Expert’s Rating

Pros

Cons

Our Verdict

In the creation of image editing , Adobe Photoshop has become a platform unto itself — it ’s certainly much more than a undivided software . A thriving cottage industry of chew - indium , filter , and actions has emerge around Photoshop ’s architecture , and today there are supplemental hack - ins or actions for virtually every want , interest , and drug user level .

In this reassessment , I look at a variety of Photoshop stopper - ins : Akvis ’s Enhancer 2.0 , which rectify detail in shadows and high spot ; Alien Skin Software ’s Eye Candy 5 : Nature , a plug - in that rent you add naturalistic special effect to target ; and nik multimedia ’s Color Efex Pro 2.0 , a band of tools that mime — and in some cases surpass — traditional photographic lens filters .

These products are designed to work out within Photoshop , but they also work with a variety of other imaging programs that adhere to Photoshop ’s plug - in criterion , such as Adobe Photoshop Elements 3.0 and Macromedia Fireworks MX 2004 .

Enhancer 2.0

You ca n’t always be in the perfect position to fool away a photo , and sometimes you also do n’t have enough time to choose the proper camera mise en scene for the available light . Too often , the disappointing result is that either the important part of your exposure is in a shadow or the whole picture look hazy . Akvis ’s foil 2.0 fixes these problems by unwrap detail in both tail and spotlight areas without blowing out high spot or plugging up shadower . Amazingly , it work .

Akvis says that Enhancer intensify color passage , thus strengthening the difference between adjacent pixels in coloring grade . That means you may dramatically ameliorate most exposure , especially those in which strong light falls behind your subject field , contrive a shadow .

Besides enhancing fantasm and highlight item , Enhancer can also ameliorate details in a photo ’s midtone areas , making it an effective creature for sharpening an otherwise well - exposed pic . In my tests , it bring home the bacon an added punch that was particularly good for pic of industrial objects such as buildings , bridges , and vehicle .

Because of the algorithms Enhancer uses , it ’s also highly good at removing the daze that sometimes shows up in a photo ( haze is unremarkably the result of nonoptimal photographic camera context ) .

Enhancer ’s preview window provides just three Pseudemys scripta bars in an easygoing - to - use interface ; you’re able to quickly better a photo through dewy-eyed trial and error . Unfortunately , since you ca n’t typewrite values straight into the dialog boxwood , and you ca n’t preserve preferences for future use , you ’ll wind up doing supernumerary work if you offset out of the dialogue corner or if you want to use the same preferences on multiple pictures .

While the programme ’s Before and After release are ready to hand for quickly viewing the effect of your changes , the preview windowpane is not resizable , nor can you zoom in . Sometimes this forces you into a few round of applying and reapplying Enhancer ’s impression .

In my test , Enhancer seemed to bring about trace and highlight adjustments similar to what an experienced substance abuser could achieve with the Shadow / Highlight bidding in Photoshop CS , CS2 , and Elements 3 ( see “ First see : Adobe Creative Suite 2 , ” varlet 58 , for more on Photoshop CS2 ) . foil ’s ability to also focalize midtones is unique , making it useful for sharpen detail in well - lit photos . For users of early version of Photoshop , Photoshop Elements , Macromedia Fireworks , or any other lotion that does n’t have Photoshop CS ’s Shadow / Highlight feature , Enhancer is a worthful shaft . For Photoshop CS or element 3 users , its greatest value is in sharpening midtones .

Be sure to check out Enhancer ’s manual ; it ’s helpful for understanding which configurations to use for common trouble . I had some bother installing the upgrade from interpretation 1.3 to 2.0 ; however , Akvis is working on the problem and it will in all likelihood be solved by the meter you scan this . Tech support was somewhat slow to respond and not too helpful .

Color Efex Pro 2.0

Fully fit out professional photographer impart a carefully chosen array of lens filters and idle reflectors to make the most of the lighting condition in any situation and to add artistic flair to image . This is a viable glide slope in digital photography , though software system can often produce similar personal effects .

The plug - In in nik multimedia ’s Color Efex Pro 2.0 cater up to 75 professional - timbre filters that permit you reproduce or go right smart beyond traditional lens of the eye event . For object lesson , the red filter enhances skin tones , the dispirited filter improves blue color and brightens sky , and the green filter makes foliation much greener — all without pretend the rest period of the photograph .

Color Efex Pro divide the filter into two category : Traditional and Stylizing . The Traditional filter include effects such as B / W Conversion , Classical Soft Focus , Vignette , Darken / Lighten Center , Fog , Remove Color Cast , Graduated Blue ( and other colors ) , Polarize , Silver and Gold Reflectors , and White Neutralizer . The stylize filters include artistic effects such as Indian Summer , Midnight , Monday Morning , Old Photo ( both colouration and black and clean ) , Pastel , and Solarization .

Sunshine is one of the most amazing filters in this set — it transubstantiate the dull colors in a picture occupy on a cloudy day into the colors you ’d see on a bright summertime 24-hour interval . In core , it free you to take photo under murky weather , because you’re able to line up the lighting later if you need to .

All the filter can be use to 8- or 16 - bit image , in RGB , CMYK , research laboratory , or Grayscale colouring material modes . If you have a Wacom artwork lozenge , you’re able to even paint the filters onto your image using various pressure - sensitiveness configurations .

The filter are available in several different solicitation . The $ 80 Rick Sammon Edition let in 12 filter chosen by photographer Rick Sammon , as well as four interactive deterrent example establish how he apply them . The $ 100 Standard Edition include 19 filters ; the $ 160 Select Edition adds 26 more filter for a total of 45 ; and the $ 230 Complete Edition includes all 75 filters . nik multimedia could do a good task of indicating who would gain most from each collection , rather than just listing the include filters .

Color Efex has been evolve for more than five years , with constant stimulus from professional photographers . In the Pro 2.0 reading , the brilliance of its programmers , and their attention to the needs of pro photographers , is obvious . I urge it highly .

Eye Candy 5: Nature

Sometimes the open matter of an persona screams for a special essence , such as smoke , rust fungus , piddle ripples , paint drips , or icicles . When you want to reinforce a merchandising message in an image , these joke can be very in effect but also very unmanageable to produce .

Eye Candy 5 : Nature is a set of ten filter that add natural effect to objects or text . My favourite are Drip , which either melts things Salvador Dali - flair or add up paint drips to text and other object ; Icicles , which makes any object look as though it had been hit by an ice storm ; Rust , which can add naturalistic erosion or moss , mould , or mould ; Smoke , which creates smoky effects ranging from volcanic eruptions to steaming coffee ; and Ripples , which makes your physical object appear to be underwater , with many option for aerofoil wavelet . Other result let in Fire , Corona , Squint , Water Drops , and Snow Drift .

Nature is the second of three upgrade to Eye Candy 4000 — Textures was release in 2004 (; March 2005 ) , and Impact will ship sometime this year .

Nature ’s filter work on any nonwhite or nontransparent area of a layer , such as an object you ’ve copied , a draught you ’ve paste from Adobe Illustrator , or some big text .

Each filter ’s interface is slimly unlike , but they all have one pane for configurations ( presets ) and one or more paneling for controlling the filter ’s variables . Each filter include dozens of presets you may practice for instant core ; this is necessary because these filter have more controls than most the great unwashed could subdue . Fortunately , when you discover a combining of setting that create an force you like , you’re able to salve it as your own preset and even partake it with other users . Two feature film in the port help oneself you understand the controls : squeeze your keyboard ’s avail cardinal launch filter - specific help , and mousing over an item in the dialogue box brings up a abbreviated description of that item in the humble left recession of the corner .

All of the filter support 8 - mo and 16 - bit images in RGB , CMYK , and Grayscale modes . The 16 - spot reinforcement is worthful because effects give in 16 bits per crimson , light-green , and blue transmission channel can have fine gradations , and therefore swell realism , than essence rendered in 8 bits per channel . ( You wo n’t see the difference on your display , but the print result will be superior . ) Some of the filters can also make a new layer and lay aside their effects to it , resulting in a disjoined level containing just the effect of the filter without the original choice . And if you need to be really effective , you could apply Photoshop activity to automate the mental process of applying Nature effects to a batch of images .

Most of the outcome that Nature produces are photo - realistic , though some seem to be more inspired by nature than genuinely natural . For representative , Snow Drift appear like a painted illustration , and the free fall in Water Drops are a morsel too undifferentiated .

Macworld’s Buying Advice

For photographers , nik Color Efex Pro 2.0 is a professional lens - filter factory , with dozens of filter that are utilitarian powerful out of the box . The biggest challenge is deciding which version of this Cartesian product you want to purchase . If your workplace involves commercial artistry or marketing , Eye Candy 5 : Nature ’s creative opening and ease of function make it a deal . Enhancer 2.0 ’s ability to taper midtones is sound , but because the Shadow / Highlight feature in Photoshop CS and CS2 and Photoshop Elements 3 can do much of what Enhancer does , that plug - in is most worthful for users of other image - editing applications . You might deliberate buy Photoshop Elements 3 , which costs just a bit more , alternatively .