tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post6666392881367326046..comments2024-02-12T03:21:03.402-08:00Comments on Ron Martinsen's Photography Blog: REVIEW: Nikon Capture NX 2 (compared against Adobe Lightroom 2.5) – Update Sept. 26, 2009ronmartblog.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06815090271742112506noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-36505638966501371932015-12-11T12:37:23.197-08:002015-12-11T12:37:23.197-08:00After years of fiddling with various open source, ...After years of fiddling with various open source, adobe and other software...<br /><br />I now exclusively use Capture NX2 to convert my raw files... It gives me instant control over light falloff, chromatic alberation, d-lighting feature, whitebalance (love the channel multipliers!), exposure tweaking.... etc etc. And gives great colors by default. I would waste enormous amounts of time trying to make the images look good in adobe camera raw or lightroom.<br /><br />The trick is to use another program like acdsee to sort your photos and simply drag and drop files into capture nx to edit. In fact i'd erase all the features except the right panel because it's the only thing i really need. The software is somewhat buggy, but the real problem are all the stupid interface mistakes.<br /><br />Lightroom is great if you shoot events and need to edit photos in batches with control. But for my nature photography capture nx rulez!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13460630853662068530noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-71650853560584572752013-06-16T14:04:47.486-07:002013-06-16T14:04:47.486-07:00Like most, I got caught up in Adobe's marketin...Like most, I got caught up in Adobe's marketing net and herd mentality, so I purchased Elements11 and LR4. No doubt, both offer good value for the money. A few months after my purchase, someone suggested that I check out a trial version of CNX2 and closely compare preprocessed raw images in NX and LR side by side.<br /><br />I was amazed at the differences in the images at 100% and 200% crop. NX rendered images were appreciably more accurate with no color or tonal bleeding or coagulation vs. LR's attempts. <br /><br />When I postprocess, I want to know that I'm working with the most accurate rendition of what my camera's sensor captured. Granted, you can only see that by way of pixel peeping, but for me, that solidified my preference for CNX2.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-74442173406852915392013-06-16T14:02:42.522-07:002013-06-16T14:02:42.522-07:00Like most, I got caught up in Adobe's marketin...Like most, I got caught up in Adobe's marketing net and herd mentality, so I purchased Elements11 and LR4. No doubt, both offer good value for the money. A few months after my purchase, someone suggested that I check out a trial version of CNX2 and closely compare preprocessed raw images in NX and LR side by side.<br /><br />I was amazed at the differences in the images at 100% and 200% crop. NX rendered images were appreciably more accurate with no color or tonal bleeding or coagulation vs. LR's attempts. <br /><br />When I postprocess, I want to know that I'm working with the most accurate rendition of what my camera's sensor captured. Granted, you can only see that by way of pixel peeping, but for me, that solidified my preference for CNX2.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-66210655734095473392012-09-25T21:30:14.426-07:002012-09-25T21:30:14.426-07:00I am new Nikon DSLR user. I reliazed very soon tha...I am new Nikon DSLR user. I reliazed very soon that image processing software is must for every DSLR owner to get the best result. So, i decided to buy one. I have two options. <br />1. Capture NX 2 or <br />2. Adobe Lightroom 4 + Nik Viveza 2<br /><br />I have a doubt about the output quality of the above software.<br />Will Nik Viveza 2 produce same output quality of Capture NX 2? <br /><br />I am asking this because... we can able to process the RAW (NEF) file in Capture NX2 but in Viveza we only process tiff/jpg.<br /><br />Will Processing tiff file give the same quality of processing RAW file?Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12140875664328955712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-38952561373461023302010-03-21T16:57:51.120-07:002010-03-21T16:57:51.120-07:00Hi Michael,
Sorry for the delayed response.
NX2 ...Hi Michael,<br /><br />Sorry for the delayed response.<br /><br />NX2 is a great value and lets you hit the ground running very fast to create good results thanks to the power of Nik's U-Point technology. <br /><br />I think of NX2 as having very basic and lightweight versions of the features offered in the full Nik products, so if you like NX2 you'll LOVE their real products. <br /><br />Lightroom with the Nik suite is going to be sufficent for many, but when it is used with Photoshop you have the added benefit of using layer masks to selectively remove the impact of the filters in a way that in some cases might be faster or more effective than using U-Point controls. That's its primiary benefit, but that's a lot of money to pay to get that benefit. <br /><br />I own Lightroom 2.x and Photoshop CS4, and I use the Nik products in both - but more often in Photoshop just because I'm very comfortable in Photoshop and use features that are not availalbe or possible in Lightroom. I still can't live without Lightroom though as it is my image management library and I generally use it to make final adjustments before printing.ronmartblog.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06815090271742112506noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-56959623138650546742010-03-21T16:52:21.633-07:002010-03-21T16:52:21.633-07:00Hi Carmela,
If you are already using Lightroom an...Hi Carmela,<br /><br />If you are already using Lightroom and are comfortable with it, then there is absolutely no reason or advantage for you to own Capture NX2. You will do much better using the Nik Complete Collection which has all of the power of the NX2 and WAY more (think of NX2 as the "light" version of the real Nik stuff). This blog has a discount for Nik products, so you can use that to save a little money (and I think there is a 15 or 30 day return policy if you change your mind). <br /><br />I own and use them both and NX2 isn't worth using once you have the Nik Complete Collection.<br /><br />Ronronmartblog.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06815090271742112506noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-82160869093726239082010-03-21T14:30:04.255-07:002010-03-21T14:30:04.255-07:00Ron ... I am going in circles. I am a Nikon shoote...Ron ... I am going in circles. I am a Nikon shooter (D300)I have used Lightroom since its inception and consider myself an advance, if not expert user. I find the adjustment brush useful but unwieldy ) I also used Wacom pen and tablet). I am very comfortable in LR and have no desire to leave it. I also use Photoshop (CS3) and am probably an intermediate level user there. I use it about 10%-15% of the time - mainly when I need layers, masks, channels .... Recently I have seen the work of some other photogs who are using nik software - primarily Color EFex I am very impressed with the filters and think the color point technology is something I want... Meanwhile several people have been telling me that I NEED Capture NX2... SO, I have been doing my homework (that's how I found your blog !). I am ready to buy, but I am not sure what I want and need. I am leaning toward buying the complete collection for Lightroom. At a cost of less that Color Efex for PS, I can have the whole collection for Lightroom. This will not give me the photoshop plug in but that collection costs $300 MORE - eek ! So I guess my questions are !Do I need Capture ? Do I need the ultimate collection. Money is not the greatest consideration but I would rather not pay hundreds of dollars for something I don't need. What do you think ???Carmelahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05205915592321939265noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-53963382380471198702010-03-17T08:28:12.862-07:002010-03-17T08:28:12.862-07:00I am kinda in the same boat as Michael but I don&#...I am kinda in the same boat as Michael but I don't have lightroom. I use PSE 8 along with Win7 64 bit along with NIkon transfer and View NX convert RAW NEF files to JPEG and TIFF. <br /><br />I do use Noiseware which I love. What I am looking at doing is just get the Nik collection but I am torn between the lightroom or Photoshop sets. Since I have PSE 8 the collections by NIk are specfic to LR or Photoshop and going to LR I loose those layers etc.. that PSE 8.0 has. <br /><br />Would LR with the Nik collection still be a better position to take or just get the photoshop Nik Collection and say heck with PSE and LR and for sure NX 2.2.4.Chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02800560104234139225noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-71811506352945242712010-01-25T13:45:04.797-08:002010-01-25T13:45:04.797-08:00Michael - go for the Lightroom combo given what yo...Michael - go for the Lightroom combo given what you have now. You can see from this article that the Lightoom and NX2 raw conversions aren't drastically different, and any percieved differences can definitely be corrected while editing the photos. <br /><br />Thanks for suppporting the blog!<br /><br />Ronronmartblog.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06815090271742112506noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-8634344559878102422010-01-25T13:21:52.211-08:002010-01-25T13:21:52.211-08:00Ron,
I'm considering the purchase either of ...Ron, <br /><br />I'm considering the purchase either of Lightroom or NX 2. At the moment, I use the Nik Suite in conjunction with PS Elements. I'm concerned that the older U-Point technology that NX 2 incorporates is not nearly as effective as that in Viveza 2. Also, how does Photoshop integration in Lightroom (both developed by Adobe) compare to that of NX 2?<br /><br />I was originally attracted to NX 2 for its RAW conversion capabilities, but Lightroom's organizing features and the Nik Suite's additional plugins seem to tip the balance in favour of Lightroom.<br /><br />Michael BlackUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11835883529127319342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-79447010163531834142009-12-24T15:07:16.852-08:002009-12-24T15:07:16.852-08:00Nik Software products are the key component of my ...Nik Software products are the key component of my digital workflow. I use them as Lightroom plug-ins for light work (although you can do some pretty amazing stuff with Viveza 2), but more often I use them in Photoshop for one primary reason - so I can use the "brush" feature which basically creates a mask so I can control where the effect is applied and where it isn't. Technically you can use U-Point controls do to the same thing, but it can be tricky if you want to do something like apply heavy sharpening on eyebrows without applying it to the face. It's possible with U-Point, but perhaps not as efficent.ronmartblog.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06815090271742112506noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-66974317103420040482009-12-24T07:14:11.027-08:002009-12-24T07:14:11.027-08:00Ron,
Thanks, I will take a closer look at Lightroo...Ron,<br />Thanks, I will take a closer look at Lightroom. I noticed from many of you images on your site you seem to use a lot of the NIK products. Do you use these in conjunction with other products (LR) or more as stand alone products? I am trying to find the best combination of solutions for something I can afford, or purchase as I go. Every dollar on software is one less spent on hardware (such as a good Micro). Thanks, MikeMicheal Whelanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09631133079034226784noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-41314392641489792332009-12-23T23:20:41.343-08:002009-12-23T23:20:41.343-08:00Hi Michael,
I understand your frustration with Ph...Hi Michael,<br /><br />I understand your frustration with Photoshop. I owned it for about 10 years before I ever did more than choose auto levels, auto contrast, and auto color. Seriously, I'm a programmer and hold patents for computer technology, but Photoshop is one of the worst user interfaces on the planet for beginners. This is why I wrote <a href="http://ronmart.blogspot.com/2008/12/what-photoshop-books-should-i-read.html" rel="nofollow">this article</a> to help people like you so you don't suffer like I did. <br /><br />In addition, what makes you successful with Capture NX2 is primarly what Nik Software has done with their U-Point technology, so when you combine <a href="http://ronmart.blogspot.com/2009/12/nik-software-big-holidays-savings-until.html" rel="nofollow">this</a> with Lightroom or Photoshop you have the power of those superior products with the tools to make some amazing images.<br /><br />Try out the demo versions of the other Nik Software products with Lightroom. You can do a ton and never fire up Photoshop, but you'll get much more amazing results. <br /><br />Capture NX2 is great for what it is, but it's kinda like comparing Microsoft Works to Microsoft Office - it "works", but just barely.ronmartblog.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06815090271742112506noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-41650124905507994822009-12-23T13:05:48.234-08:002009-12-23T13:05:48.234-08:00Ron,
Nice review but I feel you have a bit of atta...Ron,<br />Nice review but I feel you have a bit of attachment to LR. As a newbie to the digital processing I had tried a few different product offerings. While I agree that Photoshop is still the monarch in the image processing world I found it slow to learn and slow to do basic image improvements. Our marketing department who are skilled users of Photoshop are having me do the quick n easy mods with NX2. Yes some of the UI is a bit clunky and needs improvement. For the pro LR may be a better deal, for us rank photo newbies that do not have a emotional attachment to another product (or the acquired skill level)I found NX 2 to be a good combination of price, production quality and easy to learn. As for results from NX 2 I am getting good results quicker than I was with my 3 month long foray into other products. If I was cranking out dozens of images per week I might have a different story. When I get to that point I will take another look at LR and PS. Thanks for giving me more to think about.Micheal Whelanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09631133079034226784noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-46036003500009463122009-10-30T14:27:02.735-07:002009-10-30T14:27:02.735-07:00Anonymous - Thanks for your feedback. I've wan...Anonymous - Thanks for your feedback. I've wanted to do a Lightroom review for quite some time, but I know that by the time I'm done with it, that it would be a book. That's why I suggest installing it and playing around with it. However, I recognize that like most Adobe products it isn't exactly easy to pick up and start using it properly because some things are just difficult to get used to (like why there needs to be a develop versus library tab - shouldn't the "loupe" view just be the edit mode?)<br /><br />Capture NX2 isn't a bad product, and if you have a small workload then I'm sure it probably suits your needs. If so, use it and enjoy it. <br /><br />The purpose of this article though was to provide some info to those who haven't used it and are trying to decide if they should go with Capture NX or Lightroom 2.x. My recommendation for those trying to make that decision is that they should go with Lightroom for the reasons discussed in the article, plus the fact that they can extend Lightroom easier (for things like Silver Efex that you mentioned in your reply, plus many more).ronmartblog.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06815090271742112506noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-75935323041834288362009-10-30T13:46:38.792-07:002009-10-30T13:46:38.792-07:00Ron,
I think you're a little hard on NX2. I&#...Ron,<br /><br />I think you're a little hard on NX2. I'm a new Nikon DSLR user (as of July this year) ... actually, new to interchangeable lens cameras, in general ... and I've only been shooting in raw precisely because I wanted more latitude with re: to correcting my mistakes ... I should add that I'm not a pro nor someone who shoots 100+ shots each week ... I've found NX2 to be very easy to use, helps produce excellent photos, and is even better if you get the Nik Color Efex Pro ... I think for people like myself who haven't used Photoshop nor Lightroom, and thus don't have any emotional nor financial (yet) investment in it, a lot of the comparisons between those programs and NX2 don't hold up as well ... also, and maybe it's just me, trying to distinguish b/n the various PS versions and how it all compares to Lightroom ain't easy (and I don't find the "download the 30 day trial and see for yourself" to be a panacea). I'm not saying that I won't one day add PS or LR; and I sure would like to be able to use Silver Efex along with Capture NX (and this reason alone might lead me to the Adobe world)... but NX2 is more than solid ... yes, there are some user interface imperfections but, again, if you're not processing large numbers of photos these issues are much less problematic ... anyway, I'm just offering a different perspective and saying that NX2 shouldn't be (nor can it be, really) dismissed as having no substantive role in the post-processing world (and, no, I don't work for Nikon ... but I have stayed at a Holiday Inn). ThanksAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-63033651663929610132009-10-10T16:19:59.818-07:002009-10-10T16:19:59.818-07:00I have been using NX2 to process my images from a ...I have been using NX2 to process my images from a D300. I sort and rate my images using View NX. I use an older iMac G5 and find the application runs just as fast as Lightroom and CS4, both of which I have trialled. I also use ColorFX Pro plugins for NX2 and I find this makes a big difference to the workflow. I think even if I was using Lightroom, this would make a big improvement to that programme as well. The results I get are very good and I find being able to start off with and alter, the camera settings as a starting point saves a lot of time. The biggest downside I find is not having the full Nik plugin package available for NX2. <br />Regards <br />John TaylorJohn Taylornoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-66782677116194006122009-10-06T14:04:49.862-07:002009-10-06T14:04:49.862-07:00SideCarBlue,
If you import your images into Light...SideCarBlue,<br /><br />If you import your images into Lightroom and convert them to DNG files (Adobe's version of RAW where you can embed your NEF so there's nothing lost), then it will also write your changes into the DNG file just like Capture NX2 and you no longer have to worry about sidecar files. In addition, you don't need to have sidecar files in Lightroom (I never use them), but if you go this route be sure to backup your LR database regularly (it will prompt you by default). <br /><br />I didn't observe any benefits for IQ of Capture NX2 over Adobe Camera Raw (which is what LR uses).ronmartblog.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06815090271742112506noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-27305168548642125702009-10-04T06:19:59.047-07:002009-10-04T06:19:59.047-07:00Great review!
I'm testing NX2 trial too and I...Great review!<br /><br />I'm testing NX2 trial too and I find the UI a bit cumbersome. It requires you to frequently shift the mouse from the left side of the interface to the right side to get what you want to do. I liked the original NX UI better.<br />But I cannot argue against the picture quality features for Nikon images that NX/NX2 have.<br /><br />I like LR UI better for its excellent file mgmt feaures but I wish they'd allowed to insert keywords right into NEF files as NX/2 does - instead of the sidecar xmp files. That single missing feature makes LR much less useful for my workflow.SideCarBluenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-72777976891629786232009-09-24T17:56:44.542-07:002009-09-24T17:56:44.542-07:00As a NikSoft Complete owner I have to totally agre...As a NikSoft Complete owner I have to totally agree with you on the bad UI in NikSoft. <br /><br />James, in LR try setting the camera presets, Develop -> Camera Calibration -> Profile<br /><br />The default profile is ACR and this is kinda bland.Mike Dealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12482521876791458434noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5826231802859523569.post-60908731843577650692009-09-24T08:41:54.903-07:002009-09-24T08:41:54.903-07:00Interesting review. I must admit as an NX user my...Interesting review. I must admit as an NX user my biggest blocker to moving from NX to Lightroom is that when I installed the trial and used the two side by side, the color's seemed way off in Lightroom at initial import of my NEF files which made me very nervous. Granted I don't (yet) have a calibrated environment but the difference wasn't subtle.. it was very marked with the windows open side by side. Lightroom's UI and file management blows NX 2 away for sure and the lack of SilverFX Pro is another major blow against NX.James Clarkehttp://www.clarkezone.netnoreply@blogger.com