Mac Photo Editing Software Review

Whether you use a compact digital camera, a mobile device with a camera or a high-end DSLR, Mac photo editing software makes it easy and affordable to edit your photos exactly how you want them. Just a few clicks of the mouse can get rid of unwanted blemishes and red eye, and soften wrinkles. You can also crop a photo that may have had a poor viewing angle, to better focus on the subject. Plus, make the colors pop by adding a filter or adjusting the chroma, or add creative touches like frames or text, and so much more.

The top three Mac photo editing software apps we looked at – Photoshop Elements 10, Pixelmator 2.0 and Acorn 3 – have all these features and more. Be sure to check out our articles on Mac photo editing software.

Of course, you’ll want to share your beautiful works of art, and most software that we'll discuss has sharing features right on the interface so you can easily email your pictures to friends and family, or upload them to websites like Facebook, Flickr or Picasa. Some also connect with device-sharing services like iCloud’s Photo Stream and Adobe Carousel. Most apps allow you to create and print professional photo books as well.

Mac Photo Editing Software: What to Look For

All Mac photo editing software apps need to include a comprehensive toolset with tools for adjusting exposure levels and color tones, cropping photos and resizing subjects. Some apps have a browser so you can organize pictures within the software, though many users prefer to organize pictures in iPhoto anyway and simply integrate a photo editor with this app that ships with iLife ’11.

Ease of Use
Many of the apps have an interface that closely resembles Photoshop Elements 10, which is aesthetically sound but somewhat difficult to navigate at first. However, the best Mac photo editing software apps we reviewed feature extensive tutorials to help get you started.

Importing
Aside from opening a photo from a hard drive, can the app import images directly from cameras, scanners and other sources? Or do you need to use another app to do so, such as iPhoto or Apple's Image Capture?

Editing
Arguably the most important of features, editing tools help to correct and enhance your photos. What kind of editing tools does the app have to change color, brightness and contrast, perform crops, add filters, plus add and edit layers, text and more? It’s important that these tools offer a fair amount of manual controls, to satisfy those who want to customize the look, but also an intelligent auto function for those new to the software.

Sharing
What kinds of sharing options does the app feature? Can you export directly to a photo sharing site like Facebook, Flickr or Picasa? Can you email photos without having to launch your mail software and attach the pictures? Good sharing options are an added bonus many products don't have yet, but our favorite Mac photo editing software apps make sharing a priority.

Output Capabilities
There are different format types an app can and should be able to save a photo as, including JPEG, TIFF, GIF, PNG, and others.

Organizing
Many of the Mac photo editing software apps feature a special browser to organize your photos. It’s an important way to streamline the process by doing as much of the organization in the app as possible without having to go to your Mac's Finder to keep track of photos. Some of the apps forego a photo browser but give instruction on using iPhoto to organize photos. This isn't ideal but it works.

Help & Support
Does the software's developer provide a user manual, a FAQs page, tutorials and more? If you need technical support, you should be able to contact the developer directly by email, telephone or live chat. Some developers even provide a user forum to interact with others.

When using Mac photo editing software, you can give your photos a slight touch-up or a complete overhaul – you can be as creative or as hands-off as you like. Our reviews will help you find the right software to make your photo projects come to life.

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