Nik Collection 3 By DxO Review

The Nik Collection of plugins has had an upgrade, bringing us version 3 of the popular group of plugins which are compatible with Adobe, as well as DxO software.

Nik Collection 3 by DxO features a new Nik Selective Tool, the suite's plugin launcher for Adobe Photoshop, new quick edit tools, 8 plugins (1 new), non-destructive workflow for Adobe Lightroom Classic users and a Message Centre that lets Nik Collection users stay informed about new upcoming features and access new online resources. Plus, you get all of the improved plug-ins and useful tools, such as the U Point local adjustment, that were introduced in previous releases. 

For those simply interested in the cost of Nik Collection 3 by DxO, it has a special launch price of £86.99 instead of £125. For those who are upgrading from Nik Collection 2, the special launch price is £49.99 instead of £69. Bother offers are available until 30 June 2020. Photographers who already own Nik Collection 2 By DxO or a previous version can upgrade their software by signing into their customer accounts. 

Nik Collection 3 by DxO Features

The Nik Collection 3 by DxO now consists of 8 plugins with the new one being Perspective Efex which can be used to correct leading lines, shape distortion, fish-eye distortion and horizon correction. It also has an option for creating 'miniature effect' photos where a shallow depth of field is applied so the scene in the shot is turned into a toy-like town. As with all of the other plug-ins, automation is combined with manual tools so you can tweak and perfect your shots. 

The other plugins include the very popular Silver Efex Pro 2 which converts colour images into monochrome shots that recreate the look of film and many people actually purchase Nik Collection just for this plugin. The other 6 plugins featured in the collection are Dfine 2, Viveza 2, Sharpener Pro 3, Color Efex Pro 4, HDR Efex Pro 2 and Analog Efex Pro 2. 

Here's a recap of what the other plugins do: 

• Dfine 2 - noise reduction
• Viveza 2 - colour/tone adjustments
• Sharpener Pro 3 - image sharpening
• Color Efex Pro 4 - colour correction/creative filters you can layer on top of each other to build a 'look'
• HDR Efex Pro 2 - create HDR images
• Analog Efex Pro 2 - recreate the look of old camera results 

You can use Nik Collection 3 by DxO as a standalone piece of software but it's actually most useful when combined with Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Lightroom or with DxO PhotoLab ESSENTIAL and quite a few of the upgrades have been applied to make the workflow of those who use Adobe's software faster and even more creative. 

We'll be focusing on the new additions to the software so if you want to learn more about what Nik Collection by DxO offers as a whole, have a read of our previous review or take a look at our news section. 

So What's New?

Perspective Efex Plugin

Perspective Efex is the new Nik Collection By DxO plugin dedicated to geometric corrections. You can fix horizons, correct distortion and more. Plus, you can also use the plugin more creatively to turn images into miniature model-like scenes

Nik Selective Tool For Adobe Photoshop

The Nik Selective Tool serves as a dashboard for the Nik Collection plugins in Adobe Photoshop. It's presented as a palette and it allows you to export the image you are editing to the plugin of your choice. There's also a 'favourites' list you can select a filter or preset from should you have tools you use more often than others. 

To make the tool even easier to use, it's had a redesign to include an icon for each plugin as well as a simple description of what they do to help you identify each option more quickly. There's also a 'mini mode' which just shows the icon for each plugin to help unclutter the workspace.

Quick Retouching

As well as providing information on what each plugin can be used for, the Nil Selective Tool palette redesign now also features buttons you can click to apply quick retouches and edits, speeding up your workflow as a result. We'll go into more detail on these options further into the review. 

Non-Destructive Workflow In Lightroom Classic

With Nik Collection 3 By DxO, users can now edit their images as many times as they would like, while still keeping the editing settings used during their previous session, when working with Lightroom Classic - something which wasn't available previously.

Message Center

The new Message Center in Nik Collection 3 By DxO is available from the Nik Selective Tool and it's a quick way for photographers to access product news, special offers and educational content.

Nik Collection 3 by DxO Handling & Performance

The Nik Collection by DxO has some really popular photo editing plugins that apply filters to your images but the new Perspective Efex plugin, which takes the total to 8, is more about perfecting your image before applying filters as it's designed to correct geometric issues. It uses a number of tools to remove defects such as correcting leading lines, shape distortion, fish-eye distortion and horizon correction. 

Each correction available is easy to apply as you can either opt to use the automated options and/or fine-tune them with DxO's Control Point tool. When correcting lens distortion, the software refers to DxO's optical modules so it can successfully remove all types of distortion, including barrel, pincushion, and fisheye distortion.

More impressively, it can automatically correct distortions to the shapes of bodies and faces located along the edges of wide-angle photos so when correcting distortion in buildings, faces/bodies aren't pulled out of shape. Quite a handy feature if you capture group shots in front of architecture. 

For landscape photographers who might have missed that their horizon is wonky, Perspective Efex will automatically correct them with a click of a button.

All of the auto options for the tools do a really good job but having the sliders, buttons and other manual options available does mean you can perfect your adjustments, making the smallest of adjustments that may be needed to make the image perfect. 

As with all of the Nik Collection by DxO plugins, the tools in Perspective Efex are self-explanatory and simple to use which means even those learning how to correct geometric issues will be able to edit their photos. 

A fun element of the Perspective Efex plugin-in is the 'Minature effect' option which, as the name suggests, turns images into miniature versions of themselves. It's really easy to use which makes it a bit addictive and a lot of fun. There's a button you press and in an instant, the software has added lens blur to two sides of your photo to create the effect. Adjustment lines and points appear on the image so you can adjust the blur, move it to a different part of the image etc. and you can also change the blur shape but we didn't really see much difference when doing this (perhaps we didn't look close enough?). It's worth noting that you need specific images for this effect to work but when you find one that does work, the results are great. 

The Nik Selective Tool improvements might be small but they're pretty mighty. The addition of a simple description of what each plugin does is very much welcomed as you can quickly identify which one is most suitable for the changes you want to make to your photo. Once you start to remember the plugin icons, you can minimise the palette so it just shows icons via the collapsed mode which unclutters your workspace. 

Speed and workflow are important factors when it comes to photo editing and DxO has made the process quicker in version 3 of the Nik Collection by introducing 'Last Edit', 'Quick Edit' and 'Favourite' options. These are found under each of the plugins in the Nik Selective Tool (if you can't see them, click the small arrow to the right of the plugin's name).

The new 'Last Edit' feature lets you apply quick retouches in the plugin of your choice by re-applying the last preset used in one click (excluding Perspective Efex) while the 'Quick Edit' option lets you re-apply the last action used. This could be a favourite option or a quick retouch and they're applied without having to open the specific plugin where the option is found. For example, you might have a specific option, retouch method or preset you use regularly on your images so instead of having to go through and apply them manually, you can now do this by clicking a button. You can, of course, make further edits if needed but it does speed up your workflow by automating at least one of the steps, especially when editing several images. 

Also, users can now access their favourite presets for Silver Efex Pro and HDR Efex Pro, in addition to those included in Color Efex Pro.

Those who have previously used the Nik Collection with Lightroom Classic had the problem that any edits they made to an image were destructive as they couldn't continue editing an image once they had ended their session on the Nik plugin used to make the original edits. However, DxO heard you and now, a non-destructive workflow is accessible when using Adobe Lightroom Classic with Nik Collection 3 by DxO. You can now edit images as many times as you like, while still keeping the editing settings used during their previous session.

In case you want to know how it works, the non-destructive workflow used in Nik Collection 3 by DxO is based on the TIFF MULTIPAGE file format. This format lets you combine the input file, the saved Nik editing settings, and the output file - all in a single file. As a result, the plugins in Nik Collection 3 By DxO can open an image without changing any of the filters that were applied as of the last time the file was saved.

DxO also says that to take full advantage of the software’s non-destructive workflow, export the image in TIFF format by selecting the “TIFF file format” option from the Copy File Options under the Photo > Edit in menu in Adobe Lightroom Classic.

The final new addition is a message center which can be accessed via the Nik Selective Tool and it's a quick way for photographers to access product news, special offers and educational content.

Value For Money

The new Nik Collection 3 by DxO has a special launch price of £86.99 instead of £125. For those who are upgrading from Nik Collection 2, the special launch price is £49.99 instead of £69. Bother offers are available until 30 June 2020. 

Alternatives include Exposure X4 priced at $99, Topaz Labs available for $79.99 and ON1 Photo RAW priced at $99.99. If you don't want to part with any cash, you could try Snapseed but it's only available as a smartphone app. It's also worth noting that the software listed is often on special offers so prices may differ. 

To read more opinions on photo editing software, have a look at our software reviews.

Nik Collection 3 by DxO Verdict

The Nik Collection 3 by DxO is still a great plugin that gives photographers, of all levels, a simple and effective way to enhance photos and express their creativity. It's a great tool for those who are new to  photo editing as well as those with a little more experience and the amount of presets on offer should keep the Instagram generation incredibly busy. 

We sang praises for the tools built into the previous version of this software and we continue to with the latest update but, those who already own Nik Collection, particularly those who just use it for Silver Efex might find there's not enough in the upgrade to warrant spending more money. If you do decide to upgrade, it's no more expensive than the last upgrade. 

Those new to the software won't have a problem parting with cash for it as the addition of new tools and interface improvements which now sit alongside U Point technology and hundreds of creative options make it an excellent buy. Plus, it's compatible with Adobe Photoshop and other well-known software which many photographers will already own. 

The addition of the Perspective Efex plug-in is welcomed as it makes geometric adjustments really simple and the miniature effect option is really fun. Lightroom users will welcome the introduction of non-destructive editing and the new message center will be useful to some. 

Overall, Nik Collection 3 is easy to use, has plenty to offer and it certainly makes the application of looks/filters an easy process. We really liked Nik Collection 2 by DxO and our opinion of Nik Collection 3 by DxO is still just as positive - recommended.

Nik Collection 3 is easy to use, has plenty to offer and it certainly makes the application of looks/filters an easy process. We really liked Nik Collection 2 by DxO and our opinion of Nik Collection 3 by DxO is still just as positive - recommended.

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