Mac me up!

photogmomma

Okay, I'm looking at going to Apple, but am not really sure what I need or where to start.

I've got an XP desktop that I'll replace. I do have a laptop (IBM) that I'll use on those times when I need to bring something along mainly for backing up. (I can't get it calibrated because it's Vista and sucks so I don't do much editing on it.)

What do I need? iMac? MacBook Pro? (I'm fine going to a single machine instead of two, but certainly am fine with just a desktop.) MacPro?

What do I need on it? 2GB? 4GB? Anything special for graphics card? I'll be running Lightroom, Photoshop (if I can get it transferred!) and that's pretty much it beyond normal stuff....

Thanks in advance! (And let me know if I'm making a horrible mistake considering this. :rofl)

Mike Lane

photogmomma wrote:

Okay, I'm looking at going to Apple, but am not really sure what I need or where to start.

I've got an XP desktop that I'll replace. I do have a laptop (IBM) that I'll use on those times when I need to bring something along mainly for backing up. (I can't get it calibrated because it's Vista and sucks so I don't do much editing on it.)

What do I need? iMac? MacBook Pro? (I'm fine going to a single machine instead of two, but certainly am fine with just a desktop.) MacPro?

What do I need on it? 2GB? 4GB? Anything special for graphics card? I'll be running Lightroom, Photoshop (if I can get it transferred!) and that's pretty much it beyond normal stuff....

Thanks in advance! (And let me know if I'm making a horrible mistake considering this. )

The iMacs are pretty sweet from what I hear. If you're looking for a replacement to your desktop and don't want to spend a ton, they'll be what you want I think.

Of course, if you've got the dough, the Mac Pro is going to be as sweet as you can get. Just don't get the apple monitor, get a dell monitor instead. Oh and don't get RAM from apple, get it from crucial.com instead.

I've got a MacBook Pro which I love. Now that the new ones have 1920 x 1200 resolution, they're pretty sweet. They could be a nice desktop / lappy replacement for you.

Did I help? I guess what I'm saying is that any of those will be nice for you.

Poseidon

I just bought a Macbook Pro, and I love it! LED backlighting, seperate video memory, it is the BOMB! (!)

I also have a MacPro, with 3GB RAM, and it runs PS, LR, and all the office apps like a dream, I don't think I will be replacing that for at least 3 more years. (Could be wrong though.)

As for displays, I bought a pair of Apple 20". I really like the look, they match my desk and decor, and they work! Yes, Dell may have a cheaper option, but I don't have a lot of trust in Dell, the whole switcheroo on panel types within the same model # just doesn't seem ethical to me.

Oh, I agree 100% about the Apple RAM, you can buy Crucial from Newegg for FAR LESS then what Apple sells it for. (Some say it is the SAME as OEM.)

Ric Grupe

I was reading that iMacs have a glossy screen (glass over lcd) that may not be what you want for photo editing and review due to reflections and slight color distortion...a deal breaker for me. Otherwise they are cool as hell!

Andy

Whatever you decide, be sure to buy the base ram and hard disk from Apple, and then buy your additional ram from www.crucial.com. You will save good $$.

Buy additional hard drives from most anywhere, they install in a minute or two. Save more good $$.

Lovesong

I guess the question is what your needs are- if you're looking for mobility, a MBP will perform as well as an iMac (they use the same bits). If you're going to be crunching large numbers of HD3II or 1DsMkIII files, you might want to look at a pro machine with a couple of quad cores. For what you're looking for (Lightroom and PS), an iMac will suffice as a desktop machine. The one thing it has over the portables is the Hard Drive space, and slightly better graphics. On the downside, it does have a glossy screen, so if color accuracy is important to you, you might want to hook up a proper monitor (something that you can color calibrate). For PS, you would want at least 2 gigs of RAM- start there, and figure out if you need more later (it takes one screw to get to the RAM slots).

"And let me know if I'm making a horrible mistake considering this."

No, no- this may be the best thing you've ever done in your life for yourself.

Andy

Lovesong wrote:

If you're going to be crunching large numbers of HD3II or 1DsMkIII files,

I'm traveling this week, and prepped a bunch of 1Ds Mark III files, including a few large stitches....no trouble, on my Macbook Pro. I have it loaded with 4gb Ram, that helps.

photogmomma

You are all AWESOME! Thank you so much!!!

Turns out my dad (who just retired from IBM) had an in to get my 10% off whatever machine I am interested in.

I'm leaning towards the iMac right now - portability isn't really and issue since i don't travel much and already own a laptop. But I'm headed to Denver this weekend and I'll check out their selected and see if they have any more info to add to this.

I'll definitely be adding more ram elsewhere - and I do actually plan on getting 4GB. It can't hurt, right? !

Oh, and I'm using a 5D and have no plans on getting a 1DS MarkIII...

Oh, and I have several external HDs right now so I have no issues continuing in that vein. Makes things really easy to expand when necessary.

I'm also planning on doing the time machine - I'd really like more redundancy.

Thanks also for the info on the screen. I currently have a wide screen Dell I'm pretty happy with so far. It doesn't need a lot of tweaking very often and has been pretty true. (Although I have to admit I'm not as anal as I should be about color. I do calibrate every so often, but probably not enough.)

Thanks again! I'll be perusing this thread again before I head to Apple!

cabbey

photogmomma wrote:

Turns out my dad (who just retired from IBM) had an in to get my 10% off whatever machine I am interested in.

Employee discount FTW!

(I'm seriously surprised after the move to Intel that we still get it, but I'll keep enjoying it as long as we do!)