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| ![Apple Aperture 1.5 [Old Version]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41VnWjoFjGL._SL160_.jpg)
 enlarge | From: Apple
Category: Software
List Price: $299.00
Buy New: $189.97
You Save: $109.03 (36%)
New (4) Used (2) from $95.00
Avg. Customer Rating:  24 reviews
Sales Rank: 4205
Format: Cd-rom
Platforms: Mac Os X Intel, Mac Os X
Media: CD-ROM
Operating System: Mac OS X Intel
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.4
Dimensions (in): 9.5 x 8.1 x 1.9
MPN: MA715Z/A
Model: MA715Z/A
UPC: 885909129942
EAN: 0885909129942
ASIN: B000J1CIT6
Release Date: September 28, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 21-24 of 24 | | « PREV | | |
The Product 1.0 should have been December 26, 2006
19 out of 21 found this review helpful
I hated 1.0. It was slow and buggy. It forced you to store all your files in a single library on a single disk. The editing tools ranged from extremely difficult to impossible to use. It was incredibly expensive
This latest release is what we were originally promised. The editing tools actually work. In fact, I find myself very rarely using external editing programs any more. You can use files that are referenced on other drives or even CDs or DVDs. The stacks are a usable tool. Some dangerous shortcut key combinations were revised. RAW file rendering is better. It runs like lightning, especially on the Intel Macs. It is reasonably priced.
I have used Adobe Lightroom (beta), iView, Extensis, and several others. Aperture is now the best. Lightroom has some serious catching up to do. Several features have not been implemented yet, and we do not have a timetable for commercial release. And it is now much slower than Aperture. iView needs to learn how to handle larger catalogs and fix its stability problems. Extensis Portfolio is just showing its age.
Update, now that Lightroom has been released:
In general, I find that Aperture performs most tasks faster than Lightroom. That said, it is hard to choose between the two now that all of Lightroom's features are working. I have become used to Aperture's workflow and so I prefer it, possibly out of habit. Note also that the new iPhone will synchronize with Aperture folders. Aperture exchanges files easily with iPhoto '07 and '08.
Importing new files is fast, especially if you are using an ExpressCard port or FireWire 800. Aperture creates thumbnails immediately and then begins producing larger display JPGs, which can be a time consuming process. Aperture does not interface with tools like DxO Professional and provides no serious batch processing tools of its own. DxO Pro will crash if it tries to open files that are currently being displayed in Aperture. However, this is not a serious problem. You could, in fact, automate a workflow that imports files from a watch folder, sends them to DxO, and imports the resulting files into the correct project. This means that there is little reason to use anything but Adobe RAW in Aperture. You can archive your original RAW files and keep the much smaller Adobe RAW files to work with in Aperture. If you really need a camera RAW file, just retrieve it from your archives and import it into Aperture.
I generally do not like an Aperture library of more than about 10,000 files, as it starts taking too long to load, so I create a new library when my library exceeds that. The "manage files" window still needs some work. Links can and do get lost in the ordinary course of things and the "manage files" window is supposed to help you restore them. Unfortunately, it is a little too confusing and it does not always work. A better "manage files" window is probably the only item on my wish list for version 2.0.
There are some interesting tools for automating your workflow in Aperture available now from third parties for free or a very low price. Some allow creation of a "watch folder" that automatically imports photos from your camera and displays them as they are taken -- very useful for studio work. You would also need your camera's image capture software, of course.
There are not enough books on using Aperture effectively. However, most of what is written about Lightroom or Capture NX workflows applies equally well to Aperture.
Updated Aperture library format in 1.5 November 26, 2006
54 out of 55 found this review helpful
As mentioned around the web in various places, the updates in 1.5 (and 1.5.1) are significant. One the the most important updates is the the ability to manage referenced files (as apposed to importing files into the library directly).
I work with RAW files from my Nikon D200 which average around 10mb each. I currently have nearly 4 thousand photos in my library. Aperture keeps the thumbnails for the originals (masters) in a vault on my MacBook Pro while I store the actual raw files on a collection of external Raid 1 drives. The new tools in 1.5 make it easy to migrate images from my laptop to external drives and back as well as backup the entire Aperture database. The local thumbnails let me find images I want without having to mount each of my external drives. I can find the photo I want and pull up where the raw version is currently stored.
As one of the others mentioned, go ahead and give LightRoom from Adobe a try, and while your at it give the free 30 day trial of Aperture a go as well. If you work with a lot of images especially from a mobile platform you will love Aperture.
I worked with both back to back and found the Lightroom interface cumbersome and annoying at times. The stepwise workflow of Lightroom seems to be focused on the development process of a single photo. Aperture on the other hand makes it feel very natural to make quick adjustments or add metadata to a full shoot of photos without the extra fuss of switching modes. Features such as stacks and the Loupe tool are indispensable when organizing many similar photos.
In the end I would give Aperture 5 stars except I believe it should not be so ram hungry. With 2GB of ram in my 2.33Ghz MacBook Pro the performance is acceptable but it does not leave much memory for running other applications. Based on the performance updates in 1.5.1 I think the Apple developers may wring some more performance out of this application yet -- when that happens a 5th star may be in order. And as for Lightroom, I am sure that if Adobe thought it was actually ready for prime time it would not still be in beta.
 A digital SLR's best friend November 18, 2006
How quickly people forget the pain of managing RAW images with just the operating system and a copy of Photoshop. Thanks to Aperture (and its subsequent imitators) managing (and interacting with) huge RAW libraries becomes invisible and easy.
I specifically like the full-screen mode, which puts the images front and center. Likewise, the Loupe tool lets you check focus on an image without taking the focus (no pun intended) away from the photography. And you can make changes to the images without having to convert them, then edit them, then hit Save-As everytime you have a new idea. Aperture is completely non-destructive. The RAW image is loaded and adjustments to it are tracked seperately (yet seamlessly) so that you never have to worry about losing your master.
There's a lot more in the app beyond these things, which is what makes it such an amazing piece of software. Its a digital SLR's best friend.
 Not ready for prime time... November 14, 2006
37 out of 69 found this review helpful
I've owned this software since it's ridiculously overpriced $500 1.0 inception. Even at it's latest 1.5.1 $299 version Apple should still be ashamed of themselves. I use Final Cut Studio and own 3 recent Macs, so I've been devoted to Apple to say the least. I am a professional wedding photographer/videographer. I have been more than patient with this software. It looks great, up to Apple's standards in design and vision but remains absolutely plagued with bugs. And unless you pay Apple laughable amounts of money (much more than the cost of the software itself!), they will not provide support on anything except installation...even if there software update is the source of the issue. As someone who has been such an Apple fan, I feel obligated to let everyone know that unless you enjoy pulling your hair out and repeating tasks over and over again do yourself a favor and DOWNLOAD LIGHTROOM FROM ADOBE.
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