Elements 5.0 vs Photoshop CS2 &HDR

I'm trying to establish a work flow for my recently purchased D80. Currently

for raw conversion I'm testing both Capture NX and lightroom Beta 4.3; both

are great programs. Regardless of which program I choose, I still see a need

for an editing program I've used older versions of Photoshop but not

Elements. What capabilities will I be giving up to use the less expensive

Elements, for example does elements support HDR and photoshop plug-ins?

Elements 5 has most of the regularily used functions. It does not have the HDR tools but you can do very good job using Layers and Layer masks.I have found lightroom very good even though it is only in Beta Some of the functions are a bit obscure but OK once you get used to it.<div></div>

Thanks for the response Glyn. It's good to have a cost effective alternative to CS2; I'll give it a try.