Picasa 2

Google purchased Picasa and has now released version 2 of the free photo editing and organizing software. I've been scanning a ton of pictures lately and adding new ones off a new digital camera, so Picasa 2 came along at just the right moment for me.

First, the editing. Picasa isn't Photoshop, and thank God for that. Instead, it houses a number of powerful filters and effects behind a deceptively friendly interface. Controls are clearly labeled and their functionality readily apparent. Go ahead and try them out - Picasa allows each added edit to be removed in a stepped regression. The original is never over written by the program - you can only make the effects permanent by saving the edited picture as a copy, exporting it to a new folder, or sending it via email to someone.

Using both scanned prints and digital pics, I was able to give Picasa a healthy workout. In all but a few cases, flaws in exposure or color balance could be corrected without giving the photo an unnaturally altered appearance. Those that vexed the program wound up in Corel, where the results were only marginally better after much tinkering.

Organization. Here Picasa really shines. Files can be organized into folders which can be grouped into collections. Individual pictures can be labeled (a la Gmail) and captioned, moved and copied between folders and collections. Picasa will scan all folders on your computer that you specify for picture files and create a database, and will do so in real time if you want. Individual folders and entire directories can be easily excluded. Collections can also be locked by passwords.

I found that using Picasa helped me find a bunch of image files I had forgotten about, most of them crap ready to be deleted, but a few were worth keeping. Bear in mind that Google now owns this company and software, for everything is searchable by a variety of keywords - very damn handy as your picture collection grows. Pictures can be emailed via your favorite email program or Gmail, and uploaded to your blog as well, if you have one.

There are many other features in the program, some of which took me some time to find. I've used dozens of freeware image programs, like Irfanview, XnView, and Poweralbums, but none of those are as flexible and integrated as Picasa. Using it in conjunction with Flickr, I can only say that there is a certain compatibility between the two. Perhaps Google is in the market for another acquisition? :)