Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo X2

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If you’re thinking of moving up in the image-processing world, you can’t really go wrong with Paint Shop Pro, which offers a superb balance between rich features and ease of use. When you first load it up, a contextual ‘Learning Center’ window opens on the left-hand side. While you can close this at any time to make the most of your screen space, if you leave it open and click on a tool, it’ll tell you exactly what it does and how to use it. The software also comes with a printed manual, which is a handy reference for getting more from the program’s finer points.

Paint Shop Pro’s features are second to none in terms of power and performance, with loads of options that keen photographers will relish, as well as a good selection of handy ‘quick fix’ functions. It doesn’t come with a built-in photo-organisation tool, like Photoshop Elements does, but there are plenty of these available elsewhere if you need one.

The downside is that it’s the most expensive product on test. However, if you’re really serious about your images, it’s a great choice.

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