corel paintshop pro 2018
Industry & Community News, Software for Retouching

Corel Launches PaintShop Pro 2018

Canadian software company, Corel, best known for CorelDRAW and Corel Painter, have a habit of successfully revamping beloved applications. WordPerfect from Novell, and even PaintShop Pro from JASC (back when I used to use Paint Shop Pro 7 in 2000 for all of my graphic design needs), Corel has had a knack for reinvention.

On Wednesday, Corel announced the release of PaintShop Pro 2018, their most advanced Photoshop-alternative to date. In their press release, Corel stated:

“Whether you’re looking for professional photo editing power or just getting started, you need software that lets you jump in and be productive right away. PaintShop Pro now lets you choose from two unique interfaces, plus it gives you the ability to customize them to build an editing and design environment that’s uniquely your own,” said Chris Pierce, Product Manager for Corel Photo. “With PaintShop Pro 2018, we’re delivering a dramatically faster, easier, and highly creative experience that’s even more accessible and of course, still subscription free.”

Like Affinity Photo, another touted Photoshop alternative, PaintShop Pro 2018 emphasizes the fact that it’s a one-time perpetual license, rather than a monthly fee. Within a year of paying for Photoshop CC, you will have paid for a permanent license of PaintShop Pro. While Lightroom can be purchased as a stand-alone, Corel is primarily taking aim at Photoshop CC.

PaintShop Pro 2017 is available in several different packages with other Corel software, such as Painter Essentials 5, Perfectly Clear 3 SE, and Aftershot 3, Corel is aiming to a replacement option for digital artists using Lightroom and Photoshop.

makeover tools in corel paintshop pro

Makeover Tools | Source: Corel | Photo: Kaja Tirrul

When it comes to their photo-editing tools, it’s mostly about convenience rather than high-end retouching capability. There are Makeover tools for removing red-eye, blemished, lines, wrinkles, and whitening teeth. There is also the ability to run actions (scripts in PaintShop Pro), filters (Instant Effects), and a Retro Lab for vintage-styled effects similar to those you would find in Alien Skin’s Exposure software.

While we at Retouching Academy are Adobe all the way for our retouching needs (and for the RA Panels), this software may be worth a look for genres such as weddings, family portraiture, landscapes, travel photography, and other subjects that may take advantage of the built-in features of this program.

Sources: Corel/MarketWired | PaintShop Pro

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