Free programs such as GIMP can only take an aspiring professional photographer so far. A day will come when it’s time to pay for professional software. As you shop, you realize that photo editing software often costs more than a car payment. Reluctantly, with your best credit card in hand, you may ask yourself, “which photo editing software is worth the cost?” A quick search on the topic may bring up fast search results, yet, the answer to your question isn’t obvious. Discover the applications professional photographers prefer instead — then make an educated choice.
Adobe Photoshop
Bobbie Goodrich, and African wildlife photographer, adds style to photographs with Adobe Photoshop. Her fine art photographs are often feature a painterly style. Adobe Photoshop is her choice because it’s equipped with the brushes and filters she depends on to create original images. Goodrich uses Adobe Photoshop’s Motion Blur filter to give her work a signature look, for example. One benefit of choosing Adobe Photoshop includes the ability to add third-party software to the app. Goodrich reports using Nik Filters to enhance her images.
Corel PaintShop Pro
Professional photographer John Woodward uses Corel PaintShop Pro to enhance to look of the photographs he takes with a high-end digital camera. Woodward achieves photographic perfection by replacing parts of an otherwise perfect image with the application. He comments, "No one can tell it’s a compilation." Woodward also says the excellent mask and brush tools make it easy to create authentic looking photographs. His composite landscape images sometimes consist of three identical images with different exposures. This application enables him to combine the best parts of his pictures.
Portrait Professional
Portrait photographer Maggie Fran Wilson says she couldn’t live without this application. She uses Portrait Photographer to make people look younger. Wilson reports the application can give pimply faces the look of a glamorous movie star. The application helps photographers fine tune their work with over 100 individual sliders. You can use this application to save the effects that work best and save time when you work on new portraits. Portrait Professional’s reset tab makes it possible to undo mistakes. Wilson says, "the uncomplicated interface makes digitally enhancing photos a breeze."
