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  • May 22nd, 2015 9:32 pm
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Jr. Member
Apr 20, 2009
121 posts
19 upvotes

PC or MAC

  • Just getting into photography as a hobby and loving it. Began using Lightroom on my older lenovo laptop and it's clearly showing it's age.
  • I'm looking for feedback on recommendations or ideas on a computer system (thinking desktop likely), that is excellent for photography. I plan to get photoshop eventually.
  • I hear a lot of people say buy Apple, but I'm not sure of the advantage of that. What I don't like about Apple is the price and the inability to upgrade myself.
  • I'm hoping to hear from people about a PC system or components (especially MONITORs) that would powerful, fast and make editing more enjoyable ;)
  • I don't mind spending money on items that will last me or be upgradeable at some point. TIA.
21 replies
Newbie
May 10, 2015
26 posts
3 upvotes
Toronto, ON
tckr wrote:
  • Just getting into photography as a hobby and loving it. Began using Lightroom on my older lenovo laptop and it's clearly showing it's age.
  • I'm looking for feedback on recommendations or ideas on a computer system (thinking desktop likely), that is excellent for photography. I plan to get photoshop eventually.
  • I hear a lot of people say buy Apple, but I'm not sure of the advantage of that. What I don't like about Apple is the price and the inability to upgrade myself.
  • I'm hoping to hear from people about a PC system or components (especially MONITORs) that would powerful, fast and make editing more enjoyable ;)
  • I don't mind spending money on items that will last me or be upgradeable at some point. TIA.
In the past two years, I've actually started to like Linux. The PC/MAC stuff goes back like 20 years, and isn't really a big deal anymore unless you need very specific software. In terms of hobby photography, I'm 100% happy with the free alternatives that come with linux. I never thought I'd be using my coding machine to do photo editing, but it's easy as pie to organize, backup, edit, etc.

This probably isn't the answer you're looking for, but I figured I'd give it a shout out. You could probably put together a very useable computer for 300 plus the cost of a monitor. Imo, people spend money on macs for reasons that aren't performance / bang for your buck.
Deal Guru
User avatar
Dec 3, 2004
10943 posts
430 upvotes
Markham/Mississauga
torontowebsite wrote: . Imo, people spend money on macs for reasons that aren't performance / bang for your buck.
I beg to differ this comment.

It's a well known fact that Macs are using the same hardware as PCs now. However, with Windows there are literally thousands of configurations that has to be taken into account, therefore making operating system optimization very difficult for the average user. And, this is where Apple excels at. They only have a handful of configurations, allowing their software development team to easily optimize with each new release of their OSX operating system. The same can be extended to their iPhones amd iOS versus hundreds of handsets using Android software.

If all you'll be doing is post-process work, I highly recommend a Mac for the stability and optimized operating system when working in Lightroom, Premiere, Final Cut, etc. But, if you're gaming as well, and want a lot more hardware customization then go with a PC.

I utilize both in my workflow, but I favor the Macbook Pro whenever I'm on the go.
Newbie
May 10, 2015
26 posts
3 upvotes
Toronto, ON
CSAgent wrote: I beg to differ this comment.

It's a well known fact that Macs are using the same hardware as PCs now. However, with Windows there are literally thousands of configurations that has to be taken into account, therefore making operating system optimization very difficult for the average user. And, this is where Apple excels at. They only have a handful of configurations, allowing their software development team to easily optimize with each new release of their OSX operating system. The same can be extended to their iPhones amd iOS versus hundreds of handsets using Android software.

If all you'll be doing is post-process work, I highly recommend a Mac for the stability and optimized operating system when working in Lightroom, Premiere, Final Cut, etc. But, if you're gaming as well, and want a lot more hardware customization then go with a PC.

I utilize both in my workflow, but I favor the Macbook Pro whenever I'm on the go.
Perfectly valid points. However, with the amount of ram and cpu power you can throw at a problem given how much you've saved *not* choosing MAC, those performance issues are completely reversed. If someone finds a mac and a pc with the exact same specs at the exact same price, the choice is easy.

2.5ghz macbook pro 13 w/o retina $1349
2.7ghz xps 13 $1249

so basically, to get all the options on the dell which is 100 bucks cheaper

4GB -> 8 GB (add 120)
500GB - > 128 GB SSD (add 180)
intelhd 4000 -> intel hd5000 (can't really add)

I choose the smallest option, but the price gap widens as the stuff gets better and better.
Deal Expert
Jun 15, 2012
15662 posts
10440 upvotes
Southern Ontario
Boils down to user preference for this recurring debate, bang for buck will be PC. I have both but prefer using OSX.
An important thing is a calibrated monitor so you are editing towards proper skin tones at least on your own setup. You don't want images to look off on your audience's monitors or when they go to print.
Deal Fanatic
Aug 3, 2014
6089 posts
4352 upvotes
CSAgent wrote: I beg to differ this comment.

It's a well known fact that Macs are using the same hardware as PCs now. However, with Windows there are literally thousands of configurations that has to be taken into account, therefore making operating system optimization very difficult for the average user. And, this is where Apple excels at. They only have a handful of configurations, allowing their software development team to easily optimize with each new release of their OSX operating system. The same can be extended to their iPhones amd iOS versus hundreds of handsets using Android software.
Yet somehow they still manage to screw up. There's a lot of people complaining about the UI Lag on 2015 MacBook Pro Retina.
Deal Addict
Jun 29, 2008
1897 posts
557 upvotes
North York
I personally enjoy building a computer from scratch. I get to choose parts, go on RFD to find the best deals on said parts, buying and putting it all together is really satisfying. But that's just me.
Deal Addict
Jul 17, 2009
1391 posts
498 upvotes
torontowebsite wrote: Perfectly valid points. However, with the amount of ram and cpu power you can throw at a problem given how much you've saved *not* choosing MAC, those performance issues are completely reversed. If someone finds a mac and a pc with the exact same specs at the exact same price, the choice is easy.

2.5ghz macbook pro 13 w/o retina $1349
2.7ghz xps 13 $1249

so basically, to get all the options on the dell which is 100 bucks cheaper

4GB -> 8 GB (add 120)
500GB - > 128 GB SSD (add 180)
intelhd 4000 -> intel hd5000 (can't really add)

I choose the smallest option, but the price gap widens as the stuff gets better and better.
for a laptop I would always go os x, less headaches I have found.
For a desktop I go either way, not a whole lot of difference for an individual user. Liked aperture for the faces feature, sad to see that gone. Now to retag everything evenutally with lightroom at some point. Op could even go with Linux since they are a clean slate without any program preferences
Deal Addict
May 6, 2007
1413 posts
377 upvotes
Ottawa, On
thericyip wrote: I personally enjoy building a computer from scratch. I get to choose parts, go on RFD to find the best deals on said parts, buying and putting it all together is really satisfying. But that's just me.
+1
Deal Fanatic
Jan 15, 2004
7631 posts
2175 upvotes
Switched from PC to Mac like 7 years ago and never look back. This will come down to personal preference. When I was younger, I like building PC and played with customization but now I value my time to do other things and want a maintenance free approach. Mac is awesome in that sense. Besides, after dealing with Windows for so many years, I'm fed up with MS.
Deal Expert
Jun 15, 2012
15662 posts
10440 upvotes
Southern Ontario
Same here, I have a rig I built a few years ago, now I don't touch gaming.

My time is spent with family, work, fitness, and hobbies like photography.
I do have a Mac mini I switched in an SSD and upgraded to 16GB RAM, but that's the extent of mods these days.
Deal Expert
User avatar
Jul 22, 2006
22438 posts
3065 upvotes
Meh laptop wise I think Apple left the professional market a long time ago, now they just cater to and milk the general consumer.

Unless you had a lot of other Apple products getting a Macbook Pro Retina for a hobby photographer would be hard to swallow but it's your money :D . You'd be better off putting it towards a high end screen and calibrating device.
Jr. Member
Apr 20, 2009
121 posts
19 upvotes
Ugh, I knew this wasn't gonna be easy.. :D .
If money were no problem, it would be easy to choose a Macbook Pro and/or a fully loaded desktop. But we are talking serious money and probably a steep learning curve for a longtime windows user? It makes sense that Apple products are streamlined and optimized for the end user, and windows can be so frustrating. I did think of the mac mini with SSD route, but again, wasn't sure if it was worth the cost vs a similar set up with a PC. Are there monitors that can offer similar quality to the retina displays? Any recommendations? Thanks for all your help, it's great.
Deal Addict
Sep 3, 2005
3627 posts
1223 upvotes
Vaughan
Pick the OS you like, and stick with it. I prefer osx. If you've never used osx before. Buy a used mac, use it for a few months, and decide if you like it or not. Mac re-sale values are a lot better than pc's, but yes, they usually cost more, for similar specs.

Only you can decide which OS you like better. Everyone has a different preference.
For Sale

Nothing at the moment
Deal Fanatic
User avatar
Dec 10, 2004
7571 posts
3145 upvotes
Canada
I think people who know nothing about computers buy apple.
It has nothing to do with you configuring your own pc as nobody forces you too. You can buy already built PCs. You save a lot more by using Windows.
The stories about Macs being better are stuck in the year 2005... It isn't true now and there's no difference except the price.
My last PC was bought preconfigured and built. Not a single issue in 1 and a half years I've been using it. Nothing to adjust; no frustration; no optimization and other crap I hear here.


Those who say Macs are optimized and PCs are not know NOTHING about computers! It is much easier to upgrade PCs though if you want to change a component.
So, get out from under the rock which was stuck in time and at least don't lie to yourself. Most people who buy Macs these days(and Iphones) do so because "it's cool" and because they want to look like other iSheeps.
Newbie
May 10, 2015
26 posts
3 upvotes
Toronto, ON
dazz wrote: I think people who know nothing about computers buy apple.
It has nothing to do with you configuring your own pc as nobody forces you too. You can buy already built PCs. You save a lot more by using Windows.
The stories about Macs being better are stuck in the year 2005... It isn't true now and there's no difference except the price.
My last PC was bought preconfigured and built. Not a single issue in 1 and a half years I've been using it. Nothing to adjust; no frustration; no optimization and other crap I hear here.


Those who say Macs are optimized and PCs are not know NOTHING about computers! It is much easier to upgrade PCs though if you want to change a component.
So, get out from under the rock which was stuck in time and at least don't lie to yourself. Most people who buy Macs these days(and Iphones) do so because "it's cool" and because they want to look like other iSheeps.
Ha. I'm a die-hard PC user, but the Mac kernel which was rather rudely ripped off from the open source community (thx bsd license) with very commits back to the pot is a really good kernel. I used BSD to handle a handful of servers for a long time, and it can take a beating. For a very long time, it was quite a bit better than Linux in a lot of circumstances.

OSX's ease of use is also great. I grabbed my mother, someone who's never touched a computer, an old imac with Leopard on it, and she picked it up pretty quickly.

It's also infinitely easier to set up a development platform on a mac machine than it is on windows, and you need a mac to really get into swift for iphone apps (dick move.)

Apple's done a great job marketing and styling stuff. Good on 'em. If you like their stuff, buy it. It's certainly not for me, but I have nothing against it. People can spend their money however they see fit. I do however think Apple as a company has done some really sketchy stuff, from manufacturing to software "borrowing"
Deal Fanatic
Aug 3, 2014
6089 posts
4352 upvotes
dazz wrote: I think people who know nothing about computers buy apple.
It has nothing to do with you configuring your own pc as nobody forces you too. You can buy already built PCs. You save a lot more by using Windows.
The stories about Macs being better are stuck in the year 2005... It isn't true now and there's no difference except the price.
My last PC was bought preconfigured and built. Not a single issue in 1 and a half years I've been using it. Nothing to adjust; no frustration; no optimization and other crap I hear here.

Those who say Macs are optimized and PCs are not know NOTHING about computers! It is much easier to upgrade PCs though if you want to change a component.
So, get out from under the rock which was stuck in time and at least don't lie to yourself. Most people who buy Macs these days(and Iphones) do so because "it's cool" and because they want to look like other iSheeps.
Or you know, maybe people buy a Mac because they want to? Maybe they like Apple, or Apple's customer service, or build quality, or OS X? Just like how people can like Dell or Lenovo, Windows or Linux -then different Linux Distros.
If you have seen any photos/videos of large tech companies -Amazon, Facebook, Google etc's campuses, you can see that most of their employees are using MacBooks. I guess you know more about computers than those sheep software engineers do -but judging from your post, looks like you cannot even build your own PC, you are buying pre-built ones. :facepalm:
I bet you have never used a Mac before and you are just repeating what you read on the Internet like a parrot.
P.S.: I am a Windows user. I don't own a Mac.
Deal Guru
User avatar
Dec 3, 2004
10943 posts
430 upvotes
Markham/Mississauga
tckr wrote: Ugh, I knew this wasn't gonna be easy.. :D .
If money were no problem, it would be easy to choose a Macbook Pro and/or a fully loaded desktop. But we are talking serious money and probably a steep learning curve for a longtime windows user? It makes sense that Apple products are streamlined and optimized for the end user, and windows can be so frustrating. I did think of the mac mini with SSD route, but again, wasn't sure if it was worth the cost vs a similar set up with a PC. Are there monitors that can offer similar quality to the retina displays? Any recommendations? Thanks for all your help, it's great.
Not at all.

The OSX UI is very easy to learn, and unlike PCs, the Apple store offers free learning sessions 7 days a week during business hours that you can sign up directly online. They're mostly held an hour before the stores in the malls open and the sessions are with a small group of 5-6 people, so you can get your questions and concerns easily answered. Did I mention they're free??

Here is the link to sign up for the Apple workshops: http://www.apple.com/ca/retail/learn/

Lastly, there is always Google and YouTube to help you with the transition.

I came from 20+ years using a PC, first computer used Windows 3.1 alongside MS-DOS. I have 10+ years experience in server and desktop hardware/software support for a user base of about 1000 users spanning 2 continents (North America and Europe) and the switch to Apple was easy. I was surprise actually and wondered why more enterprises don't use it. But I realized it came down to cost of hardware and software (most custom legacy applications are built with Windows in mind), and Dell or HP offers dirt cheap leasing rates for enterprises so it's no wonder PCs still dominate the enterprise market. But, I suppose I know nothing about computers (according to a certain user in this thread) so you can ignore all of my advices if you wish. ;)

I'll be happily in my corner using both Windows and OSX. :)
Deal Addict
Nov 21, 2008
1400 posts
301 upvotes
North Vancouver, BC
If you want easy upgrading, get a desktop.

If you want editing performance, get software that uses the graphics card acceleration. Photoshop does this, and with a powerful video card the changes take place pretty much immediately; no need for little preview windows. I'm not sure, but LR6 might do the same.

A desktop with a basic motherboard and something like quad core i5 and 8 GB RAM will have a lot of processing power. Add a graphics card with decent performance and whatever type of storage you need. You'll end you with a lot more computer, for the money, than a laptop.

As for monitors, there is so much to choose from and it depends on your budget. I have a 4K monitor and images look a lot better in its native resolution. But 4K monitors are expensive, and for a third of the price you can get a pretty big full HD monitor. You could even ruin dual monitors - a basic one that shows your desktop, and a better one that displays your photos.

Nice thing with desktop is that you can easiky put in a new CPU, add memory, change storage, add storage, add peripherals, etc. Also, if you type a lot there is much better choice of keyboard that also work better than that of a laptop.

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