Best Photo manipulation software
 

What do you use for photo manipulation that gives you great presets and very clear pictures and very little flicker when zooming and panning. And also allows terrific audio interaction.

Thanks for your input...

Ralph Bowman

That's not really photo-manipulation (Photoshop would be the answer to that question), but video editing. Pretty much any application will allow you to do smooth pans (the so-called "Ken Burns" effect), but not all have "terrific audio interaction". Sony Vegas would certainly fit the bill, but you might be able to get something cheaper that serves your needs.

Imaginate, now at v2, is worth a look here:
http://www.canopus.com/products/Imaginate/index.php
It has been around a while now and really could use an update. It is unclear whether it will get one any time soon. I use it a lot (as a hobbiest) but it is clear there are also very many professional users from posts on the Canopus forum.

Another product I am unfamiliar with, but have heard recommended, is Moving Pictures from Stage Tools to be found here:
http://www.stagetools.com/

If you are Wintel, have you tried Photostory 3? It is a free download from Microsoft at http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/u...y/default.mspx

When you talk about panning and zooming, not cropping, then you are talking video. I use Premiere Pro and it does a wonderful job. With music and good manipulation you can make people forget it is made up of still pictures. Just remember to start with high resolution pictures. Probably at least 3.0 mega pix. I have a Nikon D-70 with I think 6.1 mega pix, and it looks great! Plus, it gives you a lot of room to move around and still keep the frame totally full, no black edges.

Mike