Paint Shop Pro users

[windrider86]

If you are wanting to know a little more about post processing this place has some great tutorials http://ravenspaintshoppro.yuku.com/

[jagoble25]

Wind, did you use any of the photo shop software before psp??? I have a relative that also uses paint shop and is trying to steer me that way instead of PSE. She does wonders with it. I just need something VERY user friendly.

[windrider86]

I aslo have Cs3 Photoshop but never use it.I've had PSP since version 2 and love it. For me, it's very user friendly. But then again, it's what I am used to.
It truly can do everything Photoshop can do and it it's WAY cheaper

[m.c.adams]

Thanks for the heads-up on the site. I have PSP X2 and CS4 and find that I use PSP quite alot for quick fixes that would take much longer in CS4.
Mark

[Jim Bryant]

Originally Posted by jagoble25

Wind, did you use any of the photo shop software before psp??? I have a relative that also uses paint shop and is trying to steer me that way instead of PSE. She does wonders with it. I just need something VERY user friendly.

I've been using Photoshop 1.0 since it was shipped in February 1990. Paint Shop, the first version, 1.0, was released in early 1992.

[RustySterling]

I've been a user of Paint Shop since v.2 right up to Paint Shop Pro Photo Extreme XII. But recently I purchased PhotoShop CS4 and took advantage of the free month of tutorials on Lynda.com and now I'm really enjoying PhotoShop.

To put things in perspective, Paint Shop was a lot simpler than PhotoShop in the early days and PhotoShop has just plain intimidated me. I recently tried PSE and still felt more comfortable with PSP.

But the tutorials I've taken have demystified some of the intimidating things in PS that just plain perplexed me. The new interface is a lot easier for me to understand and I'm growing more confortable everyday. In fact, I'm now learning the nuiances of Channels and Masks, which are very powerful tools in PS.

I might use PSP on occasion in the future but I'm soliding in the PS camp now and don't plan on really looking back. Once you get into some of the more advanced areas of PS then there is no comparison with PSP.

That doesn't mean PSP is a bad program. It's extremely good. It has many of the functions of PS. But the only downside is that over the years as PSP has developed it has become less intuitive than it was in the beginning. In fact, I remember with v.4 the interface changed radically and it became much more difficult to learn as the developers tried to make it more like PS.

The bottom line is that PSP has a lot of powerful features and is great for many users. But I think a vast majority of pros us PS and will continue to do so.

[sk66]

Originally Posted by jagoble25

Wind, did you use any of the photo shop software before psp??? I have a relative that also uses paint shop and is trying to steer me that way instead of PSE. She does wonders with it. I just need something VERY user friendly.

I would not consider photoshop "user friendly"...it is very complex. PSP is "more" user friendly, but not terribly so. It depends on what you want to do...something more basic may be more appropriate than either of those programs.

I would say there is a strong reason you should consider photoshop......your relative. If she has great skill with the program then you have a ready/easy source of knowledge/help when the need arises.....that can be very valuable.

[windrider86]

Originally Posted by jagoble25

Wind, did you use any of the photo shop software before psp??? I have a relative that also uses paint shop and is trying to steer me that way instead of PSE. She does wonders with it. I just need something VERY user friendly.

Yes, i had photshop and elements before I started using PSP. I know a lot of people swear by Photoshop and I am not knocking it at all ,as I own CS3. But again, psp can do channels and masks.
Its all in what you are comfortable with. For me, its like Nikon, they are advertise a ton so thier name is out there more than say Olympus. The same with PS and PSP. Doesnt mean one is better than the other, It's just what you are comfortable with
I just like the layout of psp better than ps.
Another thing to consider is the tutorials. There are a lot more out there for ps than there are for psp. If you can figure out the steps you can use the same tutorials.
Price was also a HUGE factor for me. PSP is a third of the price

[Saralonde]

I own PSP X2, PS Elements 7, and PS CS3. I find PSP to be the most user friendly and it also offers more than Elements. The only downside is there are far fewer tutorials out there for PSP. PS CS3 has way more ability than I can use, but after using it for the past year, I'm feeling pretty comfortable with it. Elements is the most disappointing to me. All will take time to learn. If you have the money, go with Photoshop, if not, pick Paintshop Pro over Elements.

No one mentioned Lightroom, which a lot of people love.

[jagoble25]

Thanks for all the input yall. I will try the trial versions of them all and see what i can come up with.