Stick with Photoshop 6 or switch to CS3?

[laksa]

Hi everyone,
I signed up on these forums mainly to seek some quick advice, and I must say its a nice forum. Hope you can help me out.

I currently have Photoshop 6 academic version that was purchased in 2004 (IIRC) mainly for some basic but urgent editing work on electron micrographs. I have not used it since then. However, I am planning to get a digital camera next week..something midrange, not dslr stuff, and I want to be able to do atleast some basic image editing.

My friend strongly recommended that I buy CS3. But I am hesitant to make the expensive purchase unless really necessary.

Will Photoshop 6 suffice for most common image editing tasks, or has the software improved so much that CS3 is a quantum leap over the old version? Downloading the trial version will not really help me since I dont know what features I should be looking for. Is ver 6 enough for now, to get me launched into the mysterious world of digital image editing?

Thanks for any help.

[DannyRaphael]

PS6 does not qualify for the "upgrade" (lower cost) edition of CS3. You would need to either upgrade to PS 7 (which does qualify) then upgrade to CS3 -or- acquire the full CS3 edition. If you qualify for student editions the costs will be less.

The computer resource needs of CS3 (disk space, RAM, processor speed) are HUGE compared to PS6. I would not install CS3 on a machine that had less than 1.5-2.0 Gb of RAM and a processor less than 2.5 Ghz.

Books for PS6 are very, very inexpensive. Books for CS3 will cost a LOT.

Will Photoshop 6 suffice for most common image editing tasks, or has the software improved so much that CS3 is a quantum leap over the old version? Downloading the trial version will not really help me since I dont know what features I should be looking for. Is ver 6 enough for now, to get me launched into the mysterious world of digital image editing?

This is like asking, "Which is better: Learning to drive in a car built in 2007 or one built in 1998?" A car built in 2007 might be more comfortable to drive, but would have little advantage from an educational perspective in terms of "learning the basics." The core concepts and functions of PS6 remain in CS3.

Based on your situation, in my opinion learning to use PS6 would be a very cost effective decision.

[Swampy]

Perhaps you can find a PS2 or PS3 copy on ebay and go from there. The reason I suggest you upgrade is the capability to edit RAW files (Adobe Camera Raw). Your new camera (mid-range 5+ MP or more) should have the ability to shoot in Camera Raw. CS3 has the ability to open JPEG and TIFF in ACR so this would be the optimum (because you can include your scanner in the RAW mix).

Being able to edit in ACR allows you to salvage photo's that were taken when the camera was not set correctly for the lighting conditions. It virtually lets you open F Stops after the fact. A boon to photographers and especially amatures like me who have no idea what an F stop is. I just know when it looks right or doesn't so I can fiddle and experiment in ACR.

[Gary Richardson]

This one is down to a good old cost/benefit analysis, and one that only you can make.

How much do you need the bells and whistles of CS3 and how much are you willing to pay.

From my interpretation of what you wrote I'd say PS6 will probably solve your immediate needs. RAW handling is nice, but hardly an essential to someone just wanting to learn the basics.

I'd say spend a little time with PS6 and get comfortable with the interface and the tools, you can always upgrade to CS3 later.

[davdub]

I am a very happy CS3 user. I did upgrade from CS2 since it was an upgrade and not sure I would have made the move if I needed to purchase the full version. Now that I've been using it, I would recommend to anyone that can afford the version, whether upgrade or full, to make the jump. As Swampy mentions, we now have that ability to open JPEG files in ACR. There has also been an update to ACR that has added some great functionality. There is now a 'clarity' slider and the 'sharpen' function now has 3 extra sliders that allow 'masking' when sharpening. That feature alone will save much time allowing for selective sharpening or global sharpening.

I've only been a user of PS since CS. Version CS2 wasn't much of a big deal but in my opinion, CS3 is a big deal. Hope this is helpful.

[DannyRaphael]

For those recommending CS3, review the text in the original post.

================

I currently have Photoshop 6 academic version that was purchased in 2004 (IIRC) mainly for some basic but urgent editing work on electron micrographs. I have not used it since then.

He hasn't used PS since 2004 = he's pretty much starting from scratch.

There are boatloads of basic skills he could learn with PS6:
* Tools and what they do, when to use them
* Layers
* Adjustment layers
* Layer masks
* Color correction
* Sharpening
* Masking, selections, alpha channels
* Channel basics
* Convert color to black/white
* Actions
* Batch processing
* Photo-art
* Etc.

I am planning to get a digital camera next week..something midrange, not dslr stuff...

With all due respect, IMO a very, very low % of digital newbies have any need or desire to dive into RAW. For the near term my bet is he will be well served with .jpg.

I want to be able to do at least some basic image editing. Will Photoshop 6 suffice for most common image editing tasks...

Absolutely. PS6 is well suited for basic image editing. See above.

I am hesitant to make the expensive purchase unless really necessary.

I salute your decision to seek advice. Since you're coming from PS6, a jump to CS3 would not be a trivial investment no matter what path you take. If and when you outgrow PS6 it would makes sense and be cost effective to upgrade to CS or CS2 via eBay purchase if eBay is an option. This tactic would position you for a future upgrade to "CS4" or "CS5" should the need arise.

Has the software improved so much that CS3 is a quantum leap over the old version?

"Improved" and "quantum leap" are subjective terms.

Yes, Adobe has added functionality to PS since PS6, but nothing that I can think of that would be worth ~$600 (US) day one to a PS novice and digital rookie with two exceptions: If one positively requires scripting capabilities and/or the ability to process files in RAW format. Neither of these are possible in PS6. [If "RAW" and "scripting" are unfamiliar terms, that's two more reasons for PS6.]

Make no mistake. If you're hoping CS3 is "more intuitive" or will be easier to learn than PS6, forget that. There have been some user-friendly enhancements to Photoshop over the years, e.g., built-in red-eye fix (vs. doing it manually), auto-image align, font preview, etc. but nothing like the order of magnitude difference between, say, MS-DOS and Windows or a Model-T Ford and a Mercedes.

Aside: I'm betting by the content and tone of the original text the poster does not have a high powered PC at the moment and may not have budgeted for a PC upgrade or replacement to support CS3's enormous RAM and processor requirements compared to PS6.

Is ver 6 enough for now, to get me launched into the mysterious world of digital image editing?

An unequivocal, "Yes."

===========

If he has a lot of $$ to spend, then CS3 would definitely be the way to go.

However IMO his stated needs and fiscal-related comments do not justify CS3.

[chillin]

The money you want to spend on CS3, add to your camera budget & get an SLR.

[Doug Nelson]

If you're a Mac user, it might be worth it for the added speed offered by the UB.

[laksa]

Everybody, thanks a lot for all the replies, particularly Danny who has taken the trouble to reply in detail; your help is very much appreciated.

My PC is reasonably powerful for normal applications (2.2 GHz CPU, 1 GB RAM, 7800GT videocard and 410 GB HDD space) and it runs PS6 nicely. Not so sure if it is underpowered for CS3 though..maybe an additional stick of RAM would fix the memory requirements.

Incidentally, I am planning to get a Canon S5 IS, which suits my requirements nicely. DSLR + lenses are out of my budget range and requirements for now, and would run to roughly 2x the price of the S5 here. I dont believe the S5 supports RAW, so I wouldnt need to use those capabilities yet.

http://site-sg.canon-asia.com/index....=powershotS5IS

After reading through the replies, I think I'll heed Danny's advice and stick with the version I have for now, if you say that is enough for beginners. (I am not a PC hardware/software noob, but I have not dabbled in image editing yet to have an idea of what is important.) I dont want to spend needlessly on the expensive software (~SG$500 for the AE)+ upgrading the RAM (another SG$120) just to run the program.

Once again, many thanks for giving good advice.

[BobJones]

Photoshop 6 is certainly adequate to launch you into the world of digital image editing. And, it will certainly suffice for most common image editing tasks. Don't feel guilty about using it.

Photoshop has added a LOT of additional and improved functionality since that release. At some point, when you're more up to speed, you may very well want to take advantage of that functionality. However, you can make the decision to buy the current release at that time. You might want to consider other alternatives at that time as well. Photoshop Elements, for example. Assuming you've come up to speed on image editing by then, you should be able to make a more reasoned decision.

Edit: You replied while I was composing my comments. Seeing your comment about being enough for beginners, I'd just like to add that Photoshop 6 was considered the "Professional" image editor at the time of it's release. It will definitely be enough and more so. You have a long learning curve ahead of you. Stick with it and definitely have some fun while learning too.

[davdub]

Danny did make a good point when he mentions the computer issues.

What your indicating for components are very marginal with current applications and file sizes when working with RAW and dozens of adjustment layers. Just as an example, my main computer has a 3.2 Ghz processor and
4GB of RAM. With all of the stuff running in the background and the OS, I'm using 1.7GB for that alone. You'll need to allocate enough memory for the files your working with so that you don't have to keep using 'scratch disc'.

[marxheadroom]

Obviously CS3 needs a lot more box than PS 6. If you don't have a really high end box, then it's not going to work. That aside, I've been running PS 6 for a few years on my home box along with Photo Elements 2.0 for the liquify filter which PS 6 has got and is a must for retouching. At work I'm usually on MAC boxes. I loved PS 7, but CS 1 and CS 2 didn't seem like great leaps forward and I hate their stupid eye candy. Not to mention OS X has a half second GUI lag that drives me crazy on larger images.

See if you can get a copy of PS 7 or use PS 6 with Photo Elements 2.0 or better. That should work well for years. RAW filters can gotten as add-ons.

Good luck


P.S, Has anyone got any experience with Pixel (www.kanzelsberger.com)?