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Mastering the Nik Collection - 8: The Brush Button
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Mastering the Nik Collection - 8: The Brush Button

Introduction to Mastering the Nik Collection

In this video series, Anthony Morgan T from onlinephotographytraining.com introduces the Nik Collection of plugins. He discusses its history, recent developments, and his intention to update his training videos on the product.

The History of the Nik Collection

  • The Nik Collection was once the number one set of plugins for Photoshop and Lightroom.
  • Google acquired the suite and offered it as a free download but stopped updating it.
  • DxO recently purchased the rights to the Nik Collection and announced plans for development and updates.

Updated Training Videos

  • Anthony Morgan T has no affiliation with DxO or any financial gain from promoting their software.
  • He requests viewers to support his videos by liking, sharing, and making donations if they find them helpful.
  • The new training series will be more in-depth and thorough than previous ones.

Understanding the Brush Button in Nik Plugins for Photoshop

Anthony explains how to use a specific button that appears only when using a Nik plugin with Photoshop - the brush button. He demonstrates its functionality and limitations.

The Brush Button in Nik Plugins

  • The brush button is located in the lower right-hand corner of a Nik plugin window when used with Photoshop.
  • It does not appear when using the plugin with Lightroom or on smart object layers in Photoshop.
  • Clicking on the brush button closes down the plugin and returns to Photoshop while processing and saving changes.

Using the Brush Button

  • Clicking on the brush button opens up selective editing tools within Photoshop.
  • A black mask is added to a new layer, allowing users to paint selectively on it using white or erase using black.
  • Additional options include clearing or filling the entire mask.

Limitations of Selective Editing

  • Selective editing is limited to using the brush tool only.
  • Making selections within the plugin window does not work as expected and returns to normal Photoshop functionality.

Conclusion and Limitations of Selective Editing

Anthony concludes the video by summarizing the limitations of selective editing in Nik plugins for Photoshop, particularly regarding making selections.

Limitations of Selective Editing

  • Selective editing in Nik plugins for Photoshop is limited to using the brush tool.
  • Attempting to make selections within the plugin window results in losing the selection upon release.
  • Users must rely on manual painting or erasing on a black mask for selective edits.

Timestamps are approximate and may vary slightly.

New Section

In this section, the speaker demonstrates how to use Nik Silver Efex Pro to apply a preset and add a mask to create a black and white effect.

Applying Preset and Adding Mask

  • The speaker opens the image in Nik Silver Efex Pro by clicking on "Filter" and selecting "Nik Collection" > "Silver Efex Pro".
  • A preset called "high structure harsh" is applied.
  • Instead of using the brush button, the speaker clicks the OK button to finish processing.
  • The before and after layers are displayed.
  • To add a mask, the speaker clicks on the mask icon while holding the Alt or Option key, creating a black mask.
  • The speaker selects the box area roughly using the selection tool.
  • The selection is inverted by pressing Shift + Command + I.
  • Using the brush tool with white color, the speaker paints over everything except for the box area.

New Section

In this section, the speaker discusses their opinion on using the brush button in Nik Silver Efex Pro.

Opinion on Brush Button

  • The speaker mentions that they find the brush button in Nik Silver Efex Pro somewhat worthless.
  • They believe there are better alternatives in Photoshop for achieving similar results after using Nik plugins.
Video description

I have no affiliation with the company behind Nik Software, Dx0. They are not paying me to do these videos nor will I make any commission if you choose to purchase the product. Please read my Code of Ethics Statement here: https://onlinephotographytraining.com/code-of-ethics/ If you like the video, please "Share" and "Like" it. If you would like to support free YouTube videos like these, please consider making a donation. More info here: https://onlinephotographytraining.com/you-can-help/ Thank you! In this new series, Mastering the Nik Collection, I'll be giving detailed instructions on how to use all of the modules in the software suite. If you're using a Nik application as a Photoshop plugin, you may have noticed that a brush button appears in the lower right hand corner that isn't there when you use the same app as a Lightroom plugin. In this video, I explain and demo that button. You can get the Nik Collection here: https://nikcollection.dxo.com/ They offer a fully working, free one month trial.