Does anyone use DxO Optics Pro for PP?

[Guest]

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So I downloaded a trial version of DxO Optics Pro and I am very impressed.  

 

While it doesn't bring significant improvement to every single image for me (particularly the one's that are well-exposed in good lighting), it has rendered major improvements to many, particularly tougher shots requiring PP "surgery".  (I would consider myself a good intermediate LR/PS user.)

 

The package seems to take a very balanced approach to applying its changes.  Images seem to have improved sharpness,contrast, clarity and overall 3D pop.  

 

I'm no Photoshop guru, and it seems that I can bring my images close in LR/PS, but this package is easy enough to use and seems to produce great results without much fuss (so you don't have to spend a lot of time or be a PS maven to get very good results).

 

I don't see this replacing Photoshop (you can't dodge and burn for instance and there's no bandaid tool), nor is this an organizing tool like Lightroom, but it seems to be a good tool to have in the arsenal to get the most from (marginal) photos.

 

Am I barking up the wrong tree here?  Are there better DNG PP tools to consider - or should I just suck it in and spend more time learning or using PhotoShop?

 

As always, I appreciate your constructive input.

 

Best regards for a happy new year.

DGP

[jdlaing]

I like it. So far.

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[HankPhoto]

I use DxO for most all of my keeper photos.  I combine it with LR.  I load my images to LR and select the ones that I wish for further processing.  The selected photos are then transferred to DxO using the DxO LR plugin.  One thing that is a challenge for the Leica T with DxO is that the only lens profile is for the 23mm so you have to manually correct for distortion in DxO.  This can be time consuming but I think the results are worth it. 

 

I think DxO colors are better along with slightly more detail and much better noise reduction.  I also find the flesh tones are better with DxO.

 

DxO has become a key processing tool for me.  In fact, I have sometimes waited for DxO to support a camera before I would buy it.