Joseph Elliott-ColemanNov 17, 2017
muraii
Since Mastodon is such an artistic community, what's the best way to get Photoshop legally? Is the CC/subscription model really the only/best way? Will be running on 2015 MBP i5 w/ 16GB RAM.
Nov 17, 2017 at 6:28pmAmaroq
Show threadjmzđŸ¦€(CARCIFIED)Nov 17, 2017

@muraii yeah, as far as I know you're stuck with CC. At this point unfortunately Adobe is doing its best to funnel all photoshop users towards it–reselling is illegal I think, & they've stopped selling CS6 entirely...so it's subscription or the pirate's life. :s

I'm still using an old university copy of CS5 for now, but I'm thinking that the most sensible way forward long term might be to buckle down & try to learn some open source programs.

Show threadmuraiiNov 17, 2017
@paralithode Thanks! I luckily work for a university so can probably get relatively cheap access at least to really kick the tires. I'm primarily wondering about my Wacom Bamboo and it will work better with PS than GIMP.
Show threadMilanNov 17, 2017
@muraii @paralithode for the wacom? try #krita.
Show threadINACTIVENov 17, 2017
@milan @muraii @paralithode Krita with a Wacom tablet is extremely good. As far as painting apps are concerned, it's a total joy to use.
Show threadMilanNov 17, 2017
@deadsuperhero @muraii @paralithode i am honestly still wondering how ppl do this great art with gimp - well i didn't do much research on it yet, i like gimp but for other stuff - couldn't imagine to draw in gimp like in krita - tbh i can't compare with ps but yea.. krita feels quite perfect.
Show threadINACTIVENov 17, 2017

@milan @muraii @paralithode

Gimp is pretty painful for digital painting. It's more helpful if you're trying to emulate old Photoshop tutorials for creating game art.

Show threadmuraiiNov 17, 2017
@milan @deadsuperhero @paralithode @grime_witch Krita looks fantastic!
Show threadniven's theoremNov 17, 2017

@muraii FWIW my wacom works great with GIMP and even better with krita!

https://krita.org/en/

Digital Painting. Creative Freedom.

Krita is a professional FREE and open source painting program. It is made by artists that want to see affordable art tools for everyone.

Krita
Show threadmoved 2 @[email protected]Nov 17, 2017

@paralithode @muraii I bit the bullet and got CC. I convinced myself that jumping in early might lock me in at a lower price. However, I'm sure there's some legal ease in there that will allow them to change the fee.

On Mac there's Affinity and Pixelmator or something like that. Always curious to try, but decided I'd be more productive sticking to what I know.

Show threadAndy P.Nov 17, 2017

@sikkdays @muraii @paralithode Yes, there is a part of the contract where they will charge you the remainder of the year if you cancel early.

I don't think this was part of the deal a few years ago.

Show threadmuraiiNov 17, 2017
@sikkdays @paralithode Danke! Was curious about how it supports an older tablet specifically. In addition to GIMP I've tried Inkscape and while they're great I don't have the skill + patience to make them work.
Show threadJim_TrincaNov 17, 2017
@muraii
Pretty much the only way now yeah, unless you want to switch to GIMP.
Show threadBert LatamoreNov 17, 2017
@muraii you can try the smartphone version. I have Lighttable but have not really used it yet, but a version of Photoshop is also available free on Google Play Store & I presume also in the Apple store. Of course that is designed for photos taken in the phone, but some of those cameras are getting pretty good.
Show threadTrollwutNov 17, 2017
@muraii If you don't have to rely on exactly Photoshop, I can recommend you "Krita". It's the same stuff, but open source, bla bla.
Show threadDesiknerNov 17, 2017
@muraii If you want to try something new, MyPaint is good for painting and drawing with tablets like Wacom.
http://mypaint.org/
MyPaint

MyPaint is an easy-to-use painting program which works well with Wacom graphics tablets and other similar devices. It comes with a large brush collection including charcoal and ink to emulate real media, but the highly configurable brush engine allows you to experiment with your own brushes and with not-quite-natural painting.

Show threadClair (KD3BCC)Nov 17, 2017
@muraii I don't know of any other way. My wife's a graphic designer and we have a CC subscription. I don't think you can purchase a single copy any longer... unless you want Elements (and from my experience, you don't).
Show threadmuraiiNov 17, 2017
@chigh Yeah I've tried Elements and...no. :)
Show threadSimon WindmillNov 17, 2017

@muraii Subscription only now. But.. decide if you really need Photoshop. Most people don't. Exceptions are certain game dev tools that only have Photoshop plugins, and maybe some pro photography RAW or color stuff but I have no knowledge of that area.

If you're painting or doing line illustration, look at Krita or MediBang, both free. Also look at Clip Studio Paint. Pixels? Aseprite, GraphicsGale, Pro Motion NG. General purpose image editing? Affinity Photo, Pixelmator (OSX-only)

Show threadSimon WindmillNov 17, 2017
@muraii All high-quality options without paying the Adobe tax. And I didn't even mention GIMP, because I don't particularly like it even though I use it :)
Show threadmuraiiNov 17, 2017
@coolpowers GIMP seemed particularly...gimped (ugh I'm sorry) in dealing with my tablet. So did Autodesk's Sketch tool, IIRC. But now I'm thinking I may have dumped my tablet so crap. :)
Show threadno-noNov 17, 2017
@muraii CC is the only way to get a new version. it's possible to buy a used license for an older version, though it's tricky to find someone who will transfer their license properly, and usually it's still expensive. there are a lot of OEM license resales that are ostensibly legal but in violation of adobe's terms. so a license like that will work, but you lose out on official adobe support/linking to your adobe account.
Show threadt6Nov 17, 2017
@muraii CS3 is legally available free! it's ancient and extremely a pain in the ass to install, but by god it gets the job done.
Show threadmuraiiNov 17, 2017
@t54r4n1 I mean I _loved_ Dabbler and I'm ancient so maybe a match made at 9600 baud? đŸ˜œ
Show threadsadieNov 17, 2017
@muraii *screams from the gallows* KRITA IS GREAT THO
Show threadkelbotNov 17, 2017

@muraii
Use open source tools that don't restrict your ability to use them without paying a gatekeeper.

Gimp. Krita. Inkscape.

Show threadsherpaNov 17, 2017
@muraii There is student pricing. You could also opt to learn tools like gimp/scribe/BRL-CAD/Krita and perhaps digikam depending on what you are trying to do. FLOSS Weekly have overviews on most of those.
Show threadmuraiiNov 17, 2017
@sherpa I tried GIMP and Inkscape and they're definitely good, but specifically I was trying with a Wacom Bamboo and getting poor performance. Wasn't sure if the performance was at the OS level or the app level. Alas, I've since gotten rid of the tablet, I just realized.
Show threadsherpaNov 17, 2017
@muraii gimp/inkscape are not the same set of narrow tools like Krita (see https://twit.tv/shows/floss-weekly/episodes/324 for a 3 year old reporting) or if you wanted to design and draw a 3-D model the Ballistics Research Labs code that started off as a way to model things hitting tanks. And performance may be a function of Windows and/or the graphics card and its drivers.
FLOSS Weekly 324 Krita | TWiT.TV

Hosts: Randal Schwartz and Aaron Newcomb Join Aaron Newcomb and Randal Schwartz this week to speak with Boudewijn Rempt about Krita. Krita is a FREE digital painting and illustrat…

Show threadRonald Z. McRonizNov 17, 2017
@muraii I only use legal software at work.
Show threadmuraiiNov 17, 2017
@Ron_iz_One Same. And at home.
Show threadRonald Z. McRonizNov 17, 2017
@muraii All my home software is cracked, if I am selling something or doing accountable design I usually open it at work and send the final file from there so the serials are legit. But I am a huge supporter of freeware so i dont feel to guilty about it. Adobe makes tons of money and their price per moth is ridiculous for personal use.
Show thread[old account] VincentNov 17, 2017
@muraii I think CC is the main option now, or you could go for PS Elements. I personally stopped using Adobe. I now use Krita for digital drawing, Affinity Photo instead of Photoshop, and Affinity Designer instead of Illustrator
Show threadSatu Elisa SchaefferNov 17, 2017
@muraii have you checked whether Gimp can do what you need?
Show threadmuraiiNov 17, 2017
@satuelisa Yep! It's great but I was getting odd results with the table I owned. And it felt like doing art from a Snap-It tool chest, painting with ratchets and stuff. But I'm not an artist so that's nowhere near an informed opinion.
Show threadSimeon✨Nov 17, 2017
@muraii make friends with Adobe employees, get a discount đŸ˜…
Show threadardydoNov 18, 2017

@muraii have you thought about free/open source alternatives? Ofc it is not the same thing and it will probably not have the same features but there is GIMP for photo editing and Kirita for drawing/illustration

You can always try http://alternativeto.net/ to check for other alternatives too!

AlternativeTo - Crowdsourced software recommendations

AlternativeTo lets you find apps and software for Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone, iPad, Android, Android Tablets, Web Apps, Online, Windows Tablets and more by recommending alternatives to apps you already know.

Show threadardydoNov 18, 2017
@muraii I wrote this post like 4h ago and didn't hit toot so here it is now
Show threadmuraiiNov 18, 2017

@ardydo Thank you! I do that too, with the delayed toots.

I've used GIMP mostly with some Inkscape. I had been trying with an older Wacom Bamboo tablet and it was giving me goofy results. I wasn't certain if it was the driver or the app, so I was hunting around for alternatives. Looked at Krita yesterday and it looks great.

Alas, I no longer have that Bamboo. :)

Show threadardydoNov 18, 2017
@muraii I see! Hope you're able to find something that fill your needs tho. I've never used photoshop but it always looked too expensive and resource heavy. I've never even tried it because I've always used old machines that would never run it properly. Hahaha