Topaz (Page 2): marthamcc, I have all except impressions. If on a desert island which would I take? Adjust is like a mixed Italian spice... a bit of every thing. Denoise, I turned off...

dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

marthamcc, I have all except impressions. If on a desert island which would I take? Adjust is like a mixed Italian spice... a bit of every thing. Denoise, I turned off the denoise in my camera and use Topaz; example, it is selective regarding color. Detail, rapid well controlled selective bringing out of the unseen. Clarity for color control.

While I have the rest, except for impressions, they are not used very often. This is based on what I do, not the quality of the product.

Yes, I am sure that one could almost do what Topaz does using Adobe products, why take the time... Topaz is quick and very versatile... slide the sliders and you get instant and quality gratification.

ejrmaine Loc: South Carolina

marthamcc wrote:

I downloaded a trial version.

How good are these plug inns ? I ask because it seems I am missing to do something. I tried the ReStyle that has a lot of presets but most of them look awkward to me.

I think the Impression is useful for wall hangers.

What are you using most with great results?

Take a look at these tutorials

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNrQR9fdxcs

Trentc Loc: Denver, CO

grusum wrote:

I haven't used any of my Topaz plug ins since I become more adapt at using LR and PS.

Personal opinion is that they accomplish edits to a photo without having to know intimate details of how to use LR or PS.

Once you become more proficient with your software chances are you will no longer need the plugins.

Grusum is pretty much right. They are a tool to accomplish something (a particular look, color, detail, reduced noise, etc) easily and quickly. Everything they do can be accomplished in other ways. I have Restyle but don't use it much. However, I also have Adjust, Detail, and Clarity and they are pretty much part of my regular workflow, helping me quickly adjust my photo the way I want - simply, easily, quickly. I also think their black and white conversion plug-in is excellent (far better than Nik BW Efex).

A good example of this is a thread started by another UHH member a couple of weeks ago. He took information from a Topaz video about a noise reduction technique using Denoise and layers and figured out how to do the same thing in PS, without using the plugin. He just replicated what the plugin did in PS. More complicated and probably more time consuming, but just as effective.

Trentc Loc: Denver, CO

marthamcc wrote:

Thank you!

I'll use the plug inns for a while and decide about which ones if any I buy.

The comments here seem to indicate that the full price for all of them is not worth, something I was guessing from my short time of use.

I would agree with them being overpriced. I purchased mine one at a time, when they were on sale. They almost always have one of their plug-ins on sale. I felt they were a great deal at their sale price. An upside to Topaz, so they claim, is that any future upgrades will be free after the original purchase. We shall see...

MW

marthamcc wrote:

I downloaded a trial version.

How good are these plug inns ? I ask because it seems I am missing to do something. I tried the ReStyle that has a lot of presets but most of them look awkward to me.

I think the Impression is useful for wall hangers.

What are you using most with great results?

Many of the Topaz modules look like good solutions to problems O don't have. However, I use detail quite a bit for in process sharpening. I use it very gently such that the affect is not obvious unles you go before-after comparison. The color contrast tools are valuable gone times as well

johnst1001a Loc: West Chester, Ohio

Like a lot of things, Topaz is just a tool. I use Topaz adjust a lot, as well as denoise. I just got Impression. I have tinkered with the others, but have not had the time to learn all the features. It is great overall, definitely worth it from my vantage point.

camerapapi Loc: Miami, Fl.

Topaz makes excellent plug-ins. I use Adjust 5, B&W Effects 2 and Denoise.
Like most softwares there is a learning curve to master them and I would suggest that you view their tutorials for very useful information.
Presets are only that, presets so to me they are a starting point. Topaz has plenty of presets and plenty of adjustments to play with the image.

mborn Loc: Massachusetts

I use Clarity and Detail along with DeNoise and the others as needed

tomcat

Also take a look at Macphun software. They have a couple of great plug-ins: Noiseless Pro, which I like better than DeNoise and Tonality Pro which I like better than B&W effects. They also have a plug-in called Intensify Pro, which is very similar to Adjust. They only run on Mac. macphun.com

peterg Loc: Santa Rosa, CA

warrior wrote:

The new Glow is cool!

I use several Topaz plug-ins, including Glow. While I don't care for the over-the-top photos that Topaz uses in their Glow ads, I've found that a minute touch of Glow can help make a picture pop. Same with Star Effects. If the viewer thinks I've added some "stuff" to the photo, I've added too much. Less is better.

marthamcc

I tried DeNoise on a couple of pictures taken under candlelight and it worked quite well.

tomcat

marthamcc wrote:

I tried DeNoise on a couple of pictures taken under candlelight and it worked quite well.

give Noiseless Pro from macphun.com a whirl and see if you like their noise reduction better. I did. If you are using a Mac, you can download a trial version for free.

GaryI Loc: NY & Fla

I've been very impressed with the results I've gotten from the Topaz plug ins, but it takes some experimentation.

If you're interested in getting started, go to their tutorials on youtube and get some background on the plugin before downloading the trial version.

Also, around Christmastime, they seem to have good deal on their bundles.

StevenG Loc: Long Island, NY

I have the entire Topaz suite. I love the effects that can be achieved. Topaz runs free webinars periodically on how to get the best effects from their product. Often, they combine using the Topaz plug ins with photoshop. If you missed the webinars, they can be viewed on you tube. I think they are very worth while if you have questions about the usefulness of the product. The main drawback is that when you encounter a problem (an you will), the tech support stinks.

mborn Loc: Massachusetts

StevenG wrote:

I have the entire Topaz suite. I love the effects that can be achieved. Topaz runs free webinars periodically on how to get the best effects from their product. Often, they combine using the Topaz plug ins with photoshop. If you missed the webinars, they can be viewed on you tube. I think they are very worth while if you have questions about the usefulness of the product. The main drawback is that when you encounter a problem (an you will), the tech support stinks.

Tech support does not stink but is slow but they do solve the problem