Is ViewNX2 worth installing.

[Cage]

Is ViewNX2 worth installing?

I just tried and it didn't install, maybe me, but is it worth the bother?

Is it going to give me anything that I don't get with CS3.

[WhoDo]

Is ViewNX2 worth installing?

I just tried and it didn't install, maybe me, but is it worth the bother?

Is it going to give me anything that I don't get with CS3.

I only use it to get the Nikon Transfer stuff, Kev. Once the images are off the card I go straight into LR4.2 with PSE9 there for specialty stuff. Question is, does your copy of CS3 support the D600?

[Darey]

The short answer from me is " most definitely " View NX2 is worth installing.
It is a great viewer for Nikon Raw files, allows sorting of files and you can do basic global post processing with it.

I am sure King Arthur will be along with the longer answer soon.

[fillum]

I use it occasionally. If I have one file that I want to do a quick and basic raw conversion on I'll often use VNX2 as it loads a lot quicker than LR on my old under-spec'd PC.

It can give you some additional Nikon-specific shot info (such as which focus point was used) which you won't get in CS or LR.


Cheers.

[Cage]

I installed it, don't know that I'd use it.

Probably not being very objective at the moment, trying to 'unlearn' Pentax, and get up to speed on the D600.

My head hurts.

There are a zillion things on this camera, and indeed, all modern DSLR's, that most of us will never use, or even see a use for.

As I said above, trying to suss out what I can use makes my head hurt.

[arthurking83]

....

I am sure King Arthur will be along with the longer answer soon.

..... Moi?


Never!
(I hate these software threads .. there's only one answer, and yet people still refuse to listen! )

Seriously tho.

If you use the Nikon software, you see the images as they were captured on the camera.

That is, if your highlights are just clipping by a bee's thingydoodle on camera, then that's what you see on the PC with the raw files.
Very few(if any) other raw capable software have the ability to do this(on the raw files!!).


ViewNX2 is good only in that it's free!
Realistically, it's features are quite hopeless, or lacking, but it's free.
It really is a basic piece of software, but as someone already said, it's worth installing(irrespective of whether you end up using it or not).

If you get to a point where all you need is really basic global editing, it's as handy as any other software.
It's the most used software(apart from Firefox/Waterfox) on my PC.

I open all NEF files to begin the sorting process, tagging them with ratings and then selecting the files that need the usual edits such as WB, Picture Control setting, tweak of highlight or shadow recovery, or exposure compensation, and then some keywording.

If you need a super fast tiff file exported for some reason, then this is the software you want to use.

If you don't shoot in NEF mode, VNX2 will be next to useless, other than the fact that it can render a few basic image and video file types on a PC.

An handy feature to be aware of with Nikon software is the ability to upload Picture Control types into the camera.
If you have a particular shooting/processing style that you prefer to use(as an eg. Portrait picture control), and this is something you would otherwise do in batch mode on the PC in your 'other' software ....

.... well Picture Control control, plus Nikon software, is the quickest easiest way to have a zillion files exported to the format and size option of your choice.

To upload a Picture Control type of your own secret ingredient, you need to look for the Picture Control Utility tool that also gets installed.
To use the file download ability, also installed by default is Nikon Transfer2.

[Cage]

Thanks Arfur,

I open all NEF files to begin the sorting process, tagging them with ratings and then selecting the files that need the usual edits such as WB, Picture Control setting, tweak of highlight or shadow recovery, or exposure compensation, and then some keywording.

If you need a super fast tiff file exported for some reason, then this is the software you want to use.

That's the bit I hoped to see. I only shot a few today in jpeg because I don't have anything to PP NEF files with yet. When I can work out a way to get CS6 without getting ripped off I'll buy it.

Cheers

Kevin

[arthurking83]

Another option for you Kevin(if you want to use CS3 for now):

Open the file in VNX2, set WB and any other tweak you wish to set on the raw file.
(this way you have your raw files for when the time comes!!)

Then, you set up VNX2 with the option to 'Open With', and make a shortcut to this 'Open With' option in the toolbar.

(In VNX2) go to (in the toolbar) Edit .. Options.
A dialogue box opens up for you and look for Open With Application section on the LHS pane.
On the main box, click on [Add] and navigate to the exe of any software you like(you can set many options up here).
(ie. navigate to Program Files->Adobe->etc, etc and look for the CS3 exe file).
Then: below the toolbar is another toolbar(I think it's called the navigation bar or whatever). Rightclick that and hover over the Customize option.
There you will see a swag of options that you can tick/untick.
If you have set CS3 as an Open With option, it should already be displayed here if the shortcut hasn't already been made for you up there.

So what this does: once you have your NEF file edited to a reasonable point, clicking the link to the Open With shortcut will set VNX2 to create a tiff file at high quality and then open it with CS3, so in CS3 you have a tiff file to edit.

Technically speaking editing a tiff file in Adobe's software is the same as editing the raw file itself(NEF's are in fact TIFF files with a bit more info contained within them).

in my brief testing, I haven't seen much difference between editing a tiff file and a raw file when using LR3 and 4, in terms of image recovery.
Of course you can't set the real WB value on a tiff file as you can on a raw file, but it's almost as close, in that you can set a colour balance adjustment on the tiff file if needed.
(but that's why you're setting WB firstly in VNX2 on the NEF file).

If you end up playing with VNX2 a bit while you're biding time until CS6 comes along, have a look at the Picture Control options you get as quick fire batch editing.
you can also download(from Nikon's website) more Picture Control options to what's already installed by default.

One day when I get off my slack voluminous arz .. I'll make up a short how to for using VNX2 quickly and effectively(although it's not really needed as it's very basic).

Something else I use VNX2 for: In those rare times if I make a pano or HDR image, I use VNX2 and it's tiff file conversion heavily.
Once I have my selection of necessary NEF files, I preselect all the relevant files(in the film strip). Firstly I tag them in terms of relevance to each other, and then set WB and any highlight/shadow tweak they may need.
Click on the conversion tool and create a batch of tiff file to work with(I only edit tiff files for hdr or panos).
This tiff conversion takes a couple of seconds to finish and I'm then set to do the pano/hdr work with the relevant software.

I've tried to use NEF files in Photomatix and PTGui, but they either don't look so nice or are painful to work with in those software(PTGui and Photomatix).
Hence (for me) the best way to do HDR/Pano is to create tiffs and take it from there.

[Cage]

for the very comprehensive reply Arthur.

Sounds like it could become part of my work-flow.

Cheers

Kevin