I'm not sure how much cheaper it is, but you might try using Affinity Photo. It's around $50, and it's much closer to Photoshop (can't do animation, though) and has most of the special layers. Not so many filters though. They have a free trial, if you're interested. I tried it, and it was pretty nice. I would've bought it, but I'm a little low on cash right now. XD But it seems that the new Paint Shop Pro has improved a lot. I might check out the trial, lol!
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I'm not sure how much cheaper it is, but you might try using Affinity Photo. It's around $50, and it's much closer to Photoshop (can't do animation, though) and has most of the special layers. Not so many filters though. They have a free trial, if you're interested. I tried it, and it was pretty nice. I would've bought it, but I'm a little low on cash right now. XD But it seems that the new Paint Shop Pro has improved a lot. I might check out the trial, lol!