Photoshop alternative

Author
Discussion

MGJ2

Original Poster:

407 posts

147 months

Tuesday
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Just got an email from Adobe: the cost of a monthly subscription is going up. By a whopping 50%, from € 12,09 to € 18,30 per month. I think it is time to explore what alternatives are available.

Turtle Shed

1,829 posts

35 months

Tuesday
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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.

JonnyWhitters

802 posts

91 months

Tuesday
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I’ve been using Affinity (1 then 2) for years now and it’s all I need in a developer / editor tool. I picked it up for £29 on sale and it’s the best value software I’ve had.

Plenty of YouTube vids to help with the learning curve too.

SV_WDC

878 posts

98 months

Tuesday
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I've been using Pixelmator. Cost about £50 for a lifetime license. I've been surprised how good it actually is, and they have added a lot of AI tools. Their tutorials are great too

Derek Smith

46,643 posts

257 months

Wednesday
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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.

djsmith74

400 posts

159 months

Wednesday
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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.

some bloke

1,236 posts

76 months

Wednesday
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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.

Turtle Shed

1,829 posts

35 months

Wednesday
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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.

singlecoil

34,275 posts

255 months

Wednesday
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I'm on the Photoshop plan at £9.99 a month, haven't heard anything from Adobe about a price Increase. I have Affinity Photo 2 as well but far prefer Photoshop, especially when I want to remove something from a photo.

Clockwork Cupcake

76,555 posts

281 months

Wednesday
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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

Original Poster:

407 posts

147 months

Yesterday (18:08)
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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?

LunarOne

5,904 posts

146 months

Yesterday (18:16)
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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?
I also use the Affinity trio (Photo, Publisher and Designer) but mainly Photo. Just wish they did a credible Lightroom alternative. Have been playing with Capture One, DXO Photolab and Raw Therapee and find them all clunky and unintuitive in comparison. As for Davinci Resolve I can heartily recommend it. It's more stable that Premiere and even works well enough on my laptop from 2012. It's free and it's used to edit hollywood movies although they likely pay for the Studio edition which is a paid upgrade that gives a few more features. For most users and may professionals the standard free package is more than enough. It seems that Resolve is winning over both Premier and Final Cut Pro users.

Derek Smith

46,643 posts

257 months

Yesterday (21:23)
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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.

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.

singlecoil

34,275 posts

255 months

Yesterday (21:27)
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MGJ2 said:
This is what I am on.

Can anyone recommend DaVinci Resolve?
I can. There's nothing better.