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ph0ust · Jun 20, 2005, 02:09 AM

hi all. i currently have a 1ghz imac g4 (17" model) that i use for my home machine. it works fine for everything except photo editing. when it comes to photo editing, the thing just completely sucks- dog slow and painful to work with. the type of photo editing i am performing is basically photoshop to adjust raw digital files, convert to jpeg/tiff and perhaps some post-processing adjustments. the raw editing part is just miserable (shot with an 8mp digital slr).

i really would love a new g5 dually, but am not going to spring for it.

my question is, how well do you think a new imac g5 would work for this? i know it would be better than my current machine, but will i still be noticably underpowered? also, i presume the 20" screen works well for photo work, yes?

i appreciate any input, especially if you are doing the same thing on an imac g5. thanks.

GSixZero · Jun 20, 2005, 03:05 AM

Not to dodge your question, but how much RAM does your current iMac have? If it's below 1GB, that's probably what is most useful to upgrade right now. 8mp raw files are big and processor intensive, but the words "dog slow and painful to work with" makes me think that maybe you need more ram. If I'm wrong, I apologize.

James41 · Jun 20, 2005, 09:38 AM

I agree with the other guy, how much ram are you running, if under a gig try an upgrade of the ram, you will probably see a difference. As far as a new iMac, they do a nice job, but there again make sure you have at least a gig of ram for decent performance. And yes the 20" screen works very well for photo work.

Ozzpot · Jun 20, 2005, 10:23 AM

I have just upgraded from an iBook G4 14" 933mhz with 640mb RAM to an iMac G5 17" 2.0ghz with 1gb RAM. I do a LOT of photoshop work with large images, often 300 dpi posters and adverts, sometimes up to 100 layers, so BIG files.

My new iMac G5 is lightning fast. I'd say 4 or 5 times faster than my iBook. I'm very happy with it.

As for the RAM issue, yes, this is very important for media editing like this. You should have at least 1gb for serious work.

ph0ust · Jun 20, 2005, 11:50 AM

Originally Posted by GSixZero

Not to dodge your question, but how much RAM does your current iMac have? If it's below 1GB, that's probably what is most useful to upgrade right now. 8mp raw files are big and processor intensive, but the words "dog slow and painful to work with" makes me think that maybe you need more ram. If I'm wrong, I apologize.

i've got 1.5gb of ram. even with nothing else running, it takes 10-20 seconds to load a raw file into the image editor. when faced with reviewing several hundred images it makes you want to just punch the screen.....

James41 · Jun 21, 2005, 09:53 AM

I think you would see quite a nice difference on the new iMac G5. I would highly recommend a new 2.0 IMac G5 with a 20" screen and 1 to 2 gigs of ram for what you are doing. Of course one of the PowerMac G5's would be better for heavy work, but the iMac can do a very good job for quite a bit less money and it really looks great on the desk.