I get my iMac in 2 weeks time and I cant wait, they only thing I have forgot to think about is software for my photography, what would you guys recommend for an amateur photographer who would like to try and do more with there hobby?
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Photography Software?
- Thread starter Stetwin
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Well, start off with iPhoto, which you get free with your mac. If after playing around with that for a while you find you need more then you need to look at Aperture or Lightroom.
Thats exactly what i would do, iPhoto is a great software and is underrated. I am not sure about Aperture i hear lightroom is way better but i have not tryed it myself.
It all depends on the camera.
iPhoto is fine because it comes with a new computer.
If you want to move to Apple Aperture or Adobe Lightroom or Silkypix Developer Studio, you should be using a camera that creates Raw files, as this is their main reason for being.
If you're mostly working with JPEGs, Adobe Photoshop Elements is available and a new version should likely be available around the first of the year.
iPhoto is fine because it comes with a new computer.
If you want to move to Apple Aperture or Adobe Lightroom or Silkypix Developer Studio, you should be using a camera that creates Raw files, as this is their main reason for being.
If you're mostly working with JPEGs, Adobe Photoshop Elements is available and a new version should likely be available around the first of the year.
If your camera only produces JPEG files, it would be a waste to buy Aperture, Lightroom, or Silkypix Developer Studio, since they're meant for Raw files.
My Camera does shoot in RAW but that only gives me about 50 shots per memory stick, and I only have two memory sticks lol!!
Out of the three you have listed which do you find the easiest to use?
I sort of disagree.
Even if you're camera only produces JPEGs, the non-destructive work flow and editing power, as well as organization, available in Aperture is still very helpful.
I wouldn't put the decision on the camera, but instead base it on what you're doing w/ the photos once you've taken them. If they are just for casual snapshots and family albums, iPhoto or something similar would be fantastic.
If you will be using your photography commercially and making money from them, then the price of something like Aperture would certainly be justified.
Another very interesting project I've been watching lately is blueMarine.
It is an open-source photography app very similar to Aperture and Lightroom. But, being open-source, it is entirely free. It offers non-destructive work flow, and many of the features available in these professional suites, as well as some VERY cool new features (the ornithological example they provide is a good one).
It is almost in beta, so it isn't quite ready for public use yet, but I think it is an interesting project to keep your eyes on. (Again, being open-source, if you're a developer, you can change it however you like, and it is also available for just about every computer platform and OS out there).
Firstly, what camera do you have?
Secondly, if you want to get more 'serious' then you should probably shoot in RAW
Thirdly, The aperture vs lightroom debate is ongoing and everlasting, there are people entrenched in both camps. There are many threads about it here. Each offers a 30 day trial so you can test them out to see which one you prefer.
There is always Photoshop CS3 of course 
Not really for managing your archive but for editing, touch ups...experimentation it's great. I'm trying to figure out how to do HDR images with it now. It has great built in stitching/blending scripts for panoramas. It is pricey though.
Not really for managing your archive but for editing, touch ups...experimentation it's great. I'm trying to figure out how to do HDR images with it now. It has great built in stitching/blending scripts for panoramas. It is pricey though.Silkypix Developer Studio is my choice, but I don't know that it's the easiest to use. It has fewer drawbacks than the other two. Lightroom is very conventional in operation but was a pain for me to use and Aperture is great for people who worked with film but requires too much machine to run it.
If you don't want to use Raw, Photoshop Elements would do you well. It all depends on the quality you want. JPEG files automatically lose some quality, due to compression, though the lightest compression is generally handled well. Raw files take more space because they're not compressed and can be edited as if they were still in the camera. PSE will allow you to edit Raw files with the ACR plug-in.
iPhoto.
iPhoto handles RAW images as well as the others. The Raw converter is inside Mac OS X. Preview, iPhoto and Aperture all use the same raw image facilities inside "Core Image". I would start with iPhoto and use it until you cane state a good reason to switch.
Most of the time you don't need to shoot in raw format. Only in cases where the lighting or the white balance is not so easy or if you know you are going to do some extensive "Photoshoppng" would you need to shoot in raw mode. Raw images are big and slow to process. Use iPhoto, shoot raw when needed. Wait till after you've gained some experiance. Who knows maybe you don't want software and the lens is spent on a new lens.