'bout time
good
A few years ago I replaced Photoshop with Affinity. Affinity’s user interface is pretty awful, even compared to Photoshop, but it does at least run a bit better. A few years ago I switched from premiere pro to da Vinci resolve, and though resolve has a bit of a learning curve, overall I think it’s better than premiere - it’s definitely faster and crashes a lot less.
I’m hoping that audacity 4 is a good enough audio editor to replace audition - we’ll see, audition is actually pretty good imo but I’d accept a slight downgrade if it means I can get away from Adobe entirely.
If you think Canva won’t pull the same shit Adobe does once they have the market dominance to do so, you’re deluding yourself.
The only future-proof, user-respecting, dignified alternative is FOSS.
If only gimp wasn’t garbage… Tbh I’m also kinda wondering how Affinity did pull off the move they made with their 3 programs turning into one, at the same time redoing so much of it.am And why foss can’t do it.
Of course there’s money and closed source is probably messier in a lot of places than foss is (or at least targets to be), but is that it?
Unironic question: is it possible to explain to a non-artistic, non-graphic-design techie like me what makes GIMP so inadequate? I hear this refrain a lot but have never heard an explanation for why it falls SO short that it’s not a viable alternative for most people.
Good, fuck Adobe.
Good
Good. Adobe is crap
I’ve been using Affinity since 2016 and it has been a good decision so far. Since Affinity Publisher also replaced InDesign (Affinity Designer had already been sufficient for most things), I retired my old CS5.
At work I introduced the programs to my bosses; afterwards all the computers were switched to Affinity, and none of my colleagues miss the old Adobe stuff.
Only one old machine still has an old CS version installed, just for checking and viewing legacy files — it doesn’t cost anything anyway.
Is there a light room equivalent
The most fitting app from my point of view would probably be “Dark Table.” I tried it once but found it a bit too complicated for my needs. I’m not sure whether it offers the same feature set as Lightroom these days.
Swapping out one proprietary app for another is just delaying the inevitable.
Maybe not a good look to go “AI! AI! AI!” when the actual creatives who use the product get attacked for using AI:
Obligatory comment: we’re never getting that hbomberguy video
Fuck Adobe & their subscription model. I switched to affinity & never looked back
I mean, I use every alternative I can. Vapoursynth scripts, libraw-based projects, random GitHub repos, DaVinci…
But there are some features I just can’t get great support for outside of definitely-not-high-seas Lightroom Classic:
-
Good lens profiles for weird lenses.
-
Proper HDR PQ/HLG editing and AVIF/JXL export support.
-
RAW support for newer cameras, like my little R50V
I have yet to try DaVinci’s photo editing mode though. That’s very interesting.
-
I’m a creative. I’ve used InDesign since version 1.0. I’ve built my career with Adobe tools.
Adobe Creative Cloud peaked around ten years ago. Since then, it’s totally jumped the shark. I’m not even talking about the company, just the software and its features.
When I open InDesign, Photoshop, or Illustrator I’m trying to work. It’s software I’ve used for, in some cases, 25 years. My point is, I know it inside and out.
The past few years, every new “feature” gets in the way of my work. Adobe has been changing things that already worked very well, or has added extra steps to do something that used to be easy.
Even worse, Adobe has started to fill its software with notifications that can not be disabled. Invasive blue dots. Invasive blue buttons. Invasive blue overlays that stay visible on the screen even when the software is minimized. Rich tool tips that aren’t disabled by the option to disable rich tool tips.
Adobe has lost me as a devotee. It’s been taken over by venture capital. The company only cares about adoption of new features.
Now, I use it out habit. Because my workplace provides it. Because it’s what folks on my team are used to… but because they’ve come to the ecosystem so late, they only know a fraction of its capabilities.
If Adobe faces demise, I will mourn what if once was. But not what it has become.
We can always use older versions. I stayed in cs6 until I migrated full FOSS
As someone who has a full FOSS stack, can you explain to a non-graphic-design techie like me why people are so allergic to the FOSS alternatives? I just don’t know enough about design to understand why people will put up with so much abuse from Adobe when there are completely free alternatives that are not weighed down by AI and actually respect your privacy.
Not if it’s for work, generally speaking.
Been using Photoshop since 3.0 released on windows. I knew when they went cloud that shit was going sideways, but it was the acquisition of substance painter that did them in for me. Even though CC was kind of a mess, instead of building on the value proposition and including substance, they decided to have it as a separate charge.
Fuck adobe. Fuck subscription software.
Consider supporting ArmorPaint. It’s not a full Substance replacement yet, but it’s affordable and evolving well.
“Fuck Adobe” is my near-daily mantra. I actually utter it out loud at least once a day, if not more. I used to teach PS and worshipped at the temple of PS. These days, FUCK ADOBE!!! I cannot wait for ANYTHING to replace Photoshop/Adobe. Adobe MUST die!.
I was like the other commenters in the thread, but I grew up on even somewhat liking Gimp (yet with PhotoGIMP plugin). It’s good enough for me, and in some places it’s even better. All I want from it is to have a bit better UX here and there, but that’s not too critical.
Adobe faces demise, I will mourn what if once was
What wait? You can mourn what it was even now. 🤷♂️
While their boot is on your throat, it is difficult to mourn what your oppressor used to be.
I agree. Try telling them this. They just gaslight you. “We can’t replicate this issue.” Always blaming your device.
Have you tried Gimp and Inkscape?
Or Krita
Is krita closer to gimp or inkscape? How does it compare/contrast to that one?
Gimp and Inkscape are excellent programs, I LOVE them. But, they are not Adobe replacements.
Please explain to non-artist techies like me why? I keep hearing that refrain but no one can ever explain to me what these FOSS alternatives are actually missing that keeps people from switching.
Based on my experience with Office -> LibreOffice I have to assume it’s some combination of laziness about learning something new, “the interface looks old” nonsense, and being unwilling to work through bugs/quirks (even though Office has plenty of its own bugs/quirks - they’re just different from LibreOffice’s and again, people don’t want to learn something new).
Am I wrong? Am I missing something? Specifically, what makes Photoshop not just better than GIMP, but SOOO MUCH BETTER that people are willing to give their money to bourgeois a-holes for the privilege of running software that they will never truly own, that spies on them, that injects unwanted AI into everything, etc.
Why is that? Is it just the user interface? Performance? Or are they missing features that you need?
Inkscape and Gimp developers, although busy, have still implemenyed some of my feature requests. That’s less likely with Adobe. If there is something you need in the open source ones, it’s likely already on their list to do. If not, request it.
Well, as I stated in a sibling comment, Gimp did replace Photoshop for me. I’m a semi pro user for two decades. My only issue is with its UX, but PhotoGIMP helps a great deal here.
Yes.
How do they compare, in your experience?
They are better than they were. But they are still at least 10 years from being able to match Adobe software - partially because we need to wait for Adobe patents to run out, so that other software can replicate an intuitive software experience.
Ugh, nothing “intuitive” should ever be patentable. Can you imagine if “horizontally-ruled paper” was patented? Or “handles on cooking pans,” “shirts with two sleeves,” or anything of that sort?
Like, why should anyone have to avoid an obvious feature just because someone else did it first? It’s insane.
Also, FOSS projects and non-profits should be exempted from patent restrictions.
I think my CS6 - the last non subscription Adobe Suite from 2012 - is still more intuitive and better to use than the newest GIMP version
Can you elaborate on this? The first time I hear there are patents regarding some intuitive interface. What is that?
Even if so, why not replicate the best of all similar apps, Affinity and Pixelmator too.
Not interface. Experience.
Do a quick web search and you’ll learn all about Adobe patents on features.
What do you mean? I have no idea what to search for. I’d appreciate some links, or some unfolded explanation. Can you patent features? Sounds a bit absurd.
Can I patent booting the OS from a USB drive? That’s a feature, isn’t it?
All I could find is some statistical overviews without much detail, and a more list of recent patents which are all related to AI.
Is there a specific feature that you wish was in the others? I don’t really understand the difference between UX and UI
I’m ready and waiting for a viable alternative to indesign but I haven’t seen one yet
Have you tried Affinity Layout (formerly Publisher)?
Anyone who knows if I can migrate a huge old light room library. I closed my subscription about 3 years ago and my library has just been sitting there since. All my eddits should be saved in sidecar files but there is probably other stuff saved in the library that could be useful. I tried darktables back then, but I kinda dropped photography as a hobby so never looked much into it. I want to pick it up again some time soon tho
Been a while but last I checked it’s unlikely you can, editing software isn’t really an open system, and while they might use the same sidecar file that doesn’t mean you can get the same edit from one in the other. Best option is exporting as high res TIF files and calling it a day.
We’re in a mature software stage for these art software applications. Easier to catch up than create new features that people make essential to their workflow. Today it’s commercial alternatives that have closed the gap well enough. Someday in the future open source stuff will. It’s inevitable
But now Adobe has generative tools. Every wannabe artist and ass CEOs will look into it as a primary feature.
It’s only a matter of time before the open source stuff gets those features too, if people want them. There’s plenty of decent open source generative AI out there. I’m sure people can find creative ways to incorporate them.
They’re not stock, but both GIMP and Krita have had generative AI plugins for a couple years now. I don’t know how well they match up to the Adobe stuff, but they seemed quite powerful and well-integrated the last time I looked.
If they can achieve similar results without the subscription I think they might consider moving over. That being said I’ve seen what companies pay to use Microsoft shit lmao.
