Photo Retouching and Processing on a Budget. What Programs to use when Starting Out!

So here is the deal. I have had several friends ask me what to use when it comes to touching up a photo or manipulating a photo. I can tell you what every pro is going to say" Use photoshop". Photoshop is the best program out there right now and it has been that way for several years. The problem is that if you are starting out, you might not want to spend a ton of money on the program. It's quite expensive. So, Here is what I would do. I would start out using Picassa. It is a free program that Google offers. Type "picassa" into your search engine and you can download it for free. The news out there is that there will be a new version of picassa out soon. Look for it and download it.

Picassa is not the best but it will get you started and excited about retouching. You can really spruce up a photo using this program.

Now, If you have a little bit of money, go to Ebay and buy an older version of Adobe Photoshop.
I picked up an older version of photoshop delux for $5 about a year ago. The older versions of photoshop don't have all the new bells and whistles but $5 is chump change compared to what you will spend on a new version. They still are a step up from most programs and will give you more options to use(and learn).
Anyway, this is my advice. It's free, but i think it's good.

Here is a photo touched up in picassa and then worked on a bit more in Adobe Photoshop Delux version #2

Here is the original Notice the difference?LOL

Like always, don't forget to let me know if there is something you need info on or if I need to clarify something better.

Thanks for stopping by my site!