runs good for me I'm doing back flips, well almost ;)
 
I've received and installed my copy and used it for about 20 minutes.

After using versions of Photoshop since version 2.0 through 7.0, various versions of PhotoDeluxe and Photoshop Elements, I'm a bit disappointed.

The magic selection tool is a good thing, though I'm still learning to get it to work. It's a new user problem I'm having with it.

The auto red eye reduction works marginally better than the last version when it decided to hunt for red eyes after clicking on them. Red eye reduction doesn't work better but when it works, it's quicker.

Smartfix did work better on one really bad webcam capture but did worse on a good photo. The bad side is about the same as auto levels from Photoshop version 3.0 to present.

Bridge is going to take a lot of acclimation. It doesn't exactly work the way I would hope for a project manager.

Since I generally do things manually, most of this doesn't affect me at all, but I tried it anyway. I'd hate to think how someone's grandmother is going to deal with it.

The worst thing is that there were none of the projects I saw initially. The presentation information must have been copied directly from the Windows version. It will create web galleries (as did version 3.0) and it will create .pdf slide shows, but calendars, etc. are not included.

If you're happy with version 3.0 and have a clue about editing your photos, don't bother, unless you need another copy.
 
Thanks bousozoku,
I think I'll hold off for some time and see what else is found with this version before I spend my money on it. I might just hold off and get PSCS3 once it comes out instead. Funny there wasn't a lot of info on this like when PSE3 came out after 2.
 
I think Adobe knew how it would be received, considering the fact that version 3.0 gained so much in the Windows version and very little relatively in the Mac version.

The magic selection might be worth it, though, for someone. It seems a very clever idea that I'm sure was pioneered somewhere else.

Oh, and by the way, the two finger scrolling on the trackpad changes the zoom factor. :mad:

riciad said:
Hey! Go easy on the granny comments. We're not all technologically deficient.
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It's important to look at software's ease of use. Most people my parents age (70+) can't use a computer well. Even parents (35+) have trouble with using a computer, in my experience.

Technologically knowledgeable or deficient doesn't matter, software shouldn't be difficult to use.
 
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