Photoshop Elements 9 vs Photoshop CS6

ChaKira

Let me tell you where I'm at....

I'm into pet photography and a lot of people are wanting their dogs on a white or black background.
Eg:


I currently have Photoshop Elements 9... so when editing photos I'm trying to use the 'refine edge' tool and have been watching youtube videos on how to do this.
I used a green backdrop for the first time today - but when using the refine edge tool, I get this:



But from watching youtube videos everyone else seems to have more options for this!



Would I be better off getting Photoshop CS6 for this?? Is it really hundreds of pounds to buy??

Thanks for reading.

Megan

pathfinder

Chakira, I have been hoping a user of Elements would comment, as I have no experience with it.

The Selection menu is Elements resembles some of the Selection tool menus from older versions of Photoshop, say CS3 or so. The Selection tool/menu is CS5 and CS6 are quite effective, and sophisticated, and not surprisingly Adobe does apparently not offer the same degree of ease and sophistication in Elements as it does in CS6. I would not hold my breath that Adobe will offer the same Selection Tool in Elements that is offers in CS6 in the near future.

You can find the current price of Photoshop at the Adobe store at Adobe.com. They offer it for $20/month for new users I think still.

You will have to decide if Photoshop is more suitable for your needs, than Elements. There are other selection tool softwares out there, and maybe some of our readers will suggest them. I use the selections tools in Photoshop when I need to make a selection.

The book "Photoshop Masking & Compositing" by Katrin Eismann, Sean Duggan and James Porto is the bible for compositing. With a green screen can you just use the Color Select tool to grab the green screen (if Elements offers the Color Select tool).

mtodd

If you are considering buying CS6, you may or may not know that Adobe will no longer be upgrading the Creative Suite software. They are going to a completely subscription CC (Creative Cloud) service. See the Adobe site for more details.

Anthony

Am I right in thinking Photoshop Elements is now at version 11? As the OP speaks of ver. 9, would it not be worth checking to see the improvements in PSE11 as this might be a less costly investment than CS6?

Anthony.

PS. No I don't have PSE11 so cannot comment based on empirical knowledge, but someone who has PSE11 might chime in.

Gary752

Since you are shooting on a green screen, you might want to check out PhotoKey6 by FxHome at: http://fxhome.com/photokey-6 You can download a trial copy and give it a try without spending a dime, and if it works for you, you can then purchase it for $149.00. If you go to http://fxhome.com/support/photokey-tutorials you can watch a few video tutorials on how to use it to its fullest potential. This option would be a lot cheaper than purchasing Photoshop. For a bit more, you could go with the PRO version and then have the ability to batch process all your photos at once.

GaryB

FlyNavy

This may be another option for you? Here is a video on how to NIK Color Effects Pro 4 to make a background white. The NIK software collection is a real bargain!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIUp6bGooE4&list=HL1368821934