Many creative teams, tech teams, and ministries are being asked to do more with less in 2009. Churches demand wider application of technology, a higher level of excellence in print and video design, and a higher level of productivity from each staff member. In the face of expanding demands and diminishing resources, ministers, staff, and volunteers must be more industrious than ever to get the job done. Thankfully, there are a number of available software tools that cost little or nothing while enabling you to be as creative and productive as you can be. Here are a few of my favorite budget-friendly software applications.
GRAPHICS
GIMP
www.gimp.org
Free
The first time I saw Adobe Photoshop, it was love at first sight. The first time I saw the price tag, we had to break up. Photoshop is awesome but expensive. If you don’t have several hundred dollars to drop on Adobe’s Creative Suite 4, you either can buy an old version of the software on eBay or you can get 
GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) for free. GIMP is a UNIX-based open source image manipulation program and has been around for years. It runs on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux machines and has a large base of users around the world. The program mimics most of the major functions of Photoshop natively, and a vast library of GIMP plug-ins put many of Photoshop’s remaining features within your grasp. You can download GIMP for free at gimp.org.
AVIARY 
www.aviary.com
Free or $9.99 a month
Many talented artists can’t afford the creative tools they need, and the Aviary team decided to do something about that. The result is aviary.com and its series of bird-inspired tools: Phoenix, Toucan, and Peacock. Each of these tools offers the approximate functionality of a high-end graphics program but for free. For access to a little more functionality from the Aviary tools, you can pay just $9.99 a month, which also includes additional tutorials. The best part of the $9.99 plan is the subscriber’s access to new Aviary alpha releases (video editing, desktop publishing, and 3D modeling applications are said to be on the way). Aviary also is an art community—a place to share, collaborate, gain inspiration, and learn. Everything you produce is stored securely on a server in New York and can be exported in a flattened version for download. It’s unlikely that Adobe executives are losing any sleep over Aviary just yet, but you can bet they are keeping a close eye on this little upstart.
VIDEO
ADOBE PREMIERE ELEMENTS
www.adobe.com
$89.99 and up
It doesn’t take long to max out Windows Movie Maker’s creative potential. In order to go further you need two things, multiple video tracks and alpha channel support, but the jump to Final Cut Pro or Adobe Premiere Pro is a big one. Besides dropping more than $1,000 on the software at retail prices, or about $350 for Final Cut Express or a Premiere Pro Charity License, the learning curve for those programs is so steep it might as well be vertical. But don’t despair, there is hope, and it has a name: Adobe Premiere Elements. Adobe’s Elements line for PCs includes a basic version of Photoshop and Premiere, available separately or bundled at your local discount superstore. Both of the Elements products give you almost all of the most useful features of their big brothers, giving you the most bang for your buck. Premiere Elements includes multiple video and audio tracks, key frame animation, and alpha channel support (including good chromo keying), multiple file output, and more. Download the free 30-day trial at adobe.com.
ULEAD COOL 3D PRODUCTION STUDIO 
www.ulead.com
$129
If you have ever tried to use a 3D program, you know how frustrating it can be. Ulead Cool 3D Production Studio, a powerful program for making 3D titles and graphics, is designed to make 3D easy. Also, it utilizes key frame animation and allows you to export 32-bit AVI video files with alpha channel support. Cool 3D is not as advanced as a free and popular 3D modeling tool, Blender (www.blender.org), but it is much easier to learn and use. Cool 3D Production Studio is available at ulead.com for $129, but the previous version, Cool 3D 3.5, is often available on eBay for $30-$50. You should know that Cool 3D Production Studio isn’t natively compatible with Windows Vista, but for the brave of heart, a work around patch is available online.
WEB
SWISH MAX2
www.swishzone.com
$74.98 (non-profit) and up
Once upon a time, some Australians decided that Adobe Flash was too hard to use and too expensive. They set out to create a version of Flash that let users create stunning animations within minutes of opening the program for 15 percent of the cost. Ten years and five million downloads later, Swish offers several different products that create flash-based text animations, websites, videos, audio players, and more. The flagship program, Swish Max2, is a powerful tool that does both web authoring and video motion graphics. With the ability to export to AVI files, the sky is the limit on custom motion titles and graphics for video. What really makes this company and this product great is the price. Swish Max2 retails for $149.95 (compare to Flash at $699), and if you are a registered non-profit you are eligible for the discount price of $74.98.
KompoZer
www.kompozer.net
Free
In the world of web development software, there are two basic options. The first is an HTML editor in which you input code. The second option, and the best option for the non-developers among us, is called a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor. A WYSIWYG editor allows you to input text and images while it generates the corresponding HTML code for you. Unless you have a strong foundation in HTML, a WYSIWYG editor is a great place to get started. A versatile, free WYSIWYG editor is KompoZer, which is available for Mac, Windows, and Linux. KompoZer works in a manner similar to Adobe Dreamweaver and the now defunct Microsoft FrontPage, if you’re familiar with those titles. Other KompoZer benefits include a built-in FTP publisher to help you get your site online and a large online support base.
PRODUCTIVITY
OPEN OFFICE 
www.openoffice.org
Free
Nobody will deny that Microsoft rules the productivity software universe. Even most Mac users pony up the cash for Mr. Gates’ Office suite. Microsoft also led the pack on charity discounts (for years, churches have been allowed to buy Microsoft products at 15-20 percent less than retail price through authorized resellers), but to get started you have to buy five licenses, and that’s quite a few for a small or cash-strapped church. Enter Sun MicroSystems, the primary sponsor of Open Office. Open Office is a free, fully functional open source office suite. With programs that are nearly identical to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Paint, and Access, Open Office really does the job. It opens and saves to Microsoft file formats, enabling you to use and share files with Microsoft Office users, and has a huge support community. It has been around since 2002, and with 450,000 contributors and a case full of awards under it’s belt, it is a real contender in the realm of productivity software. One problem: If you already own Microsoft Office, don’t give into the temptation to check out Open Office. You’ll just end up wondering why you paid so much for something you could have had for free.
E-SWORD 
www.e-sword.net
Free
Billed as “The Sword of the Lord,” e-Sword is a free Bible study suite. Loaded with modules that other programs charge for, e-Sword was designed to give back to God’s people. The program is easy to use and has modules for maps, illustrations, commentaries, and dozens of free translations, including The Message but not including NIV. Granted, it’s not quite as cool as YouVersion, but e-Sword is there when Wi-Fi is not, and that is priceless.
Brian Brophy is a graduate of Harding University and works with the Central Church of Christ. He has written for YouthWorker Journal and has written curriculum for JesusPainter.com. Brian is also the owner of 8track productions. He lives in Benton, KY, with his wife, daughter, and dog.