 [Larger view] | Adobe Photoshop Elements 3.0 (Mac)
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Average user rating:  | |
 Good but Mac users are cheated | |
| Everything written in others' reviews is true! PSE3 is my first serious PP program (except for Nikon Scan 3 which has all the basic features but is only available for scanning slides and negs). PSE3 is comprehensive and complex, with most of the PS tools of 7 and CS. I bought Scott Kelby's book and found it down to earth and practical. I have since found that many of the free tutorials on the internet amount to a comprehensive manual and are all that is needed to use tools, layers, curves etc. My biggest disappointment is the absence of Organiser, which seemed a valuable and necessary part. The Browse function is not easy to use to import from iPhoto, and there's considerable confusion over where and how the final image is saved. But for a non-professional, PSE3 is as far as I need to go in Photoshop, and friends with CS are floundering. | |
 Meets the needs of most photographers, at a bargain price | |
| I was very pleaseantly suprised at the power of Elements compared to Photoshop CS. I'd say you're getting about 70% of the functions of CS for 10% of the price. You get all the filters and effects, layer editing, color and contrast adjustments, level and RGB control, web optimized save, and many many other advanced features.
I'd give it five stars had I not experienced a frustrating menu glitch that required me to delete the Elements preferences file to fix it. And, true, the manual is rather slim, but there's always the Help menu. Having never used version 2 I can't comment on the disappointment some reviewers have expressed here. But when all's said and done, if you want to make the most of your digital or scanned photos, I don't think there's a better piece of software for the price. | |
 Adobe Elements 3.0 didn't work, and support demanded a fee | |
| I have several graphics programs, each one being "best" at some feature. Hoping to find some program that is best at everything, I was eager to try Elements 3.0, since I had read several good reviews of it.
It installed without a problem and opened up fine. The first step it automatically took was to catalog the existing photos on my hard drive. It was at this point, about 3 seconds into the procedure, that I received an error message, followed by another one, which I clicked on to see the error code. I printed out the error messages by using a print screen program, as the Elements program was locked by then. I telephoned Adobe for help and was told it would be free if the software had a problem, otherwise, I would have to pay about $39. I thought surely the problem could be the software. After I was transferred to the technician, he said I would be charged to continue the conversation, so I terminated it. I returned the product. I am familiar with installing new programs, and I closed down all my open ones before starting the installation. I am terribly disappointed in the lack of service by Adobe and in not being able to try their new program. Yes, I could have paid a special support subscription fee which would have covered any questions I would have had for the year, but I really think the product should install and open itself without any problems without my paying extra. I'm afraid that Adobe doesn't realize the importance of support. I'll be afraid to try their products again. |
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