Best software for beginner

[Deano3]

Hi all after watching lots of YouTube and trying my best to learn after my first camera purchase of SONY A6000 about ISO and aperture and shutter speed just struggling with the focusing of things but trying my best , anyway i realise that most people seem to do small amounts of editing to get the pictures looking good what is the best budget and good software is it affinity ? i keep reading about and seem to get great reviews ?

i am also struggling with getting the correct shots and want the cool looking pictures where the person isnt looking at the camera and more or a action shot like kids playing etc any idea where to learn this sort of shooting ? should i focus on subject then keep shutter halfway down before i shoot to get focus

thanks dean

 

[sirch]

"Best software" is always a difficult thing to define. TBH despite all the carping around subscription only etc. Adobe Lightroom is probably the best all round for basic photo editing, it gives you all the fundamental controls in a very easy to use package and has cataloguing etc. And for £10 per month or cheaper of you find a 12 month deal for both LR and PS it is a lot of software for the money.

As for alternatives, the cheapest is usually the software that came with your camera which people often seem to forget about. Affinity photo is really good value for money but is more a photoshop equivalent and probably a bit complex for a beginner and for just general photo processing.

 

[Box Brownie]

As a beginner all I can suggest is that you download and start with the free Capture One Express for Sony here

Buy Capture One

Get Capture One's flagship photo editing software, trusted by pros and studios worldwide. Capture One Pro supports files from all major camera brands.

www.captureone.com

In regard to learning the camera. Practice, practice and more practice.........watching tutorial videos will only tell you so much.....they cannot take the pictures for you. Being digital there is not 'cost' ~ take the pictures, transfer to your computer, examine them critically and if not to your liking work out and/or try something different > rinse & repeat.


Enjoy what will be a photographic journey

 

[Rno7552]

Hi Dean,

Firstly, regarding software I opted for Affinity as I preferred to buy a package outright rather than go for a subscription to Lightroom/Photoshop. As a relative beginner myself I found that Affinity has more than enough capabilities for my needs and there’s a huge amount of support on YouTube with loads of tutorials. Affinity themselves publish quite a bit and there’s some good stuff from a guy called Anthony Turnham.

As far as focussing is concerned I too had the A6000 before changing to the A6600. The only tip I can think of is, if you’re not already doing so, is to swap to AF-C instead of AF-S whenever you take shots of anything that has a pulse or any element of movement.

Cheers

Rob

 

[Retune]

Capture One Express and Affinity make a good pair, the first for raw processing (if you shoot raw), image selection/management, and basic adjustments, the second for more complex edits. And as C1E is free and Affinity is half price at the moment, you can't really go wrong!

 

[Deano3]

Thanks for all the information everyone its very helpful, I will certainly look at the Sony one and as others have said I certainly don't want to have a subscription at the moment as a total beginner so other 2 are the sure ones I think.

Thanks again
Dean

 

[Deano3]

just a quick question i have looked on capture 1 express and seems to charge ? has a free trial but cant see the free version ?

does affinity have totally different set of tools and is that more for removing items out of the frame etc ? looking forward to giving them a go. and there is a lot of versions of affinity is it affinity photo i will need ?

thanks dean

 

[Retune]

just a quick question i have looked on capture 1 express and seems to charge ? has a free trial but cant see the free version ?

does affinity have totally different set of tools and is that more for removing items out of the frame etc ? looking forward to giving them a go. and there is a lot of versions of affinity is it affinity photo i will need ?

thanks dean

The Capture One thing has confused a lot of us! They use the same installer for the full version and the Express version. If you install it as Express, using an Express licence key, you'll get more limited features but it's free and it doesn't expire. If you install it as the full version then, unless you pay for it, it only functions as a time-limited demo. There should be some point during registration or installation where you choose (I can't remember the details). When you've installed it as Express, it will say so in the splash screen when loading and in 'Help -> About Capture One'.

Yes, it's Affinity Photo. Capture One Express has a decent set of 'global editing' tools for things like brightness, contrast, curves, levels, colour correction, cropping and rotation, etc. It's also a very good raw processor, has lightbox-style image preview and image management, etc. Affinity Photo has a fairly basic raw processor that opens one image at a time, without a lightbox or image management. But Capture One Express doesn't do local edits (you can't even remove sensor dust spots). Affinity Photo has a sophisticated set of tools for local editing and other things. You might want to try out C1E first, then download the AP demo or look at the Start Guide and tutorials:

Master Affinity apps with our official learning resources

Learn everything there is to know about working with Affinity apps with our tutorials, quick start guides, shortcut cheat-sheets, online help and more.

affinity.serif.com

Affinity Photo for desktop tutorials

Watch tutorial and quick tip videos for the fastest, smoothest and most precise creative software.

affinity.serif.com

 

[Deano3]

The Capture One thing has confused a lot of us! They use the same installer for the full version and the Express version. If you install it as Express, using an Express licence key, you'll get more limited features but it's free and it doesn't expire. If you install it as the full version then, unless you pay for it, it only functions as a time-limited demo. There should be some point during registration or installation where you choose (I can't remember the details). When you've installed it as Express, it will say so in the splash screen when loading and in 'Help -> About Capture One'.

Yes, it's Affinity Photo. Capture One Express has a decent set of 'global editing' tools for things like brightness, contrast, curves, levels, colour correction, cropping and rotation, etc. It's also a very good raw processor, has lightbox-style image preview and image management, etc. Affinity Photo has a fairly basic raw processor that opens one image at a time, without a lightbox or image management. But Capture One Express doesn't do local edits (you can't even remove sensor dust spots). Affinity Photo has a sophisticated set of tools for local editing and other things. You might want to try out C1E first, then download the AP demo or look at the Start Guide and tutorials:

Master Affinity apps with our official learning resources

Learn everything there is to know about working with Affinity apps with our tutorials, quick start guides, shortcut cheat-sheets, online help and more.

affinity.serif.com

Affinity Photo for desktop tutorials

Watch tutorial and quick tip videos for the fastest, smoothest and most precise creative software.

affinity.serif.com

Thanks for that so download the free trial and put in express key (will this have been given in my camera box somewhere?)

And affinity sounds great for making changes and edits like you say, i will certainly check out them links so thanks very much.

Dean

 

[Box Brownie]

just a quick question i have looked on capture 1 express and seems to charge ? has a free trial but cant see the free version ?

does affinity have totally different set of tools and is that more for removing items out of the frame etc ? looking forward to giving them a go. and there is a lot of versions of affinity is it affinity photo i will need ?

thanks dean

This gives every impression that it is a free (reduced to basic editing essentials) for Sony version...... though possibly it might install a full version in parallel for you to trial and encourage purchase of the "full' version?

Buy Capture One

Get Capture One's flagship photo editing software, trusted by pros and studios worldwide. Capture One Pro supports files from all major camera brands.

www.captureone.com

 

[Deano3]

thanks for that i downloaded the express version for now and think will invest in affinity aswel to make small edits if needed.

dean

 

[Retune]

Thanks for that so download the free trial and put in express key (will this have been given in my camera box somewhere?)

And affinity sounds great for making changes and edits like you say, i will certainly check out them links so thanks very much.

Dean

I suspect there won't be a key in your box (Capture One is an independent company, though I think they may have done a deal with Sony to support their cameras, as free Express versions are only provided for certain camera companies). But when you click through the link above to download C1E for Sony, you should be invited to register with C1 and they will give you an Express key (copy and paste it somewhere). When you've downloaded the installer and run it, it should ask you for a key. If you feed it the Express key, it will activate as an Express version.

 

[LG9K]

As a relative beginner with a Sony A6300, I got hold of Capture One from the beginning, and the evil geniuses' plan has worked and I'm now a paying subscriber. I find C1 very easy to use and there is loads of documentation and some superb video instruction available from C1 themselves. Whilst I don't use all the features, I have found it easy to pick up and have ventured into spot removal, and "hiding" things that distract.

It's not cheap but it works very well indeed.

 

[Retune]

I only wish the full version of C1 were a bit cheaper. I suppose they've done the maths, but I wonder how many more customers they could get at around half the price, more in line with ON1 and DxO? If you need to support more than a single camera maker, it's £299 to buy or £19 a month for the subscription, expensive even by Adobe standards. And I think the full version only gets updates for a year if you're not on the subscription, though there's a discount for upgrades. But I've always been impressed by how well C1 processes Nikon raw files (better than ACR back in the CS6 days), and the free Express versions are surprisingly capable if your camera is supported.

 

[LG9K]

I paid around £70 for an annual subscription to C1 as they offered me a discounted deal, so that's £5.78 per month. I think it's very good vfm.

 

[Deleted member 49549]

Hi Dean,

Broadly, software will fulfil on of two main needs. One - to manage your 'catalogue' and two - to edit your pictures.
Editing software comes in two flavours - photoshop type editors where you can go into spend hours on a single photo, and RAW editors like lightroom which are normally used for exposure, cropping, white balance etc ) though most RAW editors offer many more editing functions. Catalogue managers are often also 'raw editors'.
I would advise you to start with a catalogue manager / raw editor as they are often simpler to use than a full on photoshop style. You may also find that having to organise your photos months / years down the line is a monumental task!