Posted by Craig McDaniel on Nov 21, 2013 | 1 comment

Software ReviewPhotoshop CC
Publisher: Adobe
Website: Click Here
Platforms: PC & Mac
x32/x64: Both
Description: Photo editing software
Purchase/Subscription: Subscription Only
Pricing: Various Memberships ($9.99/month for Photography Bundle, which requires a Photoshop CS3 or later license, $19.99/month for Photoshop CC or $49.99 for a full Creative Cloud Membership.)
Expected Release: Available Now
Demo: Click Here
Review Issue: Issue #93 (11/13)
Review By: Craig McDaniel
Final Score: 10

Adobe Photoshop is the Gold standard in photo editing software and over the last 15 or so years it’s also become a much more accessible program. When first introduced it probably seemed like dark magic voodoo, with the ability to bring back the old days of “yellow journalism.” What started off as simple photo manipulation has since evolved into complex tinkering with seemingly endless options. The newest version—Photoshop CC—requires a subscription plan through the Creative Cloud to use, which we’ll go into in more depth in our Value and Final comments section.

Ease of Use

Personally I’m on my 13^th anniversary as a proud Adobe user, over the years I have anticipated each and every new release. Recent releases have seemed like mild to moderate upgrades but, in most cases, Adobe’s product line remains unmatched. With that many years of use under my belt, I’ve watched and learned as the products changed. At this point it would be hard to tell you if a program like Photoshop or Premiere is “easy” to use. It’s a pro-level program that has a learning curve, but there are so many online tutorials and videos that most people shouldn’t have any issue getting up to speed for the basics.

Depth of Options

In the old days, the only times Photoshop entered the equation for filmmakers was through graphics used in special effects composites, in titles used in opening and closing credits, and in the posters that would advertise the film’s release. As time’s gone on, Photoshop’s abilities have increased for doing video painting, painting 3D objects, and, with CS6, even doing video editing. Now with the CC version, let’s run down some of the newer options this version of Photoshop offers with those things in mind.

Camera Shake Reduction (for Still Images)
If you happen to have captured a perfect moment on set but some unwanted motion blur or some other kind of issue due to movement is causing an issue, this may help minimize the damage. In the end, the algorithms are still using your original image to work with, so the power of this reduction will differ greatly between various images. Much like Adobe’s highly touted Content Aware feature, it all depends on the original image. Personally, I found the effect to be useful, but I’m also one of those guys who shoots way more than I probably need to. So in my case I would probably settle for another picture that didn’t need as much post processing, but this is a very good option to have for when it’s needed.

Camera Raw Filters
If you are shooting .raw, you probably love all the non-destructive options that format offers you. This new option allows you to bring your raw image directly into Photoshop CC and adjust the settings as a filter. (Previously raw image choices would have to be made inCamera Raw and then “flattened” into an image, before opening it in Photoshop CC. This leads many photo editors to essentially have to do two full passes of edits on each final image. This obviously gives you much more flexibility with your photos—especially since the filter can be applied not just to raw images, but to any image or even video. Yeah, you read that right…raw adjustment options you can apply to video!) Obviously, photos and videos not taken in the raw format will not benefit to the degree of actual raw files. But the option of non destructive tinkering within the confines of Photoshop CC is pretty cool.

Preserve Details
Whether it’s print media or visual media you need a clean image to start from. Nobody wants to see ugly blocky pixels! This new Intelligent Upsampling helps when you have been provided with a less-than-stellar size image. Once again, the quality of this up-sampling depends on the original image so results will vary, but it is a nice option to have.

Performance

As always with a new upgraded and powerful program your computers capabilities come into play. This review was based on usage with a 3 year old Mac Pro with 8 gigs of Ram. I experienced no issues at all, as Photoshop CC works amazingly smoothly. Other than the obvious choices Adobe has made in software availability, I have no issues with this version of Photoshop at all.

Value

Distribution through Creative Cloud is less money up front, of course, and if you always updated every 18 months in the past, you’ll save some money in comparison to the old ways of purchasing things. Unless you are really involved with more expansive sorts of print media (like books or the like), Photoshop CC is all you will need to accomplish most of your image based goals. At $19.99 a month for Photoshop CC, (or $9.99 for CS3 and later customers, offer expires 12/31/13) if you are just doing photography or raster based graphic design, you have it much better than most of our readers who are doing video production, as well. They will require multiple programs from Adobe, thus being forced to subscribe to the entire Creative Cloud, along with numerous programs they will probably never use.

Final Comments

If you have read my previous reviews for the CS6 product line (when Creative Cloud was first introduced as an option) you’ll know I’ve had concerns when it was first introduced. Now that it’s the only way to use Adobe products, my concerns become all the more pronounced. If others feel this way, then hopefully Adobe will return to giving users an option that includes ownership. Regardless, Photoshop is still a great program and, if you can use only this program, then it’s got pretty good subscription price.

Breakdown
Ease of Use	10
Depth of Options	10
Performance	10
Value vs. Cost	10
Overall Score	10