Color Efex Pro 3.0

Hi All! 

Here is an image that I shot this summer while travelling through Chicago.  In the weekend that I was in Chicago this amazing 60+ man put on over 70 miles on his bike. 

Here are four images.  The LAST image is the original and the other three are variations put through a photoshop plug-in called Color Efex Pro 3.0.  All images are adjusted within the Color Efex Pro 3.0 dialogue box with no other work in photoshop.  These are used to illustrate the power of the plug-in without comment on what you can do with the image once you return to the Photoshop work pallette. The first images is a tonal enhancement, the second is called midnight, and the third is a high key output.

I wanted to tell you a little bit about this cool photoshop plug-in called Color Efex Pro 3.0.  This is a Nik product and is absolutely fabulous.  Image that you take a photo and are interested in adding an effect to either all or just a part of an image.  Within the photoshop  filters dropdown menu you would select NIK> Color Efex Pro 3.0 menu choice and a new dialogue box will open.  Your image will be presented to you in either side by side view with the original on the left and the image with the applied effect(s) on the right.  Once you decide what effect you like, you can click apply and it applies the effect to a new layer in photoshop.  This method preserves your original image and allows you to apply other effects to the new layer you have just created.  Head over to Niksoftware.com to see this great plug-in, and while you are there, check out the new silver efex pro.  If you are serious about black and white, you will enjoy this plug-in as well. 

Once you bring your image back into photoshop you can work with it normally. You can apply layer masks, adjust the opacity, apply styles, etc. You can even bring it right back into the Color Efex Pro 3.0 plug-in and add more effects.  The possibilities are endless.

I hope you enjoyed this post and encourage you to let me know what you would like to learn a bit more about.  I am always looking for new things to share but sometimes when you have worked with an image program for so long you get comfortable with your style and forget that you might be doing something that is considered advanced which might help others out.  

All my best and 'til next time, 

Lance Burns