I almost missed this thread. Anyhow, I use 'Digital Photo Professional' and Photoshop. GIMP is open source and free alternative to photoshop, and both are for graphic designers and hence interface is very complicated. Good photo editing software geared toward photographers is Adobe Lightroom and Apple Apperture. But both are commerical.
http://www.apple.com/aperture/http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop-lightroom.htmlAbove two are industry standard for pro photographers, both are good.
If you have canon or nikon dslr, they bundle photo editing software for free and they are very good.
I've canon so I've this one:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Photo_ProfessionalI'll upload before and after photos later.
I don't know any good free or open source photo editing software geared toward photography but I heard good things about Paint.Net. This software is for graphic designing but it has easier interface than both Photoshop and GIMP. So it maybe something in close to what you are looking for without spending a fortune.
http://www.getpaint.net/More information about this software on wiki:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paint.NETkanelli wrote: If anyone has had their photo printed on canvas, did it turn out nicely, or are there some specifications I need to consider for best results?
Me, not yet. But I'll soon. Trying to find an place that is good at printing on canvas and not too expensive. Found a studio but they were charging too much, they are on Jumeriah Beach Road.