Workflow with Nik Collection to maintain editability - over multiple plugins?

DxO PhotoLab
1

I am on PhotoLab 7.

I am interested in how to use Nik Collection with Photo Lab and maintain the option to return to a Nik filter and tweak it.

What I have at the moment is:

Start with a camera RAW file.
Open in External Application and choose say Nik ColorEfex. (I have to do this because you can’t open a RAW file directly via the ‘Export to NIk Collection’ button). Open as Tiff.
Tick the non-destructive editing button in ColorEfex.
Save.
This saves the tiff with the edits back to Photolab. If I now click ‘Export to Nik Collection’ and choose, again, ColorEfex I now come into ColorEfex with the filters showing - and editable. Great.

However; if I now send the Tiff (from the above) to say Nik Collection Analogue Efex when I open it my exiting filter changes have been flattened into the tiff. Now the new Analogue changes are editable - but not the previous ones.

So; it looks like non-destructive editing with PhotoLab + NikCollection works in terms of one round trip to one Nik App, but you cannot maintain a stack of editable plugin changes (using different plugins). Firstly; can I just check - is this correct? I don’t think I have missed anything, but it is possible.

My second question; I would be interested, if anyone knows, in the technical explanation for this?

Thanks

2

If I may say - if you have PhotoLab with FilmPack and ViewPoint included, I don’t see any valid reason to keep on using Nik Collection.

What do find missing in PL?

3

Hi Justin

I suggest this solution.
Pascal

2 Likes
4

correct

… the technical explanation for this?

as explained by @Pieloe → “This process uses the multipage mode of the TIFF format.”

Editing from within one of the Nik Collection filters (historically they are independent applications) is saved in the RGB file. Making use of the TIFF’s mulitpage mode allows to re-edit one Nik App. → see also here …

Screen Shot 04-26-25 at 09.45 AM
Screen Shot 04-26-25 at 09.45 AM1124×477 57.3 KB

… which means, when you apply e.g. ColorEfex, then e.g. SilverEfex and try again with ColorEfex your “new original” is the B&W version.

→ Save your edit as a custom preset if you need to “restart”.

And in case of haven’t checked …

Screen Shot 04-26-25 at 09.50 AM
Screen Shot 04-26-25 at 09.50 AM647×241 13.1 KB

will show up with …
Screen Shot 04-26-25 at 10.03 AM
( Windows version )

→ PhotoLab (also in combination with FilmPack PlugIn) uses sidecar files and allows for non-destructive editing until final export.

1 Like
5
  • great idea. Thank you.
6

@Joanna - an interesting question and I can’t give a definite answer to it yet, though I am wondering about this. I have been using Pro Contrast … Dynamic Contrast in Color Efex . I really like the effect and I am not sure I could get it so easily in PL, though maybe.

Another one comes to mind is Detail Extractor (which I used to use when doing wedding photography, for the Bride’s dress) - but maybe mirco or fine contrast would work in PL.

You can get more borders in Analog Efex than in PL+FilmPack

I don’t have ViewPoint (and I am rarely bothered about perspective). I do have Film Pack.

In general, now I have FilmPack i do rarely go to the Nik Collection - but for the above I do. And, anyway, I quite like using it. But, yes, in general, my aim is to do most processing in PL+FilmPack.