If you are in the early stages of exploring different types of content creation or just looking to save a little money before investing in professional software such as Adobe’s Creative Cloud (which will cost around £50 / month for the complete suite), here are a few examples of free to use examples based upon their nearest equivalent in Creative Cloud (noting that these free to use equivalents may lack the sophistication offered in purchase / subscription based solutions):
Photo editing
Photopea is a free online photo editing tool with the ability to edit camera RAW and Photoshop layers within PSD files. It can also read and write Adobe Illustrator, XD and PDF files as well as seamlessly connecting with Dropbox, Google Drive and Photopea’s very own PeaDrive. It was created as a labour of love by Ivan Kutskir, a programmer from Prague in the Czech Republic who has been working on the Photopea project since 2012.
Alternative to: Adobe Photoshop
Link: photopea.com
Video Editing
DaVinci Resolve is a highly respected and capable piece of software created by Black Magic Design. The free editor can be upgraded to DaVinci Resolve Studio software for $295 which then adds additional effects and functionality including stereoscopic tools, filters and Fairlight FX. As an alternative to Premier Pro and a piece of software providing a satisfying array of tools for video producers of all levels, this is worth a look.
Alternative to: Adobe Premier Pro
Link: blackmagicdesign.com/products/davinciresolve
Illustration
Inkscape has many similar features to Adobe Illustrator and according to the FAQs natively supports different formats including SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics), SVGZ (gzipped SVG), PDF, EPS, and AI (Adobe Illustrator) formats. Inkscape can also import CorelDraw and Visio files. Find out more about the Inkscape project by viewing their key features here: https://inkscape.org/about/features/
Alternative to: Adobe Illustrator
Link: inkscape.org
Desktop Publishing
Scribus is a free Desktop Publishing software package providing a strong alternative to InDesign and QuarkXpress (though the later is used less these days as people move to the Creative Cloud subscription service). If you are just looking to create a simple poster or leaflet then Inkscape might be best tool, but for a magazine or brochure check out Scribus.
Alternative to: Adobe InDesign
Link: scribus.net
Audio
Audacity is a free audio recording and editing software package providing a strong alternative to Adobe Audition (formerly known as Cool Edit Pro). Supports high quality recording formats and even VST plugins to enable you to record, mix and produce your podcast, song or video soundtrack.
Alternative to: Adobe Audition
Link: audacityteam.org
