Aperture Plug-in - Color Efex Pro 3.0
Nik Software recently updated their Color Efex Pro 3.0 software to provide support for Aperture 2.1+ though the addition of an edit plug-in. Note that the Aperture plug-in is not available with the Standard Edition of Color Efex Pro 3.0, only the Select and Complete Editions.
Color Efex Pro 3.0 provides a set of digital filters for colour correction, retouching and creative enhancements. They are analogous to traditional photographic filters, and some of the filter names will be familiar, such as Graduated Neutral Density and Skylight Filter.
Color Efex Pro 3.0 is available in three different versions at different price points and number of included filters. A 15 day free trial version is also available.
- Standard Edition - 15 Filters - $99.95 (Aperture plug-in not included)
- Select Edition - 35 Filters - $159.95
- Complete Edition - 52 Filters - $299.95
The filters provided with each edition are listed here.
After opening the plug-in with a selected photo, the plug-in interface is opened. The Complete Edition is shown in the screen shot below after the B/W Conversion plug-in has been applied.
The left side of the plug-in lists the available filters, grouped into a number of tabs; All, Traditional, Stylizing, Landscape or Portrait. Filters can also be added to a dedicated Favorites tab.
The center of the plug-in shows the selected photo. A number of different display modes are available.
- A single image is shown with the filter applied (a check-box can remove the preview, simply showing the image before the filter is applied.)
- Before and after photos are shown side-by-side (as shown in the screen shot above.) This is my preferred display mode, allowing to see the filter effects upon all parts of the photo.
- A single photo is shown split in two, the left side showing before and the right side showing after.
The right side of the plug-in shows the available options for the currently selected filter. A loupe is also provided that shows the before and after effects of the filter at the pixel level. The loupe displays the photo detail at the current mouse pointer location.
I will be adding some subsequent follow-up articles taking an example image and passing it through a number of the available filters to show the their effect and the filters available options.
Overall, Color Efex Pro 3.0 is a great Aperture plug-in and a valuable addition to your digital kit-bag. However, as the Aperture plug-in is only available with the Select and Complete Editions, which at $160 and $300 (minus that 5 cents!) respectively are quite expensive, it will only be popular with a select group of Aperture users. However, if you have not invested in Photoshop, a couple of Aperture plug-ins may be all you need to complete your digital workflow. I would definitely recommend using the free trial version to see if it offers enough features for the cost.
Tags: Aperture, Photo Adjustment
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