An estimated 22 million digital cameras will be in use by the end of the year. By 2005, that figure could grow to 81 million. No wonder Adobe (800/833-6687, www.adobe.com ) wants to take advantage of the exploding consumer demand for digital imaging products with Photoshop Elements. “The digital-camera customer was thought of throughout the development process of this product,” says Mark Dahm, Adobe product manager.
The $99 Photoshop Elements replaces the similarly priced Photoshop LE. It offers many of the features found in the $609 Photoshop, including the History palette, layers, and an optimization window for saving Web graphics. But the new program also has a user-friendly interface — think Microsoft Office — that includes a Hints palette with tips for different tools. A Recipes feature offers step-by-step instructions for specific tasks such as color-correcting photographs.