Customer Reviews

Apple Aperture 2.0 Upgrade [OLD VERSION]

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have been using Aperture since version 1.1, and love it. The few issues/disappointments I had were resolved with version 1.5.x. Version 2.0 takes the performance and capabilities of Aperture to the next level. While I have only been using Aperture 2 for a week or so, I have been thoroughly impressed. (I will update this review as my experience grows.)

In terms of cameras, I use both a Nikon D2X and a Nikon D300. As such, the RAW files that Aperture has to deal with are large 12-megapixel images. And Aperture handles said images with ease. (Bear in mind that I am running Aperture on a first-generation MacBook Pro 17" laptop, running at 2.16 GHz.)

Among other improvements, Aperture 2 provides superior high-ISO noise reduction. For example, images taken with my Nikon D2X at ISO 1600 and ISO 3200 show massive improvements in quality. Not only that, but Aperture's noise reduction finally matches -- or even exceeds -- that of Nikon's own Capture NX software. Comparing high-ISO images side-by-side, it is clear that Capture NX utilizes a high dose of "chroma blur." Aperture 2.0 does not, and the difference is quite visible.

As for other changes, Aperture 2 provides some nice UI refinements, increasing the amount of screen real estate for viewing your photos. More generally, Aperture 2's UI is even more "transparent" than that of version 1.x, i.e., it does not impede your workflow.

Besides the UI improvements, Aperture 2 also adds additional image enhancement options. Among others, Apple added "de-vignette" and "vignette" image adjustments. These allow you to correct for, or add/increase, vignetting from lens optics.

And finally, a few words about performance. I found Aperture 1.5.x to be quite responsive, though it would occasionally become sluggish during certain operations. I have not been able to find any such sluggishness in Aperture 2, a welcome improvement. Plus, the software is even faster and more responsive that Aperture 1.5.x.

The bottom line? Aperture 2 provides welcome improvements over 1.5.x, including superior image quality. If you like Aperture 1.5.x, you will love Aperture 2. And if you shied away from 1.5.x, I highly recommend giving Aperture 2 a try. Download the free trial from the Apple website, and see the improvements for yourself. Try it, you just might like it!

I've been using the free trial of Aperture 2.0 for a couple of weeks now. Within a couple of hours of working with the trial, I ordered the full product.

I was given version 1.5 of Aperture for Christmas, so I was a little disappointed to find that Apple released a new version so soon after I got it. Apple also dropped the price by $100, which now makes it an incredibly good deal for anyone who hasn't bought this type of software before.

However, after getting over the shock of having to spend another $89 to upgrade software that was only 1 month old, I downloaded the free trial to see if it was worth upgrading. In the month I'd owned Aperture 1.5 I had spent quite a bit of time working out what it could do and how to make it use it. I could quickly see that 1.5 was a power piece of software, but it would definitely take some time to get the best out of it.

After upgrading to the trial of 2.0, and watching a couple of the Apple tutorial videos that are online, I was able to get impressive results very quickly. As I already had Aperture 1.5, I had already began shooting all my photos in RAW format on my Canon Rebel XT. I also tried editing some JPEG photos I had previously organized in iPhoto.

Results with RAW format photos are amazing. Aperture makes working with RAW so easy. I am able to correct exposure problems, which is just not possible with JPEG. I had a image that had lots of white in waves crashing over a rock. By adjusting the exposure in Aperture, and by using the highlight and shadow adjustments, I was able to bring out an amazing amount of detail, turn an average shot into a great one. The automatic correction of exposure levels makes a big difference to many of my shots.

With JPEG images, the results are less impressive. This is not a limitation of Aperture, but a limitation of shooting images in JPEG which loses a lot of the information that was actually captured with the camera's sensor. You are still able to make adjustments, but making big adjustments quickly introduces noise into the image. The tools available in iPhoto 08 produce good results with JPEG, and I wouldn't pay for Aperture if I only shot JPEG images. The automatic exposure correction that worked so well on many of my RAW images is not available on JPEG images.

If you have a camera that can shoot RAW images, such as almost all digital SLRs, and a few compact point-and-shoots such as the new Canon PowerShot G9 12.1MP Digital Camera with 6x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom, I would definitely recommend shooting in RAW and getting a trial of Aperture to see if it works for you.

You should be aware that shooting in RAW creates much bigger files, so consider this when making your decision. Getting the most out of Aperture means you have to shoot in RAW, and the biggest cost in moving from JPEG to RAW will be larger memory cards and hard drives.

Aperture is so easy to use that I'd recommend it to anyone with a basic knowledge of photography that wants to learn more. Download the free trial, shoot some RAW images with your camera, and only order the full version if it works for you.

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Aperture 2.0 was much expected and very much needed. The improvements to this program demonstrates that Apple indeed listens to its customers. Aperture 2.0 includes a better and expanded interface, with the kind of speed that makes it a work horse program for professional photographers who need to process hundreds of photos at a time. It's almost intuitive workflow makes a great program for almost any serious photographer.

I especially like the new additional adjustment tools and the simplifier less crowded interface. The ability to interface with other Apple programs like iWork, iWeb, and Keynote is also a plus.

Above all, for me anyone, is the image preview settings. Clicking this means that you can scan image files without them fulling loading into the program. This is the perfect setting for scanning, rating, keywording, and re-organizing image files. And the best is that you can get into image mode simply by clicking the keyboard shortcut key, P.

Finally, Apple's upgrade of Aperture indicates that they indeed are not going to abandon this program. On the Apple website, you can view over two dozen short and to the point tutorials to learn about every major aspect of Aperture 2.0.

Whether you're a novice with a basic "point and shoot" camera or a pro with the latest megabucks SLR, Aperture gives you the tools necessary to perfect your digital images. From correcting "red eye" to removing excess shadows, Aperture is quite simply the most powerful yet relatively easy-to-use digital photo tool available today. Period. End of story. If you want to make the most of your digital photos (or correct those others send to you) this is the tool to use. There are lots of excellent tutorials on the Apple website plus hands-on training available at your local Apple store and loads of user tips on various blogs that will have you up and running in very short order.

A tremendous jump from previous 1.5 version. Was avoiding even using Aperture cause it seemed like it had a lot of features that allowed variations in the looks of the program but did not have a lot of picture adjustment and editing tools. Not so with 2.0, like I said a tremendous jump in useful features. Aperture 2.0 is more than just a photo editor in the makes of Photoshop. More so it is a picture file management software. I beleive with forethought a medium to high level amatuer can move to the next level with this software. I downloaded the Users Manual from Apple.com/aperture under Resources tab. It is a 702 page PDF. You can check it out. It will give you detailed info about this softwares capability.

I especially like the Publishing aspect of this software. You can create pages and publish directly to web, or create and publish Hardcover, softcove, or spiral bound books with relative ease. Using pre-loaded templates for both web publishing or book creation, getting your product exposure in a very short amount of time.

For those of you who were overwhelmed and confused about the real direction 1.5 was trying to take you the 2.0 upgrade is worth pursuing.

I congratulate Apple for taking this product seriously and remolding it to better suit a photographers creative thought and distribution processes, and not just a software that software designers could appreciate.

Apple Aperture 2.0 Upgrade This is a much improved version of a good product. It contains a section called "Image Adjustments" that is worth a print out. Using the example pictures will aid in understanding the adjustments. You will need to spend several months to become an expert. A printed manual would be nice to have. New books on the upgraded program would also be great.

If you have Aperture 1, don't wait any longer. Buy the upgrade now. It is worth it. You can peruse apple site to get the lowdown, and i am not going to touch on it here. I am only suggesting to upgrade and make your life easier.

I have a MacBook Pro and an IMAC, both running Snow Leopard. I am generally an Apple fan. This product is a major disappointment. It adds very little to IPhoto which comes with the operating system. For a serious digital photographer, you need Photoshop CS4 which has a steep learning curve, but you can do amazing things with your photos. It's an expensive and time consuming program. I use it and think that it is worth the investment of time and money. The comparison really is between Lightroom 2.0 and Aperture. These are both organizational programs with streamlined features. Lightroom has numerous advantages. Most importantly, images are kept as separate image files in Lightroom. In Aperture as well as Iphoto, you can only get at individual images by exporting them and creating new files. Lightroom maintains the original file so that it can be shared more easily and edited in other programs. Adobe has RAW support for virtually all digital cameras, including the Panasonic DMC GF1 which came out a few weeks ago. Aperture does not have RAW support for a number of digital cameras including the Leica D Lux 4 which has been out for a while. Lightroom works quite well with Photoshop and Photoshop Elements for those who do not want to get the full product. FInally, Apple does not provide very good tech support for Aperture, even though, their support for everything else is terrific.

I upgraded to be compatible with Snow Leopard. Aperture is a great tool for anyone interested in photography. I can do my basic image adjustments without having to use Photoshop or some other image editing program. Keeps everything organized and doesn't modify my originals! Great software!

Like a lot of amateur photographers, I was wondering whether to make the leap and use RAW files or not. I decided to try RAW out, and in order to take advantage of RAW formats I got Aperture.

So far, I've found this to be a useful photo-processing program - certainly an improvement over iPhoto. Here are some of the highlights for me:

1) Easy to use adjustment tools. If you've used iPhoto or any basic program, you can probably open Aperture and figure out how to use everything in 10 minutes. I remember years ago struggling with Adobe Photoshop and being confused out of my mind.

2) Good range of color adjustments available. I love being able to change the saturation of individual colors. The range doesn't quite cover the entire rainbow (orange is missing), but it is great when you want to adjust one color and not the others.

3) Aperture allows you to organize similar photos in stacks for easy access. Often, I take a series of photos of the same subject, changing shutter speed or f-stop slightly, to see which composition or exposure I like best. Stacks keeps all of these photos in a group so I can easily compare them later.

Now, for the drawbacks:

1) The magnification tool ("loupe") is not as useful as the magnification in iPhoto or other programs. First of all, it slows down the program quite a bit and every time I use it I have to wait about 20 seconds before I can continue using the program. Second, its minimum magnification is 50x, which isn't always useful (particularly if I want to see how a picture would look if cropped). By contrast, iPhoto simply has a useful sliding bar that allows you to zoom in or out quickly.

2) Aperture, like many advanced photoshop programs, uses a lot of memory on your hard drive (~1 GB) and ram. Using it slows your computer down. It has already crashed twice on me over the course of 24 hours. This certainly isn't a reason not to get it - I would just warn you against getting it and storing it on your computer if you don't expect to seriously use it.

3) No full-screen editing mode.