DXO Optics Pro for Photos

$9.99

>>> DXO is a developer that makes complex measurements of lens and camera performance, and then creates software such as Optics Pro that enables flaws like distortion, chromatic aberration (fringing), vignetting, and lens softness to be easily corrected.

This DXO plugin detects which camera and lens was used to capture an image automatically, and then applies the correction immediately. Tens of thousands of camera and lens combinations are supported, with more being added all the time.

In addition to these optical corrections it’s also possible to adjust white balance, exposure (using DXO Smart Lighting), noise, and the level of haze in landscape images. Each of these controls has one-click options, giving examples of when they should be used, but there’s also a sliding control to allow you to finetune the adjustment. The simplicity of the controls belies the complexity of the measurements and corrections that are applied automatically.

DXO Optics Pro for Photos works best with raw files. If you shoot both raw and JPEG files together, Photos defaults to using the JPEG version, so it’s worth switching to the raw file for processing through the plugin. A small “J” in the corner of the thumbnail in the Library view indicates when you’ve shot raw and JPEG images. In the editing menu, right-click to access options and select “Use RA W as Original.”

Also bear in mind that it’s best to use the DXO plugin before you apply any other adjustments to your image, because the corrections it makes can potentially be quite dramatic.