Performance
Not to sound like a broken record, but it's really not
fair to compare Photoshop CS2 to the competition.
I work with a lot of Corel products and I know several
people who swear by PaintShop Pro, yet I can tell
you right off the bat that there is no comparison. Other
packages may be more affordable or possess a gentler learning
curve, but Photoshop remains the hands-down leader in
terms of power, flexibility, stability and freedom. Given
the extensive range of support on Adobe.com, and the positively
gi-normous community of Photoshop developers out
there, there is little in the graphics world that this
tool can't pull off!
Value
This is a pretty pricey package for the average home user
at $649, though you will most certainly get what you pay
for. Look at it this way, as a graphic designer, filmmaker,
photographer, or web artist, you will be hard pressed
to do the job as well with a cheaper program. This is
a good investment for somebody that is serious about graphics
and film work. (If you want an even better way to obtain
this program for film work, check out our killer
review of Adobe Production Suite Premium that includes
it and everything you need to do post-production on your
next film.) Now, if you are just looking for something
to fool around with and make cutesy pictures for your
friends then you would probably be better served using
the less technical and less expensive Photoshop Elements.
Final
Comments
For a stand alone graphics package that will run on your
run-of-the-mill computer setup, you will be hard pressed
to find a program that can hold it's own against Photoshop.
If you look at sheer functionality and the extent of it's
web-based community for support and ideas, there are few
reasons not to purchase this package.
