# Google Nik Collection?



## m8547 (Jan 18, 2016)

I've been thinking about getting the Nik Collection plugins. Does anyone know if Google will continue to support this? Have they been good about making sure it works with the latest Lightroom and Photoshop when those are updated? I don't want to invest the time (and money) to learn to use it if it's going to go away eventually or even just stagnate with no new development. 

Are these plugins useful? I've found Lightroom's sliders to be limiting when I want to do more than minor or moderate adjustments, and I'm not an expert in Photoshop, so it would be nice to have an easier way to get good results.


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## jprusa (Jan 19, 2016)

Try before you buy.


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## cid (Jan 25, 2016)

I think this plugin collection is highly regarded. If you look on the web there are plenty of tutorials and tip how to use them, so you can decide if you want to use them and if the results people get using these are worth the money.

And as already said, you can try it yourself for 30 days for free.


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## Ladislav (Jan 25, 2016)

Just in case you don't know it: Lightroom has quite poor extensibility for plugins. Nik's Lightroom integration (same as many other plugins claiming Lightroom support) generally means only few items in menu which will open a separate application for modifications. It is not integrated into regular Lightroom tool panels. It is kind of similar in Photoshop as the plugin will open its own dialog and result is applied to the layer but I find it faster when it does not launch new application.

Lightroom sliders work on top of RAW image. Plugins require to create a TIFF. Once you have a plugin and Photoshop it is in my opinion generally better to use the plugin from Photoshop where you can apply it to layer. I use this way Color Efex occasionally. I also tried to use Dfine and found it quite good but it is generally considered worse than noise reduction plugins from other companies. I read very positive feedback on Silver Efex but I don't do black and white very often. 

Your concern about updates is pretty legitimate. I don't think Nik Collection was updated since I bought it few years ago. It still works with the latest versions of Photoshop as the integration is in my opinion only about reading bitmap data and writing it back.

It is bit about how much do you want to pay and what features are you looking for? You can go for example to Topaz Collection instead but you will pay 4-5x more.


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## axtstern (Jan 25, 2016)

It was a must have collection in the earlyier Lightroom years.
The way their noise reduction worked was a bless for me and helped my workflow but...
We live in the 24 or 50 Megapixel world and Lightroom can do now plenty of things without leaving the raw file Format. NIK Tools allow for reliable noise reduction of lets say 200 Picture in a Batch. But in the 50 Megapixel Class this means the pea sized raw Image with xx BIT depth rattles suddenly arround in an XX+X size Tiff Container. Extensive NIK use means extensive waste of storage space.


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## Hector1970 (Jan 25, 2016)

I've no idea if Google will continue to support Nik.
They still work now anyway.
Nik Silver Efex Pro is really their best plugin.
If you are into BW photography it does a great job on them.
The rest are a bit so-so.
I used Viveza from time to time - it can be good at adding structure to skies.
Color Efex Pro is a commonly used plugin but I find it a bit OTT
Analog Efex Pro is not for me but alot of people like that old fashioned look.
HDR Efex Pro I don't like - it's a very old fashioned HDR look that you'd quickly tire of.
The others are sort of sharpening related and I never use them
Silver Efex Pro is the only one I could live without.
The local adjustments are very good and its a clever tool.
The local adjustment brushes in Lightroom and Photoshop have negated the reason to use them a bit.


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## derrald (Jan 25, 2016)

I use Viveza, Dfine, and Sharpening and have workflows defined around all of them. While I can do the tasks with other tools I like the interface and am proficient with them. With that being said, I mainly use them in PS and not in LR, but I would gather it would be similar. 

As far as Google supporting them, they do fix things occasionally as the version numbers have incremented. As far as additional features and developing the plug-ins further, I doubt it.


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## unfocused (Jan 25, 2016)

I use it regularly, but only a few presets. 

The "Color Contrast" and "Pro Contrast" settings in Color Efex can help make an image "pop" without looking unnatural, once you learn how to tweak them. The Dynamic Skin Softener is nice when you don't want to do a lot of retouching, but need to reduce wrinkles and blemishes. For regular portraits I use OnOne, but when its more of a candid shot of someone and they need just a bit of skin softening, it does a nice job without affecting the overall sharpness.

Silver Efex Pro is generally considered the best B&W conversion filter on the market. Occasionally I will use Viveza when I get near the end of processing a pictures and I need to make an adjustment to one portion of the image. Lately, I've been shooting a lot of high ISO sports and have found Dfine to be decent at noise reduction, although it can depend on the image.

I tried the sharpener, but it seems to mostly sharpen the noise. Which is one of the problems with most sharpening tools including Photoshop. Never use HDR or Analog Efex. 

I use Nik only in Photoshop, not Lightroom. 

I've been through several versions of Photoshop and the biggest problem I've had is getting the Nik Panel to show up on screen. It seems rather random, but you can always access it through the Photoshop menus if you can't get it to show up.

When I've had problems, their support has been very good. I don't know if they do updates behind the scenes and just don't announce them, but it seems to work consistently with each new version of Photoshop.


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## David Hull (Jan 25, 2016)

I recently had a HDD crash and needed to rebuild my system, re-loading all the SW, etc. I contacted Google and got a prompt reply with a link to where I could download a fresh version of the tools without the need for an entitlement key. From this, I got the impression that there was someone at Google still supporting the SW and still supporting customers. As for the future, who knows. I primarily use some of their contrast enhancement features and B&W converter. If you are thinking of buying, maybe look at Topaz as well. I think that OnOne has some plug-ins as well.

At the time I bought, Nik was the standard and Topaz was not ready for prime time. I think that has changed now -- meaning they are both pretty competent. FWIW: I own both but go to Nik first most of the time.


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## Stu_bert (Jan 25, 2016)

As others have mentioned, there are some things that Nik, Topaz etc can do which are quicker (than Photoshop) and can do things that I'm not sure are possible within LR - Pro Contrast in Color Efex, as mentioned, is clever in how it works and is often much better than I can do in curves, levels and the exposure sliders.

I use about 4 Topaz modules and the Nik collection. One point to note about Topaz is you can't create photoshop actions which change any of the settings within Topaz. I tried to use this to automate previews with different settings, and alas it only picks up the most recent "Last Settings Used", even with presets. Nik works fine with actions in PS

For B&W I used both Nik & Topaz, Topaz for detail, Dfine (although I am looking to replace), Sharpener & Color FX. So probably each module works out at about 30 bucks and for the time it saves and what it does, it's worth it for me.

My personal workflow still uses LR for some stuff (send a poorly exposed pic into Pro Contrast and it does a good job but not as good as when it is given a properly exposed image), then I use Nik & Topaz within Photoshop CS 6, as layers. Finally, I keep the tools & settings I used as metadata within LR and a reduced (image size) of the layered image as a PSD. Reproducing a full size TIF from both the metadata and the PSD is normally quite quick if I want to tweak the final TIF. I believe CC 2015 has better smart object capability, but I can't get CS 6 to do what I want hence falling back to my current solution.

I believe, but you should check, that Nik & Topaz both work with Adobe PSE which also provides you with an alternative to full blown photoshop.

Ultimately, as advised, you can trial both Topaz & Nik Collection, so give them a spin and see how you fair


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## Hillsilly (Jan 27, 2016)

I can't help with future of the program or ongoing support, but I find it a useful program - especially Color Efex Pro and Silver Efex. Color Efex Pro is useful for getting colours the way they should be (and I like the tonal contrast tool). If you were super geeky you can do the same things in Photoshop, but sometimes life is too short.


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## MrFotoFool (Jan 27, 2016)

Agree the two I use are ColorEfex4 and SilverEfex2. I use with Photoshop elements (12 I think) and find them indispensable when I use them. I like Tonal Contrast (similar to Pro Contrast already mentioned). Instead of traditional contrast adjustments, where the lights and darks increase universally, this somehow increases contrast only in areas that need it without blowing out highlights for example. It is hard to describe in words, but it works amazingly well. A great value IMO.


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## Hector1970 (Jan 27, 2016)

Interesting discussion. I've used Color Efex Pro but don't always like it but I found it interesting the mentions of Pro Contrast. I must look at that. In looking it up I found a useful Nik Link
https://support.google.com/nikcollection/answer/3298071?hl=en&ref_topic=3297791
It describes what each filter does with an example.

I also use Topaz. It's quite good too. I went through a phase of over processing photos with plugins like Topaz. I used to love Topaz Adjust. I tired of them after a while but it's often worth while giving it a whirl on certain photos. Topaz Impression is good fun. It can turn your photos into a very nice painting with many styles. It works quite well. 
Star Effects could be a good plugin but is a bit unpredictable as to where it works in the photo. You can fool it by putting in pure white parts. Texture effects aren't bad either. 
Topaz is a useful tool to have in the tool box.

What Nik and Topaz is a simple plugin that could add rays of light to a photo.
It's a bit time consuming in Photoshop.
There was a plugin called Rays which seems to be no longer updated.
It almost worked but could have been better.
If someone could create a plugin that could really blend light smoothly into a photo with alot of control on fall off I'd get it.
One that does flares as well would also be useful. I have a red giant plugin that can do that but some of the flares don't blend very well and leave straight lines in the picture.


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## andarx (Jan 27, 2016)

I use NIK quite extensively, only in CS6 and like it. I've tried all plugins, including HDR and AFX. The key, as always, is moderation, it is very easy to overdo the effects. What I like about NIK plugins us that they create layers automatically, you can work with opacity later on to tweak the adjustment. I have some of the Topaz plugins and I find them work not as well as NIK (there is a lot of different ways to tweak the image in Topaz but it's more cumbersome than NIK). OTOH Topaz BW Fffect allowed me to achieve the look that NIK SFX could not do.
I prefer the way adjustments in NIK work, the changes in adjustment are real time.


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## keithcooper (Jan 27, 2016)

I've long used them, particularly Sharpener Pro 3 and silver Efex Pro.

See some of my reviews for more detail.
http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/reviews/plugins/sharpening_nik3.html

However, they have stagnated (featurewise) under Google - but still work well. 

Topaz and MacPhun have overtaken them in some ways (see more reviews via the link above), but the Nik stuff still have a place in my workflow.

Couldn't say much about using with Lightroom, since it has no utility in any of my photography - especially in printmaking, where I'd most use Sharpener Pro (selectively) for final print sharpening


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## YuengLinger (Jan 27, 2016)

Nik was once the standard for plug-ins. Now it is really showing its age. Instead of adjustment brushes, it still uses control points which are not all that easy to control. It often produces unpleasant halos and other edge artifacts if not used very carefully.

As stated by others, it works better with Photoshop than Lightroom, and I would add that one reason is because you sometimes need the ability to tone down or fix little artifacts.

I still go to Silver Efex occasionally for certain edgier, punchier touches to b&w. And to change things up I might go to Color Efex for an autumn look or texture. Analog can be useful, actually one of the best for quick "vintage" looks, and I like having it available.

That said, I think Topaz is really showing its age too, and I'm very surprised it hasn't had any major updates in what seems a long, long time.

Of the current generation of plug-ins, On1 seems to be best suited for Lightroom workflows, as it has layers, a great adjustment brush, and the ability to close, work more on an image in LR, and then return to On1.

Definitely put On1 on your list to try.

Also very, very nice for finishing touches is Alien Skin, but it really needs Photoshop for selective application in many cases.


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## Hector1970 (Jan 27, 2016)

Hi Keith 
I was surprised a photographer of your skill and reputation doesn't use Lightroom.
Maybe I've been using Lightroom for too long and I think that most people use Lightroom.
I use Lightroom for about 90% of processing and then Photoshop for the 10% complicated adjustments.
I use the Nik and Topaz plugins in both.

I know Photoshop has all the functionality in the Camera Raw Filter in Photoshop.
Do you use that instead?
You are getting great results, maybe you put alot of effort getting it right in camera than in post-processing (which is probably the sign of a real master)

Your website is great.



keithcooper said:


> I've long used them, particularly Sharpener Pro 3 and silver Efex Pro.
> 
> See some of my reviews for more detail.
> http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/reviews/plugins/sharpening_nik3.html
> ...


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## YuengLinger (Jan 27, 2016)

LR is hard to beat for B&W conversion. That extra "orange" slider does wonders, and then you can make so many local adjustments with brush presets. But I still see LR as the foundation for images, a little limiting if used alone.

Its sharpening and NR are fantastic, but, again, is sometimes just part of the first stage.


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## keithcooper (Jan 27, 2016)

Hector1970 said:


> Hi Keith
> I was surprised a photographer of your skill and reputation doesn't use Lightroom.
> Maybe I've been using Lightroom for too long and I think that most people use Lightroom.
> I use Lightroom for about 90% of processing and then Photoshop for the 10% complicated adjustments.
> ...


Thanks - glad the site (the real stuff not just the rumour pages) is of interest.

I should put my dislike of lightroom into some context, since I often recommend it to others to try.

I've tried it out regularly (and was a tester for one recent release) and find that it does nothing 'better' for me.

I'm a commercial and architectural photographer, and tend to produce relatively few shots per job - if I was shooting weddings or sport, my workflow would likely be quite different.

So, the catalog based approach... it doesn't really fit with the way I organise my files. I can find any client's work quite quickly via date. The date comes from the invoice for the job if I can't remember or quickly see it in my diary. I don't keyword or geo tag images at all, and at 150k+ images that's a job that's never getting any more likely to get done.

Bridge has long given me more than enough sorting/browsing capabilities than I need

For RAW processing, ACR is generally good enough, although I still use DxO Optics pro sometimes, especially when I'm working on just a few images (even more so for print).

For my print workflow, I'm looking to creating master 'ready for print' files at whatever size(s) I need. This is where I'm using layers and masked filters to get the look I want in the print. LR's print handling would be fine if I was producing wedding photos, but with the work I expect to put into a 30"x40" print I find it not up to the flexibility I'm looking for.

Using LR too often feels like I'm working in a box and bumping up against walls not of my own making. When I'm in PS, the walls are still there, but are much more of my own making and movable with practice/experience.

The 'non destructive' approach of LR has no real pull for me. Intermediate files and multiple forks in the workflow are of no concern, I just need to get bigger disks in my work machine (and backup servers) every so often.

I know it's very much a case of YMMV, but as I tell people at camera club talks, don't be afraid to admit that you just don't like LR, especially if you are prepared to put in some work mastering other workflows


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## Hector1970 (Jan 28, 2016)

Thanks Keith for your insights and keep up the good work on your website.


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## privatebydesign (Jan 29, 2016)

For me the biggest advantage of using Bridge over Lightroom is the file types it can 'see'. Lightroom is very limited in file types, for instance it can't even 'see' .PSB files, which are just PSD files over 2GB! I will often end up with print files that exceed 2GB so can't view them in LR, add in the many other image file types and extensions LR doesn't recognise makes it very limited for many applications.


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## YuengLinger (Jan 29, 2016)

privatebydesign said:


> For me the biggest advantage of using Bridge over Lightroom is the file types it can 'see'. Lightroom is very limited in file types, for instance it can't even 'see' .PSB files, which are just PSD files over 2GB! I will often end up with print files that exceed 2GB so can't view them in LR, add in the many other image file types and extensions LR doesn't recognise makes it very limited for many applications.



Good point. This is one reason I go with .tif which support up to 4GB files. I rarely hit 3GB, so far, so good.


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## JPAZ (Feb 1, 2016)

Seems everyone has a different approach and therefore opinion. LR is my mainstay with PS when I need it. I have found the Silver Efex in NiK to be useful for B&W conversions but use it almost exclusively in PS. I guess the presets are the reason I will go there since one of them will be close to what I am trig to achieve with a lot less effort.

As far as the other options in NIK, I have found them to be maybe a little less useful than what I can do with LR alone. FWIW, I have never had a issue reinstalling NIK whenever I have changed computers. But I don't know Google's plans.


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## Canon Shooter (Mar 24, 2016)

NIK COLLECTION IS FREE!!!


Starting March 1st 2016


I know this topic has not been replied to in 45+ days...but I guess since I only have so many posts...I cannot start my own Topic...so I thought I would pass this along in case anyone may be interested.

Or someone can start a topic for others to see.


Keep On Shootin!

www.google.com/nikcollection/


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## Canon Rumors Guy (Mar 24, 2016)

It'd be nice if they had made it HiDPI before giving it away. It's useless for me on my laptop now.


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## Canon Shooter (Apr 2, 2016)

> It's useless for me on my laptop now.



Sorry to hear that.

Is this for/on all laptops?


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