Support for Indie Authors discussion

I've been making my own covers on a very weak program. I would rather make them then pay for someone else to do it.
BUT! I need a new program, and it has to be downloadable or membership (obviously, I realize it will cost money for that.)
What's your recommendations? I hear photoshop is good, BUT will it do everything I need it to?

I hear Gimp is a great program for that and it's free.

I use the less expensive Photoshop Elements and it does everything I need. Used copies (I use an older, 8.0 version) are super-cheap on eBay. In the meantime, f you need any quick (empahsis on quick/minor) touchups/text formatting for free, just drop me a line here.

As an illustrator/cover designer, I use Photoshop and I would be lost without it. I would say it would definitely do the job for you, but it's probably not a necessary purchase if you only need to use it occasionally. I pay a monthly fee for the Photoshop CC package, which means I always have access to the latest version. (It's also easier than paying for the whole program outright, as it spreads the cost.)

As suggested, GIMP is free and does all of the things you would need from Photoshop to get a cover created. It's marginally less user friendly (I think) but there's plenty of online help out there. Just watch out for odd search results when you start googling for GIMP assistance!

I also have a Wacom tablet and pen. More than the software (Photoshop, GIMP), the tablet/pen is the thing that allows me to do my best work. Whether you need one or not would depend on the amount of manipulation or artwork you need to do, but I would be lost without them. There are super, touch screen versions out there, but I have a (relatively) cheap Intuos model and it does most of the things I need it to do.

As Jon has said, I think that Photoshop would do everything that you need. That said, it does seem to come with a rather hefty monthly subscription, which is a pity. As both he and G.G. have noted, GIMP is free, and you can use it to create a cover readily enough, although it isn't exactly an intuitive program, and I wouldn't pretend that I've fully got to grips with it yet. If you haven't yet used GIMP, I'd recommend downloading it and trying it out before committing yourself to a Photoshop subscription.

Oh, by the way, most of the covers displayed on my author page are my old pre-GIMP ones that I've since updated, so don't let their appearance put you off using the program :-)

Photoshop is great, but it can be complicated. After two years of using it, I feel like I have only scratched the surface of what this program can do. I use a combination of programs. The base design is done in Microsoft Publisher. I like the program because it's like I have a large design board. I can move elements into the design or off to the side. I use Photoshop when I need to redesign or alter a photo and even the Paint program on occasion. Once the design is complete, I save as a jpg, then open it Photoshop, convert it to a CMYK color profile, then save as a photoshop PDF. Once I started adding this last step I have not had any color shifts in the printing of my covers either by Createspace or Ingram Sparks. If you pull up my website you will see a number of covers. These were created, using a combination of Publisher and Photoshop.

Jon wrote: "As an illustrator/cover designer, I use Photoshop and I would be lost without it. ..."

Me too. I also love my Wacom tablet--still works after all these years, although they no longer release updated drivers for the model I have. It makes things like masking hair or other complex objects much easier.

I use several Adobe apps in my daily work, and find them indispensable. However, GIMP is a reasonable alternative for folks who aren't designers.

For something even simpler, I've heard a lot of authors recommend Canva. I played around with it a while back, but it was too simplistic for my tastes.

Currently, I'm using PicArt. It does alright, but not enough. It's so limited.
I used to use photoshop back when it was the norm to have a boxed monitor screen. It's been a while 😬.
So all in all, these are good recommendations. I'll try out the downloadable one first. Thanks everyone!

I use Paint.NET. It's free and it takes a little getting used to, but I love it.

I use Canva.com to build cover files for my novels in Createspace. I have not done anything complicated, but I have been pleased with the results.

I'm not worried about how complicated it can be. I'm more worried about if it will do everything I want it to.

Photoshop for me. Do have have specific tasks that you are worried it will not do?

I haven't used photoshop since I was a teen. I have no idea what it's like now, so I thought I'd reach out. I'm comfortable with the more complicated works but I really want it to be downloadable. Can you download photoshop?
Mainly, I just wanted to see what book cover makers were using. My PicsArt is so limited and I never am satisfied because of its limitations. I need something that's downloadable and can take cover making a step farther. I'm constantly on my PicsArt so I'm not worried about membership fees for programs. It would get used often.

I use Photoshop and In-design. They can deff be complicated. Thankfully, you can learn anything from YouTube. They have a ton of tutorials. It's my go-to if i'm having issues.

And yes, you can download Photoshop. They charge monthly or yearly now. But you can have basically the whole suite.

Just throwing in another vote for GIMP and noting that as a former Photoshop user, I actually find GIMP to be a bit more user friendly instead if the other way around. I would also suggest Inkscape if you're doing any design elements by hand. It's a great free drawing program.

On the super simple side (for ebook covers only), I use Pixlr and Pixel Lab, which are both apps I use on my phone. I've done all of my short story covers this way.

This is all so helpful. Thank you guys and gals so much!

I love the Adobe suite! Photoshop and Illustrator are so useful. They take some getting used to, but are worth it. I've also had really great luck with Pixelmator, which is much less expensive.

I will swear by GIMP until I'm blue in the face, then keep it up until I'm dead.

I've used it for pretty much every single art project I've done since the early '00s (this includes all of my book covers, both for digital and print). And, not only is it a free program, but it is equipped to use certain photoshop add-ons like brushes and textures.

I use Photoshop myself for all my artwork and I'd say that it definitely has everything you'd need for book covers and more, but I'd also agree the price makes it a tough sell, and it can be very complicated for beginners. Maybe try one of the free programs like Gimp and see if it has what you need, or look into a free trial of Photoshop or Illustrator to see if that might be better suited for you before taking the plunge and paying for it.

Gimp is excellent.

Thanks V.M.

I use Paint.net for everything I make. It did take a while to get used to it, but I also never used a program like that before so... lol that's probably why. It's also free and anytime I wanna figure out how to do something new/different I google it and the forum for Paint.net and/or YouTube videos are so helpful!

I second that. I have found that the free Paint.Net is really a good tool for cover designs. Moreover, there are plenty of help in internet for it. Also, there are many effects and filters available that can be downloaded to have similar effects as in the regular adobe photoshop or other professional tools.

I'd like to add that befunky is a nice, online photo editor with a lot of nice filters and things (both free and paid). I don't know that it's all that great for building your covers, but if you want to add a little more punch to them once you have, it's a nice way to get it done without having to take a whole lot of time.

I just creep to my friends. Works for me...

My sister who has actual artistic talent makes my covers with GIMP and I sometimes play around with it as well. She edits the images with GIMP and then I save as a jpeg and use MS Publisher to add the titles. This method works well for me.

I also find GIMP is easier to use than inkscape, which was mentioned above. And it has a lot of functionality built into it that we have not yet learned to use, so I'm confident it would have what you need for most projects. And as others have mentioned there are many tutorials out there that can be really helpful if you're not afraid of the complicated side of things.

I use GIMP (well, Corel Painter now but only because it came free with my art tablet) for images and Inkscape for font design. Inkscape can be pretty finicky but it has a lot of effects that can help make your title more interesting. And exploring the different things you can do with GIMP is just plain fun.

I'm a cover artist and author. I use Photoshop for all my covers. It can be tricky to learn but there are alot of tutorials online. I'm not sure if the Adobe programs are downloadable though.

If you have a mac, I have created several book covers with Affinity Design. I like it as a program.

Rachelle wrote: "***"

Not what the OP asked

If you have an artistic flare for making covers but no Photoshop you can find a site and download CS2 for free. I have it on my computers and works fine.


Of course, there is Canva which I just discovered and it works well too.

Please remove the links from your post or it will be deleted. For everyone's safety, we don't allow posting links of any kind.

Boowah ha HA!! I use PowerPoint, yes the devil's creation.

It's a wonderful compendium of bit-map and vector graphics that can accept almost any font you want to download. I've even made my own fonts in PP.

Okay, confession, I use PS Elements for it's clone stamp and erase capabilities. Could use Gimp for the same thing.

P.M. me and I'll point you to a blog post with some fun PP hacks.

Canva is quite fun. I do a lot with it, but nowt too technical