bob_estremera

Thanks Ed

Ed, what are the minimum specs for a Mac to do a good job handling high MP, 16bit full frame or medium format in PS with lots of layers? Thanks, Bob

Thanks Ed. Lots to figure out here. It used to be as easy as 'buy a new computer'.

The 1TB SSD is $300 when specing a tower XPS. That's $150 more than me buying it. Maybe it's money well spent because it's in there and I don't have to mess with it.

On the Dell site, I can't seem to find a way to configure it with just a 1TB SSD as a primary drive. It seems to make me choose a 'spinner' with the SSD as a second drive. I'm going back in to check to see if I've missed something. The Drobo drive won't be in a budget anytime soon. I know that's a good option though. I think I have a good handle on backup options now thanks to all this input. Now I want to see if I can configure a tower with a graphics card (PS has some worthwhile actions that require a discreet card) i5 or i7 Intel CPU and a 1TB SSD. II really want to keep the tower around $1000 all in. I'll get a big WD external, or two, as backup to accommodate what I plan on being a growing mass of large TIFFS and PSDs and will definitely look into Backblaze too. It comes highly recommended. Thanks again.

I am seeing 1TB SSD like this one https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Inch-Internal-MZ-76E1T0B-AM/dp/B078DPCY3T but not sure if it sits outside or inside the tower, presumably in some kind of SSD slot like you do with RAM. This one is only $149. Would I buy that as an extra piece of hardware to install inside the new tower? How would it be configured so PS & LR use it for processing?

Wow. This is all great info. Thanks so much. I understand that my WD externals are not a backup. But I have three. One, I work from currently. the other, is a backup in case my main external dies. They are next to each other. The third is off-site backup in case of a calamity in my apartment that kills the first two. I think I'm good on my backup plan. But I'm learning it could be improved. I'm just fuzzy on how to spec and configure the new computer I plan to buy. I'm old school, that means old, and I have never needed to 'configure' a computer before. This is a new world. dcstep - you suggested earlier to just get an SSD drive and a 16TB external to house all files then only bring in the files to the SSD that I'm actually working on. Did you mean nothing on the SSD other than actual OS and program files? Did I understand that correctly? How big an SSD would I need for that? Backup would be Backblaze. I would probably have another external for secondary backup just for peace of mind.

Thanks Tom, I know from what other photogs and Photoshop people are suggesting is that 32B of RAM for Photoshop working on large files with lots of layers is the desired spec. I've put RAM chips in computers before but adding actual drives will put me beyond my comfort zone. I'd want a new tower that is pretty much ready to plug in and go without much fuss.

The 5400/7200 drive question will be the drive choice I make for the tower that I will upgrade to. It will be the working drive and have 1-2tb of storage and 32gb of RAM. Backup external drive choices, if I were to go that route, would be WD, as I have had great luck with them for years.

Thanks for all the input. Hapien, thanks for that benchmark info. In the real world, I don't think 5-15% is THAT big a difference. Not big enough to fret about. And thank again dc, I'm looking into BB and other online options. All my Office docs and spreads are backed up with 365 so photos are my main backup concern. from what I've read, BB backs up everything without a way to specify specific folders. Doing more research. Thanks again.

I’m going to check into this dc. I have read that external drives are slower to process with. Is this not your experience?

The hard drive in question will be on a Dell PC.

Yes, I know 2TB won't last long. If I go for the 2TB, I'll end up using it more for current work and completed work will go to WD Externals for safe keeping. My question now is, how much faster is the a 7200RPM drive than a 5400RPM drive. If I went from one to the other would I say, "Wow, what a difference 7200 makes" or would I just see a marginal increase in file manipulation speed?

I get that particularly for backup, the 5400 drives are better. And your point of about the slower drive will last longer is an important consideration I was not aware of. But as digitaldog points out, is the 7200 that much and noticeably faster to churn through files than the 5400 considering I am loading up on RAM?

I'm going to be doing retouching work. I anticipate working on large, 16bit Photoshop files with many layers, full frame to medium format. I'm in the process of upgrading my PC tower and had these questions about the hard drive. I can get a 2TB, 7200RPM hard drive or a 4TB 5400 hard drive. I like the idea of having 4TB on my tower for working files and storage because it simplifies the need for backup external drives. The 2TB option will work for current files but much of the completed work will go to the externals for storage and backup. My question is, is the 7200RPM spec really that much faster churning through PS files or is the 5400RPM enough? I will have 32GB RAM. Thanks

The X-Rite i1 Display Pro is definitely on my radar for calibration. As for the monitor, I'm definitely not in a position to start off with a $1000-$1200 monitor. I'm going to have to start with something in that $400 range or so. As my skills improve and I can seek higher end clients for whom the higher priced monitor will be justified. But for my early efforts, I'll need to keep that cost down. The BenQ SW240 24.1" 16:10 PhotoVue IPS seems to fit my early requirements. It's a compromise, but I think a good one and it comes with some very good reviews on Amazon and B&H. Thanks so much for all the help.

I am going to have to assume that printing must be a part of my color calibration so it will be important that my final file will be accurate if used for print output.

Agreed. X-Rite will be my go-to calibration.

Thanks Ed, I'm definitely leaning away from 4K and putting the emphasis on a solid 1440 unit and spending the time and money on color calibration. I think that's the best option now considering I'm in the early stages of this new direction.

Thanks. From what I'm reading, I might be looking for more like a 1440 IPS unit because the 4K might just be overkill. Can't go to a dual monitor unit yet, but if this takes off for me, it's definitely in the cards. I leaning toward upgrading my desktop to include a dedicated graphics card that will support all Photoshop functions that my current Intel HD Graphics does NOT. Thanks again.

I am going to be exploring high end retouching and will be upgrading my desktop and monitor. When it comes to the monitor and 4K, (I have an HD display now) are there any considerations I need to be aware of? I am not going full bore expensive but I'm finding 24" 4K monitors around $400. Is it just a matter of plug it in and go? I will be calibrating it, of course. Thanks,

Thanks Phil. I’ll check this out.

Preparing to create a retouching business online and need some guidance on two things. Thing 1: On a Squarespace website, I will want a page with a dashboard from which a client can upload files. I have been to sites with this feature but have no idea how to implement it. Is it a plugin, third-party software? What are the most common solutions to this? Thing 2: We have all seen these nice before/after images where in the space of a single image, a slider can be clicked and dragged so that two files, in this case, before/after, can be viewed and compared when you slide the cursor back and forth. What technology/software is this? Thanks

I just learned about the Scruffy Zoom feature in Photoshop CC 2019 but when I try to use it on my PC (Spacebar + Cntl then click and drag), it only creates a box to zoom into. The little + appears in the magnify icon but it won't zoom. Apparently, I'm supposed to be able to go into my preferences and click on Graphics Processor but that part of the preference box is grayed out. As near as I can tell, my graphics card is an Intel HD card. Any suggestions? I'd hate to have to buy a new computer or break this one open to install a better card. One other Question, I have two versions of Photoshop CC that appear in my computer, Photoshop CC 2018 and Photoshop CC 2019. I just do the normal updates and don't see why both versions should appear. Can I delete or uninstall the 2018 or just leave well enough alone? Thanks in advance.

Thanks Steve. Turned the Preview off. Seems to be working now.