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By dlscape, March 18, 2010 14:16

There was once a time when anything other than exposure, white balance and minor tweaks had to be done in Photoshop. Then programs like Lightroom and Aperture added the option of doing spot editing using brushes similar to those in Photoshop but still in a non-destructive format. Then to top all that Nik released Nik Color Efex Pro with u-point control, and it rocks

Lightroom masks are great, I’m not contesting that, but Color Efex Pro (especially when used  in conjuction with Capture NX 2) takes non-destructive editing to the next level. Every filter can be layered and individually masked. Localised edits can be made using the intelligent, auto selecting u-point tool, brush or lasso/marquis select options. Each layer can have it’s own opacity and most tools have shadow and highlight protection tools.

I spotted a scene with some potential but didn't have time to do anything other than point and shoot.

The great thing when using Efex Pro with Capture NX 2 is that all the edits are saved into the NEF file where they can be recalled and edited at a later date. You can even save multiple versions of edits into the one NEF or delete all edits to revert back to the original file. And did I mention all of this is non-destructive?

No more making flattened TIFFs of all your photos then editing those in Photoshop.

In this example I was trying to get arty shots of the Bridal party in their motel room. When you don’t have time to set up lights and you want to just catch candid moments, arty can be difficult to pull off. If I set the camera to tungsten WB the shadows looked ok but the highlights looked blue. If I set it to daylight then the highlights looked ok but the shadows came out browny/orange. In the past this would have bothered me a lot. Now? Not so much…

I used to try to get the perfect shot and then do a few minor tweaks later. Using tools like Color Efex Pro I now aim to capture a decent base shot knowing that I can work on it later to get the perfect look. This means I no longer have to wait or plan for the perfect shot (I still do when I can) and so have captured moments I’d have missed  before.

Some extra contrast and brightness using the u-point colour tool, a bit of added noise, a selective B&W converstion, a few selective tweaks of the saturation, and a bit of masked levels and curves and... Voila!