digital photography

[luke_robinsons_angel]

i am interested in getting into digital photography, but need a little help.

Which computer programmes are the most reasonable or do the best stuff?

[medlocke]

I used to use Adobe photoshop cs3 then upgraded to cs4, i shoot in RAW format and the Adobe programs seem to be great for all your needs plus you can add plug ins, only trouble is they are around the £300 mark, i also use Photomatix which is a High Dynamic Range software program for turning multiple exposure/pictures into one picture, look up HDR photography it's quite awesome, Gimp is a free programme that a lot of Americans i know use, they say it is quite good.

http://www.hdrsoft.com/

http://www.gimp.org/

[ancientnloyal]

yeh Gimp is very good for starters, maybe quite difficult to use but with help or online guides it gets easier. Then as you get the likes of photoshop they should be quicker to use. go for Gimp (without the mask (although you can 'mask' in it))

[luke_robinsons_angel]

thanks, will try Gimp for now.

[pieaddict]

If you get this months practical photography which is out until the 15th it has a HDR artical and how to do it in photoshop.

Plus if you want to improve using photo sharing sites like flickr can be a help. Ive had lots of tips of there from people that have helped me improve

http://www.flickr.com/photos/flickrsnapone/ this is my site on there

[medlocke]

Do you use Myspace Luke Robinsons Angel (sorry can't remember your name ), if so there is a photography group on there that i have been a member of for the past 2 year, you post your pics and then basicaly you get told where you went wrong, what you did right,how to do better next time, etc etc, it is invaluable information, i have learned a hell of a lot through the group, it is packed with novices, intemediates and professionals, you should join, the hints and tips will help you become better than you think you are, if you know what i mean.

http://groups.myspace.com/index.cfm?fus ... CF53735718

[luke_robinsons_angel]

Do you use Myspace Luke Robinsons Angel (sorry can't remember your name )

i do, very rarely though! and my name is Clare!!!!!

[medlocke]

Do you use Myspace Luke Robinsons Angel (sorry can't remember your name )

i do, very rarely though! and my name is Clare!!!!!

Thought it was Clare but wasn't sure

[luke_robinsons_angel]

i will try to post some of my efforts on here when i have mastered the technology.

[DaveO]

If you want a simple program to help you organise and do basic edits on Photos try Googles Picasa.

It is free and very good at what it does. http://picasa.google.co.uk/

Things like Photoshop are very sophisticated and cost a lot of money. That is not to say they are not good, far from it but they cost.

I use a program called Picture Window Pro which is a lot cheaper than Photoshop but very capable. http://www.dl-c.com/

It has bit of an old fashioned user interface but is extremely powerful and possibly more than you need.

Here are some photos I took of my sons rugby team, RU unfortunately given where I live and as they only needed basic editing I used Picasa:

http://daveo.zenfolio.com/p774924192

You will need a password which is "plate" (without the quotes).

Dave