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Adding Snap with Topaz Adjust 3

May 6, 2009 by 7 Comments

I can see that I am going to make things a little harder for all you Google detectives out there.  Obviously the address on the outside of the pub was a dead giveaway.  Of course the Orpheus sign was probably a pretty easy hint for anyone that has ever walked down State Street in Madison.  This is a very cool little city that is heavily populated by the student population of WU.  I’m definitely suffering from Badger overload.

As for the images, I was looking to add a little pop to them so I turned to a nifty little plug-in for Photoshop called Topaz Adjust 3.  This nifty little program from the folks at Topaz Labs allows you to control the exposure, detail, and color in ways that would take multiple layers of adjustment in Photoshop with the easy of selecting a preset or moving some simple sliders.

topaz-3As you can see from the dialog above, the interface gives you a large preview window that is flanked by filter pre-sets on the left.  simply clicking on a pre-set will apply a pre-defined set of adjustments to the preview image.  You can quickly find the setting that is close to the desired effect and then fine tune the image with the multiple sliders below.  Each enhancement can be meticulously tuned until you get just the look you are after.  You can also quicly toggle between the original and the filter effect by clicking the View Original Image button or simply clicking the cursor on the preview.  I prefer to create a duplicate of the original prior to using the filter so that the effect can be dialed down using the layer opacity slider.  This also allows for masking if you just want the effect applied to specific areas of the image.

The best part of this great plug-in might just be the price.  At just $49.99, you get a lot of bang for your buck.  Topaz Adjust is available for both Mac and PC and you can download a fully functioning demo version for a 30-day free trial so you can put it through its paces before committing to buy.  To download your demo, check out the Download page.  To see more details about the plug-in and some sample images head over to the Topaz Labs website.

after-topaz

Mouse over the image to see the Before image.

Related posts:

  1. Topaz Labs Releases Topaz Adjust 5
  2. Topaz Adjust Ver. 4 Released
  3. Using the New Topaz Fusion For Adobe Lightroom
  4. Topaz Labs – New HDR type processing
  5. Topaz Labs adds Black and White to its Plug-In Resume
Filed Under: Review
  • JPTurner

    Jeff:

    Thanks for giving some love to this nifty Plugin. For $50, Topaz Adjust cannot be beat. I bought TA 8 months ago, and I received the free upgrade to the new version with preset previews. It gives me 95% of Lucis for 20% of the cost! Keep on truckin, JPT!

  • http://www.yearoftheaardvark.com Bruce

    Yep… a great plugin. I’ve been using it since October. Some of the presets are a bit trippy, but when used within reason it’s great way to add a bit of punch to a photo. I particularly like the clarity preset and probably use it more than any other filter I have.

  • http://jacklarson.aminus3.com/ Jack

    You are right; it is an amazing bang for the buck. I tend to use Nik’s Color Efex Pro, but am glad to have Topaz Adjust 3 (an outstanding upgrade).

  • http://365photosin2009.wordpress.com/ Julie McLeod

    I got the free upgrade to Topaz Adjust 3 but haven’t really experimented with it yet. This is a timely reminder to see what it can do….

  • http://www.okinawahdr.com/ okinawa living

    Another awesome tool in the toolbelt….

  • http://blog.richcharpentier.com Rich C

    Looks like I’ve got another software tool to try out. Thanks for the review.

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