Pixelmator [Trial]

I'm really into art programs right now. It's hard for me to find one that has what I need, looks good, and works well on my Mac. I've tried FireAlpaca and Pinta, but neither have been incredibly successful for me. I like FireAlpaca more, and contrary to popular belief, Pinta isn't that much of a Paint.NET dupe as one would believe. Corel Painter sent me high and flying, but I felt that I needed something less complicated. Beautiful as it is, Corel Painter is quite a mouthful. So what could possibly fill that void?

The answer came to me through an extensive Google search, Pixelmator photo editor.

This is the trial start menu. Even something so simple is sleek and inviting. Call me superficial, but something like this is really important to me as it promises as similar looking interface.

Main menu and custom canvas. As you can see with the canvas set up, the edges are actually rounded. Everything has rounded edges; it's just the way I snapped them that makes the first two screencaps rather sharp. Trust me, it's a lot smoother.

(click the photo for full size or click here)

My canvas size is rather small, but you see what I'm dealing with here. The program comes with a variety of tools and options. If you've used art programs before, then you know the basic short cuts to get you by (B for Brush, C for Crop, Ctrl+Z, and so on). The layout is beautiful; the console is easy to understand, and actually, I felt very encouraged to look around at everything and to try out all of the effects.

I love this program 100%. It's becoming a favourite, and I can do everything I need to do quickly and efficiently. I haven't had any problems as far as saving or file compression goes, and I love that merging the layers is so easy. (There are also different options for creating a new layer as well, ooh the possibilities.)

Pixelmator has so many ups to it, and as far as I have seen, it doesn't have many downs. If you're a Mac user and you're looking for options, I would get nice and comfortable with this program.

Head to the official website for your trial, and if you fall in love with it after thirty days (or even sooner), you can buy it from the iTunes/Apple store. And remember, tell 'em GDR sent you.