Photo and video editing software thread

Mr. Leary

Adventurist
Founding Member
I am at a decision point for both photo and video editing software packages. I would like to find a software which has achieved a good balance between control and ease of use. Previously, I have used Photoshop Elements, but my opinion is that it leaves something to be desired on the control selling point, despite being supremely easy to use.

I have been leaning towards Lightroom, but also considering getting another pair of licenses for Elements. I am open to other suggestions as well. Thoughts?

On the topic of video editing software, I have some experience with windows movie maker, but would like a software that is more capable yet remains easy to use. Thoughts?

Thanks in advance for your input. Once the topic of my own software selection is over, I would like to open up this thread to further banter about editing software, as it is certainly an intimidating subject for many of those who are getting their proverbial feet wet with camera technology.
 
I within the last year or so, purchased Premiere Elements... I was not happy with it at all. It's extremely slow to operate, even on my quad core 3.2ghz machine. It wasn't as intuitive as older versions. Saving in the format I wanted wasn't easy without having to know very specific settings and what they mean, and what they do to your video.

All I can say is thanks to the iPhone with a HD camera, and a YouTube app that lets you upload directly. With iMovie or ReelDirector, I can add music, titles, edit scenes, etc... The only thing I can't do is zoom while filming, it's more static, but it serves the purpose without having to deal with third party Adobe junk. Aside from Photoshop CS(x), their products are really lousy lately. And this is coming from someone who used to swear by Adobe Premiere (full version, $1K plus).
 
I've been using Lightroom for all my professional photo editing and archiving as well as all my personal photo stuff. I love it. Does all the basic stuff I need (exposure, contrast, crop, etc) as well as some of the cool gee-wiz stuff (filter effects, edging, etc). There are also a bunch of cool plug-ins on the market that make is a very powerful program.
 
Not much help here. I use Photo Mechanic and Photoshop CS6 for pictures and Premier or Final Cut Pro 7 for video.
 
I too have been using Lightroom (versions 3 and 4) for the last couple of years and really like how it works. I don't need all of the features found in the full version of Photoshop, and rely on friends with it to help out when I do. The cost of lightroom has really come down, which is nice for those of you looking to buy. There are also several plugins that work really well with lightroom, including the NIK package.

I have not tried version 5 yet, but it looks very interesting and looks to be trying to bridge the gap between previous versions and Photoshop.

Microsoft Image Composite Editor (ICE) works really well for stitching panos, and it is free!
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