[Digikam-users] Photoshop and the Gimp

[Colin Guthrie]

Graham wrote:
> I have the Gimp on my system (Kubuntu Feisty) amended to make it 
> Gimpshop.
> 
> I appreciated that Gimpshop is just a reordering of the Gimp menus to 
> make it more like Photoshop without giving it any other functionality, 
> however, this appears to be the most Photoshop-like application 
> available in Linux.
> 
> The problem before me is that in September I shall be following a course 
> in Photography that presupposes you have Photoshop installed on your 
> computer and you are given add-ons that work like plug-ins to 
> Photoshop.  I've raised this problem in some digital photography 
> magazines in the UK which usually run primers in Photoshop together 
> with DVDs of software.
> 
> Apart from its high cost, Photoshop doesn't run on Linux, so it seems I 
> am going to have to buy a cheap desktop to run WinXP or a Mac and 
> Photoshop unless....
> 
> Do any on this forum know of any application for Linux that is totally 
> Photoshop compatible, even down to the same type of interface?.....

No I unfortunately do not but perhaps other will.

Have you raised this problem with the course organisers? Perhaps the
course is aimed at Photoshop but the principles in terms of image
manipulate should also be achievable in other applications. I would have
though a good portion of the course would cover basic image editing and
manipulation using colour adjustment and unsharp mask etc.

In this case, it should be the theory behind the changes you are making
that is important to you rather than the "what to click in photoshop to
make your photo better" approach. Gaining this level of understanding (I
wont pretend I know anything about it!) would, to me, seem like the best
learning outcome to take from such a course.

If you tell the course organisers that you do now own Photoshop and that
you run Linux and will therefore use the Gimp and (seeing as we are in
this room!) the Digikam Image Editor to complete your assignments,
perhaps they will support you as best they can and perhaps your findings
and feedback will help produce alternative course notes for other
students who want to use Gimp (even on Windows) or Digikam.

I know that Photoshop has substantially more options than Gimp or DIE
and this is fine, but I guess you have to ask yourself if you are only
installing Windows/Photoshop to complete the course and will then revert
back to Linux or if you will stick to Photoshop into the future after
your course.

If the latter then I would suggest struggling through the course with
the tools you will use in the future would allow you to gain more knowledge?

Just a thought.

Also, although the later versions don't run too well, PS7 is supported
pretty well under Wine:
http://appdb.winehq.org/appview.php?iAppId=17

HTH

Col.