Whenever a new version of an important program comes out, the need for it, depending on the changes, can run the spectrum--from it's-revolutionary, got-to-have-it-now to ho-hum, I-can-wait-for-the-next-revision. Adobe Photoshop CS5, the latest version that's sold both individually and as part of Adobe Creative Suite 5, falls between those two extremes ($699 for Standard stand-alone, $1299 for Creative Suite 5 Design Standard; upgrade pricing available).We reviewed a beta.

Photoshop is a mature program that is already an indispensable component of everyday business for photographers and graphics professionals. What sets Photoshop CS5 apart isn't any one killer app but dozens of refinements that will make users' lives easier, more efficient, and, potentially, more creative.
Interface: Everything Is Where It Should Be... Plus More

Photoshop CS5's interface remains comfortably familiar, though slightly changed--and more efficient to use. For instance, the revamped Workspace switcher is no longer buried in the Window drop-down menu. Instead, it is always immediately available at the top of the screen to the right of the Ribbon Bar. What's more, if you make changes to any Workspace (such as Photography) and then switch to another (such as Painting), when you return to Photography, those changes will be retained.

Adobe Photoshop CS5 Mini-Bridge optionsThe most significant workflow improvement to the interface is the introduction of Mini-Bridge. Essentially, it's a palette (or panel) within Photoshop that's really a window onto Bridge, allowing full access to all your image files without having to leave Photoshop. As with the full Bridge, you can choose different display options, depending upon what information you need or want: Thumbnails, As Filmstrip, Details, or List. And as before, if you need the full functionality of Bridge, just click on the BR icon, either within the Mini-Bridge palette or at the top of the screen.

The other noticeable (albeit trivial) change to the interface is that the appearance of many of the toolbox icons is different. While the shapes remain the same (for instance, the Clone tool icon is still a rubber stamp), they're redrawn.
Advances in Camera RAW

One of Photoshop CS5's most important changes is in the new noise reduction algorithms in Camera RAW 6. It now has sliders for both Luminance and Color Noise. However, it wasn't fully implemented in the beta version we tested, so our judgment has to be based on demonstrations by Adobe, which made it look quite good.

If your creative instincts lean toward filmlike texturing, the new FX tab in Camera RAW will add grain or vignetting.

By the way, Camera RAW 6 and Lightroom 3 are now better coordinated, since they both use the same RAW conversion. This means that you'll no longer have conflicts and be forced to choose between the two. Camera Raw 6 will not be available for anyone who is using earlier Creative Suite software than CS5.Fun Creativity

Let's face it: Photoshop is more than just a workaday tool, it's a platform for pushing your creativity as far as you can. And CS5's latest add-ons for creativity make playing with your pictures even more of an adventure.

Adobe has boosted Photoshop's Paint Brushes (including the Clone tool) in customizability and responsiveness--especially with control over Bristles--bringing them a bit closer to the painterly functionality of Corel Painter. The new Mixer Brush interacts with the colors on the picture. You can choose to work with (virtual) wet or dry paints, and wet or dry canvas, and you can set whether (and how much) the brush loads (picks up) color from the canvas, and when the brush should remain clean (with no loading or removing of paint that was loaded).

Control over Bristle number, size, thickness, stiffness, and behavior provides a good variety of styling. While it takes practice to master color and paint loading, you may find this feature somewhat addictive to experiment with. Photoshop remains tightly integrated with Wacom tablets, so that it supports pressure sensitivity when painting with the Bristle and other brushes.

The new Puppet Warp is an entirely different kind of creative tool. It allows you to place control points on your image, as though you were tying puppet strings to it. Then you can push and pull the shape as you wish. It works best when the background doesn't get caught into the "strings." As such, before proceeding you'll need to select the object you want to reshape and paste it into its own layer.
High Dynamic Range

Responding to the growing interest in high dynamic range (HDR) images, and to the fact that some of the better photo printers are now able to output their heightened tonality, Photoshop CS5 offers features called HDR-Pro and HDR Toning.

While CS4 had HDR capabilities, CS5's HDR-Pro offers enhanced options and new algorithms. The various controls--such as a Curve tool and sliders for adjusting Vibrance, Saturation, Exposure, Detail, and more--provide more precise, highly creative control over the dynamics, so you can create very personalized results, from the subtle to the dramatic. The auto deghosting works well at removing artifacts caused by slight differences among the merged photos, such as a tree branch that might have rustled. You can choose which of your original images is to be used as the defining reference to resolve visual conflicts, such as a cloud that might have changed shape between frames. Find a style that you'll want to use again? You can save the settings as a custom preset.

Adobe Photoshop CS5 HDR ToningOne of the problems with HDR is that it requires that you have a series of nearly identical photos, taken at various exposures. The new HDR Toning in CS5 allows you to emulate HDR, using a single image. The controls are quite similar to HDR-Pro, and the tool provides a high degree of creative potential. Unfortunately, though HDR Toning is an Adjustment, it isn't part of the Adjustment Layer architecture; the effect works only on a single-layer image and will merge down into the original image.