My Computers and Software


For two decades I was a PC guy. A big part of that had to do with my full time employment and the computers that I needed to use when I was at work. But now that I am a full time photographer I am thrilled to be using Mac computers. Right now my primary computer is a MacBook Pro (2.2Ghz i7 with 8Gigs of RAM, 15″ 1680×1050 resolution, OSX Lion) and it’s just a joy to use.

I’m currently using an Apple Magic Mouse along with the Apple wireless keyboard when I’m in my office and I’ve also used the Apple Magic Trackpad (which is really cool but sometimes it’s a little weird). Additional Apple products I use include my iPad (generation 1), my iPhone 4S and an Apple TV. All are handy for sharing my pictures in a pinch when I don’t have a copy of my portfolio handy.

For my serious graphic design and photo restoration/touchup work I use a Wacom Intuos 3 tablet and I often wonder how I survived before I got it. Perhaps a Wacom Bamboo Capture is in my future (for traveling or when teaching in local cafe’s).

But I still have a PC for using Microsoft Office and some of my older Adobe Creative Suite programs like Dreamweaver. My PC laptop is a Toshiba 18.5″ (running Windows 7) that has served me well in the past but just doesn’t compare to what I now experience with the MacBook Pro.

For Software I’m a big Adobe fan and I’ve got all sorts of photography related programs installed. Right now I have Lightroom 3 and 4 installed along with Photoshop CS 5.5 and CS6 (public beta). I’ve used plenty of photo editing software and RAW editors in the past but the integration of Lightroom and Photoshop is exactly what I need from a photo editing workflow.

I’ve played with plugins in the past and I totally understand why they are popular. But for now I’m an old-school Photoshop guy and I spend most of my time in LAB color space doing my own thing. I’m sure It won’t be long until I am using plugins from onOne and Nik to speed up my workflow but for now I’m loving the results I’m getting.

 

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