I am doing a clean install of my software(takes forever). At the moment, I cannot locate my PS discs. Can anyone recommend a good photo editor that will not cost me my first born.
I am using xnview now. I either don't know enough about the software, or there are not very many adjustments that I can see.
Any help would be appreciated.
Gimp comes to mind, altho I never used it.
What level of image editor and/or paint program do you need? Keep in mind there are 2 separate but related usage types here, filter-oriented image editing (XnView works more this way), and more painting-type stuff, i.e. manipulation with brushes, etc. Photoshop combines these two very effectively and there are other apps that do similarly, but if you only mostly use one or the other, there may be good free or cheap options.
For example, free options include:
Google Picasa is good at image organizing and filter-based workflow. Mostly good for real-world photo collections but could be used on TG work.
Paint.net is a popular option. The painting options are somewhat limited, as are the filters.
Photofiltre does both adequately.
The GIMP is a powerful app that combines both aspects, but has a somewhat clunky UI (depending on who you ask). It's probably the most direct Photoshop replacement you can get for free.
For pay, maybe Paint Shop Pro?
- Oshyan
Photoline is very powerful, even offers "instancing" of layer masks and stuff the like and is in some areas a lot better compared to PS.
Don´t be scared from the "aged" looking interface. Costs 60,-Euro I think
Krita.org, also powerful and free. Some say it might take the place from Gimp.
Mainly, I'm looking for a program that can process output from Terragen (exr). Would also like to be able to create masks, etc. I do not care for the business model that Adobe has come up with and basically looking for a replacement for PS.
Stable versions of GIMP currently does not have 32 bit depth/Exr support, but its a feature their working on.
but i hear the developer edition of GIMP does have Exr support
Krita does support 32 bit color modes but i'm not sure if supports the exr format.
Your options for high bit depth support (e.g. EXR) are unfortunately more limited as it's largely seen as a pro-level feature. Zlain's suggestions are probably best for non-commercial options.
Edit: I forgot, many people are now using Blender's compositing/image editing tools (node-based, I believe) for this. Some people are really liking it, and if you're comfortable with node-based editing and don't need to do painting-based edits, then Blender might be a good option for e.g. color/lighting adjustment post work.
- Oshyan
Quote from: Oshyan on May 29, 2013, 06:40:43 PM
Your options for high bit depth support (e.g. EXR) are unfortunately more limited as it's largely seen as a pro-level feature. Zlain's suggestions are probably best for non-commercial options.
Edit: I forgot, many people are now using Blender's compositing/image editing tools (node-based, I believe) for this. Some people are really liking it, and if you're comfortable with node-based editing and don't need to do painting-based edits, then Blender might be a good option for e.g. color/lighting adjustment post work.
- Oshyan
oh yeah, that too, ive been using Blender's node editor to edit my renders in Exr format, works well enough for me right now.
lots of possibilities
Thanks for the info from all of you. 8)
Quote from: Walli on May 29, 2013, 03:16:29 AM
Photoline is very powerful, even offers "instancing" of layer masks and stuff the like and is in some areas a lot better compared to PS.
Don´t be scared from the "aged" looking interface. Costs 60,-Euro I think
Krita.org, also powerful and free. Some say it might take the place from Gimp.
Yes, Photoline is looking good to me.... been using the demo for a couple weeks now so I can "ween" myself from Photoshop (not happy with the direction Adobe is going.) Photoline will open psd and import some camera raw formats too. So far it seems do do everything I do with Photoshop, with a much better price.
There's a rather long thread in the Newtek forum concerning Adobe and their CS subscription only, and Photoline seems to be a popular substitute.