I was really pleased to hear film & video peeps’ response to Photoshop Extended last week at NAB, and today we got some more good news: NewBay Media (publishers of Digital Cinematography, DV Magazine, and more) awarded Photoshop CS3 Extended their "Vidy" & "Top Innovation" awards. Thanks, guys! Meanwhile Adobe Soundbooth took home DV’s Black Diamond award.
As long as we’re being a little immodest, I’ve seen some other great comments in recent days:
- "It’s simple, really," writes Jim Heid in Macworld. "If digital imaging is an important part of your creative life, you’ll want Adobe Photoshop CS3. The new version provides so many improvements in so many areas that no serious digital photographer, video artist, or designer should be without it" [emphasis added].
- "This upgrade is a no-brainer if you’re a regular Photoshop user," says CreativePro’s Ben Long. "The combination of enhancements to staple features, such as Curves and the Clone Stamp, combined with powerful new additions like the Black and White conversion and Camera Raw enhancements, mean that there’s something for everyone in this update."
- PC World lists Photoshop among "The 50 Best Tech Products of All Time."
- Elsewhere, MacDirectory had this to say about Adobe as a whole:
- "Beyond all the products enhancements and features revealed at the CS3 launch, the one thing that made the strongest and possibly most important impression was Adobe’s attitude. They retained all the enthusiasm and drive of a company that’s battling for market share. They know what their customers need and they deliver that and far more. With each new version, their products are not only richer, but also faster. They are not only a market leader, but remain one of the market’s leading innovators. When Adobe required Macromedia, many of us were concerned that the sudden lack of competition in the electronic design marketplace would lead to a creative lull in product development. Instead, it appears that the energies of two great companies have combined to bring us even more dramatic advancements."
- And lastly, I spied some nice props on the forum : "Chris Cox, I promise you that you will have made a massive contribution to the field of astrophotography with the release of CS3. Your new image stacking + stitching algorithm is going to allow for immense advances in alignment, noise correction, and overall image optimization. This is a hugely powerful tool, and a significant advance over currently available software. I can tell you personally that it will likely save me several hundred manhours of labor per year. Can’t wait to get my hands on a fresh copy. Thanks Chris – this is going to be marked as a watershed moment in astrophotography development."
This all seems to be going over well, according to the analysts at PiperJaffray who surveyed customers at this month’s sold-out Photoshop World. [Via Scott Kelby]
It should be. In addition to being feature rich, even beyond what you intended, this release seems rock solid (two days up and running, ZERO crashes in Bridge or Photoshop). Find myself using the Quick Selection Tool far more than I thought I would. So darn handy. In any event, you deserve to be able to pat yourself on the back. In short, CS3 ROCKS!!
I’ve read complaints from the usual nay-sayers as well – but I agree that the newer enhancements are a worthy update. The PS Extended stuff especially.
If I’d had Photoshop Extended three years ago I would have turned an insane self-assigned experiment where I made a music video out of hundreds of still photos into quick work. Of course I learned a lot doing it without Extended, so it’s not a complete loss.
The fear of a monopoly is something to remember, but I agree with MacDirectory’s nod to Adobe’s attitude with this release.
Even though Adobe owns the image editing market, you still need to attract paid updates as well as new users. And doing that means shipping a worthwhile product, not resting on your laurels. That said I’m still up for good competition for Adobe to string up as well.
John,
Is there a list of stats, percentages, figures or step count comparisons on how much the speed and efficiencies of the CS3 programs has increased over the previous versions?
The reason I’m asking is that those nifty facts (ie: “I once calculated that getting a 20-layer PSD into Flash intact took 168 steps; now it’s more like two, and the results are far richer.”)are great to know about because I can show those with the purchasing power that it doesn’t make sense to wait to upgrade. 😉
Well John, this is my 2nd day with extended and it is truly genius. The photomerge and blend operation that I use constantly is beyond words. You all were reading my mind as I used to work and mumble under my breath what I wished I could do. Now I can!! To be 30 years younger now and where all this will take the world in the future is a wonderful thing. You young guys must bring war to an end. There is too much beauty ahead to destroy.
[Wow, glad to hear it, Alex! –J.]
“Is there a list of stats, percentages, figures or step count comparisons on how much the speed and efficiencies of the CS3 programs has increased over the previous versions?”
I don’t know about the number crunching stats, but the Quick Selection tool alone gives you in three clicks what used to take a whole mouse symphony with magic wand, color range, magnetic lasso and all those retiring friends 🙂
“Adobe required Macromedia”–hmn, I’ve never seen it put like that, but I couldn’t have put it better myself…