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• Adobe CS5: To Upgrade or not to Upgrade

  July 26, 2010No comments

  Are you planning to get the latest treasure trove called Adobe Creative Suite 5 (CS5)? If you are still hesitating, maybe this article will help you decide.

  Adobe CS5, released last April 2010, consists of applications for graphic design, web development, and video editing. For this blog, we shall be reviewing only two of its applications, the ones closest to the graphic artist’s heart: Illustrator CS5 and Photoshop CS5.

  The shiny new features of Illustrator CS5 include refined drawing tools, lifelike brushes, and multiple artboards that can be viewed and organized easily.  Adobe has hit the right note in combining productivity enhancements and powerful drawing tools for Illustrator CS5.  These new features have made it easier for graphic artists to deliver high-impact designs.  What’s more, artists can now transform Illustrator designs into interactive components without even writing a code, CS5 being integrated with the newly-launched Adobe Flash Catalyst CS5.

  Photoshop CS5, on the other hand, boasts its new features: Content Aware Fill, Refine Edge Selection, and Puppet Warp.  Content Aware Fill is awesome for quick fixes involving backgrounds and low-complexity areas.  Refine Edge Selection enables graphic artists to produce professional-quality masks and selections, while Puppet Warp allows for tremendous control over pre-clipped objects. These new features are causing a buzz among graphic artists more than any other CS5 component.

  What else is there? While the shiny new features are generating louder noise, the devil is still in the details.  As far as I’m concerned, the biggest selling point (graphics-wise) is that CS5 retains Adobe’s uncomplicated interface and introduces numerous tweaks and timesavers that enhance workflow and performance.  Simply put, the enhanced features of Illustrator CS5 and Photoshop CS5 are helping artists to produce significantly better output at a quicker pace.  Adobe has certainly done its homework as I’ve noticed minimal bugs in Photoshop and Illustrator CS5.  And of course, it goes without saying that CS5 loads faster than CS4.

  On the other hand, there are some issues. One is that some of CS5’s applications such as Aftereffects and Premier Pro require larger memory.  There is also the issue of compatibility, often CS5 files cannot be opened in older versions.

  Overall, with the system requirements in place, CS5’s enhancements are impressive. It’s another step up in the continuing revolution of digital graphics creation.

  

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