Now organize up front, embed custom metadata and save complex searches

VICTORIA, British Columbia -- Sept. 10 -- ACD Systems International Inc. today released ACDSee˙ Pro Photo Manager 2.5, a major update with new features designed to improve digital asset management and workflow, provide greater flexibility for image editing and offer even more options for presenting photos. ACDSee Pro 2 users are eligible for a free upgrade to this new version.

Field-tested by thousands of professional photographers, ACDSee Pro is a powerful "one-stop" software package for viewing, processing, editing, cataloging, publishing and archiving digital images. That means photographers can complete their work from beginning to end, including state-of-the art Raw processing, all in one application, improving the efficiency of their workflow. ACDSee Pro also offers the fastest JPG viewing and image browsing available today.

Due to these advantages and the fact that ACD Systems develops its software based on direct feedback from creative professionals, ACDSee Pro is widely used by professional photographers, photojournalists, artists and editors who generate and work with large volumes of high-resolution images. ACDSee Pro makes their jobs easier when organizing and editing images up front and also when archiving projects.

"I haven't found a better program than ACDSee Pro to blaze through my workflow," said photojournalist David Honl, whose images of life in Iraq can be found on the pages of National Geographic and Newsweek. "I can fly through a thousand-picture assignment and have a tight edit sent to a client in no time."

Now, ACDSee Pro 2.5 builds on its existing workflow management system with these new functions designed to make organizing digital assets even easier:

Organize up front

Photographers can now complete digital asset management as they import photos from their cameras, card readers, CD/DVDs or other storage devices. Users can create folder structures, back up files, set categories and modify metadata as images are imported, eliminating additional steps after the initial download.

Embed metadata

In addition to modifying standard IPTC and Exif fields, photographers can embed custom metadata, such as categories and ratings. Embedding this information protects and preserves photographers' custom metadata and enables information to be shared between ACDSee users. Photographers can now embed metadata in additional graphic file formats, such as logos, that do not support IPTC and Exif fields.

Save searches

Users can build complex searches based on folder name, file name, location, custom categories, ratings and other metadata, then save time by storing custom search criteria for future use.

Protect original images

ACDSee provides pixel-level editing with peace of mind by saving a copy of the original image. Photographers can restore the original image at any time, even after multiple editing sessions.

Create an auto slide show

Photographers can choose to present their photos with the improved Auto Slide Show, which includes creative options such as pan & zoom, black & white and sepia effects. Slides can be matched with MP3 music soundtracks.

Borders, drop shadows, edge effects

Creative presentation options for still images now include borders, drop shadows and edge effects that can be easily added in ACDSee Pro before sharing projects with others.

In addition to these new features, ACDSee Pro remains a preferred tool among professional photographers for the quality and time-saving advantages of its state-of-the-art Raw processing, including the ability to recover up to two stops of lost highlight detail and the convenience of copying and pasting Raw settings or batch processing multiple files. ACDSee Pro is compatible with the multitude of file formats associated with today's top digital camera models. For the complete list of camera Raw formats supported by ACDSee software, visit http://www.acdsee.com/products/acdseepro/rawformats.

Pricing and availability

ACDSee Pro 2.5 is available for a free 30-day trial and for purchase for $129.99 by visiting http://www.acdsee.com. ACDSee Pro 2 users are eligible for a free upgrade to this new version.