PACMan3000
Pixelmator - Photoshop for the rest of us
Approximately a year and a half ago, there was a spattering of native prosumer grade Mac photo editors: Acorn, Iris, Pixelmator, and Gimp.
Gimp is really an Unix, GNU licensed, X11 port, so it's actually kind of well, gimpy and irrelevant to begin with, while both Iris and Acorn, while different, were not really as fully featured as Pixelmator.
Of course, that wasn't saying much. Pixelmator was actually missing a lot of basic features like Rulers, Guidelines, Workspace configs and the ability to constrain selections with the Shift key or many short-cuts at all for that matter.
Of course, much has changed since a year and a half ago.
Pixelmator now has just about every feature mentioned above, save for Workspace configs. (It does have a full screen mode, but I find it kind of useless for streamlining the work flow).
For the entry price of $60, Pixelmator is a good deal if you're looking for something with Photoshop capabilities, but without the Creative Suite price.
In fact, as a self-admitted Photoshop lover, I would go as far as to say that Pixelmator would make a good acquisition for Apple in the near future. Pared with Aperture and an Illustrator clone, Apple could give Adobe a run for its money.
Of course, Pixelmator copies so many layout conventions of Photoshop that I could foresee a "Look and Feel" type copyright infringement lawsuit in Apple's future were this to happen. But this whole scenario brings me to another subject: Why can't any of these developers create a new paradigm for photo editors?
Adobe's products have never had what I would call a Mac-like interface. The Acorn photo editor is the only editor to be really trying to set itself apart, but of course, that's a subject more appropriate for another entry.
If you're looking for a good Photoshop alternative, Pixelmator is a safe bet.
Related Links:
Pixelmator
Acorn
Iris
Gimp
Pixelmator - Photoshop for the rest of us
Approximately a year and a half ago, there was a spattering of native prosumer grade Mac photo editors: Acorn, Iris, Pixelmator, and Gimp.
Gimp is really an Unix, GNU licensed, X11 port, so it's actually kind of well, gimpy and irrelevant to begin with, while both Iris and Acorn, while different, were not really as fully featured as Pixelmator.
Of course, that wasn't saying much. Pixelmator was actually missing a lot of basic features like Rulers, Guidelines, Workspace configs and the ability to constrain selections with the Shift key or many short-cuts at all for that matter.
Of course, much has changed since a year and a half ago.
Pixelmator now has just about every feature mentioned above, save for Workspace configs. (It does have a full screen mode, but I find it kind of useless for streamlining the work flow).
For the entry price of $60, Pixelmator is a good deal if you're looking for something with Photoshop capabilities, but without the Creative Suite price.
In fact, as a self-admitted Photoshop lover, I would go as far as to say that Pixelmator would make a good acquisition for Apple in the near future. Pared with Aperture and an Illustrator clone, Apple could give Adobe a run for its money.
Of course, Pixelmator copies so many layout conventions of Photoshop that I could foresee a "Look and Feel" type copyright infringement lawsuit in Apple's future were this to happen. But this whole scenario brings me to another subject: Why can't any of these developers create a new paradigm for photo editors?
Adobe's products have never had what I would call a Mac-like interface. The Acorn photo editor is the only editor to be really trying to set itself apart, but of course, that's a subject more appropriate for another entry.
If you're looking for a good Photoshop alternative, Pixelmator is a safe bet.
Related Links:
Pixelmator
Acorn
Iris
Gimp