Articles Table of Contents   Page 1: Answers about Asking Questions Page 2: Ultra-wide Zeiss 21mm or 24mm Tilt/Shift lens? Page 3: What is a “fast” lens? Page 4: Focus calibration for “fast” lenses Page 5: All about lens adapters for Canon, Nikon, Sony, etc Page 6: Lens hoods, Grazing flare and Contrast Page 7: Focusing Screens for Canon or Nikon Page 8: Wide angle lens quality with Canon and Nikon Page 9: Zeiss 21/2.8 Distagon vs Leica 19/2.8 Elmarit-R Page 10: What’s the best browser to view this site (and others)? Page 11: Fastest way to get image files into my computer? Page 12: Mac Pro memory requirements for photo editing? Page 13: Choosing a Windows PC for photographers.

Mac Pro memory requirements June 2009

I'm trying to figure out how much ram my new Mac Pro does really need, could you please tell me what is the max ram usage (that you experienced) of the following software: Canon's Digital Photo Professional, Iridient Digital's RAW Developer, PTLens 64 bit enabled. — Stefano

The short answer is 8GB or more:

• 1GB for system overhead
• 1GB for system caching (improves overall performance);
• 1GB for Canon’s Digital Photo Professional;
• 3GB for Iridient RAW Developer (more when a 64-bit version appears);
• 1-3GB is a safe bet for PTLens when working with high-resolution files.

RAW Developer as of this writing is still a 32-bit program, and it can run out of memory no matter how much is installed (program limitation).

Note that “extra” memory is most definitely not wasted.

A balanced machine

Memory is not the only concern; a balanced machine is needed: one that has adequate memory, fast and capacious storage, and CPU cores and speeds that match that workload. If you’re buying a new Mac Pro, or want to upgrade one, consider a consultation.

See also

• Ways to Optimize Your Mac’s Performance
• Optimizing Adobe Lightroom
• Optimizing Adobe Photoshop
• Optimizing Your Applications
• Apple Mac Pro Nehalem review