Professional Photographers Using Linux?
According to the article posted on December 6, 2004 at Slashdot, a freelance writer-photographer was having some problems in color matching and scanning because his printer and scanner produced blurry images and made the printing process very time-consuming.
Linux is a fine product. However, the more mature systems like the Mac and Windows are often capable of serving semi-vertical markets like professional photographer and photographic printers much better. It will be good to see Linux dominate the operating system market but only the best tool should always be used for the job and in the case of pro photography, Linux is not the best tool. Remember the first rule of professionals: use the right tools. Professional class tools are truly expensive but there's a reason for it, they're certainly worth every penny.
Photography has a largely technophobic element of users. Despite the photovested gear-queers and their toys, most photographers want simple and effective solutions. You can use Linux for everything else, except for a few bits at work, but you’ll find that Windows is indeed a better platform for photo work. That's ignoring the whole area of printing, too. Finding a printer that produces high-quality results which works under Linux is easy but finding one that the vendors still sell is much harder. While Linux has made great strides in usability, Windows and Mac will continue to be the preferred operating systems for professional photographers for the foreseeable future.
It's quite possible that the mediocre quality of the GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP) would be sufficient for him. The GIMP is a nice feature demo but it isn't nearly as capable as Photoshop (PS) in the areas we need it to be, like integrated color management, layer and type tools. Photoshop's feature and interface parity across platforms allow a consistent vocabulary of tools and actions for us and our customers.
You use PS because it does what you need, not because you are fenced in to specific Windows formats. Proof is that PS on Macs is used a lot in the graphics industry. On the other hand, Gimp is able to deal with the formats but does not have the required functionality. The GIMP does not handle print and printing, CMYK and ICC workflows well. Until GIMP receives more power in features and in interface, professional photographers cannot use Linux. Whatever Linux may claim, those of you who generates 2000+ images per month can't make any sacrifices in your workflow.
PS elements have the same limitation in terms of usability. The layering and selection tools in PS are more suited to do photo manipulation than the ones in GIMP. If you have a complex selection, PS is noticeably more responsive on Windows than GIMP is on Linux on the same hardware. GIMP isn't actually sluggish, but PS is more responsive and hence certainly easier to use.
After all, Linux isn't perfect. Linux has its time and place. But, as a professional photography scanning and retouching system, it's just not ready yet. Photography may be one of the places that Linux doesn't quite make the grade in. On the Mac and Windows, there are widely supported and understood color management systems such as ColorSync and image formats that Linux currently doesn't offer analogs for. The glaring reality is that professional photographers are probably the least represented amongst the Linux installed base.
This post was created by Digital Printing Company your premier source for high impact digital printing solutions from prepress scanning and graphics design to customizing your documents using Variable Data Imaging technology.
Linux is a fine product. However, the more mature systems like the Mac and Windows are often capable of serving semi-vertical markets like professional photographer and photographic printers much better. It will be good to see Linux dominate the operating system market but only the best tool should always be used for the job and in the case of pro photography, Linux is not the best tool. Remember the first rule of professionals: use the right tools. Professional class tools are truly expensive but there's a reason for it, they're certainly worth every penny.
Photography has a largely technophobic element of users. Despite the photovested gear-queers and their toys, most photographers want simple and effective solutions. You can use Linux for everything else, except for a few bits at work, but you’ll find that Windows is indeed a better platform for photo work. That's ignoring the whole area of printing, too. Finding a printer that produces high-quality results which works under Linux is easy but finding one that the vendors still sell is much harder. While Linux has made great strides in usability, Windows and Mac will continue to be the preferred operating systems for professional photographers for the foreseeable future.
It's quite possible that the mediocre quality of the GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP) would be sufficient for him. The GIMP is a nice feature demo but it isn't nearly as capable as Photoshop (PS) in the areas we need it to be, like integrated color management, layer and type tools. Photoshop's feature and interface parity across platforms allow a consistent vocabulary of tools and actions for us and our customers.
You use PS because it does what you need, not because you are fenced in to specific Windows formats. Proof is that PS on Macs is used a lot in the graphics industry. On the other hand, Gimp is able to deal with the formats but does not have the required functionality. The GIMP does not handle print and printing, CMYK and ICC workflows well. Until GIMP receives more power in features and in interface, professional photographers cannot use Linux. Whatever Linux may claim, those of you who generates 2000+ images per month can't make any sacrifices in your workflow.
PS elements have the same limitation in terms of usability. The layering and selection tools in PS are more suited to do photo manipulation than the ones in GIMP. If you have a complex selection, PS is noticeably more responsive on Windows than GIMP is on Linux on the same hardware. GIMP isn't actually sluggish, but PS is more responsive and hence certainly easier to use.
After all, Linux isn't perfect. Linux has its time and place. But, as a professional photography scanning and retouching system, it's just not ready yet. Photography may be one of the places that Linux doesn't quite make the grade in. On the Mac and Windows, there are widely supported and understood color management systems such as ColorSync and image formats that Linux currently doesn't offer analogs for. The glaring reality is that professional photographers are probably the least represented amongst the Linux installed base.
This post was created by Digital Printing Company your premier source for high impact digital printing solutions from prepress scanning and graphics design to customizing your documents using Variable Data Imaging technology.
posted by Lani Wilson at 7:38 AM
Digital Technology & Trends
<< Home