What software is used for what? Part II

If you are new to the design biz you might be overwhelmed by all the software out there and not sure which is the best option for your project.  I know I won’t cover everything on the market, there is just too much out there but I will touch on the industry standards in this four part series.

Image Manipulation

Not sure I even need to tell you this one, I think Adobe Photoshop is becoming more main stream these days with the release of Elements and dummied down versions of Photoshop hitting the market for affordable prices. 

Adobe Photoshop has always been the program to use for Photo Manipulation, although there are some less complicated photo editing programs on the market they are not as robust to even be competition.  Originally Photoshop was kind of a collaboration with Apple, and only sold to work on a Mac. Eventually PC versions were released but they did not have the same functionality as the Mac version did.  The loyalty Adobe showed to Apple is what helped sell Macs when they were the less desirable option.  Every ad agency, in-house design team, college design class, print house and freelancer had to get a Mac to compete in the market.

Adobe Photoshop has always been known for the precise photo manipulation with filters, rubber stamp and precise selection tools to name a few things it is easy to clean up a less than perfect photo or replace elements looking totally natural like that was how the photo was taken.  In the past setting any copy in Photoshop was a bad idea because it produces raster art which would result in jagged text.

Over the years Photoshop as upgraded to a highly scalable design tool.  In addition to more precise photo imaging there are drawing tools, 3D capability, a lot more filters and features to layer into a design, advanced export features for higher compatibility with other software, and additional productivity features.  Another great change is the text feature.  Although I still prefer using other programs for setting text I can set it in Photoshop and it comes out clean and legible.

Check out Part I discussing page layout if you missed that.  If you would like to dig into Adobe Photoshop further check out the tutorials posted.  Download a trial version and get started.  Next week we will discuss line drawing software.