I want to shoot in RAW but am afraid of the post processing.

[PhotosbyMJ]

What program should I use to process my RAW images? I'd prefer to use either the software that came with my camera, or a program I can download off the internet that's free. What works best that doesn't cost a fortune AND is easy to use given that I'm not that computer savvy?

[ScottyP]

The DPP that comes with the camera is said by some to make slightly better RAW conversions than 3rd party programs like Lightroom. It does not have quite the functionality of Lightroom though.

I don't know about the free ones, but some are web based so you may be slowed by the Internet connection. But free is free.

[jrhoffman75]

You don't need to be computer savvy these days to use modern software. However, some software interfaces are more user friendly than others.

Canon DPP, which came free with your camera, is a pretty good program to start with. It's not the most powerful, but if you are just starting out it is a good start. You can download the latest version from the Anon support website.

Look here: http://www.learn.usa.canon.com/galleries/galleries/tutorials/dpp_tutorials.shtml

Adobe Lightroom is generally accepted as the top post processing program. You can download it for free for a 30 day trial.

Adobe offers a Photographer's Plan where you can rent Lightroom and Photoshop for $10 a month.

[ebiggs1]

Way better, IMHO of course, is Photoshop Elements.  It is not free but you can find deals on it but if not it really isn't too expensive.  For the amateur or advanced amateur it is far better than DPP (free included software) and even Lightroom.

Lightroom is designed more for a person that takes 1000's and 10,000's of photos.  It has limited editing featuers.

PSE is also more user friendly that full blown Photoshop.  Which you can not purchase any longer as it must be rented from Abode on a monthly basis.

There is the free Gimpshop but it is the least user friendly of the bunch and has a steep learning curve.  But it is free.

Lightzone is a free copy-cat version of Lightroom.

But when you are ready for the best photo editing and RAW conversion software there is, there is nothing at the top except Photoshop.

[hsbn]

You can use PICASA from Google. It's a great program, easy to use, tons of beginner features.
http://picasa.google.com/

You can also try Lightzone. It's FREE and easy to learn with a great online community where you can learn.
http://www.lightzoneproject.org/

[RobertTheFat]

---

@PhotosbyMJ wrote:

What program should I use to process my RAW images? I'd prefer to use either the software that came with my camera, or a program I can download off the internet that's free. What works best that doesn't cost a fortune AND is easy to use given that I'm not that computer savvy?

---

Digital Photo Professional, which I believe comes free with the 60D, meets almost all of my needs. Unaccountably, it doesn't include redeye correction, so I use Irfanview for that.

Version 4 of DPP includes some additional features not found in Version 3. But for reasons Canon has not revealed, it works only on files generated by a full-frame camera. (It's also a bit buggy, and its user interface is a daunting jumble. It's a potentially valuable upgrade, but not quite ready for prime time.)