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|| SportsShooter.com: Member Message Board
Time for a new Mac -- and new software. Recommendations?
Jeff Brehm, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Charlotte | NC | USA | Posted: 1:56 PM on 11.03.09 |
| ->> I'm going to replace my old PowerBook G4 with a new MacBook Pro. I have PhotoShop and Photo Mechanic now, but I rarely use all the features of Photoshop, and both are older versions. I use both almost exclusively for photo editing and processing, but some threads on here make me think there might be better options now. What should I buy for the new Mac? |
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Jim Colburn, Photo Editor, Photographer
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McAllen | TX | USA | Posted: 10:18 PM on 11.03.09 |
->> An upgrade (or educational version) of Photoshop and Photo Mechanic.
Why mess with what works extremely well? |
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Mike Doran, Photographer
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Petaluma | CA | U.S.A. | Posted: 10:29 PM on 11.03.09 |
| ->> The biggest hard drive you can put in and you might try the new Lightroom 3 Beta as well. Also check out the faster ghz and get as much RAM as possible. |
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Bradly J. Boner, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Jackson | WY | USA | Posted: 12:28 AM on 11.04.09 |
->> The Mac Buyer's Guide suggests that all Macs except the Pro desktop computers are a good buy right now as they've all been recently updated:
http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#iPod
As Mike said, get the biggest hard drive possible, but purchase your RAM from a third party like Kingston. The Apple RAM is way too expensive. |
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Neil Turner, Photographer
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Bournemouth | UK | United Kingdom | Posted: 8:55 AM on 11.04.09 |
->> I would go for one of the models with the anti-reflective screen option and as much RAM as you can afford. I saw the new 15.4" model with the anti-reflective for the first time yesterday and I am impressed - very impressed.
As far as software goes, I'm using the latest versions of Photo Mechanic and Photoshop with Canon CR2 files and still find that combination works well. Every time a new version of Lightroom comes out I give it a try and then go straight back to PM and PS. |
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Jim Colburn, Photo Editor, Photographer
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McAllen | TX | USA | Posted: 10:05 AM on 11.04.09 |
| ->> Apple charges WAY too much for extra RAM so look into buying your laptop with minimal RAM and upgrading it yourself (I've used RAM from www.crucial.com for years). It'll involve opening up a little "door" on your machine and plugging in the new RAM chips but it's not difficult. Keep your old (Apple supplied) RAM as Apple can refuse warranty repairs when they see RAM from another source. |
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David Seelig, Photographer
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Hailey | ID | USA | Posted: 11:03 AM on 11.04.09 |
| ->> If you are trying to save money look at the refurbs on the apple web site as they have great deals there. |
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Jeff Stanton, Photographer
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Princeton | IN | USA | Posted: 12:35 PM on 11.04.09 |
| ->> Jim is right, Apple does charge way too much for RAM. However, I would be very hesitant about buying second party RAM whilst your warranty is in place as this may give Apple an excuse to nullify it if you have a repair issue. So it may be worth paying Apple for their RAM to begin with. |
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Kirby Yau, Photographer, Assistant
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San Diego | CA | USA | Posted: 1:23 PM on 11.04.09 |
->> I know this is speculative but it looks like the next iteration of MacBook Pro will feature the i5 or i7 Processor due to Intel's release of low power smaller die chips. This is a major processing jump from the Core2Duos that are currently in the MBP lineup.
With the iMac as a base of speculation, we might even see more than two RAM slots in a MBP.
If you can wait till the next release it maybe worth your patience. |
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Jim Colburn, Photo Editor, Photographer
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McAllen | TX | USA | Posted: 3:14 PM on 11.04.09 |
->> "I would be very hesitant about buying second party RAM whilst your warranty is in place as this may give Apple an excuse to nullify it if you have a repair issue."
Pull the Apple RAM and replace it with the more reasonably priced variety. If the machine needs to go to Apple under warranty just swap the original RAM back in. |
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George Bridges, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Washington | DC | USA | Posted: 3:19 PM on 11.04.09 |
->> RAM is a user-replaceable upgrade according to Apple.
I've had two MB Pros go in for service with third-party RAM installed and no questions asked by Apple. (logic board failures were the cause of repair)
Actually, if you buy from Crucial you probably get the same RAM sticks Apple is putting in there anyway. A lot of folks report when they upgrade or replace that the RAM from Crucial is the same that Apple uses. |
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