I've been told by a number of people that a Mac is an excellent workhorse for image processing and the production of slideshows/ multimedia. In short, it's said to be good for the things that photographers would do.
How true this is, I do not know, which is why I'm seeking information from people at this forum. Previously I would never have dreamed of buying a Mac. But ever since my old laptop went kaputz a few years ago, plus my need for a laptop to process my images while in Singapore or Australia, I've begun to think that a Mac laptop just might be the thing to buy.
Obviously a PC or a Mac would do most tasks competently, so I'm hoping this won't turn into a pointless PC vs Mac comparison. But in terms of the applications of photography, does using a Mac really offer any real advantages?
Currently I only use simple image processing software. I always shoot RAW on a 1Ds Classic, transfer it to the computer via a card reader and then process them to JPEGs using Canon's Digital Photo Professional. Any additional cloning will be done with Adobe Photoshop.
Do Macs come with any useful preinstalled software otherwise (eg. capable slideshow software etc)? I also have 2 external hard disk drives. Can I use them interchangeably on both a Mac and a PC without any issues? Chances are that I'd ultimately need to move my images to a PC of some sort, even for printing at the local shops.
Which Mac laptop should I buy? I've read elsewhere that the pre-intel machines are the best, because the intel-based ones have lost some of their past charm in the attempt to compromise between two kinds of OS. How much do they usually run for? I'm hoping not to go too far beyond the $2K mark, and that's even when I finally summon the courage to buy one.
Thanks, hope to hear some opinions from you guys. I might want a laptop sometime down the track anyway, but the main struggle here is deciding between Mac and PC for the purposes of processing images only, maybe a little net surfing, but not so much for games or word processing. But then again, if some of the vintage Counterstrike and Diablo II games work on a Mac, then that's very nice gravy.
How true this is, I do not know, which is why I'm seeking information from people at this forum. Previously I would never have dreamed of buying a Mac. But ever since my old laptop went kaputz a few years ago, plus my need for a laptop to process my images while in Singapore or Australia, I've begun to think that a Mac laptop just might be the thing to buy.
Obviously a PC or a Mac would do most tasks competently, so I'm hoping this won't turn into a pointless PC vs Mac comparison. But in terms of the applications of photography, does using a Mac really offer any real advantages?
Currently I only use simple image processing software. I always shoot RAW on a 1Ds Classic, transfer it to the computer via a card reader and then process them to JPEGs using Canon's Digital Photo Professional. Any additional cloning will be done with Adobe Photoshop.
Do Macs come with any useful preinstalled software otherwise (eg. capable slideshow software etc)? I also have 2 external hard disk drives. Can I use them interchangeably on both a Mac and a PC without any issues? Chances are that I'd ultimately need to move my images to a PC of some sort, even for printing at the local shops.
Which Mac laptop should I buy? I've read elsewhere that the pre-intel machines are the best, because the intel-based ones have lost some of their past charm in the attempt to compromise between two kinds of OS. How much do they usually run for? I'm hoping not to go too far beyond the $2K mark, and that's even when I finally summon the courage to buy one.
Thanks, hope to hear some opinions from you guys. I might want a laptop sometime down the track anyway, but the main struggle here is deciding between Mac and PC for the purposes of processing images only, maybe a little net surfing, but not so much for games or word processing. But then again, if some of the vintage Counterstrike and Diablo II games work on a Mac, then that's very nice gravy.