[SOLVED] Will this computer meet my needs for photography editing software?

Novice Mom

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Hi,
I just purchased camera and found out that I need to upgrade my computer to use post editing software like lightroom. Another photographer suggested this computer.

SkyTech Blaze II - Gaming Desktop PC - AMD Ryzen 5 1600 (6-Core 3.2 GHz), NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 (3 GB), 8 GB DDR4, 500 GB SSD, AMD A320M, Windows 10 Home 64-bit

Here are the specs:
https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E168832...SM45jScbOUoXmqwPPWM0QrEz7ptsOYuUETj15LnyIclYM

I realize it doesn't have a needed DVD but it was pointed out I could buy an external. Also look like to get internet, I'll have to purchase a wi-fi too, right?
I don't have lots of money but this one does seem reasonable. Just not sure if it'll work for any length of time. Your thoughts?


Thanks for any help you can offer.
 
Last edited:
Solution
Personally, I suggest you limp along with your current PC, and try out darktable as mentioned in your other thread.
You're just starting out in the photo editing world, with a new camera.
No use in buy all sorts of PC equipment if you're not quite sure of your actual needs or level of involvement.

Ralston18

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Moderator
Take a look at the photo editing software's hardware requirements.

Often presented in some form of "minimal", "recommended" or "best". All somewhat subjective....

E.g., yes it will work but could be very slow....

You do not want "minimal" and you do want as much "best" as you can afford.

Go the software's website and find the applicable specs and User Guide/Manual.

You may find some fine print that negates the advertising claims or some "oh by the way....." addendum that likewise alter any expectations taken at face value.

Read the FAQs and Forums.

Look for what is said as well as what is not said.
 

Novice Mom

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Take a look at the photo editing software's hardware requirements.

Often presented in some form of "minimal", "recommended" or "best". All somewhat subjective....

E.g., yes it will work but could be very slow....

You do not want "minimal" and you do want as much "best" as you can afford.

Go the software's website and find the applicable specs and User Guide/Manual.

You may find some fine print that negates the advertising claims or some "oh by the way....." addendum that likewise alter any expectations taken at face value.

Read the FAQs and Forums.

Look for what is said as well as what is not said.


Hi Ralston18,

Thank you so much for responding. I appreciate you taking a look and helping me. I'll do that. My current system meets minimum requirements but is unusable. This computer specs looked like it would have been effective, but given my current system's ineffectiveness. Lightroom is only one example of software and I am brand new into photography. I could end up requiring another s/w. You mention reading the forums. That's why I'm here. Tom's has been helpful in the past. Now that you mention it, maybe I should look into lightroom forums. I didn't think of that. thanks.
 

USAFRet

Titan
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RAM is a bit slim for continued Lightroom work.
A single 500GB SSD is not enough.
DVD drive you probably do not need.
WiFi adapter only needed if you have absolutelu no other way to connectot the router.


Look at my PC specs in my sig below.
I do a lot of Lightroom, with no problem.
 
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Novice Mom

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RAM is a bit slim for continued Lightroom work.
A single 500GB SSD is not enough.
DVD drive you probably do not need.
WiFi adapter only needed if you have absolutelu no other way to connectot the router.


Look at my PC specs in my sig below.
I do a lot of Lightroom, with no problem.


Hi USAFret,

Thanks for your response. I always appreciate and amazed people are so will to help.

I'm afraid to look at your specs. LOL. Actually I looked at each item on Amazon. I'm up over ~$1300 so far and that's if I build it myself. Not sure I can do that, but if the savings are great - maybe I should try. I have more time than money these days. Photography is getting to be an expensive proposition. I just purchased a Canon 6D and some lenses, and I didn't expect this expense. Anyway is there another software that is not so draining on a computer. Maybe lightroom is beyond me anyway. Are all editing software so massive? I thought maybe you would know. Ugh. LOL. If not, am I correct that I am going to have to spend $1500 for a computer to edit my photos. Really just to look at my photos seems like I need a massive computer. So many questions! I apologize. No need to answer them all. If you know of a better forum to ask these questions, let me know that too.

I'm shocked that a single 500GB SSD is not enough -- totally my inexperience -- I have absolutely no - none - zilch -- experience using editing s/w.

Note: DVD is only required because I use my computer to also watch training DVDs. Not necessary for photo editing of course. WiFi is required for access to internet. I'm not close enough to router to be hardwired. I'm two floors away.


thank you again and thank you for your service!
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
You almost certainly don't need to spend $1500, or even $1300.

You need a good PC, but it does NOT have to be the bestest uberest thing around.

It does need more than 8GB RAM, and I recommend more than a single 500GB SSD.
Possibly a 250GB SSD for Windows and your applications, and another drive, either HDD or SSD for your photo work.
 
The link is for a gaming PC.
If that is not your primary purpose, look for a photoshop oriented build.
That is likely to involve more ram, 16gb at least.
If you will build yourself, all motherboards will come with ethernet lan.
Some will have wifi included, but a wifi adapter is not expensive.
Puget systems builds high end photoshop systems so you can see what they think is important.
Here is a link:
https://www.pugetsystems.com/recomm...-Premiere-Pro-CC-143/Hardware-Recommendations

They are talking about 9900K which is way out of your budget.
But the takeaway is that the faster single thread performance of intel seems to be more important than
the many threads of ryzen.
Also, nvidia graphics cards seem to be more effective than the amd cards. Mostly because of the number of CUDA cores that can be used.
 
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USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
Personally, I suggest you limp along with your current PC, and try out darktable as mentioned in your other thread.
You're just starting out in the photo editing world, with a new camera.
No use in buy all sorts of PC equipment if you're not quite sure of your actual needs or level of involvement.
 
Solution

Novice Mom

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You almost certainly don't need to spend $1500, or even $1300.

You need a good PC, but it does NOT have to be the bestest uberest thing around.

It does need more than 8GB RAM, and I recommend more than a single 500GB SSD.
Possibly a 250GB SSD for Windows and your applications, and another drive, either HDD or SSD for your photo work.


Hi USAFret,

Thanks for the clarification on price. Based on your other comment below, I think I'll try to make adjustments with my computer and editing software. Another forum suggested to turn off certain features in the software that may improve it's performance. If I can trudge along in the short term, it'll help me nail down my requirements in the long run as you suggested. Wish me luck.

Thank you so much for all your help.

Sandi
 
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Novice Mom

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The link is for a gaming PC.
If that is not your primary purpose, look for a photoshop oriented build.
That is likely to involve more ram, 16gb at least.
If you will build yourself, all motherboards will come with ethernet lan.
Some will have wifi included, but a wifi adapter is not expensive.
Puget systems builds high end photoshop systems so you can see what they think is important.
Here is a link:
https://www.pugetsystems.com/recomm...-Premiere-Pro-CC-143/Hardware-Recommendations

They are talking about 9900K which is way out of your budget.
But the takeaway is that the faster single thread performance of intel seems to be more important than
the many threads of ryzen.
Also, nvidia graphics cards seem to be more effective than the amd cards. Mostly because of the number of CUDA cores that can be used.

Hi Geofelt,

Thank you for taking the time to provide this info. You certainly brought up a good point. I didn't know there were builds that are specific to photoshop or photo editing. It is a good starting place.

Thank you again for the specific graphics card and CPU recommendation too.

Have a great day.

Sandi
 
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Novice Mom

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Personally, I suggest you limp along with your current PC, and try out darktable as mentioned in your other thread.
You're just starting out in the photo editing world, with a new camera.
No use in buy all sorts of PC equipment if you're not quite sure of your actual needs or level of involvement.


Hi USAFret,

I found a editing software that I can use in the short-term. It's call PhotoScape, but it's version 3.7. It at least let's me look at my photos without freezing my computer. It may only bring in the JPEGs though, which works for me. It may bring in RAW if I change settings, but I'm not sure. I'm so thankful that you suggested I look further.

As ever thank you.
 

Novice Mom

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Photoscape. I've used that, minimally.

Another option for non-RAW would be paint.net.

That will absolutely run on low end hardware.


Hi USAFRet and others,

So someone asked if I was first moving photos from sanDisk to HD or if I was looking/editing photos from the SanDisk. I was indeed attempting to edit from SanDisk, expecting to 'import' once I opened Software - but was unable to get that far. So I 'copied' my photos from the SanDisk to the HD using Windows Explorer (without opening s/w). I downloaded Canon's DPP and I'm able view/edit etc. It's taken about 5 hours to copy about 760 photos using 9.47GB! Is this normal!? The SanDisk is 64GB - 170MB/sec. I can live with this for now. The computer does slow a bit, but it's manageable.

So thank you very much for your time. I have lots of questions, but at least I can now take pictures and look at them.

Novice Mom :)
 
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Novice Mom

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Yes, 10GB will take quite some time copying from a SDCard through USB.

EDIT:
However, 5 hours is pretty long.
I just did 400 pics, 7.5GB, 30 minutes.
Copy direct from the camera to the small slow laptop.

It seemed like an excessively long time to me, but the payoff is great. I'm not able to easily edit photos using DPP. :) . I really did not want to spend money on computer just yet after spending on camera equip. I'll get a new computer within the year, but in the meantime I can now practice my hobby and get past the technical issue. thanks so much for your advice. It saved me money and time. :)