MONO MANUAL Professional plug-ins

You can do a lot with black-and-white in Photoshop, but Google Silver Efex Pro goes further…

Silver Efex Pro is now part of the Google Nik Collection ($ 149), but even when it was owned and developed by Nik Software it was regarded as one of the best black-and-white plug-ins on the market. It’s able to recreate the look and ‘ feel’ of conventional silver-based film in a way that’s difficult to replicate in Photoshop, and it does it using a combination of ready-made presets and manual adjustments which help you fine-tune the effect. Luke Bhothipiti used Silver Efex Pro for his shot of New York in the rain on page 31. Here’s how it works…

You can start by selecting one of the preset effects from the left sidebar. Silver Efex Pro uses the image you’re working on for its previews, so you can see at a glance which preset will work best with your picture – just click to apply it.

The right sidebar contains tools for adjusting the effect. For example, you can apply digital filters, (red, green, yellow, and so on) to modify the tonal balance, simulate the grain and tonal qualities of well-known films, and apply toning effects.

Silver Efex Pro also offers ‘selective adjustments’ via control points, which you can place anywhere on the image. You can use these for dodging and burning areas of your black-and-white photos with a very high degree of control.