Sep 24 2003
iView Media Pro 2.0
iPhoto for big kids.
iView Media Pro is not a new application. It has grown over the years from humble shareware beginnings to a top-of-the-line catalog application.
iView uses catalogs to impose order on your graphic and movie files from your camera all the way to final output on a contact sheet, website or movie. There is support for over 100 file types, including vector formats. iView is fast, too. I catalogued an entire CD of images in less than a minute on a G4 tower.
This application pulls all kind of data from your files, including date, time and even exposure information from your camera (EXIF data). Media Pro has numerous display options and fast searching of any file aspect you can think of.
A new PDF Maker allows you to arrange contact sheets picture by picture, or in bulk. Onboard image-editing tools let you reduce red eye, optimize contrast and more. MediaPro also features color management controls.
All in the family
iView Media comes in several flavors. Many of the features mentioned above are Pro only. For an in-depth comparison, refer to their web site. In a nutshell, iView Media (minus the Pro) basically handles and creates catalogues, while Pro has more advanced export options.
Let’s not overlook the newest member of the family, the free catalogue viewer. Like iView Media, the free viewer is available for Mac and PC and allows you basically read-only access to iView Media catalogues.
The price gap on the Pro version seems a little large, though you can download a demo before you plunk down your cash. That’s really the only draw-back I was able to find.
iView Media is $29.95, Pro is $160 with a boxed option.