Mac or PC - question to photographers?

Question:I'm considering buying a Macbook Pro for home use. I'll use it mainly for Photoshop. I have a Dell laptop from work which is useless with graphics.

I'm an amateur photographer taking it really seriously and I'm also experimenting with digital art. I need the right tool - some people say a PC (laptop) can do just as well as a Mac. If so, which one? I'm skeptical of PCs as I've used them all my life and have always found them lacking when it comes to Photoshop - too slow and poor quality graphics.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I'm considering buying a Macbook Pro for home use. I'll use it mainly for Photoshop. I have a Dell laptop from work which is useless with graphics.

I'm an amateur photographer taking it really seriously and I'm also experimenting with digital art. I need the right tool - some people say a PC (laptop) can do just as well as a Mac. If so, which one? I'm skeptical of PCs as I've used them all my life and have always found them lacking when it comes to Photoshop - too slow and poor quality graphics.

I own a PC (desktop and laptop) at home and use an Apple (iMac) at work (Newspaper Photographer)... I've always heard people working with various media say that Macs are the way to go. I haven't worked on a Mac with music, video, etc. But with photography, there doesn't appear to be anything better about it. As a matter of fact, it takes about twice as long to for my to load pictures from my camera to the Mac as it does to my PCs. There's certain things about Macs that seem to be easier than on PC, but they're not enough to make me ever think about purchasing one. Also, I've never worked with Windows Vista, so those things may even be available on there by now. I, personally, would recommend a PC. I have two Dells (desktop - 5+ years; laptop - 2+ years) and have never had a problem with either them.

I guess the main things you should look for is memory and space. The higher the RAM, the faster you'll be able to get things done, so get, at the very least, 1GB of RAM. Also, I assume you're going to be using a lot of space with your photography, so I'd get a 100+MB hard drive so you don't have to worry about running out of room. You may want to look in to upgrading from a basic graphics card as well.

Hope that helped. Good luck!

I have a PC and it works great with my CS3, Illustraitor, and Corel Painter. I have used both Mac and PC and really dont have a preference, except the PC was half the price.

i dont think there is lots in it these days...i run photoshop cs2 on a mac and photoshop 7.0 on an old, but good PC and the performance is pretty equal even with high res files.

If i was buying something right now, i would probably go for a cheapish but well specced laptop and a really high res secondary widescreen, as i think its the display quality and space that makes photo editing quick and easy

MAC!!!!!

I use mac... truest color!!!

I think either would be fine. You just have to remember that you will need a lot of RAM and a good graphics card. The more RAM you have the better especially if you shoot in RAW. If you shoot in RAW you will need at least 2gigs of RAM preferably 3 or 4. More than that starts getting very expensive.
A large hard drive would also be nice. You should also have an external hard drive as a backup.

If you are comparing a PC & a MAC make sure the specs are the same. If they are you should not notice any difference in the ability to work on your photographs.

Unfortunately, I bought a PC about a year before I started going to the Art Institute and have yet to change to a Mac because I don't want to have to buy all the softwares again. Most photographers use Mac. There are more photo softwares on Mac than there are on PC, such as the software you would use when using a leaf back.

PC's are fine for Photoshop. Just remember that more RAM is better, especially if you shoot in RAW. And always remember to backup your work on an external hard drive, I've seen so many students lose their work. Good luck!

macs r a lot better and they have new software called aperture 2 for editing pictures

Just bought a brand new IMac! A dream come true. Everything works straight forward and the screen size is just perfect for photoshop! Best money ever spent!!!

The most creative people in the world use Mac.

Think different.

I use both, it used to be best to go with mac but now both are just as good.

Just remember, PCs are cheaper, but then Macs are always well made (though, spend the same amount on a PC and you'll get just as well made) Macs are safer from viruses due to the lack of a registry (but that doesn't mean they're completely immune)

Truth is, I have no preference, I use Photoshop CS3 on both.

Photography speaking, their equal to each other.

I use both with Photoshop and really can't tell the difference. It's all about the machines spec. I notice someone thought the Mac had truer colours but I can't say I've noticed that.

The Macs are the industry standard for the publishing business so maybe that's worth bearing in mind.