Nikon Capture NX2. Good Program??
Dec 12, 2011 20:24:04 #
I just downloaded a 60 day free trial of Nikons Capture NX2, primarily because of a color correct feature that I read about. I have a really nice shot of a 15th century building in Germany that I have always liked, but the sky was too washed out. I have (ancient) Photoshop 5.0 that I love, but have never been able to tweek the sky into shape without bringing out other problems elsewhere. Have tried Corel, Picasa and Gimp as well with no more success. The Capture's Color Correct feature took care of the situation in less than 30 seconds and I think it looks great! I may be buying this software if I can get comfortable enough with the rest of its features. (Had to reduce the files from 206mb TIFFs to 17mb JPEGs to post here, hope they load up.)
No EXIF data as they are scans of E6 medium format shots.
No EXIF data as they are scans of E6 medium format shots.
Original scan
Corrected sky only
Dec 12, 2011 23:04:23 #
Have you looked a Lightroom 3??? It will fix darn near anything. Does a good job with jpegs but is unbelievable with RAW files.
Larry
Larry
Dec 12, 2011 23:29:49 #
NX2 is not my favorite however, I posted this test earlier after a friend, who is much more critical than I, discovered a difference between RAW files opened in NX2 and those opened in Photoshop.
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-5894-1.html
The difference is very slight but NX2 produces a more desirable color depth consistently over those opened in Photoshop. So we've gone to opening RAW files in NX2 and saving immediately as a TIFF. Photoshop seems to handle TIFF just fine.
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-5894-1.html
The difference is very slight but NX2 produces a more desirable color depth consistently over those opened in Photoshop. So we've gone to opening RAW files in NX2 and saving immediately as a TIFF. Photoshop seems to handle TIFF just fine.
Dec 13, 2011 08:42:36 #
treadwl wrote:
Have you looked a Lightroom 3??? It will fix darn near anything. Does a good job with jpegs but is unbelievable with RAW files.
Larry
Larry
I have tried lightroom, and it is a nice program overall. My problem with it was that my medium format scans come out usually over 320mb, and Lightroom is slower than molasses in January on files over 200mb. It did work very well on my digitals from my D90 and D7000, but I didn't see that much of an advantage over Elements for those files, so I use Elements for most of that work. My opinion is Elements is a better choice when you look at the price difference. Price is the reason I never upgraded my Photoshop 5.0 to the CSx series, it seems to me that Adobe is mostly all about the money.
Dec 13, 2011 08:46:45 #
ShakyShutter wrote:
NX2 is not my favorite however, I posted this test earlier after a friend, who is much more critical than I, discovered a difference between RAW files opened in NX2 and those opened in Photoshop.
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-5894-1.html
The difference is very slight but NX2 produces a more desirable color depth consistently over those opened in Photoshop. So we've gone to opening RAW files in NX2 and saving immediately as a TIFF. Photoshop seems to handle TIFF just fine.
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-5894-1.html
The difference is very slight but NX2 produces a more desirable color depth consistently over those opened in Photoshop. So we've gone to opening RAW files in NX2 and saving immediately as a TIFF. Photoshop seems to handle TIFF just fine.
Thanks, yes Photoshop works well on TIFF. My version of Photoshop will not open RAW so I have to convert to TIFF from another file first, I have been using View NX for that. Capture does have some shortcoming, I can see that, but doesn't everything? I also like Corel Paintshop Pro X4 Ultimate for working with Tiff as well as RAW files. The color depth correction in Capture is what impresses me the most and I will be adding it to my collection of software as soon as my trial runs out I think.
Dec 13, 2011 09:08:11 #
ShakyShutter wrote:
NX2 is not my favorite however, I posted this test earlier after a friend, who is much more critical than I, discovered a difference between RAW files opened in NX2 and those opened in Photoshop.
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-5894-1.html
The difference is very slight but NX2 produces a more desirable color depth consistently over those opened in Photoshop. So we've gone to opening RAW files in NX2 and saving immediately as a TIFF. Photoshop seems to handle TIFF just fine.
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-5894-1.html
The difference is very slight but NX2 produces a more desirable color depth consistently over those opened in Photoshop. So we've gone to opening RAW files in NX2 and saving immediately as a TIFF. Photoshop seems to handle TIFF just fine.
When using PS to open RAW, do you set the camera calibration? It makes a significant difference.
Dec 13, 2011 09:28:06 #
I haven't heard about setting the camera's calibration in Photoshop. I have Elements Elements 10, How would I go about doing this?
Dec 13, 2011 09:58:08 #
MT Shooter,
Capture NX2 is my editor. I shoot with a D90, and shoot RAW exclusively. Over the last many months, I have wrestled with the question of whether I should move to PS, or one of their products, and I am now at the point that I've learned enough about CNX that I am satisfied with it and no longer feel the need to use something else.
None of the available software is a "magic bullet" that will automatically make our photos look like we see them in our mind. We must learn to look at the photo, and make decisions about what is wrong that needs to be fixed, just as you did. Unfortunately, some of our shots are simply not fixable, but I am confident that CNX will fix whatever is wrong, on those that are.
It isn't a "pixel-level" editor that allows you to mix multiple images, but it is a great (and fast) photo editor that will yield great results. There are some resources available to help learn the tool. A copy of "After the Shoot" by Mike Hagen is one of them.
If you have specific questions that you feel I might be able to help with, send me a PM. I'm always happy to share.
Capture NX2 is my editor. I shoot with a D90, and shoot RAW exclusively. Over the last many months, I have wrestled with the question of whether I should move to PS, or one of their products, and I am now at the point that I've learned enough about CNX that I am satisfied with it and no longer feel the need to use something else.
None of the available software is a "magic bullet" that will automatically make our photos look like we see them in our mind. We must learn to look at the photo, and make decisions about what is wrong that needs to be fixed, just as you did. Unfortunately, some of our shots are simply not fixable, but I am confident that CNX will fix whatever is wrong, on those that are.
It isn't a "pixel-level" editor that allows you to mix multiple images, but it is a great (and fast) photo editor that will yield great results. There are some resources available to help learn the tool. A copy of "After the Shoot" by Mike Hagen is one of them.
If you have specific questions that you feel I might be able to help with, send me a PM. I'm always happy to share.
Dec 13, 2011 10:03:46 #
Au Contrare Bruce! Every pic I take is perfect!!!
(Thats my story and I'm sticking to it!)
(Thats my story and I'm sticking to it!)
Dec 13, 2011 10:07:48 #
MT Shooter wrote:
Au Contrare Bruce! Every pic I take is perfect!!!
(Thats my story and I'm sticking to it!)
(Thats my story and I'm sticking to it!)
LOL If it were only that simple.
I came back to my post to relate a fact that I believe has merit. CNX was written by NIK Software for Nikon. These are the same people that make some very nice (and expensive) plug-ins for CNX and PS. The software (CNX) has some heritage.
Dec 13, 2011 10:18:02 #
Dec 13, 2011 10:21:41 #
sbesaw
Loc: Boston
sbesaw wrote:
It's also only $ 82.95 at B&H as of today
Whoops, my bad, that was for the upgrade....Sorry
Dec 13, 2011 10:24:11 #
cartruk wrote:
I haven't heard about setting the camera's calibration in Photoshop. I have Elements Elements 10, How would I go about doing this?
Think it is same in Elements, PhotoShop and Lightroom. For me, I click on the camera icon just below the histogram in RAW. Typically set it to either landscape or vivid. May also be on top tool bar.
Dec 13, 2011 13:19:20 #
WOW! Thanks so much Adirondack or the tip on setting the Camera Calibration. In photoshop 10 it is a camera icon right beneath the histogram. There are a number of choices including ADOBE standard, Camera neutral, vivid, standard, landscape and portrait. You can try each setting to see the impact it has on the picture. Camera standard and portrait produced the best results for the RAW images I looked at.
Dec 14, 2011 18:45:35 #
sbesaw
Loc: Boston
For what it's worth Mac Lion OS, 10.7.2 does not support Nikon Capture NX2 which is surprising since it's written by NIK and NIK runs on MAC 10.7.2. Nikon is supposedly working on it but haven't published an update on that topic since July. They make great cameras and Lenses. Software, not so much
If you want to reply, then register here. Registration is free and your account is created instantly, so you can post right away.