Photoshop Questions

[nikonkid]

First off, I apologize if this is the wrong forum, please move if it is thanks

Anyway, I bought my first slr in August of last year, and have really been having fun with it. Recently I'v started looking into buying photoshop to start spicing up making real art instead of just taking snapshots. So here I have a few questions, since I'm 15 and don't have much money I want whatever I buy to last a while. Does anyone know when cs6 is coming out? I'd rather not spend $200 to have outdated software within a few months. The other thing is, my dad gave me an old copy of cs2, should I try to start learning that until cs6 arrives? Would any of that pertain to the newer photoshops? Or should I forget it and go for cs5 now..

Thanks for the help!

[autofocus]

I'm sure some of the basic elements of CS2 would carry over. It'll be a good learning experience to go ahead and use it before the latest comes out (don't know when) and other than new enhancements, you'll still see a familiar interface and consistency in many of the tools. I wouldn't get too hung up on the latest issue, there are still many people using earlier versions of PS and yielding very good results with it.

[SusanH1970]

I'm using CS2 and it's perfect for my needs. Eventually I'll upgrade but at the moment I really don't see the need to spend the cash.

[zona5101]

cs5 just came out so you're good for a year or more. Not too worry, as others have said having an older version is not a handicap at all

[baycruisers]

For $100US (or less) you can get Photoshop Elements 9, which I predict will do just about everything you will need for a long time, including RAW processing. Adobe offers upgrades from PSE to CSx periodically, so if you decide to move up to CS, you don't have to pay the full price. Some photographers look askance at PSE as not being a serious tool, but I think that's unfair. I have PSE 9, CS4, and Lightroom. I use LR for RAW processing and PSE 9 for pixel-level adjustments and fixes, if needed. I hardly ever open or need CS.

You can d/l trial copies of all Adobe programs and compare them side by side.

[nikonkid]

I'll go ahead with cs2 then, thanks for the replies!

[magicfun]

cs5.5 is out, so you might want to upgrade to that.

[inkista]

Originally Posted by magicfun

cs5.5 is out, so you might want to upgrade to that.

QFT.

If you have a CS2 license, understand that CS5 is the LAST version you can upgrade to. Adobe only allows upgrades for any version of their software from the previous three versions. When CS6 comes out, if you haven't upgraded, you will have to repurchase the whole license, and that will cost far more than upgrading.

If you like living dangerously and procastinating until the very last minute, you might be able to upgrade to CS6 by waiting until CS6 is announced, and then upgrading to CS5. By purchasing CS5 in the "announcement period" (between the announcement and shipping of CS6; usually about a month), you then will qualify for a free CS5->CS6 upgrade. But you have to time it just right. And that assumes Adobe will continue doing these free announcement period upgrades.