What Program?

I was wondering what programs folks like to use around here to create their own labels? I would love to start creating my own labels to slap on a few bottles to give away to friends as "Keep Sake's" if you will.

I do have Gimp, but learning to use it is like trying to learn ancient Hebrew. I keep telling myself it is better to just learn it myself so I wont be dependant on anyone else.... easier to get stuff done that way....lol

I may consider purchasing Photo Shop if it truly is that much easier to use, but don't want to spend all that cash if unnessary.

Thanks for any input....

Stick with GIMP. Photoshop is freakin' expensive and the GUI is almost identical. Plus, anything Adobe is bloated nearly beyond control.
GIMP is no harder, but you need to spend a little time with the tutorials to really get a handle on where to start. Once you get the hang of the basics, it is an unbelievably powerful program.

PhotoShop sure is expensive for a "Label" maker.

Just stick with the GIMP and use the cash for something else.

Thanks for the input. Looks like I'll just stick with GIMP.... Once I get that down I will have to pick up ancient Hebrew just for "Shiggles"......lol

Give Inkscape a try; it's free. For me, as a total non-artist, drawing with vectors is a lot easier, more forgiving, and just makes more sense.

I am in the same spot as you. I have used Photoshop for a long time, but no longer have a license and never did anything artsy with it anyway. The combination of GIMP and Inkscape seems to be the best option. The tutorials really help a lot. Then ask questions here...

Good luck!

Cool! Never heard of Incscape before. Thanks for the heads up on it. learn something new every day.....

i use adobe illustrator. you could try inkscape as its the free alternative

i like doing stuff in vector art as it can be scaled up really big without loosing quality (so long as any photos used are high resolution)

For making labels, you should really be using Illustrator or freeware alternative. I guess Photoshop or free alternative is fine if you are just putting text on a picture. If you want to use vector graphics, it will look much better with Illustrator.

Edcculus said:

If you want to use vector graphics, it will look much better with Illustrator.

Click to expand...

Lots of people say that, but I've never seen the proof. A vector is a vector is a vector. Given the choice between the two, I'd take photoshop every time.

its a pain to work on labels that are high resolution in photoshop in my opinion. and if they are low res they look like crap once printed.

How so? I never have any trouble, I just zoom in and out as needed. But then again I've always found Adobe interfaces cloogy in general and Illustrator doubly so. I'd just rather have a program that does both than one that only does vectors for the same money.

Not that you can tell from my quick-n-dirty labels, but I do a halfway decent amount of vector work in PS. Never had any print quality issues whatsoever.

i'm not saying you can't....i just find a computer bogs down a bit more working in photoshop than in illustrator when working with really large files. vector art allows the file to stay nice and compact. it all depends on the intended use of the file though. if you know it will always be a label and no larger you are probably fine. i've just had things come back to bite me during my years as a web and graphic designer. make something small in photoshop and want to enlarge it later but no way to do that since its all raster.

The problem there is not Photoshop but the fact that you're working with raster in photoshop instead of vectors. Apples and oranges.

But to each his own, I suppose.

right...like i said...."i like doing stuff in vector art". the program is really irrelevant, but illustrator lends itself to vector work more so than photoshop

Right, and I disagree that Illustrator lends itself better to vectors.

Like I said, I keep hearing comments being bandied about like "Photoshop print quality is bad" or "Photoshop is hard to work with for logos" or "it will look better if you do it in illustrator." Nonsense. That's like saying, "This Ferrari is OK, but the Lambo is much faster" when you've never taken the Italian Stallion out of granny gear. You've no true point of comparison.

It's irksome is all. A vector is a vector is a vector. Photoshop does them just as well as Illustrator. Anyone who tells you different is trying to sell you something.

we'll have to agree to disagree on that point....i'd never use photoshop to do a project that is exclusively vector, just like i'd never use illustrator to do a project that is exclusively raster.

if its a combo of both types of art then either may do the job but one will tend to be better than the other.

choose the best tool for the job.

Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't Illustrator a software designed specifically for Vector imaging? If it isn't easier for creating and editing vectors than the raster based PS, then they did a real sh!tty job. I don't care either way, but I have a hard time believing that they have the same utility...

Photoshop for the image and Illustrator for text

Boerderij_Kabouter said:

Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't Illustrator a software designed specifically for Vector imaging? If it isn't easier for creating and editing vectors than the raster based PS, then they did a real sh!tty job. I don't care either way, but I have a hard time believing that they have the same utility...

Click to expand...

Not the same... comparable. Think about it. Photoshop costs about $700. Photoshop and Illustrator together cost about $1400. They didn't do a crappy job, they did a brilliant job. I have yet to see anyone explain to me exactly how Illustrator is better at vectors, but somehow everyone seems to know that Illustrator is the tool to use for vector drawings. Brilliant.

But as is evident from this thread, I'm just a crazy guy talking crazy talk. What do I know.

Scott, yeah, absolutely. I know we're going to disagree on the point, no worries. But I gotta make the argument I make, ya know?

I use Illustrator for my labels because it's better suited for the kind of artwork that I do. For bottle labels, you're not going to see quality differences between Photoshop and Illustrator.

I'm curious though, are there pathfinder tools in Photoshop?

there are pathfinder tools in photoshop i just find them to be a bit more restrictive than illustrator's

Photoshop and Illustrator exist for raster and Vector graphics respectively.

As with all Adobe products, there is sever overlap, which is intended for situations requiring both forms of graphic work.

However, Photoshop is much more heavily equipped to deal with Rasterized graphics, as is the toolset for Illustrator more suited for work with Vector graphics.

Ask anyone who designs on a daily basis and they will tell you that Illustrator is highly equipped for dealing with Vector art, and Photoshop is highly equipped for dealing with Raster art.

As a necessity, both can handle a portion of both raster and vector art.

But I have never met a designer that uses illustrator to touch up photos, or Photoshop to create logos.

It's almost all Vector based art for the sake of being able to edit and scale without Raster limitations. Photoshop can do this, but Illustrator can do it faster and better.

But in the end it's just a tool and is subject to how YOU use it.

i use inkscape, and sometimes i import raster graphics i made with gimp

Allright folks, settle down. You like Illustrator for vectors because you think it's better, faster, cooler, industry standard, whatever. Fine. All of those things are opinions. Well, wait, the industry standard part is a fact, but the rest are opinions.

Here are some facts that I think everyone who wants to know what program to get for making labels should know:

1. You can create vector graphics in Photoshop.
2. You can create raster graphics in Photoshop.
3. You can create an image that combines both rasterized elements and vector drawings in Photoshop.
4. The print quality of a vector drawing created in Photoshop is no different than that of one created in Illustrator.
5. There are no print quality issues whatsoever inherent to Photoshop. Any print quality issues you experience in Photoshop are likely the result of improper image resolution for the print size.
6. There are no overall quality differences whatsoever between images created in Photoshop and those created in Illustrator. Any you see are a result of your process.
7. Photoshop alone costs half of what Photoshop & Illustrator together cost.


I am not a graphic designer. I am just a crazy guy who designs both raster and vector graphics on a weekly basis both for myself and for my job. I have used Photoshop extensively for this purpose, and never touch Illustrator despite the fact that I have both on my machine.

These guys seem to be professional graphic designers. Professional graphic designers tend to do a LOT of vector work, and vector work can be done faster in Illustrator. Note that I said faster. Faster does not imply better. A professional brewer uses professional tools, and can brew 14bbl as fast as I can brew 5 gallons, but that doesn't make the beer any better. For my money, I'd rather have my 5 gallon system and keep the $80k difference between that and the pro system in my bank account.

Take all that for what it's worth, but make sure you understand the truth about vector graphics, print quality, and photoshop before you buy anything, because there's a lot of outright falsehood being slung about.

I'm not initiating any back and forth here, but...

I know that you "dont touch" Illustrator and use Photoshop for Vector art, and that's totally fine, but for someone thinking about which product to buy, I would purchase Illustrator over Photoshop for the following reasons:

- There are already capable, free raster editors out there (GIMP)
- Illustrator is designed to handle Vector graphics from the ground up
- Illustrator is the industry standard and will afford you greater flexibility

When in doubt, download both trials and look up some of the million tutorials that are out there. But if you are interested in logo work, my opinion is that Illustrator is hands down more flexible.

That said, you can also make logos in MSPaint or hand draw them.

It's just a tool.

Edit - Nothing wrong with doing it in Photoshop, but if you've got Illy laying around you might give it a shot

0202 said:

Photoshop and Illustrator exist for raster and Vector graphics respectively.

As with all Adobe products, there is sever overlap, which is intended for situations requiring both forms of graphic work.

However, Photoshop is much more heavily equipped to deal with Rasterized graphics, as is the toolset for Illustrator more suited for work with Vector graphics.

Ask anyone who designs on a daily basis and they will tell you that Illustrator is highly equipped for dealing with Vector art, and Photoshop is highly equipped for dealing with Raster art.

As a necessity, both can handle a portion of both raster and vector art.

But I have never met a designer that uses illustrator to touch up photos, or Photoshop to create logos.

It's almost all Vector based art for the sake of being able to edit and scale without Raster limitations. Photoshop can do this, but Illustrator can do it faster and better.

But in the end it's just a tool and is subject to how YOU use it.

Click to expand...

This is exactly what I was trying to say. For personal use, it really doesn't make a difference. I know everyone has the program they like to use. Thats fine. Illustrator does not have the tools to edit pictures. Photoshop does not have the tools to correctly and easily make vector graphics.

You will not really see any quality issues. Files are just much easier to setup in Illustrator for print. Lets say your label is 3X4. You are printing off of your home computer on 8.5X11 20# Bond. You are printing 50 labels. Are you going to print out the 50 labels on 50 single sheets of paper? No. You will fit it 6 up. Therefore, you only have to use about 9 sheets. It is MUCH easier to step and repeat in Illustrator than in Photoshop. When your logo is complete, you can group it and use the copy and move feature to move it over twice and down three times. Select all six images, click the center on page button and BAM, your file is ready to print. If you were doing this in photoshop, you would have to worry about them all being separate layers and all kinds of other crap.