Phall82 said:
Hi
I am considering getting some software for processing. Are there major benefits of Lightroom or CS5 over the Canon software that comes with the camera?
What sort of features do they have that the Canon software doesn't?
Also, do the Adobe programmes read RAW Canon files or do thy have to be converted?
Thanks
Colin
All in all the Canon software is not a bad product. Especially as it's free. However other software has additional features that the Canon lacks. First of all if you are just considering RAW processing software I'd leave out Photoshop. The RAW conversion engine is the same as Lightroom, but Lightroom has a much better interface.
So what are the advantages of Lightroom over DPP. Well for a start there are more controls to enable you to get the result you want. Not only can you adjust exposure ,but there is a very good highlight recovery option, plus the fill light control can be very useful. Curves are available in Lightroom as well as colour controls within the Hue,Saturation ,and lightness panel.. The sharpening and noise controls are amongst the best available. Plus the ability to generate custom profiles for your camera is a very good option. The lens profiles are an excellent tool, especially with very wide angle lenses.
Add to this the cataloguing function plus export to web and the print module make Lightroom a very attractive product..
Finally,no you don't need to convert your RAW files. The current version supports the range of Canon cameras on the market..
Go to the Adobe web site and download a trial version and see what you think..
If you do need to pixel edit images you may simply need a copy of Photoshop Elements rather than the full version of Photoshop.
