With its Quick, Guided and Expert modes, Photoshop Elements has always been the first choice if you want a photo-editing program that’ll guide you through simple operations but also has advanced features to delve into.
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The new Multi Photo Text effect is a good example: type a word or phrase, style it up, then fill each letter with a photo. The Guided Edit process walks you through it, but you’ll probably want to tweak the end result, which you can do using the full editing options – once you get them figured out.
The Auto Creations collage maker is pretty good, and this time lets you adjust positions before finishing up. A slideshow maker was meant to use artificial intelligence to pick photos from our collection, but its repetitive choices didn’t seem very smart.
The other new ‘fun’ effects really feel quite old, covering tasks like adding text to a photo to make a meme. At least it’s easy to share your work on social media, if your preferred platform is Twitter or Flickr. Many users have been leaving
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
Windows 7, 8.1 or 10 or OS X 10.12 or later • 4GB memory • 5GB hard-drive space • Internet connection for installation • Available on DVD or download
Flickr since it announced in November that free photos will be limited to 1,000, and many people who want to share photos nowadays do it on Instagram, so we’d suggest Adobe get some tips from a 13-year-old for next year’s update.
That still leaves a lot to like in this long-established package, but competition is stiff. For those willing to learn the ropes, Affinity Photo is much more versatile. Many users find phone apps like Google’s Snapseed or Enlight Photofox do all they need, and it makes sense to edit on the device that takes your pictures.
The guided approach from the likes of Adobe is still unrivalled, but feels like a lot these days, especially when upgrading from an earlier version.
VERDICT
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ALTERNATIVE
Affinity Photo
You don’t get the hand-holding, but this offers very powerful photo editing on PC, Mac or iPad