Capture NX

Editors' ReviewDownload.com staffJuly 18, 2013This photo editor competes at the highest level, but is easy enough to use for the home hobbyist. Capture NX 2, published by Nikon, has redesigned how photographers edit their images. This new work flow relies on sliders, control points, and a unique merging of the "previous actions" and "layers" windows. All major and minor photo editing techniques are here, from black and white conversion to a retouching paintbrush. The sliders make color correction easy, and because all other alterations are applied on a radius emanating from a control point, the edits naturally look uniform. An effective and easy-to-use masking tool lets users determine a more specific shape for changes. The program also includes a Soft Proof tool at the bottom of every open image, allowing for easy print-to-paper configuration. A customizable window layout rounds out the program's tools, with the image browser naturally integrated with all the other tools. Capture NX is a Nikon product, though, and so non-Nikon RAW format images can only be used in it once they've been converted to TIFF. Otherwise, the program supports TIFF-16, TIFF-8, JPG, and Nikon's proprietary RAW format, NEF. Although it will probably appeal most to Nikon users, photographers of all levels and interests should check out this excellent photo editor.