I want to illustrate my unpublished book manuscript on the book of
Revelation. It took eight years to research and write it, so I am willing to
spend a few years on the graphics!

I want the graphics to be beautiful, friendly, and loving--maybe even for
children--just like my unique understanding of Revelation.

I have fairly well mastered PhotoDraw 2000 Version 2, but find it limited
beyond rather simple graphics. This after working many a tutorial,
"Microsoft PhotoDraw 2000 by Design," and spending hours in their newsgroup.

I recently bought Paint Shop Pro 6, which has a much larger user community
and which can do more sophisticated illustrations. I am finding it a slow
learn, despite time in the newsgroups, because it is more like PhotoShop,
because it can do more than PhotoDraw, and because so many of the tutorials
rightly assume one knows the basics--which I am barely learning.

I also have PhotoShop and Deke McClelland's huge "PhotoShop Bible," but I am
more interested in creating illustrations than in image editing per se.
PhotoShop is, on my computer at least, the most complex graphics program
there is.

I also have the freeware version of Terragen, which I felt might help me do
landscapes for Revelation. I've used it enough to be impressed, but haven't
mastered it. It is a lower priority than dragons and New Jerusalems.

I just downloaded Pov-Ray, which also has a large community and many links
and resources, including these NGs.

I was a computer programmer for many years, beginning with binary code (no
lie) and vacuum tube computers also no lie), working my way up through
assemblers and compilers and today's PCs. I mention this because Pov-Ray
requires programming.

I was also a professional photographer for many years and have a good sense
of color and composition.

My basic question is: If you were a virtually a complete newbie to graphics
except as noted above, and had to learn and do cute, but often elaborate,
illustrations of Revelation (dragon, beasts, four and twenty elders, seven
lamps of fire, the New Jerusalem--to mention but a few), what would be your
program(s) of choice?

In particular, would you favor Pov-Ray over Paint Shop Pro or vice versa?

My current plan is to continue learning Paint Shop Pro, setting aside
Pov-Ray for now, and picking it up when I feel comfortable with Paint Shop
Pro. I am, however, open to other opinions.

Apologies for the long post, and *many* TIA. I find the good people in NGs
to be invaluable resources.

--
Walter Donavan
remove capital letters before replying
Wal### [at] 7staQQgesJHEZcom
http://www.7stages.com
"A Most Unusual Translation of the
Book of Revelation"

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