For basic things like Resize, Brighten, Sharpness, etc I use Paint.NET. It's a really good and easy to use software & get's the job done well.

I used to be a die-hard ACDSee user, but the newer versions are quite bloated and take ~3 seconds to load which is quite a lot for an image browser/basic editor.



Try IrfanView or Paint.NET.

Originally Posted by FaH33m

For basic things like Resize, Brighten, Sharpness, etc I use Paint.NET. It's a really good and easy to use software & get's the job done well.

+ 1 to Paint.NET



the auto-level in paint.net works like a charm in most of the pix and for more precise jobs u can do it manually as well...the only pain is , there is no select all and batch apply , u need to do it manually to each pic, so that became very frustrating, until i found out "Microsoft Office Picture Manager" would do the same job! for multiple images, so i can select all , and resize / adjust brightness/ contrast and auto correct as well.

Seriously I love ACDSee but as you mentioned newer versions are super bloat..



Will try Paint.NET and Microsoft Office Picture Manager both as have to batch edit files, as well..



Any other options which are said to be having pretty good results in terms of picture quality of other factors..?

there are online versions of some paintshop clones which can do all your necessities

I use Picasa...easy and intuitive interface...Paint.net is also good...but it's interface is kinda complex for me...

Well it will be good if U get used to Photoshop...



Photoshop serves every purpose, thus U dont need to shift from software to software to meet the various needs....

More over, working on basic things in photoshop is not difficult...

It is what doing complex things is hard..



Believe me, I am an amateur photographer, and I also had a phobia towards photoshop in the starting.. but it is not difficult with basics...



If still U are not convenced, then Picasa will be good option...

Photoshop is the real deal if you want to use it. Just google your question and there's a tutorial for everything.



If you would like something fast, then try picasa free tool.

Learning Photoshop now, will help you in the long run.

You can create masterpieces out of squat!

I learnt that Patience is a key thing..If u want to work with Photoshop..

Originally Posted by romavina

Photoshop is the real deal if you want to use it. Just google your question and there's a tutorial for everything.



If you would like something fast, then try picasa free tool.

+1 - Photoshop is the best..

i stick to using acdsee5...newer versions have nothing useful to add

I use a software called Neat Image, works pretty good for me......

Photoshop can be complicated or somewhat basic depending on your skill level. You can definitely do the things you are trying to accomplish in Photoshop without being an expert. You can always ask other TE members for help if you get stuck... and Googling it will bring up all kind of tutorials and help.

^ +1 to what PixelPusher said, Photoshop can be complicated for the first week of useage, once you get the hang of it.. its really easy.

It has all the necessary tools you require. If you arent comfortable with photoshop, try Corel Draw.