Plug ins ... who uses what and why?

[Keith]

Since getting a Mac and switching to Lightroom I've had to re-think my post processing slightly. My previous software ACDSee Pro had a function for adding borders to an image but Lightroom doesn't ... though you can do it with the vignetting tools but it's a little tedious and you can't get square corners on the inside of your frame. I went looking at plugins and found one called 'mogrify 2' that does a very neat job along with a couple of other useful functions so downloaded and installed it. It really is very good and I'm totally satisfied with it and it only requires a small donation to the creators to unlock all of it's functions.

I did notice that there are a myriad of plugins available for LR and photoshop and was curious as to what various plugins other people here are using ... and why?

 

[lynnb]

Keith, I use Filmbot presets quite a lot. It's freeware - here's the link. There are things it does that can take much longer if I just rely on LR's development module. Usually my workflow is to develop in LR first, and then look at Filmbot's previews to see if they give a better interpretation (more along the lines I'm looking for). If so, I apply the Filmbot preset and then usually I'll tweak the development a bit more in LR.

Seems funny to apply film emulation presets to film scans, but I'll do anything if it gives the end result I'm looking for. Here's an example of original Portra scan and after processing using Filmbot:

 

[Keith]

That's quite a dramatic result Lynn. 🙂

I discovered a site called 'the photographer's toolbox' that has a heap of plugins ... some useless of course depending on your tastes! 😀

 

[YYV_146]

Nik EFEX pro. For B&W conversions and quick color fixes. I also use Portraiture as a general purpose skin smoothing plugin.

 

[kxl]

I have the entire Google Nik collection ($149).

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

I don't have any Lightroom plugins, but for Photoshop I use Topaz BW Effects 2 for converting digital photos to black and white.

 

[OurManInTangier]

I didn't have any until I was persuaded to try Silver Efex. Then, after a software upgrade, it stopped working and I had to contact them to get the issue sorted. At that point they gave me the entire Nik Collection which I would never have paid out for as individual software packages.

I'm now playing around with the various packages to see what they do and how they may do it best. It can make for a slightly more drawn out workflow but some software simply does certain things better for me e.g. I've never been a fan of the Lightroom cloning tool, I always end up exporting the images and spotting in PS.

I did have Gimp as a freebie on the recommendation of a colleague but it never really felt right to me, still have it...just don't use it. I'll have a look at some of those mentioned previously now, there's certainly quite a few interesting free software applications around.

 

[Sparrow]

... as displacement activities go ... they're not bad, and it makes a change from browsing Red Dot or Ebay

 

[sevo]

I don't even exploit the full limits of the LR/Photoshop built in functions, if anything is too screwed up to be fixed with reasonably gentle means, I reshoot/rescan or acknowledge defeat.

I have only one single LR plugin installed - rc File Renamer (for batch export and backup purposes).

 

[robert blu]

I was not interested in such a kind of plugins, just work with LR and CC. But after having seen Lynn's example I must consider something...
robert

 

[cz23]

I use Silver Efex Pro with Lightroom. I don't use its film emulators at all, and I typically use the default preset. It gives a better starting point than I get in LR. And I like its control points function better for dodging and burning. The thing I don't like is ending up with multiple physical versions of a file. They tend to proliferate and I don't always clean up the way I should.

I think one of the benefits of plug-ins like this is their educational value. They expose you to processing ideas and options that you may not have thought of.

John

 

[Mcary]

DXO film pack 3 for digital B&W conversions. What I usually is process a B&W version of the image in LR then create a virtual copy/color version and open it in DXO3 to see if I can better the LR results. If I prefer the DXO 3 results I keep that file if not I just delete it and use the LR version. I'd say the results are about 50/50.

 

[noimmunity]

In addition to black and white conversions, I use plugins for some HDR and pano-stitch work, as well as for attempts to reduce banding and noise. Occasionally I go for some of the various effects.

I often use Color Efex to dial in a bit of contrast. When I want to play with the color, I prefer to use C1Pro.

Yay for plugins!

 

[Dwig]

...
I did notice that there are a myriad of plugins available for LR and photoshop and was curious as to what various plugins other people here are using ... and why?

While I have several and have experimented with them, there are none that I really use other than an export plugin that automates and upload to the gallery on my WordPress based website.

My personal work and what I do at the photographer's gallery I work for is way too varied, image to image, to make efficient use of canned effects of any kind. What little "standardized repetitive changes" that I do for either can easily be handled by presents in LR itself.

 

[cz23]

Keith, Dwig raises a good point I forgot about -- LR plug-ins for Flickr and Zenfolio. Both pretty handy.

John

 

[barnwulf]

I use SilverEfex Pro 2 and I got it the same way that Simon did. Since I had an earlier version, they sent me the entire Google NIK collection for no cost. I like the adjustments and tones that I can get with SilEfx and I sometimes use their frame/mat feature. A lot of the time I just use the Canvas Size feature in CS5 and add a thin black line around the finished ptoto and then a 1/2" white boarder around that. - jim

 

[cz23]

I didn't have any until I was persuaded to try Silver Efex. Then, after a software upgrade, it stopped working and I had to contact them to get the issue sorted. At that point they gave me the entire Nik Collection which I would never have paid out for as individual software packages....

Same thing happened to me today. After I replaced my C drive over the weekend SilverEfex prompted me for a serial number. I wrote Nik to request my number and they sent the entire suite.

John

 

[Jim-st]

The Lenstagger plugin is an excellent tool for correcting the exif data when I've used non-coded lenses on Leica digitals, or correcting misinformation in the exif when I've used CV lenses coded as Leica ones

For me Photoshop is the top LR plugin, and within PS I still frequently use PixelGenius's Photokit Sharpeners, in particular the Creative Sharpening tools that can give amazing local area contrast enhancements that even from the best (non-AA) sensors aren't always obvious

Jim

 

[Godfrey]

I don't use any LR plugins for my image processing (nor for Photoshop), but I do use the Xrite Passport plugin for generating camera calibration profiles occasionally. Similarly, I don't use the supplied LR presets very much; I've made a ton of my own presets over the past eight years, however.

The border effect I've been using for the past couple of years is provided by Flare (current version Flare 2, a $15 download from the Mac App Store, https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flare-2/id924691732?mt=12). It's set as my second external editor in Lightroom. Flare can do a lot more than border effects, but since I am happy with what I get out of Lightroom I haven't investigated it very deeply.

G