For the last couple of weeks Color Efex Pro 4 has been out and you might have heard my Dad talking or blogging about it. Well I’ve had the chance to play with it a little bit and there are definitely some worth while new features to the software. The biggest one that i really like is the ability to stack filters in the program. It makes a big difference in file size compared to the previous way of applying one filter, reopening the program applying another then saving.
Now the big thing that my Dad seems to really like is the detail enhancer filter in CEP4. I have to admit that it is quite an impressive filter but it is one of the filters that can easily be over used. Much like Tonal Contrast is often used and often over used to create the “Elvis on Velvet” look, detail enhancer can have the same effect.
So I’ve tried this filter a couple of times, the bottom images in these pairs have the enhancer on but i used about 15% when applying the filter. Now I have done the same with aircraft which i tend like more than with landscape probably because of the metallic surface of the plane and amount of lines and rivets. Maybe just me.
One other to keep in mind is how it affects clouds. It really pulls all the shadows and highlights out of the clouds creating very distinct lines. Sometimes that’s good sometimes not. Depends on what you like. Which is really what this all comes down to, how well does this help your photography and does it give you the options that you want?