The ONE thing I miss in Linux

[Skara_Brae]

If there is ONE thing that I miss in Linux, then it is a decent photo editor.

There is The GIMP, of course (and Pinta, and a few other smaller ones), but I think that the real meaning of GIMP is "Greatly Irritating Miserable Program", because, ghaaaa.

Sure, it gets things done (well...), but I would have a whole list of things that are wrong with GIMP (having to close an edited photograph before being able to continue working with it? Every single time having to click No-I-don't-want-to-save-the-picture, after I already "exported" it?).

In Windows I something get simple things done faster in MS Paint (for Tux's sake!) than in GIMP. I find it very unbelievable that the GIMP developers use their own software, for they surely would run into the same "issues" that I have with GIMP (unless they have never ever ever used any other photoeditor software and do not know any better?).

I have been using CorelDRAW PhotoPAINT for a very long time, and I love it. If it existed for Linux, I'd buy it without hesitation. (If any CorelDRAW programmer reads this... please, port your Suite to Linux...). I could go into a rant about The GIMP, but I shouldn't do that...

Are there any other people who use The GIMP regularly (by lack of anything better), and who find it a Greatly Irritating Miserable Program?

[wdscharff]

It depends on your own ideas about what you have to do and what you want to do.
I haven't used Photoshop under Windows since 1999, I didn't get it on my computer as a gift (or pirate copy). No more Adobe products, the only exception was my Wacom Tablet, which came with Lightroom 5.x on CD. The tablet with the CD was cheaper than a Lightroom CD alone ;-)

I shoot in RAW with RawTherapee and LightZone as primary converters. For the rest of the JPG I use the JPG Illuminator, for which there is NO equivalent replacement under Linx and which fortunately runs under Wine (at least the essential 95% I need)

Retouching beyond sensor spots and small "bumps" is something I rarely do, I don't need a Gimp for that.
I also don't work with layers, so any small image editing is enough for me.
Whereby I have as "reserve" Krita as appimage on the computer.
But as I said, it depends on your own viewing habits and goals.
I photograph the world as I see it and 95% of all image manipulations have no place there, so I don't need any software for that (although LightZone could be used creatively in this respect).
My customers (i.e. in the past, I haven't worked in this field for a long time) probably saw it the same way, otherwise they would never have been my customers ;-)

I don't do much with software, but I have >20 lenses and I know why I use which and when.

[Jerry3904]

+1

[gimcrack]

I been using GIMP since it's release. Since I couldn't afford Photoshop. So I been using GIMP, even when I was using Windows. Been using Linux for the past 17 years and still using GIMP. But I don't just use GIMP for all my Photo Editing. Here are the others that I been using under Linux.

https://www.tecmint.com/best-image-phot ... for-linux/

As for MS Paint.. These are my alternatives;;;

MyPaint on the top of that list for me.

https://itsfoss.com/open-source-paint-apps/

Just keep playing around, until you find the best for you or learn them all. Especially GIMP as a Pro. Many YouTube tutorials how to use GIMP as a Pro. I have no trouble editing my photos with Linux tools. But I been doing it for years, even with open-source applications while I was on Windows as well.

[gimcrack]

There is a commercial photo editor that works with Linux call Corel® AfterShot™ 3. The free open-source Linux photo editor tools work for me, so I never try this pay application out. Maybe it's worth the shot for you.

https://www.aftershotpro.com/en/product ... /standard/

[timkb4cq]

For the usual crop -> adjust contrast/brightness/saturation -> sharpen type of manipulations, the editor in Digikam is easy & quick.
For assembling an image from multiple images/text I usually revert to running Paint Shop Pro (using wine) because the way Gimp deals with layers (especially those with transparency) just won't stick in my brain so it takes me 3 times as long.
Mind, Gimp does layers well if you can just remember how the heck it to do them.

What Gimp needs is a simple "Paste as transparent layer" selection similar to PSP's "Paste as transparent selection". If PSP could do it in 1997, you would think the Gimp devs could add something like it for us non-pros.

[gimcrack]

I see GIMP can be a hassle as it takes extra steps to get the results you want. Plus you have to know how to do those steps as well. There are even times I use three photo editing software applications, because I know the easy way of doing them and sometimes GIMP isn't the answer for those easy task.

GIMP transparent layer in 5 steps;

https://www.instructables.com/id/Adding ... sing-GIMP/

I still love Linux and I get by editing all my photos using Linux tools. I don't complain, I just learned them and move along. 17 years using Linux, you got to know a thing or two by now.

[SwampRabbit]

GIMP can be a pain, especially when dealing with lots layers Imho.

Have you looked at darktable for some of what you are trying to do?
https://www.darktable.org/about/features/

[entropyfoe]

gimcrack,

Those 5 "easy steps" to make a transparent layer in gimp are really 19 steps ! Each of the 5 steps has many sub-steps.

So, yes, I see the OP's point.

[richb]

I use Gimp regularly and for most things I do it is easy to use. But layers and transparency are very difficult.