MBA or MBP? (+ Lightroom workflow and backup questions)

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Matt.

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I am getting to the point now that i really can't delay upgrading my computer for much longer. Opening a RAW image from my 5dmk2 to edit in Lightroom takes minutes (i'm not joking), and i now should probably accept that this isn't ideal :lol:

My current computer is a MacBook 1.8ghz CoreDuo with 2gb RAM. It's an original MacBook (bought a few days after they were introduced for the first time), and is now 5.5yrs old. I should say though that the following items have been replaced: lower case, keyboard, mainboard, ram, hdd, battery, charger. The DVD stopped working years ago, so the only original and working pieces are the screen, and screen surround :D

My problem now is that i have several options, and i'd like to work out which suits me best. Here are the un-changable things:
- I need a Mac
- I much prefer laptops (even though they rarely leave the desk)
- 1280x800 is really pushing it as a screen res (that's what my current MacBook has)
- It needs to last me for many years
- I have a very limited budget, and ideally want an initial purchase of around £1k

Either the MBP base model, or MBA base model seem ok to me (price wise). However, the MBP has a low res screen (the MBA doesn't), and the MBA has very limited storage! If i was to go with the MBA, then how should i be running Lightroom as i will not have enough space for images on a 128gb SSD?



If anyone can help with my decision between the MBP and MBA, then that would be really helpful! and can anyone give me examples of Lightroom workflow where the catalogs aren't kept on the editing machine?
 
I have the current Macbook Pro 13" with i5 processor.It's plenty fast enough and powerful enough to handle my large digital files, but the max screen resolution of 1280x800 is hardly sufficient for displaying the large files so I do all editing on my Mac desktop.

I have no experience of the MBA and I don't use lightroom, but I can't see a big issue with storing files off the main machine. I know you say you need a laptop but i can't help thinking you'd be better served with a Mac desktop which you could probably get for around the same budget.
 
You can have the catalog (and previews) stored on the SSD which will be nice & quick then the RAW files stored elsewhere.
 
Matt. said:
I did not start this thread for a discussion on Windows vs Mac.

Does anyone have a Lightroom workflow that uses external sources for catalog storage?
Click to expand...

Matt

I have my catalog, previews and RAW/JPG files all on an external hard drive (I bought a USB 3.0 so that it is compatible with both MAC and Windows as I dabble in both!)

I then have this backed up to my NAS drive and also take an occasional full back up on another external drive to keep at work.

I simply point LR at my hard drive and import my new photographs with a preset to my hard drive catalog'd in a date format file system i.e. Photos/2011/23-10-11.

I do't file my photos by name such as "Holiday - France - 2011" but use keywords to help me filter and categorise.

The above works for me but I recognise that using two machines doesn't speed things up.

At a point in the near future I will move across to just the Mac but as a recent convert I am "still moving" all my programs and data as I see fit.
 
I have a MacBook Air which I purchased as nearly new, earlier in the year for just under a £1k. Top of the range 13" so why not consider a nearly new or returned one?

It runs LR and PS with no issues at all, like you I came from a simple MacBook which struggled originally.

My only reason for the air was portability, I believe the MBP is a more powerful machine. You may wish to consider that point.
 
wibbly said:
I have a MacBook Air which I purchased as nearly new, earlier in the year for just under a £1k. Top of the range 13" so why not consider a nearly new or returned one?

It runs LR and PS with no issues at all, like you I came from a simple MacBook which struggled originally.

My only reason for the air was portability, I believe the MBP is a more powerful machine. You may wish to consider that point.
Click to expand...

What spec is that? I am looking in next 6 mths to get a new mac laptop but thought the air would not be good enough, or have enough memory. Do you edit video on yours (basic home camcorder stuff in imovie) as I need this capability?
 
STAFF EDIT: Keep this thread on topic. We are all bored with the pathetic mac v pc debate, related posts deleted.
 
I am now almost certainly going to go the iMac route. It makes sense for me as i'd like a machine i can work on (.net web developer).

For ~£1.2k, i can get a refurb 27inch i5 2.7ghz with 12gb RAM. This will be great for everything i need.

I'm not really a desktop person, but it does make sense for my usage.

I will also probably get an iPad, and will keep my old MacBook for travel (until it actually falls to bits! - it's close... the screen case is held on with duct tape).
 
cambsno said:
What spec is that? I am looking in next 6 mths to get a new mac laptop but thought the air would not be good enough, or have enough memory. Do you edit video on yours (basic home camcorder stuff in imovie) as I need this capability?
Click to expand...

Sorry I haven't come back to you sooner. It's been a bit mental this week. Spec wise the machine is as follows -

Processor 2.13 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
L2 Cache 6MB shared
System bus 1066MHz
Memory 4GB of 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM onboard (4GB maximum)
Storage1 256GB of flash storage
Graphics NVIDIA GeForce 320M graphics processor with 256MB of DDR3 SDRAM shared with main memory2
Display 13.3-inch (diagonal) high-resolution LED-backlit glossy widescreen display, 1440-by-900 resolution
Ports Two USB 2.0 ports (up to 480 Mbps); SD card slot
Size and weight Height: 0.11-0.68 inch (0.3-1.7 cm)
Width: 12.8 inches (32.5 cm)
Depth: 8.94 inches (22.7 cm)
Weight: 2.9 pounds (1.32 kg)4

I haven't done any video on it so can't comment much on it sorry.
 
My 27inch i5 iMac has arrived today and i'm setting it up. So far i'm very impressed :) Everything looks beautiful on it, though the screen could do with calibrating, and i don't know how to do that. Any ideas?
 
MBP in my opinion, i found a core2 quad struggled with 5Dmk2 RAW so the dual cores may struggle? what camera do you have?

also get the matte "anti-glare" screen. will be better if you work in any sort of light and wont introduce a false sense of contrast to your pics
 
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Matt. said:
My 27inch i5 iMac has arrived today and i'm setting it up. So far i'm very impressed :) Everything looks beautiful on it, though the screen could do with calibrating, and i don't know how to do that. Any ideas?
Click to expand...

Wise choice I reckon - beautiful bit of kit and plenty of screen real estate for large image editing.

Calibration...

If you're working in sRGB colour space - go
SystemPreferences/ Displays/ which brings up this screen...


Screen Shot 2011-11-30 at 10.12.38 by tonky8203, on Flickr

Select the colour tab.

If I were you I'd select the sRGB profile you see highlighted at the bottom - at least for starters. As you can see there's an option to select an in-built calibration process which I've run through several times, but I always end up with a slightly warmer image than I'd like for my tastes so I stick with the sRGB profile.
 
The ability to actually multitask is somewhat of a novelty for me. My Macbook would not let me do anything else when Lightroom was running, and even then i had to be incredibly patient with it!

I have just put another 8gb RAM in it, so hopefully it will be even better now.

I don't want to open it up to put in an SSD yet as that ruins the warranty, so i'll wait a while for that one.
 
Can i just say that i do love this iMac for Lightroom. It is so good for it (for me anyway!).

I'm very glad i bought it over a 13inch MBP/MBA!
 
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