Luminous Landscape Forum
The Art of Photography => Discussing Photographic Styles => Topic started by: cjogo on June 02, 2013, 01:19:01 pm
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Anyone use Nik much for processing ??
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I've got the whole suite, but only really use Viveza & Silver Efex, all as plug-ins with Aperture.
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I'm looking for software to eliminate grain/spots easily from scanned negatives ... maybe fine tuning curves > not really shooting digital images. Just need the software for actual B&W negs ..
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All the time. Wouldn't be without it. Now that Google has bought Nik and combined the plugins into a package it's even easier to install and uninstall, which is important to me since I have to move my desktop license from Colorado to Florida and back again each year. Silver Efex Pro alone is worth the price of admission, and so is HDR Efex Pro. If you ever need to make local color adjustments there's nothing else out there that can beat Viveza. And Sharpener Pro can save you hours of tedious work.
There are a bunch of tutorials out there on the Nik collection. See http://www.video2brain.com/en/lessons/nik-sharpener-pro, for instance, which gives you a ten minute rundown on Sharpener Pro.
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Sorry Jogo you posted just as I was getting ready to dump my post. The thing you want to look into is Dfine 2. I'm not sure whether or not it'll do what you're trying to do. You can get a free 15 day trial for the whole package at http://www.niksoftware.com/nikcollection/usa/intro.html.
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I use one to four of Nik suite packages on every image I process. And I would never print anything without the Nik output sharpener.
I had to call their support phone to help me install the suite on my laptop since I was away from my desk top computer in another state. The wait time to speak with a tech was less than a minute after I typed in my phone number on their help page of their site. Got it done quick and easy.
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I have bought the suite despite having the Viveza2 plug in. Money wise it is a bargain. I also bought
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0321839773/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0321839773&linkCode=as2&tag=bretedgephot-20
a book that details all of the collection and how to use the plug ins. I have yet to get to grips with all of them but the book will definitely help. Recommended.
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Keep us posted on how you like the book. It looks worthwhile. Nik has lots of video tutorials on their site that I've found valuable.
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Really looking for a software just to eliminate dust /grain ... not going to convert color or actual digital files from a camera ....only from scanned images and then process. So much of the NIK looks like its for color -- HDR - etc from RAW images. Shadow /Highlights is almost the go to app for me in CS 4 ... and then a little Curves / Smart Sharp & a occasional dodge /burn. Is there that much more for me to obtain from ordering the NIK software > something included in all the applications suited for simple scanned B&W negatives ??
thanks
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I was sent the upgrade and tried some of the other goodies. One thing that I really liked was Define. With an image that I recently scanned from a 35mm color negative, it did a super job of reducing the grain nicely. This allowed me to make a nice 3x3 foot print from that negative which thrilled the photographer who took it.
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I only use Silver Efex, but the package is well worth the price of admission just for that. Essential software for b&w conversion. It's powerful and gives you a lot of control. As you get better with it the less you will need to rely on its presets.
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I find the presets get me to 80% of where I want to be. Toggling through the choices gives me a lot of new insights of how I might want to slant a particular image.