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OWC Mercury Elite Pro - Professional Grade Drives for Your Storage Needs.

Lloyd's recommendations for:
SSD • Hard drives • Memory
from trusted vendor OWC

For reviews, please visit:
Mac Performance Guide

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Lloyd’s Hand-Picked Gear Lists

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Computer Equipment for Photographers

Hand-picked gear at low prices from our trusted vendor: B&H Photo/Video.

Thank you for buying equipment through these links— anything; just click through.

We DO NOT GET CREDIT if you already have things in your cart or wishlist. Please click through, then add things to your shopping cart directly.

Many of these computers and accessories are examined and reviewed in detail at Mac Performance Guide.

Money-saving tips:

B&H Photo always has a low price on AppleCare (see listing further below). Through Jan 31, AppleCare is 50% off with the purchase of a new Mac
B&H Photo generally has free shipping and other extras, amost always a better deal than a new Mac from Apple.

Price/stock info as of
Mar 02 17:34 GMT
Click through for most recentTop Picks

The best solutions in each form factor.

Apple Mac Pro Workstation: 6-core @ 3.33GHz, 6GB memory, 1TB hard drive $2,999
The SWEET SPOT for price/performance, especially for Photoshop and Lightroom. Add memory and drives as per MacPerformanceGuide.com.
Apple iMac SEARCH
Upgrade the memory to 32GB as per MacPerformanceGuide.com. Add on external SSD and storage and backup. 3TB preferred due to upgrade difficulty.
Apple iPad SEARCH
Search for all iPad models.
Apple MacBook Pro 15" with Retina display, 2.7 GHz 16GB, 512GB SSD $2,780
My preferred config. Any 16GB model a good choice.
Apple MacMini SEARCH
Upgrade the memory to 16GB and install a 480GB or 960GB SSD as per MacPerformancedGuide.com.

Applecare

B&H prices on AppleCare are much less than Apple’s price.

Apple 3-Year AppleCare for 15" & 17" MacBook Pro $244
Apple 3-Year AppleCare for iMac $122
Apple 3-Year AppleCare for Mac Pro $174
Apple 3-Year AppleCare for MacBook, MacBook Air, 13" MacBook Pro $180
Apple 3-Year AppleCare for MacMini $104

iMac

Can be very fast, even faster than the Mac Pro for some tasks, BUT suffers from very limited expansion until Thunderbolt goes mainstream. And the shiny screen is mirror-like even in a dark room.

Apple Apple iMac 21.5-inch (late 2012) SEARCH
16GB memory strongly recommended for 21.5 model (difficult to upgrade from 8GB). See MacPerformanceGuide memory note.
Apple Apple iMac 27-inch (late 2012) SEARCH
Apple iMac. Pro photographers should stick with Mac Pro. See MacPerformanceGuide buying advice.

MacBook Pro

Very powerful these days, can substitute for desktop for some users. See review.
WARNING: memory in the Retina models is not upgradeable. Photographers are strongly advised to consider only models with 16GB memory (not the 8GB models).

Apple MacBook Air SEARCH
Search for all June 2012 MacBook Air models.
Apple MacBook Pro SEARCH
Search for the all new June 2012 MacBook Pro models.
Apple MacBook Pro 13" SEARCH
Search for all 13" MacBook Pro models.
Apple MacBook Pro 15" SEARCH
Search for all 15" MacBook Pro models.
Apple MacBook Pro 15" with Retina display SEARCH
Search for all 15" MacBook Pro Retina models.
Apple Macbook Pro Z1043 with 15.4", 2.7 GHz, 750GB 7200rpm, 8GB memory, glossy screen. $2,399
Best choice for non-Retina display model. Can take dual internal drives and has internal optical.
Apple Macbook Pro Z1044 with 15.4", 2.7 GHz, 750GB 7200rpm, 8GB memory, Hi-res anti-glare. $2,599
Best choice for non-Retina display model. Can take dual internal drives and has internal optical.

Mac Pro

I work only on a Mac Pro for serious work. The best investment you can make in a Mac. See review.

A Mac Pro offers more CPU cores, more memory, PCI expansion, more ports, quiet and reliable operation, up to five internal drives, etc. It’s the best Mac investment you can make.

Upgrade your Mac Pro to at least 24GB memory and a PCIe SSD (see MacPerformanceGuide.com), ideally to an MPG Pro Workstation. Not sure what to get or how to configure? Consider MacPerformanceGuide.com consulting services.

Apple Mac Pro Workstation: 6-core @ 3.33GHz, 6GB memory, 1TB hard drive $2,999
The SWEET SPOT for price/performance, especially for Photoshop and Lightroom.
Apple Mac Pro Workstation: 12-core @ 2.4GHz, 12GB memory. $3,999
Heavy duty for video and 3D, etc. Faster clock speed models are that much faster by the ratio of the clock speed.
Apple Mac Pro Workstation: 12-core @ 2.66GHz, 12GB memory, .... $5,199
Heavy duty for video and 3D, etc.
Apple Mac Pro Workstation: 12-core @ 2.66GHz, 12GB memory. $4,999
Heavy duty for video and 3D, etc.
Apple Mac Pro Workstation: 12-core @ 3.06GHz, 12GB memory, .... $6,399
Heavy duty for video and 3D, etc. Apple's most powerful Mac for video.
Apple Mac Pro Workstation: 12-core @ 3.06GHz, 12GB memory. $6,199
Heavy duty for video and 3D, etc. Apple's most powerful Mac for video.
Apple Mac Pro Workstation: 4-core @ 3.2 GHz, 6GB memory. $2,286
Excellent value, solid performer.

Software

Popular and recommended software.

Adobe Photoshop CS5 for Mac or Windows SEARCH
What I use.
Adobe Photoshop CS6 for Mac or Windows SEARCH
What I use.
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom for Mac or Windows SEARCH
Market-leading cataloguing and image processing software.

Displays

A wide-gamut display is a pleasure and will show color (especially reds) that you might not have know existed.

Apple Apple TV (1080p) set-top box. $97
Set-top box for displaying just about anything, including your photos.
NEC MultiSync PA271W-BK-SV 27" Wide-Gamut Display (display only) $1,199
Professional quality display with wide gamut. This display does not come with the bundled calibrator, which is fine if you already have one (and want to calibrate). See NEC PA271W review.
NEC MultiSync PA271W-BK-SV 27" Wide-Gamut Display with SpectraViewII $1,449
Professional quality display with wide gamut and color calibration. See review.
NEC MultiSync PA301W 30" Wide-Gamut Display $2,549
Professional quality display with wide gamut and color calibration. What I use for my main display. See review.
NEC MultiSync PA301W 30" Wide-Gamut Display (no calibrator) $2,299
Professional quality display with wide gamut. What I use for my main display. See review.
NEC NEC SpectraSensor Pro Color Calibration Sensor $199
Ssophisticated colorimeter. Uses a new optical system, filter technology, calibration architecture and intelligent form factor to provide unparalleled color accuracy, repeatability and device longevity.

Peripherals

Printers, scanners, etc.

B&H B&H Cable Finder SEARCH
Looking for the right connections? Try the Cable Finder.
Epson Epson WorkForce Pro WP-4530 All-in-One Printer $190
Great all around office printer (not for making fine art prints).
Epson Perfection V750-M Pro Scanner $950
Get those old chromes or negatives into digital form with high quality.
Epson Stylus Pro 3880 Large-Format Inkjet Printer $1,295
Extraordinary gamut with fine-art result for the most desciminating professional.
Apple Mini DisplayPort to DVI-D (Single-Link) Display Adapter $25
Needed for older DVI-D displays on newer Macs.