Photoshop alternative
Discussion
https://affinity.serif.com/en-gb/photo/
£68 to own forever.
Would love to switch from Adobe but I use Lightroom, Photoshop, InDesign and Premiere. So for me the monthly cost isn't too bad, especially as I can offset it against tax.
£68 to own forever.
Would love to switch from Adobe but I use Lightroom, Photoshop, InDesign and Premiere. So for me the monthly cost isn't too bad, especially as I can offset it against tax.
Another ex-Adobe user who is on Affinity Photo.
I started when they published the Beta and I was still using Adobe. When it came out as live, I dumped Adobe. I'm now on Photo2. Never looked back.
It has recently been taken over by Canva, which has promised to keep the Affinity trio non-subscription, but I think every Affinity user is a little nervous. For me, the software is better than I need, so if there is a change in payment method, I'll have ample time to try the alternatives. At the moment, though, I'm well satisfied with Photo2.
The norm is when changing software, the UI, including keyboard shortcuts, takes a bit of getting used to, but if moving from Adobe, like me, it's not much of a test of mental dexterity. I got the occasional bewilderment when pressing a key and something weird happened, but that ended after a month.
I still use one Adobe product; that Bridge. It's free for the moment.
I started when they published the Beta and I was still using Adobe. When it came out as live, I dumped Adobe. I'm now on Photo2. Never looked back.
It has recently been taken over by Canva, which has promised to keep the Affinity trio non-subscription, but I think every Affinity user is a little nervous. For me, the software is better than I need, so if there is a change in payment method, I'll have ample time to try the alternatives. At the moment, though, I'm well satisfied with Photo2.
The norm is when changing software, the UI, including keyboard shortcuts, takes a bit of getting used to, but if moving from Adobe, like me, it's not much of a test of mental dexterity. I got the occasional bewilderment when pressing a key and something weird happened, but that ended after a month.
I still use one Adobe product; that Bridge. It's free for the moment.
djsmith74 said:
If you wanted to stay within the Adobe biosphere, then the cheapest option is probably to snag a 12month subscription on Black Friday. I got 12months of Adobe Creative Cloud (Lightroom & PS) via Amazon for £62.
Yes, and then when it comes to renewal, hassle their customer services for the latest offer. Threaten to cancel and they will almost certainly give you another discounted year.some bloke said:
I've used Gimp in the past, but if you're used to PS there's a bit of a learning curve. It's similar but also different, might be worth a D/L and play as it's free.
Another vote for GIMP here. Sure, it's a little clunky and not as polished as Photoshop but you can do a hell of a lot with it, especially if you install G'Mic
The #1 complaint from Photoshop users trying to transition to GIMP is "It's not Photoshop", which is fair, but it's a lot easier to transition these days than it used to be.
MGJ2 said:
singlecoil said:
I'm on the Photoshop plan at £9.99 a month, haven't heard anything from Adobe about a price Increase.
This is what I am on.Can anyone recommend DaVinci Resolve?
MGJ2 said:
This is what I am on.
Can anyone recommend DaVinci Resolve?
I used to edit video professionally, back in the v. early 2000s. I then went amateur and used various software over the years. I was after stability. After trying everything prosumer, I ended up with PowerDirector for five years, and only experienced the occasional crash. Then it went subscription. Can anyone recommend DaVinci Resolve?
I gave Resolve Free a try and ran it alongside PD. The interface took a bit of getting used to, but then that went for most, but I needed the YouTube videos to crack it. After three months I made up my mind to not renew my PD subscription and went full Resolve Free. I liked PD but found Resolve better for me.
I'd used a Da Vinci control panel, courtesy of of professional friend. The experience made my buy the Speed Editor with the 'free' Studio upgrade offer.
Firstly, the Speed Editor completely changed my method of video editing, and this after more than 20 years of video editing. Well worth it if you're the type of person who is willing to change methods of work. It, for me, is so much faster, more convenient, and, importantly, flexible.
Secondly, the vast majority of people will find the free version of Resolve all they need. I didn't need Studio, but I'm very glad I've got it.
You will have nothing to lose by trying Resolve Free. For me, Free and Studio have been the most stable video editor I've used, and I've used quite a few. I've had two 'hangs' of the Speed Editor, which I discovered was due to the software for my keyboard. A five minute fix.
I do not update Resolve, nor a lot of other software come to that, until at least a month after it is published, no matter how good the reviews, and I will only do so after I've read the forums and searched online for problems.
Any questions, please ask.
Turtle Shed said:
djsmith74 said:
If you wanted to stay within the Adobe biosphere, then the cheapest option is probably to snag a 12month subscription on Black Friday. I got 12months of Adobe Creative Cloud (Lightroom & PS) via Amazon for £62.
Yes, and then when it comes to renewal, hassle their customer services for the latest offer. Threaten to cancel and they will almost certainly give you another discounted year.I had a similar "FFS" moment 18 months ago when I realised how out of date my perpetual Lightroom licence was and they only did subscription models, but the headache isn't PS, it's Lightroom - very little has the same combination of functionality. If someone CAN create a good Lr alternative they'll probably have people flocking to them.
(Currently running Lr subscription at about £60-70 a year which i can live with, plus a one-off purchase of DxO PureRaw 3, which has a very good denoise engine (albeit it struggles a little with faces if you've really underexposed))
havoc said:
Nope - I just buy licences off Amazon when cheap and you can stack them in your Adobe account so they follow sequentially - my expiry is now late-2026.
I had a similar "FFS" moment 18 months ago when I realised how out of date my perpetual Lightroom licence was and they only did subscription models, but the headache isn't PS, it's Lightroom - very little has the same combination of functionality. If someone CAN create a good Lr alternative they'll probably have people flocking to them.
(Currently running Lr subscription at about £60-70 a year which i can live with, plus a one-off purchase of DxO PureRaw 3, which has a very good denoise engine (albeit it struggles a little with faces if you've really underexposed))
Not used it myself, but I have heard Darktable mentioned as an open source alternative to LightroomI had a similar "FFS" moment 18 months ago when I realised how out of date my perpetual Lightroom licence was and they only did subscription models, but the headache isn't PS, it's Lightroom - very little has the same combination of functionality. If someone CAN create a good Lr alternative they'll probably have people flocking to them.
(Currently running Lr subscription at about £60-70 a year which i can live with, plus a one-off purchase of DxO PureRaw 3, which has a very good denoise engine (albeit it struggles a little with faces if you've really underexposed))
I moved from Adobe years ago and another recommendation for Affinity Photo. For your standard photographic work it is everything you’ll need with a decent RAW editor built in. Lacks the AI stuff of Adobe but apparently they are working on it now. Last time I looked AP was available for a 6 month free trial so you can really give it a good go and have time to learn a bit about it too, although in fairness there is a lot of similarities with PS.
For fairness I have to say I use Capture One now for the vast bulk of my editing and only rarely need an external editor. It is however more expensive than Adobe and it’s target market is firmly professional and commercial photographers but of course nothing to stop hobbyists using it if you like it’s workflow and capabilities (obviously I do!)
For fairness I have to say I use Capture One now for the vast bulk of my editing and only rarely need an external editor. It is however more expensive than Adobe and it’s target market is firmly professional and commercial photographers but of course nothing to stop hobbyists using it if you like it’s workflow and capabilities (obviously I do!)
steveatesh said:
I moved from Adobe years ago and another recommendation for Affinity Photo. For your standard photographic work it is everything you’ll need with a decent RAW editor built in. Lacks the AI stuff of Adobe but apparently they are working on it now. Last time I looked AP was available for a 6 month free trial so you can really give it a good go and have time to learn a bit about it too, although in fairness there is a lot of similarities with PS.
For fairness I have to say I use Capture One now for the vast bulk of my editing and only rarely need an external editor. It is however more expensive than Adobe and it’s target market is firmly professional and commercial photographers but of course nothing to stop hobbyists using it if you like it’s workflow and capabilities (obviously I do!)
I wish Capture One would do a cheaper licence for strictly non-commercial/hobbyist use only. It would be difficult to police but I would have bought it had it not been so flipping expensive. Also I don't find it as intuitive as Lightroom and there are some things I used to do in Lightroom that I just can't replicate in Capture One.For fairness I have to say I use Capture One now for the vast bulk of my editing and only rarely need an external editor. It is however more expensive than Adobe and it’s target market is firmly professional and commercial photographers but of course nothing to stop hobbyists using it if you like it’s workflow and capabilities (obviously I do!)
LunarOne said:
steveatesh said:
I moved from Adobe years ago and another recommendation for Affinity Photo. For your standard photographic work it is everything you’ll need with a decent RAW editor built in. Lacks the AI stuff of Adobe but apparently they are working on it now. Last time I looked AP was available for a 6 month free trial so you can really give it a good go and have time to learn a bit about it too, although in fairness there is a lot of similarities with PS.
For fairness I have to say I use Capture One now for the vast bulk of my editing and only rarely need an external editor. It is however more expensive than Adobe and it’s target market is firmly professional and commercial photographers but of course nothing to stop hobbyists using it if you like it’s workflow and capabilities (obviously I do!)
I wish Capture One would do a cheaper licence for strictly non-commercial/hobbyist use only. It would be difficult to police but I would have bought it had it not been so flipping expensive. Also I don't find it as intuitive as Lightroom and there are some things I used to do in Lightroom that I just can't replicate in Capture One.For fairness I have to say I use Capture One now for the vast bulk of my editing and only rarely need an external editor. It is however more expensive than Adobe and it’s target market is firmly professional and commercial photographers but of course nothing to stop hobbyists using it if you like it’s workflow and capabilities (obviously I do!)
CP1 always used to do cheaper specific brand versions that you can only use with canon/nikon/sony...
LunarOne said:
I wish Capture One would do a cheaper licence for strictly non-commercial/hobbyist use only. It would be difficult to police but I would have bought it had it not been so flipping expensive. Also I don't find it as intuitive as Lightroom and there are some things I used to do in Lightroom that I just can't replicate in Capture One.
They gave up the cheaper licences to concentrate on the C1 Pro version, which was a shame. I originally got on it by their free Express version, then the Sony licence, but they moved me to the Prov licence when the manufacturer specific licences were stopped. Then they started their Studio version aimed at studios with several people working together.
I do love the program and it’s coming along in leaps and bounds from when I first got it, with features that really make for a speedy workflow particularly if you take lots of photos (eg wedding, brand, event etc).
I’m curious as to what it is you can’t replicate in C1 that you can do in LR (although I’ve lost touch with LR). I do know LR has the superb object removal tool (which is the only reason I would use PS for) and it does intersecting masks which you have to work around in C1. ?
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