Practical Photography - UK (2019-09)

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NIK COLLECTION 2

1

Choose a starting style

Open your image into Photoshop

and open the Analog EfexPro

pl ug-in with Filter>Nik Collection>Analog

Efex Pro. Head to the left and choose

Cl assic Camera. Click on the presetthat

gi ves you the best starting colours.On the

ri ght you’ll see the Basic Adjustmentstab.

Use this to alter the exposure, contrastor

sa turation first.

2

Fine-tune your film look

In the Film Type tab, chooseyour

fil m style from the drop-down

menu. Now pick the film tint that bestsuits

yo ur shot from the boxes available.Then

darken the shadows by dragging thetop

sl ider to Neutral, or add a filmic fadeby

dr agging it to the right. Drag the Grainper

pi xel slider to around 300 to add a touchof

creative film grain.

3

Add a vintage vignette

With colour taken care of, it’s time

to put the finishing touches to

your retro edit. Click on the Lens Vignette

tab and move the Amount slider to the left

to darken the edges. Move the Circular/

Rectangle slider to the right to create a

more realistic vignette and the Size slider

to perfect the radius. Click OK to save

your edits and return to Photoshop.

W

HILE DIGITAL SENSORS

and high megapixel counts
allow for an unprecedented
level of crisp detail and clarity, they can
also be accused of removing the soul
from an image. One of the more intriguing
suites included with Nik is Analog Efex
Pro. This creative plug-in helps to capture
the unique beauty of the bygone era by
adding a vintage look.
You’re able to choose from vintage
camera types, such as Classic, Wetplate
or even Double Exposure if you want
something more abstract. This allows you
to narrow down the type of look you’re
going for, and a sub menu will let you create
a colour base to start from – it couldn’t be
more simple. Once you’ve chosen the basis
of your look, follow our three quick steps
below to fine-tune your selection by
increasing your brightness and details,
adding a vignette and getting specific
with the type and size of grain you want.
With this simple tutorial, you’ll quickly
have a retro masterpiece reminiscent of
old masters in no time at all.

Analog Efex Pro

Create a classic

yesteryear look

Above Following the steps

below, we’ve boosted the

contrast, warmed the colours

and added some fine grain to

give our shot a vintage vibe.

Left The original image is

great and the light rays

are perfect, but it could

still be improved – the

midtones are rather muted

BEFORE and lack contrast.

AFTER