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Google Nik Tools now Free!


mikeodial

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For me Silver Effects gives me the tools to make the B&W looks I desire. As for color ...I tweak in photoshop because none of the " fillm " plug ins do it for me .

 

 

Are there any products out there that really look like film ? ....in color.

 

I totally agree with this - the color film simulations are indeed pitifully poor. 

 

Viveza I use for the amazing speed and sophistication of its masking technology: it can handle multiple incredibly complex and layered masks, which can be tweaked and moderated in an almost endless variety of ways. If I need to do this in Photoshop, the time for each operation is tenfold. I'm hoping it keeps working - even if it means staying with my current version of Ps - it's so incredibly fast and useful for the small localized tweaks that so many images need.

 

For me it's a pity that Viveza was ever bundled with the other apps - it's saved me thousands of hours of time.

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  • 2 weeks later...
From The New Yorker:
 
"...I recently read that Google was making its one-hundred-and-forty-nine-dollar photo-editing suite, the Google Nik Collection, free. This photo-editing software is as beloved among photographers as, say, Katz’s Deli is among those who dream of pastrami sandwiches.
 
Before Google bought it, in 2012, the collection cost five hundred dollars. It is made up of seven pieces of specialized software that, when used in combination with other photo-editing software, such as Adobe Photoshop or Adobe Lightroom, give photographers a level of control akin to that once found in the darkroom. They can mimic old film stock, add analog photo effects, or turn color shots into black-and-white photos. The suite can transform modestly good photos into magical ones. Collectively, Nik’s intellectual sophistication is that of a chess grand master. I don’t mind paying for the software, and neither do thousands of photographers and enthusiasts. So, like many, I wondered, why would Google make it free?
 
My guess is that it wants to kill the software, but it doesn’t want the P.R. nightmare that would follow. Remember the outcry over its decision to shut down its tool for R.S.S. feeds, Google Reader? Nik loyalists are even more rabid. By making the software free, the company can both ignore the product and avoid a backlash. But make no mistake: it is only a matter of time before Nik goes...into the dustbin of technological history."
 

http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/in-the-future-we-will-photograph-everything-and-look-at-nothing?intcid=mod-most-popular

Edited by plasticman
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".......it is only a matter of time before Nik goes...into the dustbin of technological history."

 

Such a shame it's a great product....easy, fast, simple. 

I'll use it as long as it works and keep my eyes open for a replacement

....I hate using Lightroom.....but I am aware that ...thats just me...most folks love it

 

My workflow is Bridge/Camera Raw/Photoshop with Nik..... 

                                               .... Vieza and Silver Efx .....then other assorted actions and plugins as needed ....and back to PS as till done.

.....I got it to where, once was a chore is now fun...a lot of fun

 

I really dont understand why great products disappear ( maybe I do) especially in the hands of a Google ?

I agree with someone on the forum that said Google should sell  Nik to Adobie

 

​I'm always open to Workflow suggestions from this forum......my least favorite word in photography is...WORKFLOW

Edited by ECohen
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Google are shutting down sections of their business left, right and centre

 

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/apr/05/revolv-devices-bricked-google-nest-smart-home

 

They've always done that. There's a website somewhere that shows the number of days the various shut down services lasted.

 

[EDIT] Found this...

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Google_products#Discontinued_products_and_services

Edited by stunsworth
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