Is Photoshop necessary?
 

I'm just starting out, and have the most basic questions about how to make changes in the appearance of my vBulletin forum.

If I want to modify the icons and buttons for my forum, will I need to use Photoshop? Please say no, as I can't afford it! Would Photoshop Elements 5 be sufficient for that purpose?

Alternatively, I suppose I could use any image editing program? GIMP? Paint Shop Pro?

Is there one that you could recommend as being inexpensive, but still adequate, especially in these early stages? I won't be doing anything too sophisticated, at least for a while.

Thank you very much for your help. It's much appreciated. I'm really quite at a loss as to where to go next.