Whether you’re a photographer looking to sell photos, a digital artist creating graphics for clients, or a business owner selling artwork on your online store, you can utilize image editing apps in a variety of different ways to make your offering stand out.
Considering the vast number of photo and graphic editors available on the internet, you need to find the right tool that takes the load off image-intensive tasks so you can focus on core business activities.
IMAGE: PEXELS
Here are some factors you need to consider when choosing the right photo editing tool:
- Ease of use: This includes how intuitive the app is and whether it’s ideal for beginners or advanced users. Note that some tools have a steep learning curve whereas others are easier to learn.
- Functionality: The main features offered by the photo editing software.
- Tools, apps, and plugins: The add-ons and extensions you get with the main software.
- Compatibility: The devices and operating systems supported by the image editing tool.
In addition to this, you should compare different apps to find the one that meets your specific needs. For instance, if you’re a graphic artist, you may need advanced drawing and painting tools in your photo editor.
In this post, we’ll run the rule over some of the best photo editing software that helps you create breathtaking artwork for both print and web.
Affinity Photo
Affinity Photo is a popular desktop image editor that lets you create fine art with dozens of layers as well as retouch and correct your photos. Developed by Serif for Windows, iOS, and macOS, Affinity Photo is part of the Affinity professional graphics editor tech stack.
It has a modular interface made up of powerful photo editing personas. Photo Persona has the basic image editing elements you need to make your photos look good. Liquify Persona’s warp effects help you quickly correct distorted images. Tone Mapping Persona lets you change the color and tone in your photos. Develop Persona is aimed at professionals and gives you access to the above-mentioned tools and you can export photos using Export Personas in JPEG, PNG, RAW, TIFF, and other file formats.
Key Features
Affinity Photo is responsive, fluid, and intuitive to use. It comes packed with popular tools including Layer Mix, Healing Brush, Dynamic Lighting Effects, and Filter Library.
In addition to this, Affinity Photo gives you access to an adjustable workspace so you can customize the interface to your liking. You can seamlessly switch from Desktop to iPad. This allows you to quickly swap files between devices and work on the go.
You’ll be able to edit or import Photoshop PSD files and export anything you want. It offers support for Adobe Photoshop, LAB, and allows editing in 32-bit RGB documents.
Affinity Photo supports macOS, Windows, and iOS operating systems and has most of the same features offered by Photoshop. You are only limited by your system resources as Affinity Photo can deliver high speeds, unlimited undos, and fewer crashes as compared to Photoshop.
Pros And Cons
Pros:
- Its interface is similar to Photoshop so users transitioning to Affinity Photo will find it familiar.
- It is compatible with Photoshop PSD which means you can import and export .psd files.
- Affinity Photo supports layer styles so you can non-destructively apply effects to layers.
- Other benefits include fast performance, powerful effects, and a well-organized interface.
Cons:
- Affinity Photo supports a limited number of plugins.
- It doesn’t support simple editing apps such as GIMP and Krita.
Pricing
Affinity Photo is available on Microsoft Store in Windows 10 and the Mac App Store. Alternatively, you can get it directly from Serif’s website by paying a one-time fee of $49.99. The iPad version of Affinity Photo is priced at $20.
Photoshop
Photoshop is the most commonly-used image editing and graphic designing tool that helps you create and enhance photos, graphic objects, and illustrations. It’s widely touted as a must-have application for graphic artists, designers, photographers, developers, beginner users as well as creative professionals.
Using Photoshop, you can edit and retouch images, create image compositions, and add effects. It comes with a range of useful plugins such as overlays, actions, automatic brushes, fonts, and textures.
In addition to this, advanced users will be able to perform complex editing like Dodge, Burn, and Frequency Separation using masks and customizing layers. Photoshop’s Camera RAW module is also useful for making deep color corrections in RAW photos.
Key Features
Adobe Photoshop can be a bit overwhelming for new users due to its complicated interface and a large number of available tools. There’s also a steep learning curve to Photoshop but new users can get up-and-running with Photoshop thanks to its vast library of online video lessons, helpful forums created by developers and photographers, books, courses, and live online classes. However, it does require a significant time investment on the user’s part.
Photoshop can be used to quickly adjust exposure, make overlays, create original video effects, and remove colors. In addition to this, Adobe’s fully integrated stock library gives you access to a plethora of resources for creating images and videos.
It supports a variety of file formats including PSD, PSB, TIFF, RAW, PDF, GIF, PNG, and JPEG. Moreover, you’ll be able to manipulate both individual photos as well as large batches of images.
You can find hundreds of extensions and plugins on the Adobe Add-ons website (both paid and free) that can help you streamline the designing process. Photoshop supports Windows and macOS operating systems and offers free mobile apps for Android, iOS, and Windows Phone.
Pros And Cons
Pros:
- Photoshop is the industry standard for photography, digital art, and graphic design professionals.
- It comes with tons of plugins so you can add new effects, extend existing functionality, and make workflows more efficient.
- You can easily find learning resources for Photoshop including in-depth tutorials, blogs, books, and training classes.
Cons:
- It’s an expensive option for most users as its standalone version costs $19.99 per month.
- You need a powerful CPU and GPU along with tons of memory to use Photoshop.
Pricing
Photoshop’s newest versions are subscription-based only and its most cost-effective solution will set you back $9.99 per month. You can purchase just Photoshop as a Creative Cloud subscription which comes with the iPad version at $20.99 per month.
Photofox
Photofox is an iOS-only mobile photo shooting and editing app that lets you easily create breathtaking art on your iPhone or iPad. It offers a quick way to edit photos on your smartphone (or tablet) and share them with the world. Photofox is part of the Enlight Creative Pack along with Pixaloop, Quickshot, and Videoleap. It is available for free in the iOS App Store and offers in-app purchases.
Photofox comes with a wide range of effects, apertures, filters, and other image editing features to help you easily perform photo editing tasks. It’s equipped with lots of presets, fonts, and graphics giving you complete artistic control over your photos.
Even though Photofox is mainly a photo editing tool, it offers other advanced features such as blending images, creative compositing with layering, and special effects.
Photofox’s interface is extremely easy-to-use. Combining this with its endless amount of features allows users to let their imagination flow and produce amazing, surreal photos in a relatively short period of time.
Key Features
Photofox has a well-organized and intuitive user interface that’s incredibly easy to get to grips with.
In addition to this, it comes with a vast library of beautiful backgrounds, effects, and artistic glitches that help you create beautiful masterpieces. In addition to this, you’ll be able to add text to your photos and paint, draw, and add elements to your art.
Its Darkroom feature gives you access to a number of tools for controlling the tone, contrast, and detail of your photos. Photofox’s Layers feature helps you merge, combine, and blend up to five layers in a single composition. This way, you’ll be able to granularly edit individual layers as you design your artwork.
Photofox is compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Pros And Cons
Pros:
- Photofox has an easy-to-use and well-defined user interface that allows you to generate amazing content extremely fast.
- It offers tools to edit your photos such as brushes, presets, effects, tonal adjustments, along with a high-quality Eraser
- Photofox comes with a large number of features and creative elements.
Cons:
- The free version has only 12 built-in effects.
- Its iPhone version only supports portrait orientation.
Pricing
Photofox’s basic version is free to download and offers in-app purchases. Its subscription model costs $4 per month and $20 for an annual subscription.
Conclusion
Photos and graphics are important for creatives looking to establish a strong brand presence and build credibility with prospective clients. Photo editing tools offer a great way for beginners as well as advanced users to create and share professional-looking, visually-rich artwork with the world.
So, which photo editing tool should you go with?
While Affinity Photo and Photoshop obviously have their perks, we recommend Photofox as it’s incredibly easy to use, has a user-friendly interface, and lets you create breathtaking imagery in very little time. All these features make it an ideal tool for both newbies and creative professionals and designers.
The best part is that you don’t have to worry about having high-end computer specifications to run the software and you can essentially edit photos on the go using your smartphone. This also makes it easier (and faster) to upload your work to your website or social media platforms.
Between Affinity Photo vs Photoshop vs Photofox, which photo editing tool are you leaning towards, and why? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
If you are interested in even more design-related articles and information from us here at Bit Rebels, then we have a lot to choose from.
COMMENTS