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Author Topic: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?  (Read 16808 times)

Morris Taub

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Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« on: February 23, 2015, 01:00:29 pm »

Have my eye on the two 15" models. One with Intel iris pro graphics, the other that also has the nvidia gt 750m. Maybe I'm making mountains from molehills. You can tell me if you think that's the case.

I will use my laptop at home always attached to a large screen. It's what I do with my current, April 2008 macbook pro. Right now a 25" NEC. I may add an additional screen as well, so I might have two screens besides the laptop, one attached via hdmi.

Right now I don't do video work. No gaming concerns for me. Photoshop and Lightroom the bulk of my work. 70,000 image Lr catalog. Large size photoshop files. Well near 1 gb sometimes with several layers.

If I buy the mbp with just the intel iris pro graphics card I'm thinking to upgrade processor to 2.5ghz. Will also upgrade ssd to 500gb. Or do I need, will I benefit from the nvidia card and card switching, dgpu?

I've just been reading about problems with the discrete graphics card version. Problems with freezing video, some with problems looking at certain websites via a browser firefox or safari. I wonder if that's only with older versions of the mbp.

And that the mbp with the dgpu, the nvidia gt 750m always uses that card when there is an external monitor attached. Creates additional heat for the computer.

Just looking for some advice before i hand over the cash. There is only 100 difference in price so in the end I'm not concerned about cost. Just want a computer to do what I need, do it well, and for me to have as few problems as possible. I do like to keep my computers a long time. This current mbp is seven years old in a month. The computer I had before that, a G4, lasted me eight years.

 

thanks for advice...
I also posted this on the lightroom forums chez adobe to see what kind of info I could get to help me out with a decision...

BobShaw

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #1 on: February 23, 2015, 05:44:46 pm »

Do you need to have a laptop? I have a 2010 MBP and it's great. It has PS and Lightroom (which I don't use), Aperture, Capture One, Phocus etc. Everything I need for the road and when I do  course with someone. However I would never do serious editing on it. I do that on my 27" iMac with Eizo attached. So 41" of screen real estate. You get 4 memory slots which are easy to change whereas on the MBP you only get two slots and they are difficult to change. If you do get a MBP then get the maximum RAM you can and a SSD.
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Joe Towner

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #2 on: February 23, 2015, 07:18:31 pm »

+1 on the 'does it need to be a laptop' but either way, do the dedicated graphics.  LR6 will leverage dedicated graphics better, I'm in the same boat deciding between the 15" rMBP or 5k iMac...
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Morris Taub

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #3 on: February 24, 2015, 02:16:20 am »

Bob, Joe...you both have me second guessing the laptop now. But I do want the convenience of being able to take my computer with me if I need to visit a client.

But. Nearly 100 percent of the time I use it as a desktop. I have a NEC 2690 wuxi attached to the laptop to do my editing on. I'd never use the laptop screen for image editing except for maybe keywording, rating, etc...

My fear, hesitation, about the imac route is reports of the screen getting discolored in areas, the possibility of it happening, due to heat from the computer parts behind it. I've read about it.

That's why I thought even closing the computer lid and attaching a second screen via the hdmi port, like an nec ea244wmi to use for palettes, browsing, email, would be a better idea. It would also be a matte screen. The big glossy screen of the imac does not appeal to me.

And for what it's worth, it seems to me that the guts of these recent macbook pro's contain powerful processors, and 16 gb of ram seems enough. Hell, I'm getting by with 6gb on my current macbook pro. Although I don't keep Lightroom and photoshop open at the same time. That can bog down my old laptop.

My hope, with 16gb of ram, would be me being able to run Lr and Photoshop at the same time. Even leave my mail program and a browser open. Still have the machine running the photo programs well. I also sometimes use Capture 1. I do ok now, even with only the 6gb or ram. I'm sure 16gb would make it sing.

I was just wondering about the need for the discrete gpu in the most expensive mbp model, the fact that it remains on all the time with external monitors attached, and its reliability. But like you mention Joe, it might make use of new abilities in Lr 6 for a lot more speed. We just don't really know yet.

Ken Bennett

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #4 on: February 24, 2015, 07:55:29 am »

I have a laptop as my primary computer at work, and I do appreciate the convenience of being able to just pick it up and go (and it fits inside my camera bag :) )

But I think if I were doing it again, I would get an iMac for actual processing and the cheapest Macbook Air to take to clients, etc.
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Paul2660

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #5 on: February 24, 2015, 02:40:03 pm »

I would wait till May, as the new refresh should be out and you might see 32GB of ram.  I would love that in a laptop.

I use the late 2013 2.6GB i7 version in my work, love it.  I purchased it with the 1TB drive.  I am mainly a windows user, and thus have a bootcamp partition on it.  Mac makes great laptops and they last.  Quality.  With the addition of USB3 Apple really has a great machine.

I don't see any difference in the Mid 2014 models with the 2.8Ghz processor, except the speed which is nominal.  If you want one now, you pick up the 2.6 late 2013 models at a very good price right now, and get the 1TB drive.

The new iMacs are nice also, but I need to be able to travel with a powerful machine. 

Paul


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BobShaw

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #6 on: February 24, 2015, 03:47:19 pm »

I don't even take the MBP to clients. I just add the keyword "customer" to the photos I want to show and they appear on my iPad when I sync.
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Morris Taub

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #7 on: February 26, 2015, 04:17:29 am »

Decided to wait ten days or so. See if the rumor of Lr 6 on 9 March happens. See if Adobe does in fact change up how Lr uses processor speed, gpu/cpu, ram, etc. to gain more speed. It would influence my decision. I do keep my computers a long time. Waiting a few days now won’t matter.

Ken. I am tempted by the iMac, but still feel put off by the glossy screen and the possibility of problems with it. Would rather go the macbook pro route. Add the matte screens I like. I like that flexibility. Adjustable height. And I can pick the size and quality of the screen I want. I’m also not tempted right now by apple’s 5k screen.

Paul. I’m one of those buyers who won’t buy a first version mac. And waiting on revision a/b etc. if a new version is released in May might have me waiting till the fall. Can’t wait that long. Also. How do you know May?

I am buying at education prices so I’m not really tempted by the refurbs available. But I will check ‘em out before I order.

Bob. I like that idea about sync my client images and have ‘em on the iPad when I need to have some portability, but don’t need the power of the mbp.

I still feel like I’m juggling a few things in my brain. Will wait to see if Lr is released and what new fangled stuff it serves up. 9 march is not that far off now.

Thanks kindly for all your input, experience. It does help.

Paul2660

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #8 on: February 26, 2015, 08:16:01 am »

Apple tends to 1 refresh on the laptops per year.

Last two were the late 2013 which bright the Haswell processor that maxed at 2.6 ghz. Then the mid 2014 which really only tweaked the Haswell speed to a max of 2.8ghz. I believe everything else was the same.  Yosemite started shipping around the arrival of the late 2014 models.

I picked up a mid 2013 2.6 ghz recently as they are now selling for pretty good discounts up to 650.00 off list. Since only the processor generation is the main difference I did nor feel I would notice a big difference in 2.6 and 2.8 ghz.

The next refresh should have a whole new processor generation still Intel.

Paul
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Hans Kruse

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #9 on: February 26, 2015, 08:43:55 am »

I use a very similar setup. I travel a lot for my workshops and have a late 2013 MBP 15" 2.3Ghz, 1TB SSD. I can run Lightroom and Photoshop CC at the time as all other apps I typically have open like mail, browsers, office apps. This MBP automatically has the extra graphics card. I have had zero problems with this setup since I got in January 2014. It runs not only rock stable but also very fast. Everything happens instantly, except, of course, preview generation in Lightroom and large exports.

This machine also supports a 4K display via the display port. Also two 2560x1600 displays via display port can be connected at the same time as the internal display. I use only one external display, a Dell 30" U3014. The retina screen in the MBP looks really good. It has some reflections which are not bad but I would have liked them not to be there. There is only one type of screen for the 15" MBP's. The reason I took the 1TB SSD is that I can have all my newer picture folders on the SSD while I'm working on them and I can work anywhere without an external drive hanging off the machine, which I hate. Older stuff I move off to an external LaCie thunderbolt drive I have in my office.

As said by others, wait until the refresh that perhaps will happen later in the year.

Morris Taub

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #10 on: April 11, 2015, 03:45:48 am »

In the end it looks like I will take your advice and wait for a refresh. Not because I wanted to. Waited on 9 march to see about announcements ready to order the mbp that day or a day after. But discovered that overnight Apple raised the price on the mbp 300 euros. Their price correction based on the weakening euro. So, I'm waiting till the next time i'm in the USA to buy. Probably May or June. Will save me about 600 euros between the price on the computer and apple care.

Thanks again for all your kind advice, user experience.

M

robertvine

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #11 on: April 14, 2015, 05:08:03 am »

I just bought a 15" MBP with dedicated graphics mostly because I got a larger SSD and slightly faster processor with the higher spec model. I don't have an integrated model to compare it against but it flies along compared to my 2011 model MBP. The biggest speed difference is in video rendering in Adobe Premiere so you might be able to save a few bucks with the integrated graphics model. In the end either one will be much faster than your current laptop and it's not like you will have the other model to compare against after you make the decision!
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NancyP

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #12 on: April 15, 2015, 10:26:56 am »

I have no idea if Broadwell chip (downsized fabrication) will make it past the 13" MBP. It is possible that the 15" MBPs may jump to Skylake (new architecture) directly from current Haswell (larger version of Broadwell). Skylake supposedly will run cooler than Haswell/Broadwell architecture. My mid-2010 MBP runs hot, which I find annoying.
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Conner999

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #13 on: April 18, 2015, 09:08:11 am »

I run a pair of late 2011 MBPs. One as main machine, one as backup and on location tethering. Wanted matte screen units that I could swap/upgrade storage on myself. Run combos of HDs and SSDs.  My main machine has 16GB and usually run with LR and CS6 open concurrently. 4Gb files (e.g > TIFF sizing) for me are not unusual. Both units are rock solid and fast, biggest issues are: RAM and fast external storage.  Processing grunt has never appeared as an issue for what I do.

However, I often am maxed out on RAM usage. I use a fast external SSD via Thunderbolt for scratch and a 2-disk 7.2K RPM Thunderbolt RAID 0 for working files (that's backed up every hour automatically JIC).  I could easily use 32GB of RAM and may upgrade to a faster RAID for working files. A move to a desktop unit with > RAM capacity may be necessary at some point, sadly, primarily because of the need for > 16GB.
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Morris Taub

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #14 on: May 19, 2015, 09:55:27 am »

Apple changed the dedicated gpu in the macbook pro today. It's now an amd R9 m370x. Does anyone know if this will work with LR6 processor accelaration? A quick look around doesn't provide much info on this card. Open gl3.3 compatible? thanks for any info. It's new so I'm guessing it's compatible. Would be good to know how it compares to the nvidia 750m card in the previous mbp.
« Last Edit: May 19, 2015, 09:57:24 am by Morris Taub »
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Hans Kruse

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #15 on: June 01, 2015, 07:53:29 am »

Yes, it is supported in Lightroom. I have this new MacBook pro.

laraaustin

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #16 on: June 11, 2015, 02:33:59 am »

iMac is the best

jnewell

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #17 on: June 12, 2015, 07:51:45 am »

iMac is the best

What kind of battery life do you get?  After you fold it for travel, does it unfold easily?
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Morris Taub

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Re: Which macbook pro for lightroom and photoshop?
« Reply #18 on: June 21, 2015, 12:07:24 pm »

Yes, it is supported in Lightroom. I have this new MacBook pro.

thanks Hans...2 June I went out and finally bought a macbook pro. the standard version with 512gb drive, 2.5ghz, and that recent change to an amd dedicated gpu.

Haven't hooked it all up yet. I've been away till today. Need to shut down programs, etc. Back up my hard drive. Get it all ready to migrate from old macbook pro to new.

Thanks for all the info.

Morris
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