Product Reviews

You know the feeling. You take what you think is a great digital snap - then when you get it onto the PC, it turns out to be overexposed, blurry, dim, or your kids look like red-eyed demons. Photo-editing programs can help you to fix these problems - but with so many programs around, how can you be sure you're getting the right one to suit your needs?

PhotoPlus 9 is the latest version of Serif's image-editing software. It introduces a number of new features, including support for files created in industrial-strength rival Photoshop. It can also create PDF documents. Many of these innovations, though, are things that rivals have been able to do for a while.

The inclusion of AutoContrast and AutoLevels functions (which automatically correct the contrast and light levels in a picture to make the image bright and clear) was long overdue. They work well, but we were a bit amazed to discover that PhotoPlus didn't have them before. These are things that its competitors have featured for a while. The same is true for the red-eye removal brush. It works fine, and only takes one or two attempts to get the hang of. But again, it's old hat. It's the same story for the scratch removal tool: it does a good job of cleaning up scans of scratched or dusty negatives by replacing the scratch with a sample of the textures around it. Again, though, this is

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something that PhotoPlus's competitors have had for a while.

On the plus side, the software does include one or two advanced image-editing functions that its direct competitors don't. For instance, it allows you to adjust the 'gamma curve' of an image. The 'gamma curve' is a graph that represents the distribution of tones within a picture. By picking a single point on the curve and manipulating it, you can adjust a particular set of tones within the image: for instance the very dark tones, or the midtones. This is a very precise way of improving detail in shadows, for example - but it's one that's often overlooked in image editors in this price bracket.

There's a pretty good GIF animation option too, which uses layers to help you build quite sophisticated animations for Web pages. PhotoPlus 9 is also able to create, and even password protect, Adobe PDF files as well: useful if you want to send your work via e-mail or on to a professional printers.

One of the most surprising new functions is the ability to draw your own pictures using something called Bezier node editing. This lets you create lines and shapes by placing 'handles' - also called Bezier nodes - on the page. You then move these handles about to determine the shape of each curve or line in a drawing, snapping lines together to create more complex shapes. It's a nice touch, but PhotoPlus 9 isn't as good at this as a dedicated drawing program would be - and the drawing tools are also fairly well hidden.

Overall, though, the main window and controls of PhotoPlus are very straightforward. This has the advantage of making the program uncluttered, but the downside is that help and guidance is also at a minimum.

PhotoPlus's real downfall is the fact that it sits so neatly between two stools. It doesn't offer enough features and functions for experienced users, but beginners will notice the lack of hand-holding and assistance.

rod lawton