Photo Editing Software Reviews, Best Photo Editing Software

Best photo-editing software for most

Reviews say Adobe Photoshop Elements just keeps getting better, holding its lead over Corel Paint Shop Pro X2 -- partly for ease of use. This latest version adds even more editing tools, including a retouching brush for… changing part of an image, plus ways to consolidate the best parts of several photos into one. Photoshop Elements 7 works with Windows XP/Vista. The previous version, Photoshop Elements 6 (*est. $80), remains current for Mac OS X users and also gets good reviews.

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PCMag.com: This preview of Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 (beta) doesn't rate it, but praises the additional features (including some web and ...

Which? magazine: Comparing 18 photo-editing programs, editors at this U.K. equivalent to Consumer Reports give Adobe Photoshop Elements 6 top ...

PC World: Reviewing the beta version of Adobe Photoshop Elements 7, Cullen "finds much to like," noting new web integration and the ...

Macworld: This enthusiastic review praises the features in Adobe Photoshop Elements 6 for Mac, but doesn't compare it with any other ...

Popular Photography: In this brief preview of Adobe Photoshop Elements 7, Debbie Grossman praises its "smart brush" feature, plus the way the program ...

TopTenReviews.com: Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 wins top ranking compared with 12 other photo-editing software programs for beginners and intermediate ...

Amazon.com: Over 90 owner-written reviews give Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 a reasonably high average score -- the same as the earlier Elements ...

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Free photo editor and organizer

Google Picasa 3

Free Compare Prices

Though Google Picasa started more as a photo organizer, Picasa 3 has added more sophisticated editing tools that may well be all you need. The web integration is another plus, making it easy to synchronize edited photos… with social networking sites, blogs and personal websites. It's available for Mac and Linux computers as well as Windows.

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PCMag.com: This enthusiastic review covers Picasa 3 before the Mac version became available, but still praises its image management and ...

Download.com: Editors give Picasa 3 a perfect five-star rating on all counts: organizing, editing and sharing photos. The brief review notes ...

Arstechnica.com: This review praises Picasa 3 for its synchronization with Google Albums, improved image editing and special features such as face ...

About.com: About.com's guide to graphics software gives Picasa 3 a near-perfect rating, highlighting its many advantages (including its ...

ConsumerReports.org: This rather dated report compares an earlier version of Google Picasa with two other free photo-editing programs, five software ...

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Free photo-editing software

GIMP 2.6

Free Compare Prices

GIMP 2.6 provides such advanced editing tools that it's often recommended as a free alternative to costly Photoshop software. Reviews praise this latest version as easier to use, though like any advanced software, GIMP… has a steep learning curve. Since it's open-source software, it's compatible with Linux as well as Windows and Mac operating systems.

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Download.com: Download.com's editors give GIMP a perfect five-star rating, saying its developers have succeeded in making it easier to use, and ...

PC World: This brief review says The GIMP 2.6 compares favorably to Adobe Photoshop for professional photo-editing tools. Of the 200 or so ...

Bright Hub.com: Although this anonymous writer lacks the automatic credibility of someone writing for a site like PC World, this review of The ...

PCMag.com: In this review of a slightly earlier version of GIMP, the software gets a good rating, with editors praising its versatility but ...

Which? magazine: The U.K.'s Which? magazine includes GIMP 2.4 in its unbiased testing, naming it one of the "five best buys." However, it ranks ...

About.com: Sue Chastain, About.com's guide to graphics software, recommends 10 free photo-editing programs, ranking GIMP second but without ...

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Pro-level photo editor and image manager

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2

*Est. $275 Compare Prices

Reviews say this new version of Lightroom adds so much editing capability that many professional photographers use it instead of Photoshop. Lightroom 2 speeds up workflow from camera to printed or online photos. It… combines image management with advanced and swift editing tools, automatically keeping the original image intact. Though it's especially useful for editing RAW photo files, reviewers say it's equally adept with JPEG images. You can use it on both a Windows and Mac computer without buying separate versions, another plus.

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Arstechnica.com: Aimed at advanced photographers, this detailed review of Adobe Lightroom 2 also compares it with competing software. In tests ...

Ken Rockwell: Photography guru Ken Rockwell's detailed review of Lightroom 2 illustrates its editing capabilities, but for image management, ...

DigitalOutbackPhoto.com: This review, aimed at advanced photographers, highlights the main improvements in Lightroom 2 compared with the first version. It ...

PC World: This review notes many improvements over Lightroom 1, making the need for Photoshop less likely. Organizing and finding images is ...

ImagingInfo.com: This short review of Adobe Lightroom 2 highlights its main features, concluding that it can stand alone as an image editor, ...

Popular Photography: This "first look" review praises Lightroom 2's refinements in image editing compared with the first version. Debbie Grossman also ...

Amazon.com: More than 50 owners give Lightroom 2 mostly enthusiastic reviews here. The comments are worth reading, since they include tips on ...

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Professional graphics software

Adobe Photoshop CS4

*Est. $665 Compare Prices

Though many photographers will find Lightroom 2 faster and easier for most photo editing, Adobe Photoshop CS4 is still the industry standard for graphic artists. Reviews say it's great software, but overkill for most… users -- not only expensive but with a steep learning curve. Most reviewers recommend upgrading to this latest version, saying it provides significant improvements to CS3. User reviews note that it requires a lot of RAM, though -- so be sure your computer is up to it.

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Expert & User Review Sources:

PCMag.com: PC Magazine calls Photoshop CS4 "a highly compelling upgrade" with "awesome powers," and gives the software its Editors' Choice ...

CNet.com: CNet.com gave Adobe Photoshop CS3 its Editors' Choice award, but isn't sure yet about CS4 -- concluding that most improvements ...

Popular Photography: This brief review finds that Adobe Photoshop CS4 not only adds power compared with Photoshop CS3, but unlike previous upgrades, ...

DigitalOutbackPhoto.com: Since this site is aimed at advanced photographers, it's not surprising that Adobe Photoshop CS4 heads the list as the top tool ...

Amazon.com: Only a handful of users have reviewed Adobe Photoshop CS4 for Windows here so far, with another handful rating the Mac version. ...

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Photo-Editing Software: Reviews

Best photo-editing software for most

Free photo editor and organizer

Free photo-editing software

Pro-level photo editor and image manager

Professional graphics software

Photo-Editing Software by Price Range


	Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo X2 from Amazon.com New: $32.79 In Stock. Average Customer Review:


	Apple Aperture 2.1.1 from Amazon.com New: $144.88 In Stock. Average Customer Review:


	iLife '09 from Amazon.com New: Too low to display In Stock. Average Customer Review: