Renewing my Photoshop subscription every year has become a difficult expense to justify. When reviewing the monthly cost, I wondered if I really needed so much power. The answer came when exploring the tools already on my Mac: the Photos app, Preview, and the built-in image editor. These native options cover color adjustments, cropping, and basic retouching at no extra cost. For everyday tasks, they are more than enough.
Apple's native tools for image editing 🖼️
The Photos app allows you to adjust exposure, contrast, and saturation with precise sliders. Preview lets you resize, remove backgrounds with the instant selection tool, and add annotations. The built-in editor, accessible from the preview menu, allows you to rotate, straighten, and apply basic filters. These features, although limited compared to Photoshop, solve 90% of daily needs without relying on external software or paying subscriptions.
When your Mac tells you: stop paying, buddy 💸
Now I look at Photoshop layers like an expensive ex-boyfriend who insists on calling. The Photos app doesn't ask for my credit card or remind me that my free trial has ended. Sure, I can't clone objects with artificial intelligence or make portraits of space unicorns, but for cropping my cat's photo or adjusting the brightness of a dinner, the Mac already had the solution. And all without feeling like I'm being charged for the very air.