One more Photoshop to Shake question
by James Roberts
on
Oct 2, 2008 at 1:18:22 pm
Sorry if this has been covered before. If it has, it doesn't show up on a search, anyway.
I'd like to know if there is any significant advantages to using full Photoshop over Photoshop Elements(6)to prepare images for use in Shake composites.
Sure, given a choice I would rather just have the full version, but $80 versus $700 is quite a difference, and I don't otherwise use the
missing features currently, but is there anything missing that I should have? Is there better control over the alpha channel that makes a difference? Even if I do decide to move up to it, now that they're dangling this year's model in front of us with a 1-2 month wait I wouldn't want to pick up the soon-to-be outgoing rev.
I'm currently building elements for a library of images for use in Shake, and I'd hate to find out I should have used the full PS.
Re: One more Photoshop to Shake question by Andrew Shanks on Oct 10, 2008 at 2:28:12 am
If you don't need the features, Elements is capable of doing work for video and SD TV work fine, ...the only big advantage (apart from the features), and it is fairly important, is that it only allows you to work with 8bit colour (Photoshop full version allows working with 16bit and even 32bit colour). For film and most HD (10bit) jobs, this is a necessity (it means your gradients are smoother and if someone is doing a colourgrade after you're finished, they're not going to curse you for using limited colour space (as their grade shows up the bad grads). Hope that helps.
Re: One more Photoshop to Shake question by James Roberts on Oct 10, 2008 at 3:33:16 am
Thanks! Exactly what I was looking for, whether Elements was limited in resolution capability. Right now, I'm working with consumer HDV and AVCHD cameras and animations done in Flash (MX,I haven't upgraded for a while). I'd imagine 8 bit is fine for this level, but eventually I might want to move up to a Red Scarlett (if they keep their price promise), so by then I may need the ceiling raised.
My goal right now is to build up my editing suite from the iMac based hobbyist environment it was into a Mac Pro based semi pro one man studio for hire. I know any serious contenders should have the full Photoshop, if not the whole Production Premium package. I'm sure I can wait until after CS4 is out to look into that, but after laying out for a Mac Pro, Final Cut Studio, Shake, and a green screen set up and lighting rig out of pocket, I'm a bit exhausted right now.
I've always been impressed with how much of the Photoshop toolset Elements offered, but knew there had to be a tradeoff for it to cost 1/6th of the price.
