Beginners software advice
Discussion
Can someone advise me of some decent (but not too expensive) photo editing software to purchase for my son ??
He has arrived to stay with me this weekend all full of beans as he has found something at last that he is interested in. He is 14 and has now been doing the photography club at school etc and his Mother and her side are going to buy him a Cannon 500D for his Christmas present. Reading the reviews this appears to be a good camera and he has informed me of all the gadgets it has and what he can do with it.
Anyway now with a bit of history, back to the topic. Can anyone recommend some decent software to compliment this camera?
He has arrived to stay with me this weekend all full of beans as he has found something at last that he is interested in. He is 14 and has now been doing the photography club at school etc and his Mother and her side are going to buy him a Cannon 500D for his Christmas present. Reading the reviews this appears to be a good camera and he has informed me of all the gadgets it has and what he can do with it.
Anyway now with a bit of history, back to the topic. Can anyone recommend some decent software to compliment this camera?
Get a trial version of Photoshop, see how you get on with it.
If you're on a Mac, Aperture is their own photo editing software and I find it very good.
If you want a free, quite easy to use bit of kit, Irfanview is available for PC.
Regards the camera, good solid choice. From there he'll be able to build up an accessories and len base which can be used across the EOS range. Normally when one starts out in photography, the brand they start with is the brand they stick with. Some people will disagree but due to the cost of lenses and bodies it's normally a choice you only make once.
If you're on a Mac, Aperture is their own photo editing software and I find it very good.
If you want a free, quite easy to use bit of kit, Irfanview is available for PC.
Regards the camera, good solid choice. From there he'll be able to build up an accessories and len base which can be used across the EOS range. Normally when one starts out in photography, the brand they start with is the brand they stick with. Some people will disagree but due to the cost of lenses and bodies it's normally a choice you only make once.
The Canon comes with Zoombrowser (Download management, general photo browser and photo editor), some other utilities and I think DPP which is Canon's software for Pro users needing RAW file conversion. There are some functions available that will, currently, afaik, only work with the Canon software although it's probable that your son won;t be getting into those early in his ownership - unless he gets into very long exposure stuff or is in the habit of changing lenses in a very dusty environment.
These programs are more capable than many people will acknowledge. They are, however, primarily photo editors whereas products like Photoshop and its derivatives come from a graphics editing background - hence all the special 'arts' filters for making your photos look like, say, a painting by numbers experiment.
There are also a number of quite capable free editors around.
Your son may find that something like an additional lens (or money towards one) or a large capacity memory card or two, maybe a proper flash unit, would be even more interesting than the software.
Just a thought.
If you do go or the software option I think some of the vendors, Adobe for example, do some good 'education' deals. They certainly used to. Worth checking out. He will need a fairly good PC or Mac to run the latest versions of the 'market leading' software. And plenty of spare disk space for photo storage if he really gets into it.
HTH.
These programs are more capable than many people will acknowledge. They are, however, primarily photo editors whereas products like Photoshop and its derivatives come from a graphics editing background - hence all the special 'arts' filters for making your photos look like, say, a painting by numbers experiment.
There are also a number of quite capable free editors around.
Your son may find that something like an additional lens (or money towards one) or a large capacity memory card or two, maybe a proper flash unit, would be even more interesting than the software.
Just a thought.
If you do go or the software option I think some of the vendors, Adobe for example, do some good 'education' deals. They certainly used to. Worth checking out. He will need a fairly good PC or Mac to run the latest versions of the 'market leading' software. And plenty of spare disk space for photo storage if he really gets into it.
HTH.
Worth noting that if you're a student you can get up to 80% of photo shop or lightroom.
http://tryit.adobe.com/uk/cs5/student_teacher/?sdi...
https://store2.adobe.com/cfusion/store/html/index....
Currently I am on one of the photography evening classes at Hertford Regional College and a mate has just purchased CS5 and saved £500, not bad considering the course was only £80.
http://tryit.adobe.com/uk/cs5/student_teacher/?sdi...
https://store2.adobe.com/cfusion/store/html/index....
Currently I am on one of the photography evening classes at Hertford Regional College and a mate has just purchased CS5 and saved £500, not bad considering the course was only £80.
RobDickinson said:
other options...
cable release
filters (cpl, nd/grads)
tripod
books
printer and ink
flickr pro account etc
cable release - do people still use these when self timers and mirror up exist?!cable release
filters (cpl, nd/grads)
tripod
books
printer and ink
flickr pro account etc
filters (cpl, nd/grads) - cpl maybe for landscapes but hardly necs - pretty well all other filters can be replicated in Photoshop or use HDR
tripod - nah, pita to lug around unless used for macro. hold the camera properly and/or change iso instead
books - nah with the exception of Mike Freeman stuff! kids are educated on-line by pod casts and you tube - both rich sources of everything
printer and ink - oh yes defo! And plenty of paper and consider some 'snap frames' I use them in the studio and study
flickr pro account - yup!
ian in lancs said:
RobDickinson said:
other options...
cable release
filters (cpl, nd/grads)
tripod
books
printer and ink
flickr pro account etc
cable release - do people still use these when self timers and mirror up exist?!cable release
filters (cpl, nd/grads)
tripod
books
printer and ink
flickr pro account etc
filters (cpl, nd/grads) - cpl maybe for landscapes but hardly necs - pretty well all other filters can be replicated in Photoshop or use HDR
tripod - nah, pita to lug around unless used for macro. hold the camera properly and/or change iso instead
books - nah with the exception of Mike Freeman stuff! kids are educated on-line by pod casts and you tube - both rich sources of everything
printer and ink - oh yes defo! And plenty of paper and consider some 'snap frames' I use them in the studio and study
flickr pro account - yup!
Cable release - yep. MLU and self timer are OK but not perfect and it's so much fun to play with the BULB setting.
Filters .... later. But if replicating in PS (et all) then shoot RAW.
Tripod ... see cable release and of course many other purposes. However something like a Gorillapod or beanbag type support may be more exciting for now. A cheap tripod could be useful for him to discover what it would allow him to do. You can get something basic and serviceable for about £15 or less from 7dayshop.
Books ... depends. Videos might be more appealing at this stage. That or a book of Fine Art nudes maybe. With lighting guides. A good classic photographic genre after all.
Printer and Ink - home printing is very expensive especially if there is a Tesco or Boots or some other facility nearby. It can also be incredibly frustrating without a lot of setup and kit to support the setup. Maybe later.
Flickr Pro account ... Dunno. I seem to have one but don't use it much. A PH account to join this forum though .... probably as good really....
Colin RedGriff said:
Adobe Lightroom is a good option (IMO) it is great for importing and cataloguing your photos. It has some basic manipulation tools and options for exporting to web pages slideshows etc
Should get it at the educational discount too ..... but then a 500D has some good applications included anyway.Gassing Station | Photography & Video | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff