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Archive 2009 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

anthonygh
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p.11 #1 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Here's a thought...if a 'photographer' owns a top of the range G5 that's...say...two years old....does s/he become a better photographer by upgrading to...whatever?

If the answer is yes...is there anyone on here willing to provide the evidence...that is...post the images that demonstrate the improvement?

PS I did skip 50% plus of the posts so apologies if someone has answered anything similar!

Feb 01, 2010 at 11:46 PM

Dpic_arctic
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p.11 #2 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

anthonygh wrote:
Here's a thought...if a 'photographer' owns a top of the range G5 that's...say...two years old....does s/he become a better photographer by upgrading to...whatever?

If the answer is yes...is there anyone on here willing to provide the evidence...that is...post the images that demonstrate the improvement?

PS I did skip 50% plus of the posts so apologies if someone has answered anything similar!

IMO, photography has two parts:

Photography
Post Proccessing

It's not the high-speed computer that improves your photography, but the programs that you are able to run on it. I have noticed a big improvement in my photography since I have gotten PS CS4. I am able to do simple tasks like cloning, curves, levels, burning, dodging, and other selective adjustments. I am also able to do much more detailed tasks like HDRI, complex panorama stitching, composites, and digital graduated ND filter simulations. If you have seen some HDR images, there are some very impressive, natural looking ones, and they could not have been done without a computer. That's just one example among many more.

Feb 02, 2010 at 12:19 AM

Nickle S.
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p.11 #3 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

anthonygh wrote:
Here's a thought...if a 'photographer' owns a top of the range G5 that's...say...two years old....does s/he become a better photographer by upgrading to...whatever?

If the answer is yes...is there anyone on here willing to provide the evidence...that is...post the images that demonstrate the improvement?

PS I did skip 50% plus of the posts so apologies if someone has answered anything similar!

Anthony,

If you had to choose one camera to use for the next 5 years with no upgrade options available, and the 2 cams I put in front of you were a Canon 1D or a Canon 1Dmk4, which one would you choose?
If you shoot Nikon, the choice would be between a D1 and a D3s.

The PC has become even more important than ever in digital photography. Yes, some people can take a 35 mm. film camera and nail a beautiful shot, first time, no re-touching and have it hanging on many walls. There are many fine photographers selling their work with P&S cams, too. But we have at our disposal some of the most amazing software and hardware, what's wrong with wanting the latest technologies? There's a great signature line from Julie Valley at dpreview - "I'm looking for an artist's eye in the B&H catalog, but I can't find it."

So in many ways, we're talking about 2 different things, art/mastering photography versus the ever-escalating pace of technology. It just seems like more and more of the pros these days are heavily immersed into the digital darkroom. I admire and aspire to be like these guys, both masters of the art and the mechanics.

And +1 to the above post of Dpic_Artic.

Nicholas
www.copperhillimages.com

Feb 02, 2010 at 12:19 AM

anthonygh
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p.11 #4 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Dpic_arctic wrote:
anthonygh wrote:
Here's a thought...if a 'photographer' owns a top of the range G5 that's...say...two years old....does s/he become a better photographer by upgrading to...whatever?

If the answer is yes...is there anyone on here willing to provide the evidence...that is...post the images that demonstrate the improvement?

PS I did skip 50% plus of the posts so apologies if someone has answered anything similar!

IMO, photography has two parts:

Photography
Post Proccessing

It's not the high-speed computer that improves your photography, but the programs that you are able to run on it. I have noticed a big improvement in my photography since I have gotten PS CS4. I am able to do simple tasks like cloning, curves, levels, burning, dodging, and other selective adjustments. I am also able to do much more detailed tasks like HDRI, complex panorama stitching, composites, and digital graduated ND filter simulations. If you have seen some HDR images, there are some very impressive, natural looking ones, and they could not have been done without a computer. That's just one example among many more.

Are they better images...or just technically more clever? My iMac does all of that...as did my G4....the iMac is faster and some software upgrades are better...but image quality? The jury is still out I think. A top quality printer is probably my best bet...plus loads of cash for the very best printing papers!

Feb 02, 2010 at 12:32 AM

anthonygh
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p.11 #5 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Nickle S. wrote:
anthonygh wrote:
Here's a thought...if a 'photographer' owns a top of the range G5 that's...say...two years old....does s/he become a better photographer by upgrading to...whatever?

If the answer is yes...is there anyone on here willing to provide the evidence...that is...post the images that demonstrate the improvement?

PS I did skip 50% plus of the posts so apologies if someone has answered anything similar!

Anthony,

If you had to choose one camera to use for the next 5 years with no upgrade options available, and the 2 cams I put in front of you were a Canon 1D or a Canon 1Dmk4, which one would you choose?
If you shoot Nikon, the choice would be between a D1 and a D3s.

The PC has become even more important than ever in digital photography. Yes, some people can take a 35 mm. film camera and nail a beautiful shot, first time, no re-touching and have it hanging on many walls. There are many fine photographers selling their work with P&S cams, too. But we have at our disposal some of the most amazing software and hardware, what's wrong with wanting the latest technologies? There's a great signature line from Julie Valley at dpreview - "I'm looking for an artist's eye in the B&H catalog, but I can't find it."

So in many ways, we're talking about 2 different things, art/mastering photography versus the ever-escalating pace of technology. It just seems like more and more of the pros these days are heavily immersed into the digital darkroom. I admire and aspire to be like these guys, both masters of the art and the mechanics.

And +1 to the above post of Dpic_Artic.

Nicholas
www.copperhillimages.com

As it happens...I would be happy with either...as I realized long ago that it wasn't my kit that was holding me back..it was my limited abilities...which thanks to technology, I just dress up a bit better.

The creation of outstanding images has little to do with technology ( look at some charcoal sketches by Michaelangelo if you need convincing)...and more to do with aesthetics and craftsmanship.

Next time you get the opportunity to view an exhibition by a major photographer like Bailey...take it up. Then think about the technology available at the time. Would that have made Bailey a better photographer? (He still prefers film it seems).

From my reading of the vast majority of posts on this and similar sites...photography is about geekiness rather than creativity or aesthetics. That's how it seems to me.

Feb 02, 2010 at 12:44 AM

Nickle S.
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p.11 #6 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Well, for that matter, we all got along just fine with horse and buggies, too, didn't we? Just think, no carbon emissions, OH, wait a minute, there were methane emissions and the streets were full or urine and feces. Ahhhhh, the good ole days

I think you missed the point of my last post, I'm basically agreeing with you.

Feb 02, 2010 at 12:52 AM

Dpic_arctic
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p.11 #7 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Here's a possible configuration. What do you think? Can you think of any way to lower the price (cheaper power supply, maybe, for one? I want to keep the 12GB of RAM, so that isn't an option)? Also, I'm seeing that as I build the PC, AVAD doesn't give me all of the options there are for computer components. For example, I'm missing NVIDIA graphics cards, and other things. Does it depend on the case I have?

Tower Cases Without Power Supply:
COMPUCASE (HEC), 6C28B Black Mid-Tower Case, No PSU, ATX

Power Supplies:
CORSAIR, CMPSU-650TX TX Series Power Supply, 650W, 80 PLUS(r), 24-pin, SLI ready

Socket 1366 Intel X58 Chipset Desktop Motherboards:
INTEL, DX58SO (Smackover), LGA1366, Intel® X58, 6400 MT/s QPI, DDR3-1333 16GB /4, PCIe x16 CF /2, SATA 3 Gb/s RAID 5 /6, HDA, GbLAN, FW /2, ATX, Retail

Socket 1366 Core i7 Desktop Processors:
INTEL, Core™ i7-920 Quad-Core 2.66GHz, LGA1366, 4.8 GT/s QPI, 8MB L3 Cache, 45nm, 130W, EM64T EIST VT XD, Retail

CPU Coolers:
NOCTUA, NH-U12P Copper CPU cooler, Cocket 1366

DDR3-1066 Non-ECC DIMM Memory:
CORSAIR, 12GB (6 x 2GB)XMS3 PC3-10666 DDR3 1333MHz CL7 (7-7-7-20) 1.5V SDRAM DIMM, Non-ECC

PCI Express x16 Video Cards:
GIGABYTE, GV-R577D5-1GD-B, Radeon™ HD 5670 775MHz, 1GB DDR5 4000MHz, PCIe x16 CrossFire, VGA+DVI, HDMI, Retail

PCI Express x16 Video Cards:
NONE, No Second Video Card (Choose)

SATA Hard Drives:
WESTERN DIGITAL, 1TB WD Caviar® Green™ (WD10EADS), SATA 3 Gb/s, 7200 RPM, 32MB Cache

SATA Hard Drives:
WESTERN DIGITAL, 74GB WD VelociRaptor™, SATA 3 Gb/s, 10000 RPM, 16MB cache

Storage Subsystem Configuration:
RAID, No RAID, Independent HDD Drives

Blu-Ray and DVD-ROM Reader Drives:
LITE-ON, iHOS104 Black 4x/8x/32x BD/DVD/CD Blu-ray Disc™ BD-ROM Drive, SATA, Retail

DVD Burner Drives:
NONE (Choose)

Blu-ray Disc Combo Drives:
NONE, No Blu-ray Disk Combo Drive (Choose)

Blu-ray Disc Burner Drives:
NONE, No Blu-ray Burner Drive (Choose)

Floppy Drives and Card Readers:
NONE!!!!

Network Cards:
NETWORK, Integrated Network Controller (Choose Upgrade)

Modems:
NONE, No Modem (Choose)

PCI Wireless Network Cards:
LINKSYS, WMP54G Wireless LAN Adapter, IEEE 802.11g 54Mbps, PCI

Sound Cards:
CREATIVE, Sound Blaster® Audigy® SE, 7.1 channels, 24-bit, 96KHz, PCI, OEM

Speakers:
NONE, No Speakers (Choose)

LCD Monitors:
NONE, No LCD Monitor (Choose)

Keyboards:
MICROSOFT, Wired Keyboard 600, Black, USB, Retail

Mouse:
MICROSOFT, IntelliMouse® Optical Mouse, PS/2+USB, Black

Operating Systems:
MICROSOFT, Windows(R) 7 Home Premium 64-bit Edition, OEM

Warranties:
WARRANTY, Silver Warranty Package (3 Year Limited Parts, 3 Year Labor Warranty)

PRICE: $1966.56

Monitor not included.

Feb 02, 2010 at 02:08 AM

Nickle S.
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p.11 #8 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Dpic-Artic,

I think you need to start with this configurator to get the nVidia options:

http://www.avadirect.com/product_details_configurator.asp?PRID=12303

You will need a good sized case for the nVidia 2 or 9 series. I recommend this one:

http://www.thermaltakeusa.com/Product.aspx?S=1321&ID=1852

If you're looking for a silent system, this case works a treat. AVA put acoustic padding inside and on the door's backside. Although it's very quiet with the door open, you can hardly hear it with it closed. Another popular case with a door is the Antec P183 or P193:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129061

Look into other motherboards like ASUS and Gigabyte. My ASUS P6T Deluxe V.2 has a built-in sound card and it is incredible, so you may spend a little more for the board but you'll save on the sound card.

Nicholas
www.copperhillimages.com

Feb 02, 2010 at 01:12 PM

Dpic_arctic
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p.11 #9 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

I still don't see nVidia on that configuration. It's a brand, right....or wrong? It would appear alongside Asus, Evga, Gigabyte, etc., correct?

What does "smackover" mean?

Could the Asus P6T handle a 5.1 surround sound system (or even 7.1, possibly)?

Feb 02, 2010 at 07:27 PM

Nickle S.
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p.11 #10 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Dpic_arctic wrote:
I still don't see nVidia on that configuration. It's a brand, right....or wrong? It would appear alongside Asus, Evga, Gigabyte, etc., correct?

What does "smackover" mean?

Could the Asus P6T handle a 5.1 surround sound system (or even 7.1, possibly)?

nVidia cards are actually "GeForce" GT or GTX.
Don't know what smackover is referring to, maybe wrestling

.
Yes, the ASUS boards can handle 5.1 Surroundsound. If you go for the ASUS, make sure it's the V.2.

Nicholas
www.copperhillimages.com

Feb 02, 2010 at 08:12 PM

Dpic_arctic
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p.11 #11 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Then why do nearly 10 different manufacturers have GeForce cards?

Also, I'm looking at memory, and Crucial memory is significantly cheaper than Corsair memory. Is Crucial reliable? What about Kingston?

Feb 02, 2010 at 10:21 PM

Nickle S.
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p.11 #12 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Dpic_arctic wrote:
Then why do nearly 10 different manufacturers have GeForce cards?

Also, I'm looking at memory, and Crucial memory is significantly cheaper than Corsair memory. Is Crucial reliable? What about Kingston?

Dpic_Artic,

nVidia makes the barebones card then companies like EVGA, BFGTech, etc. place their own proprietary shells around them. I'm not sure what else they do to them, maybe someone else knows for sure.

Corsiar makes great products, I have no first hand knowledge about Crucial and Kingston, but they are well-known manufacturers.

Here is another forum with tons of PC information:
www.hardforums.com

Nicholas
www.copperhillimages.com

Feb 03, 2010 at 06:38 PM

Dpic_arctic
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p.11 #13 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

I was looking at an quad-core i5 with 16GB of Kingston memory too. It would cost just a little more than an i7 with 12GB of Corsair RAM. I think I'm getting a little past my budget.

Feb 03, 2010 at 06:41 PM

Nickle S.
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p.11 #14 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Dpic_arctic wrote:
I was looking at an quad-core i5 with 16GB of Kingston memory too. It would cost just a little more than an i7 with 12GB of Corsair RAM. I think I'm getting a little past my budget.

C'mon, that's what plastic's for

Why don't you start out with 8 Gs RAM and add on later?

Feb 03, 2010 at 06:53 PM

Dpic_arctic
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p.11 #15 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

That's the problem. If I use the i7 configurator, I can either get 6 GBs, or 12 GBs. There's nothing in between the two options.

Feb 03, 2010 at 06:55 PM

Dpic_arctic
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p.11 #16 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

OK, I've revised the config. Please tell me what you think. It uses the Socket 1156 Intel P55 mobo, so it looks like I'll have to add the sound card again. The good thing is that it has USB 3.0. Would a 7.1 channel sound card work with a 5.1 channel surround sound system?

#ANTEC, Performance One P183 Black Mid-Tower Computer Case, ATX, No PSU
#CORSAIR, CMPSU-850TX TX Series Power Supply, 850W, 80 PLUS®, 24-pin ATX12V EPS12V, SLI Ready
#ASUS, P7P55D-E PRO, LGA1156, Intel® P55, DDR3-2220 (O.C.) 16GB /4, PCIe x16 SLI CF /2, SATA 3 Gb/s RAID 5 /7, 6 Gb/s /2, HDA, GbLAN, FW /2, ATX, Retail
#INTEL, Core™ i7-860 Quad-Core 2.8GHz, LGA1156, 4.8 GT/s, 8MB L3 Cache, 45nm, 95W, EM64T EIST VT XD, Retail
#NOCTUA, NH-U12P SE2 CPU Cooling Fan, Socket 1366/1156/775/AM3/AM2, 2x 120mm Fans, Copper/Aluminum, Retail
#CORSAIR, 8GB (4 x 2GB) XMS3 PC3-12800 DDR3 1600MHz CL8 (8-8-8-24) 1.65V SDRAM DIMM, Non-ECC
#DIAMOND, Radeon™ HD 5750 700MHz, 1GB GDDR5 4600MHz, PCIe x16 CrossFire, DVI /2, DP, HDMI, Retail
#WESTERN DIGITAL, 1TB WD Caviar® Black™ (WD1001FALS), SATA 3 Gb/s, 7200 RPM, 32MB Cache
#WESTERN DIGITAL, 74GB WD VelociRaptor™, SATA 3 Gb/s, 10000 RPM, 16MB cache
#RAID, No RAID, Independent HDD Drives
#LG ELECTRONICS, CH08LS10 Black 8x/16x/40x BD/DVD±RW/CD-RW Blu-ray Disc™ Combo Drive, SATA, Retail
#CREATIVE, Sound Blaster® Audigy® SE, 7.1 channels, 24-bit, 96KHz, PCI, OEM
#MICROSOFT, Wired Keyboard 600, Black, USB, Retail
#MICROSOFT, IntelliMouse® Optical Mouse, PS/2+USB, Black
#MICROSOFT, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit Edition, OEM
#WARRANTY, Silver Warranty Package (3 Year Limited Parts, 3 Year Labor Warranty)

Feb 03, 2010 at 09:14 PM

Nickle S.
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p.11 #17 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Dpic_arctic wrote:
OK, I've revised the config. Please tell me what you think. It uses the Socket 1156 Intel P55 mobo, so it looks like I'll have to add the sound card again. The good thing is that it has USB 3.0. Would a 7.1 channel sound card work with a 5.1 channel surround sound system?

#ANTEC, Performance One P183 Black Mid-Tower Computer Case, ATX, No PSU
#CORSAIR, CMPSU-850TX TX Series Power Supply, 850W, 80 PLUS®, 24-pin ATX12V EPS12V, SLI Ready
#ASUS, P7P55D-E PRO, LGA1156, Intel® P55, DDR3-2220 (O.C.) 16GB /4, PCIe x16 SLI CF /2, SATA 3 Gb/s RAID 5 /7, 6 Gb/s /2, HDA, GbLAN, FW /2, ATX, Retail
#INTEL, Core™ i7-860 Quad-Core 2.8GHz, LGA1156, 4.8 GT/s, 8MB L3 Cache, 45nm, 95W, EM64T EIST VT XD, Retail
#NOCTUA, NH-U12P SE2 CPU Cooling Fan, Socket 1366/1156/775/AM3/AM2, 2x 120mm Fans, Copper/Aluminum, Retail
#CORSAIR, 8GB (4 x 2GB) XMS3 PC3-12800 DDR3 1600MHz CL8 (8-8-8-24) 1.65V SDRAM DIMM, Non-ECC
#DIAMOND, Radeon™ HD 5750 700MHz, 1GB GDDR5 4600MHz, PCIe x16 CrossFire, DVI /2, DP, HDMI, Retail
#WESTERN DIGITAL, 1TB WD Caviar® Black™ (WD1001FALS), SATA 3 Gb/s, 7200 RPM, 32MB Cache
#WESTERN DIGITAL, 74GB WD VelociRaptor™, SATA 3 Gb/s, 10000 RPM, 16MB cache
#RAID, No RAID, Independent HDD Drives
#LG ELECTRONICS, CH08LS10 Black 8x/16x/40x BD/DVD±RW/CD-RW Blu-ray Disc™ Combo Drive, SATA, Retail
#CREATIVE, Sound Blaster® Audigy® SE, 7.1 channels, 24-bit, 96KHz, PCI, OEM
#MICROSOFT, Wired Keyboard 600, Black, USB, Retail
#MICROSOFT, IntelliMouse® Optical Mouse, PS/2+USB, Black
#MICROSOFT, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit Edition, OEM
#WARRANTY, Silver Warranty Package (3 Year Limited Parts, 3 Year Labor Warranty)

I don't know about the SurroundSound system, you should ask Joe Mundy about it.
Otherwise, it looks like a dynomite setup! Time to pull the trigger.

Nicholas

Feb 03, 2010 at 10:09 PM

Dpic_arctic
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p.11 #18 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

I usually stay away from integrated graphics, but this motherboard doesn't look that bad.

http://www.avadirect.com/product_print.asp?info=1&PRID=15788

What do you think?

BTW, I found that yes, sound cards are backward compatible with smaller surround sound systems. Otherwise, how could you have stereo speakers on a 5.1 soundcard?

Feb 04, 2010 at 06:30 AM

johnip
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p.11 #19 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

The new Intel integrated graphics only works with the low end i3 and i5 cpus. The graphics themselves would probably run PS and Lightroom great, but the processors aren't top of the line, so I'm not sure how they'd handle the stuff. They're brand new, but I bet you can find some reviews on them.

Oh and most of those motherboards have 7.1 sound built in and they usually sound pretty good. Unless you need super HI-FI for running a home theater off your computer, you could save some cash and skip the sound card.

Feb 04, 2010 at 07:07 AM

Dpic_arctic
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p.11 #20 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

johnip wrote:
Oh and most of those motherboards have 7.1 sound built in and they usually sound pretty good. Unless you need super HI-FI for running a home theater off your computer, you could save some cash and skip the sound card.

Really? I should look into that more. I didn't see anything about it on the mobo info page.

Feb 04, 2010 at 08:58 PM

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