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There's always a reason to celebrate a new Adobe update, but when we saw Photoshop Elements 3.0, we were especially excited. Version 3.0 has some very cool new features, including a couple of additions carried over from the flagship Photoshop CS.
A great trickle-down feature from Photoshop is the Healing Brush. Available in two separate tools--the Spot Healing Brush for quick, one-click fixes and the Healing Brush to eliminate larger flaws. This nifty tool is perfect for getting rid of facial flaws, specks of dust, scratches and other problems you may encounter on both digital and film/print pictures. (See Shutterbug, page 23, December 2004 for an example.)
More and more digital cameras have the option to capture Raw (unprocessed) images, which allows you to edit better, so we were thrilled to see the Camera RAW filter borrowed from CS. This lets you open the files in Elements rather than having to use the proprietary software that comes with the camera. Plus, now you can convert them to the new .dng format that Adobe recently introduced (see Shutterbug, page 24, this issue). Like Photoshop CS, Elements 3.0 now includes Photo Filters that mimic traditional camera filters to adjust tone and warm/cool balance.
Sometimes you don't have the time or energy to correct a photograph; that's when to go for the new Smart Fix function, which makes adjusting image quality one-touch simple, but doesn't take away your freedom to fix the fix. Slider bars allow you to control the adjustments, but we found that the automatic Smart Fix worked quite well on its own.
When you want to adjust images manually, the live histogram can be accessed at any time. This is a highly effective guide to follow when making color and level adjustments.
While we prefer to keep our digital camera's ISO low to avoid image noise, there are always those low-light situations when you need the extra boost. Elements' noise reduction feature is effective depending on the severity of the problem, with slider bars for control over the adjustments.
For fun, the Cookie Cutter tool crops images into assorted shapes. We like the heart and butterfly for straight-up photos, but think that the arrow, check mark, scissors, musical notes and assorted other shapes are more conducive to use in scrapbooking and other creative pursuits.
With printed photos, we often scan multiple prints at a time, but can never align them very well. Elements' Divide Scanned Photos feature takes a lot of the hassle out of scanning. It doesn't always perfectly separate and straighten images, but it does much better than we personally can.
Adobe has also improved the workflow and workspace. A search function makes finding specific images quick and easy, and there's easier access to folders. The Photo Bin, a collapsible pane, stores all open images for convenient and immediate access. You can tile images for better comparison. In fact, you can scroll and zoom simultaneously to truly compare side by side.
The Mac version doesn't include the album functionality of the Windows version, because Adobe's research indicated that Mac folks were happy with Apple's iPhoto. Along those lines, Adobe has made sure Elements 3.0 and iPhoto get along well. If you select Elements 3.0 as iPhoto's editing application, your image changes (JPEG only) will be updated in iPhoto.
Elements 3.0 is a great value. If you haven't experienced the power and versatility of the program--or if you've been waiting to upgrade-- now's the time.
-THEANO NIKITAS
ADOBE PHOTOSHOP ELEMENTS 3.0: 
Adobe | www.adobe.com | 800-833-6687 | $90
Pros: Powerful but easy to use program with a great feature set, Quick Fix and Standard Edit modes, new features filtered down from Photoshop CS, well integrated with iPhoto.
Cons: Only a small printed Getting Started Guide, moderate learning curve for newcomers.
Requires: G3, G4 or G5, OS 10.2.8 or 10.3.x, 256MB RAM
macHOME recommends: Having fun
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