Frustrated: Need Help with CS-6

[Arthur Morris]

Here is my first peeve. Lots more to follow. When I open an image, there is a crop (or a transform??) box around it. What is the purpose and can I eliminate it?

[arash_hazeghi]

how are you opening it? can you post a screenshot?

[Diane Miller]

If I understand your question, you can get rid of the crop box by clicking on any other tool -- the Hand tool is a harmless one. (Is the Crop tool the active one when you open an image -- the 5th one down in the Toolbar highlighted?) I haven't noticed that behavior, but if the Crop tool was the last one active, maybe it comes up by default.

[Don Nelson]

Artie
The only way I have been able to replicate your experience opening with a crop, is if I was currently in crop tool in an image in PS then opened a new image via "open". I could not replicate by being in PS in crop, then closing PS, then opening a new JPG/TIFF in PS (crop tool does not open).
Is this what you are doing? If not, please post an example.
Don

[Arthur Morris]

Thanks Don. That fixed the problem but I ask, "Why change the way CS-5 handled the same situation?

I had another problem but I solved it. I will likely be back soon as I will continue to work in CS-6 and see what happens.

Arash: problem was solved by Don.

[Diane Miller]

I also often balk at changes, but I usually find they are a lot less annoying after I learn to appreciate their functionality. (There are tutorials online for the new crop tool.) After all, if anyone wants a new version to look and act just like the old one, why upgrade?

[Diane Miller]

The raw files from new cameras can be converted to DNG (it is updated to include them with reasonable alacrity) and the older versions of PS or LR can then read the decoded raw files. Converting files is relatively quick and folders can be batch processed.

[arash_hazeghi]

Peter is right,

As Diane mentioned you can get around with DNG, but the DNG is a big BS IMO : it doubles your disk usage for no reason, (think 3TB --> 6TB that's a few hundred bucks with backup) also the older versions of ACR will not include the new process, so it is just legacy support w/o being optimized for new cameras or include new features.

From CS4 to CS6, nothing has been added that is critical for photographers so Adobe's business strategy was to use new version of ACR to make people upgrade PS. There was some performance improvement when they went from 32Bit to 64Bit but that was pretty much it....

[Diane Miller]

I was only answering Peter's contention that there is no choice but upgrading PS if you want to support new cameras. I didn't mean it was the answer for everything, or that it should be used routinely. Just meant that it is an alternative for people who don't want to upgrade PS for the new features, but want to be able to work on files from new cameras.

Certainly it isn't as good as upgrading, where you get the fullest support, but it is an alternative, and often a temporary one for many people. And of course DPP and other camera manufacturers conversion software is an alternative.

I didn't mean to get off-topic about the frustration with new tools behaving differently.

[arash_hazeghi]

What I was trying to say was that the cost of using DNG (storage and time) is actually more than the cost of upgrading to the new version of PS or just buying LR for RAW conversion

[John Chardine]

The new Photoshop CS6 crop is by far the most annoying changed function/tool, especially since you cannot change to the CS5 behavior.
However, as with CS5, CS6 also starts with the last tool active. So if you had last cropped an image and closed CS6, the crop tool will be active when you restart CS6.

Peter- If you chose the crop tool in CS6 there's a settings menu and the top item is "Use Classic Mode". I find the CS6 crop tool excellent but if you must use the CS5 tool then that should do it for you more or less.

[Dan Brown]

Here's another possible alt to Ps, Picture WindowPro 6.0 http://dl-c.com/content/view/47/74/ Don't know if it is adequete, but?

[Bob Serling]

The features of Picture WindowPro look great to a beginner like me. I've gotten up to speed on LR 4, but in all honesty, learning CS6 seems like it makes processing practically a second career. I'm looking for a tool that is intuitive, works well, and doesn't require a degree in software engineering to be able to understand and use properly.

So my question... does anyone have hands-on experience with Picture WindowPro?

[Dan Brown]

The features of Picture WindowPro look great to a beginner like me. I've gotten up to speed on LR 4, but in all honesty, learning CS6 seems like it makes processing practically a second career. I'm looking for a tool that is intuitive, works well, and doesn't require a degree in software engineering to be able to understand and use properly.

So my question... does anyone have hands-on experience with Picture WindowPro?

So, I tried to use Picture WindowPro way back before I ever tried PS and I couldn't handle it (back then, I didn't know what a mask was!). But now that I have used PS for years, I think I might try again and be able to get it to work! Here's a link to someone who used to use it and had/has tutorials - http://www.normankoren.com/