what photo editing software?

[jann1033]

i tried the trial of photoshop and i am to dense to use it with out ripping my hair out

i am trying corel paint shop pro x presently and while it is easier than photoshop the black and white is really dark and not super clear ( could be the way i am doing it since i am definitly trial and error here) the photos are too soft looking. like the ear channel area is fuzzy even after sharpening when i do it with paint shop using the the same pic that's in my sig (done with the hp image zone that came with my printer). this was done with an easy share 4 mp so i don't expect perfection but would like to get software for when i get my better camera.

so i would like software that is reasonable but easy to use ( not asking for too much? )
any recommendations would be appreciated

 

[manning]

There is a 60 day trial version for Microsoft Digial Imaging

http://www.microsoft.com/products/imaging/starteredition.mspx

I haven't used it. The last time I used Microsoft imaging software was years ago when it was known as PictureIt. Back then it was easy to use.

 

[MICKEY88]

i tried the trial of photoshop and i am to dense to use it with out ripping my hair out

i am trying corel paint shop pro x presently and while it is easier than photoshop the black and white is really dark and not super clear ( could be the way i am doing it since i am definitly trial and error here) the photos are too soft looking. like the ear channel area is fuzzy even after sharpening when i do it with paint shop using the the same pic that's in my sig (done with the hp image zone that came with my printer). this was done with an easy share 4 mp so i don't expect perfection but would like to get software for when i get my better camera.

so i would like software that is reasonable but easy to use ( not asking for too much? )
any recommendations would be appreciated

what do you mean when you say the B&W is dark....how are you doing it...

 

[jann1033]

it was a color picture but when i changed it to black and white the dark( dark gray in the pic below) is almost black and the flesh tones are really white & not well defined. i tried changing ( forget where it was, it had some place to change saturation i think)it but it made it more yellowish.( not sepia but tinged) and lighter places, like inside the ear are really washed out looking with no definition. i also tried to redo a 6o yr old pic of my parents and it did a great job of removing scratches etc but it is not sharply defined either( i tried to sharpen and clarify but it only sharpened some places.. i very well may be doing it wrong)

the camera i am getting has the option to shoot black and white( unlike the one i used) so it probably would look better but i don't know if it would still be as high contrast as it is now. i wouldn't mind the look if it wasn't so bleached out in the white areas probably. like her shirt looks charcoal gray , her skin is bright white with very little detail in the sun lit areas and the background is actually black in the shadows ( unlike the gray shades in the pic below)

plus the "sepia" prints black and white for some reason rather than sepia( it prints sepia with the hp software but not the paint software.) maybe the trial version works differently???

edited part
i just checked where i went( ) and it was the smart photo fix..so maybe if i just change to b&w without that it would be better.

 

[MICKEY88]

it was a color picture but when i changed it to black and white the dark( dark gray in the pic below) is almost black and the flesh tones are really white & not well defined. i tried changing ( forget where it was, it had some place to change saturation i think)it but it made it more yellowish.( not sepia but tinged) and lighter places, like inside the ear are really washed out looking with no definition. i also tried to redo a 6o yr old pic of my parents and it did a great job of removing scratches etc but it is not sharply defined either( i tried to sharpen and clarify but it only sharpened some places.. i very well may be doing it wrong)

the camera i am getting has the option to shoot black and white( unlike the one i used) so it probably would look better but i don't know if it would still be as high contrast as it is now. i wouldn't mind the look if it wasn't so bleached out in the white areas probably. like her shirt looks charcoal gray , her skin is bright white with very little detail in the sun lit areas and the background is actually black in the shadows ( unlike the gray shades in the pic below)

plus the "sepia" prints black and white for some reason rather than sepia( it prints sepia with the hp software but not the paint software.) maybe the trial version works differently???

edited part
i just checked where i went( ) and it was the smart photo fix..so maybe if i just change to b&w without that it would be better.

I personally would NEVER shoot B&W, if you decide later you want the shot in color, you're out of luck, shoot in color and then you can go B&W if you want....

go into effects, photo effects...B&W film...