Seasoned Photoshop enthusiasts will all tell you that you do not get better than the Nik Collection photo editing plugins. Paying $150 is worth it, but now it’s free from Google. Photoshop is not a requirement and you can use the individual plugin modules as standalone applications, but there are some caveats; the plugins were not designed as standalone applications.
Before we discuss Nik Collection as standalone application, here is a short introduction.
Google Nik Collection
The Nik Collection is composed of seven desktop plug-ins that provide a powerful range of photo editing capabilities – from filter applications that improve color correction, to retouching and creative effects, to image sharpening that brings out all the hidden details, to the ability to make adjustments to the color and tonality of images.
Analog Efex Pro
Explore the look and feel of classic cameras, films, and lenses.
Color Efex Pro
A comprehensive set of filters for color correction, retouching, and creative effects.
Silver Efex Pro
Master the art of black-and-white photography with darkroom-inspired controls.
Viveza
Selectively adjust the color and tonality of your images without complicated masks or selections.
HDR Efex Pro
From natural to artistic, explore the full potential of HDR photography.
Sharpener Pro
Bring out hidden details consistently with the professional’s choice for image sharpening.
Dfine
Improve your images with noise reduction tailored to your camera.
Use Nik Collection in Standalone mode with Caution!
When using Nik Collection in standalone mode there are no menus in the top left corner, except for the Efex Series Modules that does have a few menu options like, Open File and Save Image As.
With the modules you need to drag and drop the photos on a module’s executable file to edit it. If you installed the Nik Collection to the default location, the executable (exe) files for each module is at the following location where each module’s executable is nested within the folder for that module. Therefore, the executable for Analog Efex Pro 2 will be found at: C:\Program Files\Google\Nik Collection\Analog Efex Pro 2\Analog Efex Pro 2 (64-bit)\Analog Efex Pro 2.exe
Furthermore, when you hit the Save button, your original files will be overwritten. Hence, I recommend you make backup copies of your photos and use them instead. After saving a file the module window will close and you will need drag another file and drop it on the executable file to edit another photo.
When you load multiple images and press the Save All button, all the files will be overwritten with the changes.
Download Google Nik Collection
To download Nik Collection and learn more about each individual plugin module, visit the official Google Nik Collection page. Furthermore, If you want to know how to use the various plugin modules. Go to the Nik Software YouTube channel and choose from hundreds of tutorial videos to learn from.
Below is a sample of the available tutorials – Tips and Tricks for Stunning Black & White Images:
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