Workstations for
Photo Editing

At Puget Systems, we understand that photo editing requires high-performance computers that can keep up with your creative demands. Part of our mission is to test and validate the industry’s most popular photography applications, verifying that those programs run properly and that our computer configurations are optimized for both smooth editing and quick execution of batch processing. We conduct extensive testing to ensure that our workstations use the right hardware for the job so you can rest assured that our systems run smoothly.

Then we use a combination of our own benchmark results, input from professional photographers, and the knowledge our consulting team has developed over the years to create high-performance workstations for editors who require fast, reliable processing. Our recommendations are shared freely because we believe in contributing back to the community.

The bulk of the load for a photo editing PC rests on the processor, so that is a very important selection. Equally important is ensuring the processor has enough memory (RAM) to work with when editing. If you run low on memory, both Windows and editing programs (like Photoshop) will start to use hard drive space instead, which is incredibly slower. Even with enough RAM, drive speed continues to play a role. The performance offered by solid-state drives is particularly beneficial for the OS and applications, while traditional hard drives are still a viable choice for mass storage of pictures and other data.

The video card plays a less vital role here than in applications like gaming or 3D design, but it is worth getting a card with a healthy amount of onboard video memory (VRAM) if you are using recent versions of Photoshop or Lightroom. You will also want to pay attention to the number of monitors supported and what connections are available, and if you have a high-end screen, it may be worth looking for features such as support for 10-bit color gamut. For this task, the monitor is really the more important part in the graphics chain. A monitor with good viewing angles, evenly distributed backlighting, and plenty of options to adjust color reproduction is key in helping ensure that what you see on the screen translates accurately to real life.