Adobe Photoshop Elements 7Reviews: Adobe Photoshop Elements 7
Binding: CD-ROM Brand: Adobe EAN: 0883919168296 Edition: Elements Format: CD-ROM Item Dimensions: Label: Adobe Languages: Manufacturer: Adobe Model: 65026616 MPN: 65026616 Platform: Windows XP, Windows Vista Publisher: Adobe Release Date: October 13, 2008 Studio: Adobe Features:
Rating:  - All the photo editing tools I could want--and more!I bought this software because of the Photomerge capability but found that that feature works only if the group photos were taken from exactly the same position--otherwise alignment is off. However, tech support walked me through a way to accomplish the same thing manually. It took some practice and skill building, but the eventual result was phenomenal--I was able to substitute a good shot of a person from one photo for a bad shot of the same person in another. The software allows for quick, guided, and full editing capabilities as well as extensive photo organizing. I've barely scratched the surface of what can be done with it. No manual comes with the software, but the online help center has general instructions for each function. A couple of instruction books are available on Amazon, but so far I haven't found them necessary. Rating: - An Excellent ProgramI have been using Photoshop Elements as my "go to" editing program since about version 2. I have a number of other editing programs - both free and paid - but always seem to return to Elements. My previous version was version 6 and I usually upgrade about every other release. I'm glad that I upgraded to version 7, though, since there are a number of minor improvements and several major ones. One of the major improvements is v. 7's improved speed of importing pictures. While the program gave me the option to convert my v. 6 catalog, I decided to do a new catalog to see how long it would take. My computer has - according to Elements - almost 80,000 pictures (I've been doing digital photography since 1999 - initially with a Nikon 950, then a Canon Eos 10D and presently with a Canon Eos 30D). Version 6 literally required overnight to catalog the pictures (and there were probably 4 or 5 thousand less) while v. 7 required only 1 hour and 20 minutes! (Both programs are installed on an HP computer with 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Quad cpu, 4 GB ram, and running 64 bit Vista Home Premium). Another major improvement is the "smart brush tool". While a number of programs have similar tools, this is the first one that I have used that actually works well. My main use for it has been to darken the background of a photo to accentuate the foreground (usually a person). This can be done within less than a minute which is a significant time savings over older methods. One simply "paints" over the areas to be selected for modification. Version 7 continues to have v. 6's excellent enhancement tools - particularly those for lighting adjustment. These are definitely my most used tools. While I don't use the organizer regularly, it does have some nice features such as sorting by date and the ability to use - and search on - keywords. If you are just getting into digital photography this is the program to buy. If you have an older version of Elements, I think that this is a good upgrade and worth the price. 12/16/08: I uploaded two pictures showing the use of the smart brush tool before and after. I don't know who the "little elf" is, I took the picture at a party my grandson attended. Rating:  - Photoshop Elements Affordable Picture EditingI upgrade my Adobe Photoshop Elements Software whenever a new release is available. While I started editing pictures with Photoshop, I now find that I can do everything I need with Elements.Each new release brings improvement to the ease of use and Elements 7 is no different. The one click fixes are fast and a very good way to a "quick and dirty" improvement of your photos. The conversion to monochrome is very good and the software is stable and dependable. Rating: - Good program, but there is room for improvementIf you've used Photoshop Elements 6 or earlier, you'll feel right at home with the version. As in previous versions, when you start Elements 7, you're greeted with a mostly familiar menu allowing you to organize, edit or create (same as before). But Adobe has added the concept of sharing photos via a tight integration between Photoshop Elements and [...]. This may be of interest to people who spend a lot of time editing photos in PE7. Similar to Picassa/Google, you get 2GB for free, after that you pay for storage. The Editor, where presumably you'll spend most of your time, looks almost identical to Photoshop Elements 6, and functions similarly to it's more expensive sibling Adobe Photoshop. There are a couple surprises here such as the new Smart Brush tool. However, this is a version upgrade and so the differences are subtle. Whether you'll like PE 7 depends very much on what you intend to do with it. For users who are satisfied with cropping photos and adjusting contrast & balance, tools like Picassa 3 are probably enough and for free, it's hard to complain. Photoshop Elements will appeal to users who want Photoshop-like capabilities, but at a much more appealing price. That probably suits most people who need those extra capabilities of Photoshop, but without the big price. So what's the problem? Well, once you get outside of the photo editor, you can tell Adobe didn't spend much time or effort on the other features. The Organizer in particular is poorly done. Upon initial start-up for the first time, Organizer will attempt to "Organize" things. Of course, for most people with 8 years of digital photos that literally means hours of "organizing". I guess. It doesn't tell you what it's doing, how many photos it's "organized" nor how many are left to go. So you're never quite sure when it's done. Well, that's not true. The program starts responding again. Unbelievably, the program is locked up the entire time it's organizing. Worse, it defaults to starting with all your photos selected, and when I wanted to change one photo to rotate left, I didn't realize that all 8,000 of my photos were selected. And so it rotated left, all 8,000 photos. I immediately realized what I'd done, but of course, the organizer doesn't give you the option to cancel. Nope, you have to wait. And so it finished sometime the next day. I didn't kill the program assuming I could simply "Undo". Which you can, but it won't undo all the changes. Just some of them. Random photos. Thank heavens for backups. Adobe take a note... if someone asks to do an operation on more than, say, 5 photos, you might just ask them "are you sure?". To summarize, the program really offers some excellent value. It offers Photoshop-like capabilities and interfaces for a fraction of the price. The other tools are marginal, and the integration between them is non-existent, but these are minor complaints. You'll buy this for the editor, and probably ignore the rest. Rating: - Very Nice ProductThis is my first time using photoshop and I really liked it. It is simple enough for beginners to understand and get some fun use out of. You can do allot including organizing photos, calenders create books, ,slide shows among many other things. Its great for editing and many other projects. If you are newbie, its ok they made it very user friendly and the end results are very professional looking. Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 ReviewsMore reviews:Buy Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 Sale Reviews Deals
Adobe Photoshop Elements 7
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