Photo Management Software Advice

[Commodore]

I need some advice on what to use for photo management. The obvious choice is iPhoto, but everyone I know with a Mac hates it, and I don't like the idea of losing control of my file location and hierarchy I've built in Finder. (And I don't want my files duplicated.) Back when I was with a PC, I used Picasa and loved it. It did everything I wanted and needed and didn't mess with my file location. I also liked the ability to add captions and upload straight to Picasaweb with the captions. I've been using Finder, but I just have too many photos now, and it's difficult to find ones I'm looking for. I'd also love to be able to tag photos so I could see all photos with my girlfriend, all photos from travel, etc. I'd also like to start captioning and writing about different events. I've been doing it on Picasaweb after uploading, but I don't want to lose those captions if I have to take the photos down later. It would be nice to have it all on my computer. Also, I usually have photos from at least two cameras from a certain event, so I have one folder for the event and then subfolders with pictures from each camera (or day from a multi-day trip).

So, to summarize, I'd like the following:
-photo organization (up until now I've just used Finder)
-tagging
-the ability to caption and document memories from the event
-needs to leave my files and folders alone. I like being able to find the file when I want it.
-very basic (and somewhat automated) photo editing (a la Picasa) to remove red eye, crop, adjust lighting, etc.

Is this possible with iPhoto? What about Lightroom, Lightbox, or Photoshop Elements? (I did search before posting but couldn't find all the answers I needed.) I would not mind connecting my camera, creating a folder in Finder, dumping the pictures manually in it and then pointing an application to that folder so it will recognize the new additions and incorporate them into the library (WITHOUT moving or copying them--just looking at the location I've chosen). Automatic import is not a necessity for me.

Thanks.

 

[motulist]

GraphicConverter! I don't know if it does or doesn't have auto red-eye removal, but it definitely does everything else you listed. GraphicConverter is one of the best all-around image apps ever. The image browser in this screen shot is totally configurable, so you can set it to display as much or as little info and tools as you like.

http://www.lemkesoft.com/content/14...wser-mac-photo-browser-mac-image-browser.html

 

[Commodore]

GraphicConverter! I don't know if it does or doesn't have auto red-eye removal, but it definitely does everything else you listed. GraphicConverter is one of the best all-around image apps ever. The image browser in this screen shot is totally configurable, so you can set it to display as much or as little info and tools as you like.

http://www.lemkesoft.com/content/14...wser-mac-photo-browser-mac-image-browser.html

Looks great! I see that you can edit the picture comments (is this saved with the photo or as metadata elsewhere?) Can you tag photos with it as well? This seems like a very powerful feature I'd like to have.

 

[motulist]

Looks great! I see that you can edit the picture comments (is this saved with the photo or as metadata elsewhere?) Can you tag photos with it as well? This seems like a very powerful feature I'd like to have.

It's shareware, which means you can download and use it for free and then buy it if you like it. So go download it and check it out for yourself. I believe the comments are saved in the actual file like a comment you would add to the file through the finder. to use it as tags, all you'd need to do is type in the tag you want on each file or group of files, and then to find them later simply use the spotlight field built right into the image browser.

 

[Commodore]

It's shareware, which means you can download and use it for free and then buy it if you like it. So go download it and check it out for yourself. I believe the comments are saved in the actual file like a comment you would add to the file through the finder. to use it as tags, all you'd need to do is type in the tag you want on each file or group of files, and then to find them later simply use the spotlight field built right into the image browser.

How would this compare to Lightroom or Photoshop Elements? I'd really like a robust tagging feature. It has worked wonders in Gmail. I don't want to rely on adding tags to comments and using Spotlight.