I currently have DxO PhotoLab Elite together with ViewPoint and FilmPack. Can someone please clarify if I am missing anything by not getting NikCollection in addition?
Have a look in your account what options are available
All that tells me is which products I have bought, not what the differences are between the two products and whether it is worth buying NikCollection in addition to PhotoLab Elite
Hi Joanna,
It’s still possible to download the free version of the Nik Collection … See here
You could try it out, to make your own assessment.
Personally, I use Color Efex Pro quite regularly - - and I make occasional use of Analog & Silver Efex Pro … but I don’t use Viveza or Dfine/Sharpener at all (as I reckon these two are already well covered by PLx).
Regards, John M
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Einfach nur Unsinn die Nik Filter jede vernĂĽnftige Bildbearbeitung kann das besser!
Just nonsense, the Nik filters, any reasonable image editing can do it better!
Bravo John, you found it before me 
But this thread feed the troll 
Pascal
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Excuse me but, from a loyal customer, simply wanting information, I don’t appreciate, or even understand, the inference of trolling.
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Hello Friedhelm,
please help me. How would you get the results for example from Viveza with an image editor:
- in the same time
- with the same result.
I do not say that what you say is not possible. I just do not want to do complex layers etc…
Sigi
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It’s not about you 
I really appreciate your posts.
Pascal
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Download the free or trial version as per the link that was provided above and see if it meets your needs. I occasionally use them, especially Silver Efex, which has a huge number of black and white filters. Some people rely on them more than others, but you won’t know for sure if they’re right for you until you play with them yourself.
Mark
As for Silver Efex, I already use FilmPack for B&W work and haven’t missed any of my favourite films, neither do I use presets, apart from those I create myself, so it looks like I’m not missing anything in that regard.
Looking at the requirements on the download page, I see that it is a collection of plugins that I would have to run from a host application, all of which appear to be Adobe products, none of which I use (at least not a modern enough version). Do I gather it would run from PL standard version but not from the Elite version?
Am I right in assuming that, without such a host app and, presumably even then not working with a RAW file, NikCollection has no other way of running in conjunction with DxO PhotoLab?
I’ve been using Google’s Nik Collection since 2015. PhotoLab2 has this button to directly call a Nik plug-in, and it works (PhotoLab found the place where the plug-ins were “hidden” on its own).
You can also use Nik apps as stand-alone (under Windows), by pulling a file (TIFF/JPEG) on the desired application, or by opening the app and choosing a file.
OK, so I downloaded and installed NikCollection. The button in PhotoLab Elite was activated and I could use all the plugins from there. Which is weird because I was under the impression that it only worked with the standard version.
However, my conclusion is that it is not worth getting in addition to PhotoLab Elite as virtually everything I could do in the plugins is available in PL Elite, but with a far better UI and the ability to edit RAW files directly instead of being forced to create an exported TIF. Which means I can do all sorts of edits and still go back to change RAW settings afterwards
Big thumbs up for PhotoLab Elite !!!
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Lasst die Toten ruhen, Nik Filter, sind nicht mehr zum Leben zu erwecken, schon immer wenn man versucht hat etwas was Tot ist noch einmal wieder zu beleben, dann ist eine Firma daran gescheitert!
Let the dead rest, Nik filters, are no longer to life, always, if you tried to revive something that is dead again, then a company has failed!
In fact these are two different products intended for the same public.
- Embedded FilmPack in PhotoLab for a raw workflow
- Nik for raster graphics editor
Pascal
I imagine most of the presets in the various Nik modules could be mimicked in PL2 Elite with FilmPack, and saved as presets for future use directly in Photolab. It would take someone with a lot of time on their hands and a very good understanding of the subtleties of how the various tools in PhotoLab work together, but I think it may certainly be possible.
Whether the Nik Collection is redundant may depend on how well Photolab can mimick its features, tools, and effects, and how much effort it would take to recreate and refine any desirable presets that already exist in Nik Collection. Remember, a major benefit of the Nik Collection is the huge number of presets that can then be modified.
Mark
And there I think you sum up why I don’t see the attraction in NikCollection, as opposed to PL with FilmPack.
I never find presets or “effects” that do just what I want and usually end up tweaking the result anyway.
My problem possibly stems from an “old school” film photography approach, where I have favourite films (Fuji Neopan Acros 100, Ilford Delta 100, Fuji Velvia 100, Fuji Astia 100). When using large format cameras with sheet film, you decide the rendition before you take the image; with B&W, this can involve deliberately over/under exposing and under/over developing to alter the range and contrast.
So, someone else’s idea of “a mucky day”, “expired film” or “messed up colours” renditions rarely come into the equation.
I have taken my favourite FilmPack renderings and made partial presets from them, thus allowing me to apply them in two clicks rather than four or five.
My reason for starting this thread was mainly due to lack of clarity on whether NikCollection would indeed run from within PhotoLab standard and allow me to try it out. Now I know what I am not missing and can rest easy and richer for not spending even more money 
Thanks to all who have contributed to that situation 
P.S. What I would really like to see is a palette that reflects the local adjustments so that the equaliser doesn’t get in the way of the masked area. It’s there in Viveza, why not in PL?
I find a possibility to download the old „free“ google Nik collection
https://web.archive.org/web/20170101193113/https://www.google.com/intl/de/nikcollection/
After opening, click to „Herunterladen“
select your operating system and wait few seconds, the download will take some times
works perfect with PL2
i just catching up reading and i am using nik free for some things. (mainly frustrated by the different UI switching between DPL and NIK cause me a lot of headache figuring out how i get what i want ) i did watch a lot of how to use NIKcollection and i recognize the strenght of the package and it stil a powerfull package. If NIK UI commands/ hotkeys/shortcuts where acting the same as in PL it would be much easier to use both. blend more in so to speak.
So i use Silver efex because i can find nicer WB/ monochrome renderings there faster then scrolling around in FP film emulations. (This is where you haven’t a problem i think, you know which type of film is good/great for your idea.)
I think indeed the present strength of NIK is, among other things, in the many presets which help you to find a starting point of the faint idea you have for a image to transfer to.
personal use of NIK doesn’t invoke me to buy the new. it’s like my stacking application a tool i reach for if i am searching something i can’t do in DPL.
When they total rewrite the UI (commands, short keys and such) in such a manor that i can use both with out a cheatsheet for the commands in NIK i think i will have more reasons for purchase the package.
FP and NIK has some comen grounds.
About your preset’s of FP when you like and have the time would you be so kind to post some of them in the tutorial section? show us your skills? ( i use FP elite mostly because of the extra toolset you get besides the filters)
Thanks
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Better than that, here is a link to Pascal’s excellent tutorials page, where he talks about creating partial presets.
For FilmPack, all you need to do is to create a virtual copy of any picture (deleted afterwards), then reset it to ensure that there are absolutely no adjustments at all (even resizing)
Then go to the presets editor on the presets palette, create an empty preset and click the edit button.
Now you can choose the film you want from FilmPack and apply it, then save the preset. I have created a folder in the presets list called Films to keep them all together.
Click the Edit button to end editing the presets. Now, when you go to the presets selection button (top-right) you will see a preview of each film you have added.
One word of advice - read Pascal’s instructions very carefully and look out for the blue stripes that appear in the palettes whilst you are in editing mode.