Graphics Gale

[Kain Nobel]

Of the many image editing programs that are out nowadays, I'd have to say GraphicsGale is definately up there amongst the greats! When I had the hint in my mind that I'd be doing graphics later on down the road, I gave many programs across the web a thorough test drive, and Gale is superior to alot of the ones I had played around with.

Wether you're looking to make small edits to existing stuff (ie, recolor some RTP stuff, enhance photos you've uploaded from your digital camera, etc), or you're creating some work from scratch, this is definately a great tool. The interface is pretty 'lets get to the point' simple, and there are many features that it boasts which should be standard in any image software, and easy to figure out.

Alas, I'm serious as a heart attack when I say that this program has a major "ease of use" standards, and in a good way! If you're familiar with Photoshop, then I'm sure I don't need to mention the image layering features, sharpness and blur effects, and all that jazz, but I will note that it does an excellent job at executing those tasks. In other words, there are alot of 'basic' features that come with the free version that you'd otherwise have to purchase (*cough*torrent*cough*) something like Photoshop to utilize.

On a last minute note, although it is stated that the program is FREE (which, overall, it is), there are some features that it may or may not lack in the shareware version even though the website might say its supported. For instance, the Input/Output both list that it handles .GIF files, which my version doesn't. (Keep in mind, my version is probably outdated, I haven't updated it in nearly 2 years). Not that this is a big deal, unless you're specifically needing to create a GIF, but so long as it handles the common jpeg, bitmap and png formats, thats all that has mattered to me. But if you're wanting to use it, for example, to edit an AVI or other not-so-basic image file, you might want to test it or ask somebody if it is really supported like it says.

Anyways... thats the end of my 'review' on GraphicsGale, sorry I didn't go more in depth. On the other hand, if anybody has any specific questions about Gale in general, feel free to ask and we'll answer you with the best of what we know. Also, feel free to share your knowledge on the program you might have, and I'm sure we could organize a pretty nice FAQ for other users who might not know how all the features work.

Happy GraphicsGaling! :cheery: