What replaces Photoshop?

[Deleted member 88956]

Amazing to read all the “PS and nothing else entries”. You like PS fine, but there are at least 5 programs that will give PS a run for its money and they have all been mentioned here.

Adobe switched to subscription only for one reason - it changed revenue flow and investors like it. You can chose to believe all the hype Adobe put forward, and nobody is happier than Adobe and stock holders. Now, had there been a substantial backlash hurting bottom line, they might not have stuck to it. But that never happened.

You like being on a leash - fine. But why trying to tell others to take same route? Some effectively mocking such desires to switch?

PS is NOT the only game in town. Suggesting otherwise is a lie.

I think it is only a matter of time Capture One will go subscription only. They are at best testing subscription, but likely keeping both options to retain user base for longer. Adobe did same thing.

 

[removed account4]

You like being on a leash - fine. But why trying to tell others to take same route? Some effectively mocking such desires to switch?

can you please keep your insults to yourself ??

 

[Deleted member 88956]

can you please keep your insults to yourself ??

What insults? If anything it is quite a few telling everyone else to shut up and use PS because there is no alternative, which is a lie (and an insult). Me saying "being on a leash" is an insult? How are you NOT on a leash when you rely on Adobe providing service without having Zero control from your own end? Just wait when a hacker gets to Adobe services and shuts out all users, perhaps delete all of users accounts, then you will see what it means to be "on a leash". Just don't tell me I insulted your ego by stating this simple fact.

 

[removed account4]

What insults?

insinuating people who use photoshop are (pets?) on a leash, give me a break.
sure I've suggested people use it, a dollar or so a day is peanuts and
It does what it
is supposed to do, which is better than the alternatives (yes, that I have also used)
some can't invert an image,
others can't save for the web,
others can't split color channels, ( all things that are necessary to do ).
I've been using the program since the 90s and have never experienced anything similar to your complaints.
I don't use light room so my image aren't saved in a proprietary format,
I don't put my work on the adobe site and I don't
have issues that can't be solved through a simple call on their 800#
for me at least, PS is cheap and customer service from them is top shelf.
maybe for you its not, and you need to use another program that is free or might not work as well
or if you have problems and have to call CS they get an earful from unhelpful people, or
they tell you to read the faq or post it on the group think question forum
( where it might not appear for a week, may never be answered, or you are wasting your time with non-answers and time wasters )
sure that works if that's your choice.. sometimes you get what you paid for ..

 

[Deleted member 88956]

insinuating people who use photoshop are (pets?) on a leash, give me a break.
naah. not an insult.
sure I've suggested people use it, a dollar or so a day is affordable and
I have found no issues with it doing what it
is supposed to do, which is better than the alternatives (that I have also used)
some can't invert an image,
others can't save for the web,
others can't split color channels, ( all things I have needed to do for my job ).
I've been using the program since the 90s and have never experienced anything similar to your complaints.
for me at least PS is cheap and customer service from them is top shelf.
someone else wants to use another program that might not work as well
or if they have problems and have to call CS they get an earful from unhelpful people, that's their choice..
sometimes you get what you paid for ..

Again, being on a leash is also a figure of speech, like it or not. If you want to see what was clearly not intended, your problem.

Besides, everyone who choses to be TIED up to Adobe system with no chance of controlling any part of it, FINE (as I had already stated).

Yet anyone who wants to cut the ties and be on own terms has a choice at ANY time to cut the rope and be free. So while your silly interpretation of what I wrote has such insulting underpinnings, anyone who feels that way still has options to go another way. In other words a pet hardly has a choice, ADOBE users DO. This is the SOLE reason some of us do NOT want to to stick with subscription, because well it is ... insulting ... in a way. But I am not trying to tell anyone what software to use. As long as I can control what I use, I will do so.

I won't be coming back to this exchange to argue further. Stay insulted if you desire, not my problem. I certainly had no such intent and I'm not going to apologize for it.

 

[removed account4]

Again, being on a leash is also a figure of speech, like it or not. If you want to see what was clearly not intended, your problem.

Besides, everyone who choses to be TIED up to Adobe system with no chance of controlling any part of it, FINE (as I had already stated).

Yet anyone who wants to cut the ties and be on own terms has a choice at ANY time to cut the rope and be free. So while your silly interpretation of what I wrote has such insulting underpinnings, anyone who feels that way still has options to go another way. In other words a pet hardly has a choice, ADOBE users DO. This is the SOLE reason some of us do NOT want to to stick with subscription, because well it is ... insulting ... in a way. But I am not trying to tell anyone what software to use. As long as I can control what I use, I will do so.

I won't be coming back to this exchange to argue further. Stay insulted if you desire, not my problem. I certainly had no such intent and I'm not going to apologize for it.

absolutely no clue what you are talking about. adobe isn't holding anyone prisoner or their work hostage. it is the industry standard for a reason. by all means use a different product. I have never said to do otherwise.

 

[faberryman]

It wouldn't be an issue if film enthusiasts printed their negatives. But no, film enthusiasts want to digitally scan their film and then digitally manipulate what are now their digital images in digital image manipulation software all the while boldly proclaiming they are analog photographers. So naturally these analog photographers get into big arguments about which digital image manipulation software is best to digitally manipulate their digital scans. What a bunch of phonies.

 

[removed account4]

It wouldn't be an issue if film enthusiasts printed their negatives. But no, film enthusiasts want to scan their film and then digitally manipulate what are now their digital images in digital image manipulation software all the while boldly proclaiming they are analog photographers. So naturally these analog photographers get into big arguments about which digital image manipulation software is best. What a bunch of phonies.

LOL

 

[Duceman]

What a bunch of phonies.

Guilty as charged. Where do I voluntarily turn myself in to the authorities? This is a crime resulting in capital punishment, no?

Is witness protection available???

 

[RalphLambrecht]

What replaces PS? Skilled darkroom work

I humbly consider myself a skilled darkroom worker but, PS's capabilities surprise me again and again, Adobe must have some of the most skilled programs. They are literally able to create something out of nothing; truly breathtaking. Sometimes ,I catch myself photographing purely to have 'material' to work with in PS; not proud of that one.

 

[faberryman]

Guilty as charged. Where do I voluntarily turn myself in to the authorities? This is a crime resulting in capital punishment, no? Is witness protection available???

Admitting you have a problem is the first step toward redemption.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Use emory paper.

same here about Gimp.

 

[Duceman]

Admitting you have a problem is the first step toward redemption.

But this is beyond a mere problem. This is an irredeemable offense.

 

[removed account4]

I humbly consider myself a skilled darkroom worker but, PS's capabilities surprise me again and again, Adobe must have some of the most skilled programs. They are literally able to create something out of nothing; truly breathtaking. Sometimes ,I catch myself photographing purely to have 'material' to work with in PS; not proud of that one.

.. back in the day it was called "art for art's sake"

 

[Duceman]

FYI, Affinity Photo is presently running a Black Friday special.... $38USD and it's yours. Tough to beat.

https://affinity.serif.com/en-us/

 

[VinceInMT]

This has been an interesting thread that I am just catching up on. I was just giving a new 24” iMac and and thinking about something for photo editing. My needs are very limited as I am primarily a darkroom person but have been scanning decades of my film work. I’m also a non-traditional university student (almost age 70) and have used Lightroom and Photoshop in my classes. I like Lightroom’s abilities to organize and do some light editing. I found very little I’d use Photoshop for. I’ve use the GIMP in the past and as someone who switches regularly among Mac, Windows, and Linux, the GIMP interface doesn’t bother me.

Thanks for recommendations for Affinity. With the current sale price, I might go with that for the new Mac.

I bristle a bit on the subscription model of some products. If I buy a tool, I expect to have a use it for life (except if it came from Harbor Freight) if I take care of it. I can’t imagine paying a renewal fee for a hammer, table saw, or timing light, tools I use frequently.

 

[MattKing]

I bristle a bit on the subscription model of some products. If I buy a tool, I expect to have a use it for life (except if it came from Harbor Freight) if I take care of it. I can’t imagine paying a renewal fee for a hammer, table saw, or timing light, tools I use frequently.

I assume you would not be a "Snap-On-Tools" user

 

[radiant]

was just giving a new 24” iMac and and thinking about something for photo editing. My needs are very limited as I am primarily a darkroom person but have been scanning decades of my film work.

Same here. 99% times the built-in Photos app does the work on Macs. It's pretty good actually.

 

[faberryman]

I bristle a bit on the subscription model of some products. If I buy a tool, I expect to have a use it for life (except if it came from Harbor Freight) if I take care of it. I can’t imagine paying a renewal fee for a hammer, table saw, or timing light, tools I use frequently.

Fortunately, hammer manufacturers do not introduce new incompatible RAW files with every new hammer, so the nail manufactures don't have to redesign their nails.

 

[Down Under]

So not using Photoshop or Lightroom makes someone a criminal? Who wudda thunk it...

Bad jokes done with, nobody so far has mentioned the two (free) PP apps I've used for a long time.

Faststone - I have this on a 2007 Compaq (also on a portable hard disk as a backup, it can run from a HD or even a USB) so if or when the antique passes on, I can reload it to my 2013 Acer and just go on going on. It has its limitations, but it does everything I want it to. Minimalist. No bells or whistles. Right to the point. The only 'problem' I can see with it, is the current version (7.5) hasn't been updated since March 2020. Also Windows only.

Phocus - a Hasselblad app, currently on my Mac Pro. Layout and controls are similar to Faststone, so my ageing brain isn't overly taxed with having to relearn an entirely new layout.

I've never, ever considered Photoshop/Lightroom. Call me cheap (frugal is nicer, and we should all be nice to each other as you know, Christmas is coming), but I don't want to commit to having to pay any app seller anything every month. Home electricity and gas, okay. Nothing else. My guiding principle in life can be summed up in one word - KISS. That's how I live and I'm happy with it. (To keep all this nicely photographic, I still use Nikkormats and Rollei TLRs and I'm happy with these. (Along with my Nikon D700s and D800, of course)

If I had to, I would (reluctantly) consider buying a program. Corel looks to be about the best of these. Cheap, easy and sufficient.

But then my needs are simple. A little sharpening and color adjustments to make my images look like Kodachrome or Ektachrome.

I sell photos now and then to book and magazine publishers. Their art departments do all the work - all they want is the image.

I'm also putting the final touches to my own web site and plan to have it up and running by next February-March. Architectural and travel images with heaps of commentary. Probably a 'closed' site (password access, limited to clients, to keep the photo-pinchers away). So far Faststone has been my go-to program to prepare my photos for web posting, and it works fine.

Needs must. Horses for courses. I will be interested in comments from anyone who uses these two programs.

(Added later) Corrections made. How Faststone became Fastbook is beyond me to figure out. Either the gremlins did it or the author had a senior's moment...

 

[MattKing]

FastStone is indeed a quite good viewer in the Windows world - I use it a lot. The resizer is particularly strong.
It lacks layers and dodging and burning controls.
For those, I use Corel's Paintshop Pro.
If you want something more akin to Lightroom, Corel's Aftershot Pro 3 is a good alternative, and can be used for Windows, Mac and Linux.

 

[VinceInMT]

I assume you would not be a "Snap-On-Tools" user

You would assume correctly. I do have a few that were hand me downs though.

I am starting to admit that I really am an old codger. While I do have some fancy computer hardware and know how to write software, I’m old school when it comes to many other things. My daily driver cars are from ‘59, ‘65, or ‘83. My son just gave us his ‘07 Ford because he bought a Tesla and I find some of the features outright annoying. For example, I unlock a rear door to put something on the seat and when I get to where I am going the door has locked itself. I can’t use the buttons on the key fob if the car is running. I guess my ‘59 Volvo got me spoiled.

 

[Down Under]

Same here. 99% times the built-in Photos app does the work on Macs. It's pretty good actually.

Agree. It's my third go-to application, though I tend to use Hasselblad Phocus more on my Macbook Air.

You would assume correctly. I do have a few that were hand me downs though.

I am starting to admit that I really am an old codger. While I do have some fancy computer hardware and know how to write software, I’m old school when it comes to many other things. My daily driver cars are from ‘59, ‘65, or ‘83. My son just gave us his ‘07 Ford because he bought a Tesla and I find some of the features outright annoying. For example, I unlock a rear door to put something on the seat and when I get to where I am going the door has locked itself. I can’t use the buttons on the key fob if the car is running. I guess my ‘59 Volvo got me spoiled.

You are in good company here... I cut my teeth on a Morgan Plus Four, which has to be the most frustrating car ever built, along with the Russian Skodas and that horrible East German car, zillions of which were abandoned by the roadsides when the two Germanies were reunited in the '80s.

But if you want a car to really inspire you to curse like an old pirate, our 1991 Audi takes the biggest cigar. Mechanical everything, bought new, serviced by the book, <120,000 kilometers in 30 years, yet has an electrical breakdown every second month. It's just about guaranteed that something will go wrong with it every six times we take it out, then to be fixed at hideous cost. My partner reckons it's Germany's revenge for having lost the war in 1945...

It really does make me want to go back to that Morgan, but I can't afford one.

 

[jrhilton]

I personally use GIMP a lot now. I can see the point about its UI that has been raised, but I’ve got used to it now. It is very powerful, I find I revert to my old version of PS much less now.

The only thing for me that is missing is non-destructive adjustment layers (currently adjustments change a layer), but this is promised in the next major release version.

 

[Helge]

It wouldn't be an issue if film enthusiasts printed their negatives. But no, film enthusiasts want to digitally scan their film and then digitally manipulate what are now their digital images in digital image manipulation software all the while boldly proclaiming they are analog photographers. So naturally these analog photographers get into big arguments about which digital image manipulation software is best to digitally manipulate their digital scans. What a bunch of phonies.

It’s not obvious that you are joking?
Otherwise the lack of deep grok of well, anything in this, is amazing.