Paint Shop Pro 8 or Adobe Photoshop

[melbster]

I've been offered a second hand Paint Shop Pro 8 software package (not a copy) to use for photo editing. However I notice a lot of you use Adobe Photoshop. As i am just getting into this side of things your advice on the best or preffered photo editing software would be very valuable and I will be using the software mainly for portraits/people shots.
Thanks in advance.

 

[DiddyDave]

Photoshop is probably more popular, but I know fans of PaintShop Pro too - however, PS is expensive so a cheap version of PSP has to be attractive

It'll do what you're after as well as anything I'm sure - just bear in mind that if you need advice and ask hereabouts, as most seem to be PS users, you may not get as much help

 

[Lady Pitstop]

I've got Paint Shop Pro X and it does all I need it to do - it's probably got some different functions to the 8 version but if it's free - give it a go You can always upgrade later on

 

[Bob]

I use to run both and found psp a very useful tool If I were you get it and play around with it and see if you like it
Bob

 

[Steffyboy]

Im photoshop all the way but its what you get used to I have tried Paintshop pro and as people have said it will do whatever you want but if your used to using photoshop its a learning curve to the try using paintshop as hardly anything is similar to use. Elements might be the way to go as its a user friendly watered down version of Photoshop

 

[^^Gord^^]

Ignoring cost, Photoshop really is the best photo processing application but you do need to learn a fair bit to be able to use it. There are tutorials on the internet and books available that help.

 

[Cobra]

I avidly used PSP "photo" XI. until I got a ( legit) "free" elements 5 disc then I found myself using Elements more and more, I hardly use PSP anymore. In fact the last time I tried to use it it crashed ( sulking perhaps? ) I then got CS3 under "student rates" and although it does far more than I will ever need I find I am now using that more and more in favour of E5
( no way on earth would I have paid the full CS3 ( or 2 for that matter) price))

 

[CT]

Well I've used Photoshop and PSP in various versions since the early days of both. I've stuck with PSP because it's what I got used to initially.

Whichever package you choose, you'll only need about 20% of what either is capable of. I find Photoshop, big, slow, unwieldy and heavy in it's use of system resources compared to Paint Shop Pro7 with which I do nearly all my stuff, although I have later versions which I don't bother with as they just seem to get flashier, more graphic in presentation, but don't have that much more to offer when you get right down to it.

Paint Shop Pro has now been taken over by Corel, and I'm just trialling the latest version - Paint Shop Pro X2, which is getting big, slow and cumbersome - I wont be taking it up.

As someone said Photoshop is the one in most common use, and the one you'll probably get most member advice for if you need it. Other than that, all I'd say is pick a package and stick with it for a while at least, as swapping and changing in the early stages can be very confusing.