free photo editor

[Listener]

I need a free photo-editing program that lets me do the following:

* Crop a JPEG, cutting out extraneous area and selecting the best part of the shot.
* Put a 1px stroke around the inside border of the picture (analogous to the Photoshop "stroke" command).
* Save at 72 dpi.
* Be free.

The company doesn't have any Photoshop licenses to put one on my home lappy, so I have to VNC into my work compy to edit pictures when I'm working from home, and that's slow. As. Balls.

Suggestions?

[dazie]

GIMP

[Alice]

http://picasa.google.com/

[Infobahn]

GIMP

++

[Listener]

I need something that will crop a picture to the exact correct size of 230x173 and/or 400x300... I don't see a size meter on Picasa.

[meredith]

I need something that will crop a picture to the exact correct size of 230x173 and/or 400x300... I don't see a size meter on Picasa.

http://gimp-win.sourceforge.net/

are you really a listener? 



choose crop tool, click somewhere on the image, punch your desired dimensions into the dialog box that pops up, move the crossed crop marks to select your desired area

[Listener]

I need something that will crop a picture to the exact correct size of 230x173 and/or 400x300... I don't see a size meter on Picasa.

http://gimp-win.sourceforge.net/

are you really a listener? 



choose crop tool, click somewhere on the image, punch your desired dimensions into the dialog box that pops up, move the crossed crop marks to select your desired area

Oh, I didn't realize Gimp was a software... I thought it was a reference to a joke I wasn't getting.

I shall try it.

[Jessie]

I need something that will crop a picture to the exact correct size of 230x173 and/or 400x300... I don't see a size meter on Picasa.

http://gimp-win.sourceforge.net/

are you really a listener? 



choose crop tool, click somewhere on the image, punch your desired dimensions into the dialog box that pops up, move the crossed crop marks to select your desired area

Oh, I didn't realize Gimp was a software... I thought it was a reference to a joke I wasn't getting.

I shall try it.

That cracked me up for some reason.

[Listener]

Unnecessariliy complex.  Can't figure out how to get a 1px stroke around the picture.

[Listener]

Nevermind, I figured it out.

This program should do.  Thanks.

[Alice]

http://graphicssoft.about.com/cs/imageediting/tp/freephotoedw.htm

[ReBurn]

The Gimp is an adequate tool.  Photoshop is also unnecessarily complex.

[Jessie]

PS is too difficult.  I can use Paint Shop Pro, not well, but I can use it.  I can't ever figure out where to begin with PS.

[dazie]

I love photoshop.  LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT.  To be honest though, I've been using it for years, so I'm fairly familiar with it. 

Hate Gimp, but it's what I have at home.  It's just close enough to be familiar, but different enough to be annoying.

[Listener]

Well, I didn't really know how to use Photoshop until my boss explained the concept of "layers" to me.  That opened up a whole new world, and within like 6 hours I was at least at "intermediate" level of use.

I don't plan to use Gimp regularly, but it's free, and I can use it at home, and that's really all that matters at the moment.  I only need it to do five things:  crop a specific number of pixels on each side, add text, flatten, stroke, and save for web.

[meredith]

I know both apps fairly well and I think Photoshop is the one with the odd interface.    I've been using GIMP for years though, and I've been involved in the development and used it as it has evolved.

My observational opinion is that many people think of using PS for their work as a sort of status symbol.  "I can do my job with a completely free application? pah!"

Knowing both inside and out, I'd recommend Photoshop (and consider it worth the price) for anyone doing graphic design for printed/processed mediums (web design? quit trying to stroke yourself.  i'm talking pamphlets, flyers, magazines, newspapers, posters, billboards.), or professional art (people who actually have a large-format printer next to their PC), and of course both of those users should grab Illustrator along with it.

[meredith]

Well, I didn't really know how to use Photoshop until my boss explained the concept of "layers" to me.  That opened up a whole new world, and within like 6 hours I was at least at "intermediate" level of use.

I don't plan to use Gimp regularly, but it's free, and I can use it at home, and that's really all that matters at the moment.  I only need it to do five things:  crop a specific number of pixels on each side, add text, flatten, stroke, and save for web.

It's good to know where to grab a free image editor, for when you find that awesome cat picture and realize the perfect caption for it.

[Alice]

Well, I didn't really know how to use Photoshop until my boss explained the concept of "layers" to me.  That opened up a whole new world, and within like 6 hours I was at least at "intermediate" level of use.

No, you weren't.  I took computer art classes for 2 years.  At the end of those two years I may have reached "intermediate" level.  

[Listener]

Well, I didn't really know how to use Photoshop until my boss explained the concept of "layers" to me.  That opened up a whole new world, and within like 6 hours I was at least at "intermediate" level of use.

I don't plan to use Gimp regularly, but it's free, and I can use it at home, and that's really all that matters at the moment.  I only need it to do five things:  crop a specific number of pixels on each side, add text, flatten, stroke, and save for web.

It's good to know where to grab a free image editor, for when you find that awesome cat picture and realize the perfect caption for it.

I can use paint for THAT...

[dazie]

Knowing both inside and out, I'd recommend Photoshop (and consider it worth the price) for anyone doing graphic design for printed/processed mediums (web design? quit trying to stroke yourself.  i'm talking pamphlets, flyers, magazines, newspapers, posters, billboards.), or professional art (people who actually have a large-format printer next to their PC), and of course both of those users should grab Illustrator along with it.

2nd.  Actually- if you've got the $$- the whole Adobe Creative Suite is pretty nifty.

It makes me insane that the posters I print on my large format printer are actually built in PowerPoint for the most part.  Gah.

[Listener]

Well, I didn't really know how to use Photoshop until my boss explained the concept of "layers" to me.  That opened up a whole new world, and within like 6 hours I was at least at "intermediate" level of use.

No, you weren't.  I took computer art classes for 2 years.  At the end of those two years I may have reached "intermediate" level. 

Okay, but I feel like I know what I'm doing, and that's what matters to me.

[Bennyhana]

Well, I didn't really know how to use Photoshop until my boss explained the concept of "layers" to me.  That opened up a whole new world, and within like 6 hours I was at least at "intermediate" level of use.

I don't plan to use Gimp regularly, but it's free, and I can use it at home, and that's really all that matters at the moment.  I only need it to do five things:  crop a specific number of pixels on each side, add text, flatten, stroke, and save for web.

Other than the 1pixel stroke (border?  I'm not even sure what you mean by that), there's a free program called Irfanview that will do all of that in batches as well as one at a time.  It's also a good viewer for image files because it's quick and you can go through entire directories easily.

[meredith]

Well, I didn't really know how to use Photoshop until my boss explained the concept of "layers" to me.  That opened up a whole new world, and within like 6 hours I was at least at "intermediate" level of use.

I don't plan to use Gimp regularly, but it's free, and I can use it at home, and that's really all that matters at the moment.  I only need it to do five things:  crop a specific number of pixels on each side, add text, flatten, stroke, and save for web.

It's good to know where to grab a free image editor, for when you find that awesome cat picture and realize the perfect caption for it.

I can use paint for THAT...

But you don't get the pleasant outline around the text!  PLEASANT GOD DAMN IT

[dazie]

Well, I didn't really know how to use Photoshop until my boss explained the concept of "layers" to me.  That opened up a whole new world, and within like 6 hours I was at least at "intermediate" level of use.

I don't plan to use Gimp regularly, but it's free, and I can use it at home, and that's really all that matters at the moment.  I only need it to do five things:  crop a specific number of pixels on each side, add text, flatten, stroke, and save for web.

Other than the 1pixel stroke (border?  I'm not even sure what you mean by that), there's a free program called Irfanview that will do all of that in batches as well as one at a time.  It's also a good viewer for image files because it's quick and you can go through entire directories easily.

I like irfanview very much as a viewer.  I use it to resize when I'm too impatient for PS to open up.  *lol*

[Alice]

Well, I didn't really know how to use Photoshop until my boss explained the concept of "layers" to me.  That opened up a whole new world, and within like 6 hours I was at least at "intermediate" level of use.

No, you weren't.  I took computer art classes for 2 years.  At the end of those two years I may have reached "intermediate" level. 

Okay, but I feel like I know what I'm doing, and that's what matters to me.

Now that I can accept. 

It is a program where once you get one or two things down - you can start messing around and learning faster and get a general feel for what the program is about.