Anyone who has dabbled in website design has probably needed to use image editing software at one point or another. To many, it may seem like there are only one or two options. The main option is an expensive program from Adobe called Photoshop that costs around $300, and a few others like PaintShop Pro and Pixelmator that range from $50 to $100. However, there are two other powerful options that are completely free.
Gimp
While the name may evoke thoughts of Quentin Tarantino’s “Pulp Fiction,” Gimp stands for GNU Image Manipulation Program (GNU is a free software licensing system). Gimp’s best feature is its price… free. This open source software is a powerful alternative to Adobe’s Photoshop that offers the ability to create graphic designs through image layers.
It has an extensive library of plugins that is continually growing, offering new features for graphic image manipulation. Some developer or user can create a plugin that makes a photo look like a velvet painting. You can then download these plugins and use them for free in your version of Gimp.
Gimp also supports the Adobe Photoshop format for brushes. These are powerful in-app tools that are usually themed and make it easy to add powerful images to your work. The brushes can be inspired by gardens, Japanese letters, gothic images, cars, or just about anything you can imagine. They are a flexible and powerful way to take your website logos or images to the next level.
Find this program at http://www.gimp.org.
ink landscape
Another powerful free image maker is Inkscape. Unlike Gimp, which is a raster-based image manipulation program, Inkscape is a vector drawing program. While Gimp is designed for editing jpg, png, or gif photos and is better suited for handling photorealistic images, Inkscape’s vector drawing is great for icons, logos, and more cartoon images.
Vector drawing programs are based on building, coloring and manipulating shapes. Raster programs like Gimp are pixel based and this means that when you scale an image to a larger or smaller size, you risk losing image fidelity. Programs like Inkscape and its expensive cousins (Adobe Illustrator, Corel Draw) are the perfect tool when you want to create logos that can be presented in many different dimensions.
Most clip art that is not based on photography is created using some type of vector drawing program. Inkscape uses the Scalable Vector Graphic (.svg) file extension, which is an open standard and means your graphics file will easily transfer to other programs and be used.
Find this program at inkscape.org.
Is open source for everyone?
Of course! It’s free! That’s the whole point. There are downsides to using these apps. While you can find hundreds of books on using Photoshop from Adobe, you’ll only find a few on Gimp and Inkscape.
Some people love to buy books to learn, but I say it’s actually a disadvantage because, again, you spend $30-$50 per book.
There are many video tutorials on YouTube that can teach you how to use the programs and become very proficient. So the investment you make will be time, not money.
If you need a program to help you create beautiful images for your website, but you can’t afford a copy of Photoshop from Adobe, you’d be wise to take a look at these two amazing open source graphics programs. .
