Nikon CaptureNX User Guide

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5SERS-ANUAL
Notices
© 2006 Nik Software, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this manual may be reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any language in any form, by any means, without Nik Software, Inc.’s prior written permission.
Nikon reserves the right to change the specifications of the hardware and software described in these manuals at any time and without any prior notice.
Neither Nik Software, Inc. nor Nikon will be held liable for any damages resulting from the use of this product.
Licensed under one or more US Pats. 7,016,549; 6,836,572; 6,728,421; 6,865,300; 7,031,547; and other patents pending.
© 2006 NIKON CORPORATION © 2006 Nik Software, Inc. All rights reserved.
Trademark Information
U Point is a trademark of Nik Software, Inc. Macintosh and Mac OS are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc. Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Pentium and Celeron are trademarks of Intel Corporation. Adobe and Photoshop are registered trademarks of Adobe Systems Inc. All other trade names mentioned in this manual or in the other documentation provided with your Nikon product are trademarks or registered trade marks of their respec­tive holders.
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Introduction ................................................. 1
RAW File Format Benefi ts ..................................2
Camera Relationship ..........................................3
System Requirements & Installation
System Requirements .........................................5
Installation ..........................................................5
U Point™ Technology ............................... 9
The Capture NX Interface .....................13
Getting Started ......................................... 17
Opening Capture NX ........................................ 17
Welcome Screen ...............................................18
Browsing and Opening Images .......................19
Window Functionality Within Capture NX .....20
Exiting Capture NX ........................................... 20
File Format Differences ....................................21
How to Print .....................................................23
Batch Processing ...............................................23
The Browser ............................................... 29
Folder Menu .....................................................31
Label Menu .......................................................32
Sort Menu .........................................................33
Batch Menu ......................................................34
File Directory ............................................. 37
Camera Settings ....................................... 39
IPTC ............................................................... 41
The Edit List ............................................... 43
Base Adjustments Step ..................................... 44
.................................................. 5
Camera Adjustments ........................................45
RAW Adjustments ............................................50
Lens Adjustments .............................................52
Light & Color Adjustments ................................ 54
Detail Adjustments ...........................................57
Enhancement Steps ..........................................59
Show/Hide Triangle ...........................................60
Apply Step Checkbox .......................................60
Apply Enhancement Checkbox .........................60
Link Icon ........................................................... 60
Adjust & Filter Pull-Down Menu ........................61
Opacity Mixer ...................................................61
Selection Notifi cation Area ...............................64
Feather Control ................................................64
Versions Menu ..................................................65
Automatically Generated Versions ....................65
Manually Generated Versions ...........................65
Batch Menu .....................................................66
New Step Button ..............................................66
Working with Enhancements ..........................66
Editing Steps and Enhancements ......................66
Deleting Steps and Enhancements ....................67
Copying and Pasting Steps and Enhancements
........................................................................ 67
Linking Enhancements ......................................68
Swapping Enhancements .................................. 69
Toolbar F2 - View Tools .......................... 71
Direct Select Tool .............................................71
Hand Tool ........................................................71
Zoom Tool ........................................................ 72
Toolbar F3 - Edit ....................................... 75
Rotate ...............................................................75
Straighten .........................................................75
Chapter 1 Table of Contents
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Crop ................................................................... 77
Toolbar F4 – Black, White, and
Table of Contents
Neutral Control Points
Chapter 1 Table of Contents
Black Control Point ..........................................81
White Control Point .........................................82
Neutral Control Point ....................................... 82
........................... 81
Toolbar F5 – U Point Technology­based Tools
Color Control Point ..........................................85
Red-Eye Control Point ......................................86
................................................ 85
Toolbar F6 - Selection Tools .................. 89
Selection Brush .................................................89
Lasso & Marquee Tools ....................................92
Selection Gradient ............................................ 93
Fill / Remove Tools ............................................ 94
The Bird’s Eye ............................................97
Photo Info .................................................. 99
Histogram .........................................................99
Watch Points ................................................... 101
The Image Window ............................... 105
The Color Picker ..................................... 109
File Menu .................................................. 113
Open Image… ................................................113
Open With... ...................................................113
Open Folder in Browser .................................113
Open Recent ...................................................114
Save .................................................................114
Save As.... ........................................................115
Revert ..............................................................116
Close ................................................................116
Print Setup… ..................................................116
Print… .............................................................117
Exit ..................................................................122
Edit Menu ................................................. 125
Undo ...............................................................125
Redo ................................................................125
Cut ...................................................................125
Copy ................................................................ 125
Paste ................................................................126
Duplicate ......................................................... 126
Delete .............................................................. 126
Select All ......................................................... 126
Flip ................................................................... 127
Rotate .............................................................127
Size / Resolution .............................................127
Change the Output Size (DPI) .........................127
Change the File Size (Image Size) ....................128
Fit Photo .........................................................128
Preferences ..................................................... 128
General ..........................................................129
Color Management ........................................130
Levels & Grid ..................................................131
Cache Settings ...............................................133
Adjust Menu ............................................ 137
Light ................................................................137
Levels & Curves ..............................................137
Contrast / Brightness ......................................141
Auto Levels ..................................................... 142
D-Lighting ......................................................143
Color ............................................................... 145
LCH ................................................................145
Color Balance .................................................150
Color Booster .................................................151
Saturation / Warmth .......................................151
Focus ...............................................................152
Gaussian Blur .................................................152
High Pass ........................................................ 152
Unsharp Mask ................................................153
Correct ............................................................154
Color Aberration Control ................................154
Distortion Control ........................................... 155
Opacity Mixer .................................................155
Noise Reduction .............................................156
Auto Red-Eye ..................................................156
Color Profi le ....................................................157
Apply Profi le ................................................... 157
Convert to Profi le ...........................................158
Control Points Menu ............................. 161
Color Control Points… ...................................161
Black Control Point ........................................163
White Control Point… ...................................165
Neutral Control Point… .................................167
Red-Eye Control Point… ................................171
Filter Menu ............................................... 173
Photo Effects… ...............................................173
Add Grain/Noise… .......................................... 177
Contrast: Color Range… ................................177
Colorize… .......................................................178
Black and White Conversion… ......................178
Batch Menu .............................................. 181
Run Batch Process… .......................................181
Copy Settings ..................................................181
Paste Settings .................................................181
Save Settings… ...............................................182
Load Settings ..................................................183
Batch Process Alert Box ..................................183
Processing Queue ......................................... 184
File Naming dialog ..........................................186
Batch Options .................................................187
Manage Settings Files .....................................187
Batch Process .................................................188
Watched Folder ..............................................190
View Menu ............................................... 195
Show All Control Points .................................195
Show Selection ...............................................195
Show Grid .......................................................196
Show Lost Highlights .....................................196
Show Lost Shadows ........................................197
Show Focus Area ............................................197
View at 100% ................................................. 198
Fit to Screen ....................................................198
Zoom In ...........................................................198
Zoom Out ........................................................ 198
Full Screen ....................................................... 198
Hide Palettes ................................................... 199
Compare .........................................................199
Compare in Browser .......................................199
Compare in Editor ..........................................200
Compare With Original ................................... 200
Window Menu ........................................ 203
Cascade ........................................................... 203
Tile ................................................................... 203
Reset Palette Location ...................................204
Bird’s Eye ......................................................... 204
Browser ...........................................................204
Camera Settings .............................................204
Color Picker ..................................................... 204
Edit List ...........................................................204
File Directory ..................................................204
IPTC Information ............................................204
Photo Info .......................................................204
Tool Bar ........................................................... 204
Help Menu ................................................ 207
Contents .......................................................... 207
Technical Support ........................................... 207
Show Welcome Screen ...................................207
About Capture NX .......................................... 208
Appendix: Short-cuts ........................... 211
Appendix: Supplied Color Profiles .. 214
Appendix: Advisories & Additional Notices
...... 217
Index .......................................................... 227
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Table of Contents
Chapter 1 Table of Contents
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Chapter 1 Table of Contents

Introduction

Capture NX™ is a powerful editing and photographic processing application designed specifically for digital photographers. Its simple, straight-forward user interface makes image enhancement easy, and exclusive features based on U Point™ photo editing technology provide a fully non-destructive workflow, which takes the guess work out of editing.
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Chapter 1 Introduction
Chapter 1 Introduction
Capture NX’s patented U Point technol­ogy gives the user a number of unique tools, the most remarkable being the Control Point, which is used to adjust tone and color in an image. Control Points allow you to work directly on the image without the need for selections or layers and to apply your enhance­ments globally or selectively, giving you the power to increasingly refine your enhancements in order to create a natural-looking effect. Control Points let you apply and undo enhancements easily and quickly without compromis­ing image integrity.
When you are ready to save and archive your images, Capture NX enables you to save your image in the NEF file format, which saves your image file without degrading your image.
Control Points are a unique editing concept that gives the user a completely different kind of control over color and tone enhancement in an image. A Control Point is placed directly on the image and its value is defined by the user. Each Control Point
operates together with the next, affect­ing the image progressively as more and more Control Points are applied. Select a Control Point to adjust color or to control the White, Black, and Neutral points. Because the enhancements you make are maintained separately from the original image data and without regard for the original file format, Capture NX enables you to make and change image enhancements repeat­edly without degrading the quality of the image. Capture NX protects the original data as well as your enhance­ments when you save your image as a NEF file. With the NEF file format, you can always open the image and the enhancements, and close the image at any time without ever degrading the original image data.
2

RAW File Format Benefits

Chapter 1 Introduction
Shooting RAW has a number of distinct advantages over shooting and saving processed files. The RAW format records important archival information about the conditions under which the image was captured. This information can be used by Capture NX to make unique adjustments to enhance the image. The following are some of the camera settings and RAW adjustments that can be applied within Capture NX:
Capture NX contains full support for Nikon RAW NEF images and can be used with any JPEG and TIFF (RGB or LAB based) files.
With JPEG and TIFF files, you can begin enhancing the files immediately by selecting one of the enhancements from the Menus.
• Color Mode (Page 45)
• White Balance (Page 46)
• Tone Compensation (Page 48)
• Saturation (Page 49)
• Sharpening (Page 49)
• Exposure Compensation (Capture NX) (Page 50)
• Hue Adjustment (Page 50)
• Color Moiré Reduction (Page 51)
• Dust Off (page 51)
• Auto Color Aberration (page 52)
• Vignette Control (page 52)

Camera Relationship

Capture NX was designed to support all of the features of your Nikon camera, allowing you to change many of the settings that you applied to the image in your camera. After opening a RAW NEF file within Capture NX, you can view the shooting, camera, and exposure information of the file within the Camera Settings Palette.
Settings that you can edit have a pull­down Menu, which gives you access to the various controls for each of these settings. Within the Camera Settings Palette you are given access to a number of adjustments that are unique to RAW NEF files. These adjustments can be located in the RAW section of the Camera Settings Palette.
For more information regarding the various controls provided within the Camera Settings Palette, please see page 39.
3
Chapter 1 Introduction
To display the contents of the Camera Settings Palette, click on the within the Camera Settings Palette.
button
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5

System Requirements & Installation

System Requirements

Operating System
Windows XP Home Edition, Windows XP Professional, Windows 2000 Professional
Mac OS X (version 10.3.9 or later)
Processor
WINDOWS
Pentium III 1GHz or better (Pentium 4 2GHz or better recommended)
MACINTOSH
G4, G5
RAM
256 MB minimum (1GB recommended)
Hard-disk space
200 MB required for installation
Monitor resolution
800 × 600 pixels (1024 x 768 or higher recommended) with 16-bit color (High Color/thousands of colors) with 24-bit color (True Color/millions of colors) recommended

Installation

To install Capture NX, place the Capture NX setup CD into your computer’s CD or DVD drive. Open the CD either through the My Computer icon on your desktop (Windows) or by double-click­ing on the CD icon that appears on your desktop (Mac OS).
Double-click on the Setup icon that appears within the window that is displayed to begin the setup wizard.
Please note: On Windows machines,
Microsoft .NET Framework version 1.1 will automatically be installed if not already present on the computer. The computer must be restarted when instal­lation is complete.
Chapter 2 System Requirements & Installation
Once the setup wizard has installed the files onto your computer, you will be provided with options to setup your color management preferences. The color management settings provided within the Setup Wizard enables you to
6
set the default functionality for Capture NX, and can be later changed within the Preferences.
Chapter 2 System Requirements & Installation
You are provided with two options to set the working color space:
Use the color space of the file to be
opened as the working color space
This option causes Capture NX to always use the profile embedded in the image that is opened as the working color space.
Please note: If Capture NX cannot
determine the profile of the embed­ded image, the profile identified as the Default RGB color space will be used as the working space for that image.
Always use the default RGB color
space as the working color space
This option enables the option Use This
Instead of Embedded Profile
the Color Management section of the Capture NX Preferences. This option causes Capture NX to automatically convert the image from the embedded profile to the profile as defined in the Default RGB space.
within
space of the file to be opened as the working color space option is
selected.
After you have selected the color management options to utilize for your copy of Capture NX, you can complete the installation process.
If prompted to supply a product key when starting Capture NX, enter your name and product key.
The product key may be found on the CD-ROM case.
Do not lose this key. It
is required when installing or upgrading this software and cannot be replaced if lost.
Please note: Nikon cannot guaran-
tee the operation of Capture NX when using other Nikon software at the same time.
You are also provided with the ability to select the profile to use as the Default RGB space:
Default RGB Space
Use this option to set the RGB space that is used for your images. This profile is used when the
the default RGB color space as the
working color space
Always use
option is selected, or if the image’s color space cannot be determined when the Use the color
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U Point
A key feature in Capture NX is U Point technology. The controls powered by U Point technology enable you to modify sections of a photo directly, without having to go through the time-consuming process of making a mask required in other software applications.
Technology
Chapter 3 U Point Technology
U Point technology powers Capture NX’s series of Control Points: The Color Control Point, the Black/White/Neutral Control Points, and the Red-Eye Control Point. These Control Points enable you to create color and tonal enhancements directly on the image, without first making selections. You can also see the effects of a Control Point immediately.
The Control Points powered by U Point technology enable you to work with your images without the need to perform a complicated series of operations in a particular order. Each Control Point works together with other Control Points of the same type. With every Control Point that you apply to the image comes greater control over specific objects in the image. The more Color Control Points you apply, for example, the greater control you have over color in the image. The additional Control Points ensure that the adjust­ments you make are being applied to the current object only, and placing a Control Point on an object with default settings prevents other Control Points from affect­ing that object.
While the Black, White, and Neutral Control Points were designed to control the entire image globally, both the Red-Eye and Color Control Points were designed to control elements locally.
The Color Control Points work by identifying an object based on a number of criteria. When you place your first Color Control Point, the U Point technology identifies the unique elements of the object on which you place a Control Point, includ­ing its position, color, saturation, and texture. By identifying these elements, the Color Control Point can deter­mine the boundaries of the object in order to affect only that object and objects with like elements. Through a unique mixing function, the effects of the Color Control Point are applied throughout the image so as to create a natural-looking, seamless result. On the next page you will find a series of steps showing the original image, the effect of the Control Point, and the selection of the Control Point.
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Chapter 3 U Point Technology
Step 1. A Color Control Point is placed on the sky
for greater darkness and saturation. Although this Control Point mainly affects the sky, some of the clouds are affected as well.
Step 2. Next, a Color Control Point is placed to identify the clouds in the image. This new Control Point applies only to tones in the clouds, not the sky, and prevents the first Control Point from affecting the clouds.
Step 1. Selection
Step 2. Selection
Step 3. Finally, Control Points are added for skin
tones and foliage. A Control Point added to the model’s face brightens and increases the vibrancy of the skin. Another added to the foliage darkens the leaves and draws attention to the model.
Step 3. Selection
Before
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Chapter 3 U Point Technology
After
12
The Capture NX Interface
Editor ( Page 13 ) Menu Bar ( Page 113-208 ) Toolbar ( Page 71-94 )
Bird’s Eye ( Page 97 ) Edit List ( Page 43 ) Photo Info ( Page 99 )
File Directory ( Page 37 ) Camera Settings ( Page 39 ) IPTC ( Page 41 )
Browser ( Page 29 ) Image Window ( Page 105 ) Color Picker ( Page 109 )

The Capture NX Interface

Capture NX’s interface was designed to put all of the important tools for enhancing a digital photograph right at your fingertips. This section contains a brief overview of each of the main elements that make up the Capture NX interface.
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Chapter 4 The Capture NX Interface
Chapter 4 The Capture NX Interface
Editor
The main window of Capture NX, the Editor, is the window you see when you are editing images outside of the Browser. Within the Editor you can open and close images as well as access each of the different control palettes.
Menu Bar
The Menu Bar provides access to nearly all of the features and enhancements within Capture NX. chapters 20 through 28 for informa­tion on the features located within each Menu.
Please see
Toolbar
The Toolbar is made up of five smaller Toolbars, each containing tools that provide similar controls. You can use these tools to perform various edits, from zooming to rotating the image to applying enhancements selectively.
Please see pages 71-94 for more information on each of the individual Toolbars.
Bird’s Eye
The Bird’s Eye Palette shows either a portion of the image that is visible in the active image window or the position of the area displayed within the Light Table mode of the Browser. The portion of the image or the Browser visible in the active image window is indicated by a red outline within the Bird’s Eye Palette. more information on the Bird’s Eye Palette, please see page 97.
For
Edit List
The Edit List is the master control list for the features and enhancements of Capture NX. Anything that affects your image will have an entry within the Edit List. Every entry can be removed, altered, or duplicated from this list.
The Edit List automatically organizes each entry by Steps. This provides you with the ability to turn on or off one or more steps at any time to monitor the effect of that step on your image. You can selectively apply steps with the selective tools found in the Toolbar, you
14
can place multiple enhancements within one step by linking enhancements, and you can create batch processes based on the contents of the steps. You can
Chapter 4 The Capture NX Interface
also manually create new steps using the New Step button.
The Edit List also contains a special step called the Base Adjustments step. The Base Adjustments step contains all of the enhancements unique to RAW images, as well as enhancements that can be used to prepare your images.
For more information regarding the Edit List and all of its uses and features, please see page 43.
Photo Info
The Photo Info Palette displays the information you choose to display next to your image to help you determine the optimal settings you want to use for each enhancement. The Photo Info Palette contains a live histogram, a graphic interactive display that reflects the statistical makeup of the image. Additionally, through the use of Watch Points, you can monitor the effects of the changes you make to the color values in the image. page 99 for more information regarding the Photo Info Palette.
Please go to
File Directory
The File Directory provides you with an easy-to-access Palette which displays the contents of an entire folder in the Browser. for a complete description of the File Directory Palette.
Please see page 37
Camera Settings
By opening the Camera Settings Palette, you can see all of the camera­generated data for the current image, from information regarding the camera that created the image to exposure information. Additionally, the Camera Settings Palette enables you to edit a number of settings which were set within the camera for RAW NEF image files. the Camera Settings Palette, please see page 39.
For a complete description of
IPTC
The IPTC Palette provides you with a place that you can view, add, or modify information for your images, such as the caption, keywords, categories, and copyright information. page 41 for more information on the IPTC Palette.
Please see
Browser
Capture NX’s Browser enables you to browse, sort, and organize your images, as well as to rotate or apply batch processes to multiple images simulta­neously. Images can be opened from the Browser into the Editor to provide additional control. 29 for information on the Browser.
Please see page
Image Window
An Image Window displays an image within Capture NX, along with impor­tant information and controls for that image. information regarding the features and functionality of an Image Window.
Please see page 105 for
151617

Getting Started

Opening Capture NX

Capture NX can be opened by selecting Capture NX from the Start Menu within Windows or by double-clicking on the application icon in the Applications folder within the Mac OS.
Chapter 5 Getting Started
Welcome Screen
Open Recent Image Open Recent Browser New Drag an Image Here (Mac Only)
Don’t Show Again
18
Windows OS:
Click on the Start button at the bottom of your screen and select either All
Chapter 5 Getting Started
Programs (Windows XP) or Programs (all other Windows versions). Navigate to the Capture NX folder and select Capture NX to launch the application.
Mac OS:
Double-click on the Macintosh HD icon on your desktop and navigate to the Applications folder. Double-click on the Capture NX folder and then double-click on the Capture NX appli­cation icon to launch the application. Alternatively, if you have selected to add Capture NX to your dock, simply click on the Capture NX icon within the dock to launch the application.

Welcome Screen

Upon launching, Capture NX will display the Welcome Screen, which lists the last files and folders that you accessed, and give you the option to open an image or a folder in the Browser.
Open Recent Image
This section contains a list of the most recent images that were opened within Capture NX. The last image edited can be found at the top of the list, with the remaining images you have edited listed in chronological steps. Double-click on any of these images to open them immediately within the Editor.
Open Recent Browser
This section contains a list of the
most recent folders viewed within the Browser, with the most recent folder displayed at the top. Other recently browsed folders are displayed beneath that folder in chronological order. Double-click on one of the displayed folders to open that folder immediately within the Browser.
New
This section enables you to browse for an image or folder to open within Capture NX. Click on the Open Image button to display an Open Image window. Click on the Open Folder button within the Browser to display a folder browser window, which will enable you to browse for a folder to display within Capture NX’s Browser.
Drag an Image Here Section
The Mac OS version of Capture NX contains an empty area within the Welcome Screen labeled “Drag an image here to open it.” Dragging an image into this space from the Mac OS Finder opens that image immediately within Capture NX. In the Windows OS you can drag an image into any part of the Capture NX window to open it.
Don’t Show Again
Select this checkbox to prevent the Welcome Screen from appearing when Capture NX is launched. You can navigate to the Help Menu at any time, open the Welcome Screen, and uncheck the Don’t Show Again box in order to display the Welcome Screen whenever Capture NX is launched.

Browsing and Opening Images

Capture NX provides you with a number of ways of locating and opening images in order to enhance them: you can use Capture NX’s Browser, you can navigate through your hard disk to locate a file with Open Image, or you can use PictureProject to send one or more images directly to Capture NX to enhance.
Using the Browser
Capture NX contains an enhanced browser that provides you with advanced labeling, sorting, and editing functions. You can use the Browser to rotate or apply batch processes directly to one or more thumbnails, or you can view multiple images and select the best image from the thumbnails to open directly within Capture NX’s Editor.
To view the Browser, click on the button of the Browser located at the top of the Browser frame. The Browser will by default display the contents of the My Pictures folder (Windows) or the Pictures (Mac OS) folder.
displayed within the Browser. Once you have found the image you want to edit, double-click on that image.
If you would like to navigate to a differ­ent window other than the My Pictures (Windows) or the Pictures folder (Mac OS), click on the File Directory frame. This will cause the File Directory Palette to become visible. Within the File Directory Palette you are provided with a full directory list, enabling you to navigate to any folder on your hard drive.
button within the
Using Open Image
By selecting Open Image from the File Menu, you can navigate to any folder on your hard drive and open a single photo. By default, Capture NX will display the My Pictures folder (Windows) or the Pictures folder (Mac OS).
Using PictureProject
PictureProject (Version 1.6.4 and later) supports opening one or more images directly within Capture NX.
Begin by highlighting one or more images within the current view of PictureProject and clicking on the Edit in Capture NX button. This will cause all of the images you highlighted to open within the Editor of Capture NX.
19
Chapter 5 Getting Started
You can then navigate within this folder by double-clicking on any of the folders
20

Window Functionality Within Capture NX

Each window within Capture NX
Chapter 5 Getting Started
provides you with a number of different controls for that window.
Minimize / Maximize Button
Minimize/Maximize button
Docking button
Grip Edge
Resize Control
This button either expands or collapses a window. In some situations, the window cannot be collapsed until the operation within the window has been completed.
Docking Button
This button is visible only when the window has been expanded. This button enables you to undock the window, allowing that window to float freely on your desktop. This can be handy if you utilize two monitors and you want to place the window on the second monitor, or if you want to bring one of the Toolbars closer to your image. By clicking on this button again, you can re-dock the window to its default location.
Grip Edge
This edge provides you with an area to grab and reposition the window. If the window is currently docked, clicking and dragging the window with this edge will automatically undock the window and allow you to reposition the window anywhere on your screen. To re-dock the window to its normal location, simply click on the
button.
Resize Control
This part of the window enables you to resize the window to suit your needs. Simply click here and drag to change the window’s size. Some windows have a maximum and minimum size, which may prevent them from becoming larger or smaller than that maximum or minimum size.

Exiting Capture NX

To close the Capture NX window and exit Capture NX, select Exit from the File Menu (Windows) or select Exit from the Capture NX Menu (Mac OS).
If there are any unsaved images open, a warning message will remind you to save those images. If there are any images that are currently awaiting batch processing, a message will remind you that you have unprocessed images in the Processing Queue.

File Format Differences

Capture NX supports three different file formats that can be used to save any edited image file: the NEF format, the TIFF format, and the JPEG format.
NEF
The NEF, or Nikon Electronic image Format, was designed to act as the archive file for your images. The NEF file format saves the complete contents of the Edit List along with the full image information from the original image, and all changes made to the image are stored separately within the file. The NEF format maintains the high level of quality of the original file without any loss in image quality while maintaining a relatively small image size. NEF format images remain nearly the same size as the original image file, regardless of the number of enhancements that are applied within the image.
Capture NX utilizes a new cache system with NEF files that helps increase the speed of opening NEF images that were previously edited within Capture NX. This cache system creates a cache file whenever an NEF image is saved which Capture NX can use the next time that image is opened. By utilizing the cache system, Capture NX can utilize cache file data to reduce the amount of data that needs to be processed, thereby greatly increasing the speed of opening NEF images. information on the cache system.
Please note: Previous versions of
Nikon Capture and PictureProject are
Please see page 133 for
not able to display enhancements that are unique to Capture NX within NEF files. If you would like to share your NEF files with someone who does not have a copy of Capture NX, it is recom­mended that you save a copy of your image into the TIFF or JPEG file format to ensure that all of the enhancements that you have made are available.
NEF image files are generated by all Nikon Digital SLR cameras as well as a number of COOLPIX cameras. Some of the Digital SLR cameras offer you the ability to create an uncompressed NEF image file. These uncompressed NEF image files can later be compressed within Capture NX, if you choose, to save additional hard disk space.
Please note: Compressed NEF files
cannot be saved in Capture NX as uncompressed NEF image files.
RAW FILE SUPPORT
Capture NX provides RAW support to the entire line of Nikon digital cameras that produce NEF RAW files. Supported cameras include:
COOLPIX 5000 D1
COOLPIX 5400 D1X
COOLPIX 5700 D1H
COOLPIX 8400 D2X
COOLPIX 8700 D2X
COOLPIX 8800 D2H
D50 D2H
D70S D70
D200 D100
S
S
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Chapter 5 Getting Started
22
TIFF
The TIFF file format is commonly used as a standard for high-quality image
Chapter 5 Getting Started
reproduction. Saving your image to this format will result in a file that contains the final state of your image as you see it on your monitor, with full image quality. Once an image is saved to the TIFF format and closed, you will not be able to access the contents of the Edit List to make any adjustments to the enhance­ments that were applied to the image.
The TIFF file format provides you with the choice to compress the image using a lossless compression, the choice to save the file as a 16-bit or an 8-bit image (RGB only), and the ability to save the image with RGB or CMYK data. The option to save the image as a 16-bit file is only provided if origi­nal image was a RAW or 16-bit file. Changing the image from 16-bit to 8­bit will make the image file smaller, but doing so may also reduce the level of quality of the image. It is recommended that you create an 8-bit copy of your image for situations in which only 8-bit files are compatible.
Please Note: TIFF saved with CMYK data can only be saved with 8-bits per channel of color information.
JPEG
One of the most widely used file formats, the JPEG file format enables you to save a greater number of images using the same amount of hard disk space as the other file formats. To create such a small file size, a form of compression is used that irrevers­ibly affects the quality of the image. Because of this compression, it is recommended that you only use the JPEG file format for images that will be distributed electronically, or when a small image file is required.

How to Print

Printing is very easy in Capture NX. You can select Print from the File Menu at any time to print the current image, or you can select multiple images from within the Browser to create a Print Package. Print Packages are essentially a collection of images printed at the same time, often with more than one image appearing on the same page. Print Packages make the most out of your printer and paper, enabling you to create proof sheets so that you can review and select images based on the output, rather than the computer monitor.

Batch Processing

Batch Processing is the automatic appli­cation of one or more enhancements to a series of images. Typically a photogra­pher will use a batch process to apply a predefined series of adjustments to several images at once. Capture NX supports a number of batch processing methods. You can run a traditional Batch Process, select­ing a folder of images and a Settings File to apply to those images, you can copy and paste your enhancements from one image to another, or you can select multi­ple images in the Browser and apply a Settings File or paste some enhancements directly to those images. One method of applying a batch process is to create a Settings File that contains a series of enhancements to apply to your image.
Creating a Settings File
23
Chapter 5 Getting Started
Once you have selected Print from the File Menu, you can identify how to color manage your prints and whether or not you want to create a Print Package. tion of the various settings within the Capture NX Print dialog, please see page 117.
For a complete descrip-
Settings Files consist of a series of instructions that Capture NX can use to enhance one or more images in the future. Settings Files are created by identifying enhancements that you want to save from the current image. Later, when you apply the new Settings File to an image or group of images, Capture NX will apply the same enhancements with the same settings
24
to those images, just as if you had applied them to each image individu­ally. Settings Files are often used to apply a unique series of enhancements
Chapter 5 Getting Started
that can work for a wide variety of images, such as applying a black and white conversion to be used as a basis for an additional enhancement, or adding a warm sepia-tone to the image.
To create a Settings File, open an image, either by using the Open Image command or by double-clicking on an image in the Browser.
Make whatever enhancements and adjustments that are necessary to the image. Once you have completed the adjustments to the image, you can start creating the Settings File.
Navigate to the Batch Menu and select Save Settings. This will call up the Save Settings dialog window, which includes a representation of the Edit List from the current image, complete with the image settings. Simply check off the different steps from this image that you want to save into the Settings File. Once you have selected all of the enhance­ments and steps that you would like to apply to additional images, enter a name for the Settings File. While it is recom­mended that you leave the Settings File in the default folder location, since this will make it easy to locate when you are ready to apply a batch process, you are given the option to select a different location to place the Settings File. For more information regarding the Save Settings command, please see page 182.
How to Apply a Batch Process With a Settings File
Once you have created a Settings File, you can begin applying the enhance­ments from within that Settings File to any image, either within the editor, within the Browser, or even to a folder on your computer.
To apply a batch process in the Editor or Browser, navigate to the Load Settings section of the Batch Menu and locate the Settings File that you want to apply. By selecting the Settings File from this location, you will apply those settings either to the current image in the editor or to the selected files within the Browser.
If you are applying a Settings File to multiple images in the Browser, the thumbnails for the images will automatically become updated and a small icon will appear next to each selected image, indicating that it needs to be processed. A Processing Queue window will also appear, enabling you to begin the batch process. Click on the Start button to begin processing the images with the default settings. By default, the batch process will save the
images with the NEF file format with the same name and in the same folder as the original image.
You are provided with the option within the Processing Queue of selecting a different file format, destination folder, and file name. on the Processing Queue, please see page 184.
For more information
How to Apply a Batch Process by Copying and Pasting Enhancements
While Settings Files are very useful if you have a series of enhancements that can be applied to a large number of images, there may be instances where you may want to apply a series of enhancements to a small batch of images. By first enhancing one of the images from the series, you can copy and paste the enhancements to any number of images without going through the process of creating a Settings File.
of the range of images in the batch. Perform whatever enhancements you think appropriate to the image, navigate to the Batch Menu, and select Copy Settings. By default, Capture NX will copy all of the enhancements that are applied to the representative image. If you would like to copy only individual enhancements, simply click on an enhancement within the Edit List to highlight it prior to selecting Copy Settings. If you would like to highlight and select more than one enhance­ment, hold the Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS) keys while select­ing enhancements from the Edit List. This will select multiple enhancements to be copied once you select the Copy Settings option.
After you have copied the desired settings, locate the images to which you want to apply the enhancements. You can either select a different image that you have opened within the Editor, or you can select one or more images from within the Browser. Navigate again to the Batch Menu and select Paste Enhancements. This will apply all of the enhancements that you have selected and copied into the target images. It is important to note that all of the new enhancements will be applied in the same order that they were applied in the representative image, but they will be applied after any enhancements that already existed within the target images.
25
Chapter 5 Getting Started
To begin the copy and paste method, open an image that is representative
26
How to Apply a Batch Process in the Browser
In addition to being able to apply batch
Chapter 5 Getting Started
processes within the Editor or using the Batch Process feature, Capture NX offers you the ability to apply a batch process directly within the Browser.
Begin by selecting and highlighting any number of images from within the Browser. Next, select the Settings file you wish to apply to those images by navigating to Load menu within the
Batch menu. After you have selected
the Settings File to apply from the
Batch menu, the Processing Queue
window will appear, enabling you to start the batch process at any point. Once you select the Start button within the Processing Queue, Capture NX will process each of the images that you selected to enhance using the default saving settings. This saves the images using the NEF file format in the same folder location with the same file name. If you would like to change these settings, click on the the Processing Queue to display the full set of controls provided within the Processing Queue.
button within
You are provided the option within the Processing Queue of selecting a differ­ent file format, a different destination folder, and a different file name.
For more information on the
Processing Queue, please see page 184.
27
28
29
The Browser
Capture NX contains a very powerful browser that enables you to browse, sort, and organize your images, as well as to rotate or apply batch processes to multiple images simultaneously.
Chapter 6 The Browser
The Browser
Inverse Sort Button (Page 30) Folder Menu (Page 31) Label Menu (Page 32)
Sort Menu (Page 34) Batch Menu (Page 34)
You can access the Browser in two different ways:
1. By clicking on the button on the
docked Browser bar.
2. By selecting the Open Folder in
Browser selection from the File Menu.
Once the Browser is open, you can navigate to different folders in a number of ways: by double-clicking on a folder icon within the Browser window, by using the File Directory Palette or by using the Open command within the Folder Menu of the Browser.
30
Please see page 37 for more infor­mation regarding the File Directory feature.
Chapter 6 The Browser
Use the Direct Select Tool to select and move images within the Browser. Use the Hand Tool to pan throughout the Browser. The Zoom Tool enables you to zoom in and out of the Browser, increasing and decreasing the size of the thumbnails. Additionally, while you have selected the Zoom Tool, rolling over an image will cause a larger version of that image to become visible.
the current folder.
Folder Back
This button navigates to the last folder that you opened within the Browser. This button is not accessible when viewing the first folder of that editing session.
Folder Open
This button opens a list of previously viewed folders. You can then select one of the folders that you previously viewed to quickly navigate to that folder.
Folder Forward
This button navigates back to the last folder that you viewed before using the Folder Back button. This button is not accessible until you use the Folder Back button once.
Within the Browser, you are able to control the location of the current window that you are viewing as well as four Menus that contain controls designed to work specifically within the Browser.
Under the four folder buttons are commands that control the location of
Inverse Sort Button
This button reverses the order of the images displayed within the Browser. You can invert the sort direction at any time, including after using any of the sort options such as the Alphabetical, Date, or Label sorting methods.
By right-clicking (Windows) or control-clicking (Mac OS), you are provided with additional controls for your images within a contextual Menu. Opening this Menu on an image within the Browser, you can:
Open an image or group of images.
Compare images either in the
Browser or in the Editor.
Please see
page 199 for additional information regarding comparing.
Label your images. Please see page 32 for additional information on labeling images.
Rename your images using the same rename functionality found in the Batch process. for additional information regarding renaming images.
Copy, Paste, and Load settings to apply in a batch process. page 181 for information regarding batch processes.
Please see page 185
Please see

Folder Menu

The Folder Menu within the Browser contains different controls for the view of the current folder.
Open
Select this option to open a folder browser dialog that enables you to locate a folder to display within the Browser.
Open in Split Window
Select this option to open a folder browser dialog that enables you to locate a folder to display in an additional browser window that becomes available next to the current folder. By opening two different folders, you can quickly sort images from one location into another.
31
Chapter 6 The Browser
New Folder
This option creates a new unnamed folder inside the current folder that you are viewing within the Browser window.
32
View
The View sub-Menu enables you to choose from different methods to view
Chapter 6 The Browser
the contents of the current folder.
ROWS
The Rows view is the default view for the Browser. This view causes the images to become displayed in a row format; resizing the Browser will cause the images to become resorted.
LIGHT TABLE
the Light Table view. The Bird’s Eye Palette is accessible within this view to see your current location in relation to the images on the Light Table.
DETAILS
This view places important informa­tion about each image in a column and enables you to sort by each of the columns.

Label Menu

The Light Table view simulates a light table; resizing the Browser will not resort the images. You can navigate both horizontally and vertically through
The Label Menu within the Browser contains tools to assist you with label­ing your images, which is important when it comes time to sort and archive your images.
Available Labels
Capture NX by default has four labels available within the Label Menu: Unlabeled, Good, Bad, and Maybe. You can personalize and use up to nine labels, plus Unlabeled. Each label has a preset number which indicates the color, shortcut, and icon that is used for that particular label. The shortcut
is essentially the number of the label. For example, you can set an image to Unlabeled with the shortcut of 0. To remove an image’s label, simply highlight it and press the 0 key on your keyboard.
Customize Label Names

Sort Menu

The Sort Menu within the Browser enables you to change the arrangement of your images within the Browser. You may at any time rearrange the images manually by clicking and dragging an image to the desired location.
Alphabetical
Choose this sort method to arrange the images alphabetically, based on the file’s name.
Date
Choose this sort method to arrange the images chronologically, based on the creation of the image.
33
Chapter 6 The Browser
The Customize Label Names command will open the Customize Label Names dialog. In this dialog you can identify the names of up to nine individual­ized labels. If you do not want to use a label, simply delete the text within the associated box, and that label will be removed from the Label Menu.
By Labels
This sub-menu contains the current available labels and enables you to choose to display only images labeled with one of those available labels. By selecting any of the options within this Menu, you will switch the view to the Sort By Labels view, which shows a list of all of the possible labels with a Show/Hide Triangle next to the label name. Clicking on the expand that label area and show you all of the images with that label. To switch back to the normal view, select one of the other sorting methods, such as Alphabetical or Date.
button will
34

Batch Menu

Chapter 6 The Browser
The Batch Menu within the Browser contains a duplication of the contents of the Batch Menu from the Menu Bar and enables you to quickly access and apply batch processes to your images.
For more information regarding the Batch functionalities of Capture NX, please see page 181.
35
36
37

File Directory

The File Directory displays the files on your hard disk in the same manner as the Operating System, within the Capture NX window, offering file copying and file moving functions. Double-clicking on any folder from within the File Directory will open that folder within the Browser.
Chapter 7 File Directory
38
39

Camera Settings

The Camera Settings Palette contains a list of all of the pertinent information regarding the current image. Within this Palette, you can see information regard­ing the camera, the time and date the image was shot, the exposure data, as well as the settings made within the camera that affected the current image. Any editable settings are accessible with a pull-down Menu, which you can use to change the settings that you set within your camera.
When working with images within the Browser, you can view the image infor­mation for the currently selected image within the Camera Settings Palette. When working with images within the Editor, you can access and change settings on the image directly within the Camera Settings palette.
Chapter 8 Camera Settings
40
41

IPTC

The IPTC Palette contains a standardized list of text fields that can be used to indicate the copyright and usage requirements of your images. The contents of the IPTC Palette, named after the committee that created the standard, the International Press Telecommunications Council, was originally designed to simplify and clarify information needed when sharing photographs with different publica­tions.
These fields enable you to add impor­tant information by attaching labels such as Caption, Keywords, Categories, Credit, and Origin to the image. For more information about IPTC and how it is used, please visit the following web page:
http://www.iptc.org/
You can view and change the contents of the different IPTC fields on images both within the Browser as well as within the editor. When working in the Browser, you can also select multiple images and modify the contents of the IPTC fields of those images directly.
Chapter 9 IPTC
Once you are finished adding or editing the IPTC information, simply click OK.
42
The Edit List
The Edit List is the central location for all of the controls provided within Capture NX. The Edit List stores all of the enhancements that have been applied to your image in chronological order. The Edit List can be used as a history that allows you to go back and modify any of the adjustments that you have previously made to your images.
43
Chapter 10 The Edit List

The Edit List

Base Adjustments (Page 44) Enhancement Steps (Page 59) Versions Menu (Page 65)
Batch Menu (Page 66) New Step Button (Page 66)
44
Every enhancement that you apply to your images within Capture NX will be recorded within the Edit List. The Edit
Chapter 10 The Edit List
List contains the following sections:
• Base Adjustments Step
• Enhancement Steps
• Versions Menu
• Batch Menu
• New Step Button
The Edit List is saved with all of the adjustments intact when you save the file as a NEF file.
The Edit List also acts as the basis for batch processing your images. the Batch sections later in this chapter and on page 181 to learn more about how to use the Edit List to create batch processes.
See
Apply Checkbox next to the last step that you want to reapply. Capture NX will automatically apply all of the steps between the step you have just modified and the last step that you checked. You can then, of course, check or uncheck any steps or enhance­ments that you wish.

Base Adjustments Step

The Base Adjustments step contains RAW specific enhancements as well as enhancements that can be applied to JPEG and TIFF images. The Base Adjustments step can be expanded and collapsed at any time by clicking on the
next to the Base Adjustments step in
the Edit List.
Since the Edit List shows a chronologi­cal description of the enhancements that have been applied to your image, you can use the Edit List to return to any previous enhancement and adjust the settings. To do this, either double­click on the step or enhancement that you want to modify, or single-click on the
next to that step or enhance­ment to display the contents. Once you have displayed the contents of an enhancement, you can modify the settings that were applied. By modify­ing a previous step, you will temporar­ily disable all of the steps that occur after the current step you are modify­ing. Once you have completed any modification to that step, click on the
Show/Hide Triangle Apply Checkbox
The Base Adjustments step is broken up into five sub-categories. Each of the five sub-categories can be expanded and collapsed at any time by clicking on the
next to each of the sub-catego-
ries within the Base Adjustments step.
• Camera Adjustments (Available with RAW images only)
• RAW Adjustments (Available with RAW images only)
• Lens Adjustments (Available for all images)
• Light & Color Adjustments
(Available for all images)
• Detail Adjustments (Available for all images)
When you open an NEF file that was generated with a camera, both the Camera Adjustments and RAW Adjustments options are available to you. Within these two options, you are able to adjust the settings that were set within your camera, as well as modify enhancements that are available only for RAW files.
Each enhancement within the Base Adjustments contains a Show/Hide Triangle and an Apply Checkbox.
Show/Hide Triangle
The Show/Hide Triangle shows and
hides the contents of that specific enhancement’s dialog window. Click on the states.
Apply Checkbox
The Apply Checkbox enables you to turn on and off a specific enhancement. This checkbox is automatically checked once any adjustments are made to the enhancement. To turn a specific enhancement off, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox.
Camera Adjustments
The contents of the Camera Adjustments section of the Base Adjustments step can be applied only to a RAW NEF image file. The Camera Adjustments section will be presented automatically if the image is a RAW NEF image. Tools that apply only
to toggle between these two
to RAW images do not appear in the menus. Tools specific to RAW images are available in the Base Adjustments Step.
Please note: Any feature applied
within the Camera Adjustments is applied to the entire image and cannot be adjusted using any of the Selective Tools.
COLOR MODE
The Color Mode feature enables you to choose between the same Color Modes as those that you can set in your camera. By allowing you fine control over chroma, brightness, and color gamut, the Color Mode feature creates a subtle look for your image, compara­ble to the distinct differences apparent in the variety of film stock available to photographers.
To change the Color Mode, click on the
button for Color Mode and choose one of the options from the pull-down Menu. The default value will be the value that you originally set in your camera. After changing the parameter for this feature, an * will be displayed next to the value originally set within your camera.
Click OK to accept and apply the new Color Mode, or click Cancel to keep the original Color Mode set in your camera.
To revert to the original setting at any point, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Color Mode.
RAW ONLY
45
Chapter 10 The Edit List
46
WHITE BALANCE
The White Balance feature is designed to enable you to change the white
Chapter 10 The Edit List
balance that was set within your image. Changing the white balance enables you to not only correct the white balance setting that was origi­nally chosen, but also to alter the white balance in order to introduce a cold or warm cast into the image.
To change the white balance, click on the
button for White Balance to display the White Balance dialog. Within the White Balance dialog, you can either select a color temperature for the white balance, or you can set a gray point from within the image.
Set Color Temperature Mode
RAW ONLY
New White Balance
This pull-down Menu provides you with a number of controls for setting a new white balance value.
Recorded Value Selecting this value will set the white balance to the setting recorded by the camera.
Calculate Automatically When you select this value, Capture NX will determine the best white balance setting to provide neutral colors throughout the image.
Incandescent Select this value if the lighting in your photograph’s scene was provided by an incandescent or tungsten light source. You can further modify the setting with the Fine Adjustment Slider.
Fine Adjustment Slider
This slider enables you to shift the selected color temperature by + or ­50 Mired.
In this mode, you can allow Capture NX to automatically calculate the white balance, or you can set the white balance manually by using one of the available presets.
Camera White Balance
This displays the white balance set by the camera when the image was captured.
Daylight Select this value if the lighting in your photograph’s scene was provided by the sun. You can further modify this setting with the Daylight sub-menu and the Fine Adjustment Slider.
Daylight Sub-Menu
This sub-menu enables you to
choose from three different daylight situations.
Direct Sunlight
This option sets the color
temperature to 5,200K and is suited for photographs taken in direct
sunlight.
Cloudy This option sets the color temperature to 6,000K and is suited for photographs taken under overcast skies.
Shade This option sets the color temperature to 8,000K and is suited for photographs taken in open shade.
Daylight (6,500K)
Fine Adjustment Slider
This slider enables you to shift the selected color temperature by + or ­50 Mired.
Flash Select this option if your image was shot using a Nikon Speedlight as the light source. You can further modify this setting with the Fine Adjustment Slider.
47
Chapter 10 The Edit List
Fine Adjustment slider
This slider enables you to shift the selected color temperature by + or ­50 Mired.
Standard Fluorescent and High
Color Rendering Fluorescent
Select either of these values if your image was shot under fluorescent light­ing, based on the type of fluorescent light bulb that was used. If you are unsure of which type of light bulb was used, experiment with the different settings until the image appears natural to you. You can further modify these settings with the Fluorescent sub-menu and the Fine Adjustment Slider.
Fluorescent sub-menu This sub-menu enables you to choose between the most commonly available fluorescent light bulb temperatures.
Warm White (3,000K)
3,700K
Cool White (4,200K)
5,000K
Fine Adjustment Slider
This slider enables you to shift the color temperature from 4277K to 7479K.
Set Gray Point
In this mode you can identify an object within your photograph that was neutral gray in the scene and base the white balance off that object, or you can take an average of a section of your photograph and calculate the white balance off that section.
Use Single Point
By selecting this option and clicking start, you will be able to identify a single point that should be neutral gray. This is
48
best used on an image that contains a Gray card illuminated by the main light source.
Chapter 10 The Edit List
To choose a point, select Use Single Point and click Start. The cursor will change to an eyedropper when moved over the active image. Click a neutral gray point to set the white balance. You will notice that the Red and Blue sliders may have moved, and that these changes may have also been reflected in the small graph. You can further modify the white balance settings by moving the Red and Blue sliders manually. The Red slider enables you to shift the image’s white balance from cyan to red, adjusting the gain for the Red Channel. The Blue slider enables you to shift the image’s white balance from yellow to blue, adjusting the gain for the Blue Channel. Click on the reset button at any time to return the values to the default settings.
Use Marquee Sample
By selecting this option and click­ing start, you will be able to draw a marquee on the image to identify a section for Capture NX to use as the basis for setting the white balance. Use this option when the scene was illuminated by a number of different light sources. Select a section that was illuminated by the light source you want to set the white balance to.
To choose a section, select Use Marquee Sample and click Start. The cursor will change to an area-selection eyedropper when moved over the active image; drag to select an area. White
balance will be set to the average for the selected area.
You will notice that the Red and Blue sliders may have moved, which may have also been reflected in the small graph. You can further modify the white balance settings by moving the Red and Blue sliders manually. The Red slider enables you to shift the image’s white balance from cyan to red, adjusting the gain for the Red Channel. The Blue slider enables you to shift the image’s white balance from yellow to blue, adjusting the gain for the Blue Channel. Click on the reset button at any time to reset the values to the default settings.
Click OK to accept the new white balance, or click Cancel to retain the white balance set in your camera.
To revert to the original white balance setting at any point, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to White Balance.
TONE COMPENSATION
The Tone Compensation feature enables you to adjust the image contrast that was set in the camera.
To change the tone compensa­tion, click on the Compensation and select one of the options from the pull-down Menu.
button for Tone
RAW ONLY
Choose from the following list:
• Unchanged – This will revert to the contrast set in the camera.
• Low Contrast
• Unchanged – This will revert to the saturation set in the camera.
• Moderate
• Normal
49
Chapter 10 The Edit List
• Medium Low
• Normal
• Medium High
• High Contrast
• User Defined Custom Curve – This will set the contrast to a user-defined custom curve. (Not available with COOLPIX-series cameras.)
Click OK to accept the new setting, or click Cancel to retain the Tone Compensation set in your camera.
To revert to the original Tone Compensation setting at any point, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Tone Compensation.
SATURATION
RAW ONLY
• Enhanced
SHARPENING
RAW ONLY
The Sharpening feature enables you to
adjust the amount of sharpening that was set in the camera.
To change the sharpening, click on the
button for Sharpening and select one of the options from the pull-down Menu. Choose from the following list:
• Unchanged – This will revert to the sharpening set in the camera.
The Saturation feature enables you to adjust the saturation that was set in the camera.
To change the saturation, click on the
button for Saturation and select one of the options from the pull-down Menu. Choose from the following list:
• None
• Low
• Medium Low
• Medium
• Medium High
• High
Click OK to accept the new sharpening
50
settings, or click Cancel to retain the sharpening set in your camera.
To revert to the original sharpening
Chapter 10 The Edit List
setting at any point, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Sharpening.
Please note: As the D1 does not
record image-sharpening settings in image files, selecting Unchanged is equivalent to selecting None when working with images recorded with the D1.
RAW Adjustments
The contents of the RAW Adjustments section of the Base Adjustments step can only be applied to a RAW NEF image file. This section will be displayed automatically if the image is a RAW NEF image. Tools that apply only to RAW images do not appear in the menus. Tools specific to RAW images are avail­able in the Base Adjustments Step.
Please note: Any feature applied
within the RAW Adjustments is applied to the entire image and cannot be adjusted using any of the Selective Tools.
EXPOSURE COMPENSATION
RAW ONLY
The Exposure Compensation feature emulates increasing or decreasing exposure in the camera.
To change the Exposure Compensation, click on the Compensation and move the slider. This feature enables you to choose from –2 to +2EV.
button for Exposure
Click OK to accept the Exposure Compensation effect, or click Cancel to prevent the Exposure Compensation effect from changing your image.
If you would like to remove the Exposure Compensation effect at any time, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Exposure Compensation.
Please note: The Exposure
Compensation feature is very useful for improving images that were not correctly exposed; however, if your image contains overexposed areas (with lost detail in the highlights) or underexposed areas (with lost detail in the shadows), you will not be able to recover detail using this feature.
HUE ADJUSTMENT
The Hue Adjustment feature enables you to alter the hue of your entire image from (–9° to +9°) without affect­ing brightness or saturation. Skin tones will become increasingly yellow as this value is raised above 0°. Values below 0° produce redder skin tones.
To change the Hue Adjustment, click on the
button in the Hue Adjustment and move the slider. After changing the parameter for this feature, an * will be displayed next to the value originally set within your camera.
Click OK to accept the new setting, or click Cancel to retain the Hue Adjustment as set in your camera.
To revert to the original Hue Adjustment setting at any point, simply
RAW ONLY
uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Hue Adjustment.
COLOR MOIRÉ REDUCTION
The Color Moiré Reduction feature enables you to apply a noise reduction process available only on RAW images.
To apply Color Moiré Reduction, click on the options from the pull-down Menu. This process can reduce color moiré artifacts (color interference caused by regular overlapping patterns). You can control the strength of this feature from Off, to Low, Medium, or High.
Click OK to accept the Color Moiré Reduction effect, or click Cancel to prevent the Color Moiré Reduction effect from changing your image.
If you would like to remove the Color Moiré Reduction effect at any time, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Color Moiré Reduction.
can be found in the Adjust Menu on page 156.
button and select one of the
Additional noise reduction features
RAW ONLY
and minimized.
Please note: The position as well as
amount of dust on the low-pass filter may change. It is recommended that you take reference images regularly and use a reference image that was taken within one day of the photograph you wish to treat.
To apply Dust Off, click on the for Dust Off to display the Dust Off dialog window. Click on the Change button to locate a Dust Off reference photo to apply to the current image.
For certain cameras that create Dust Off reference photos with the .NDF extension (such as the D2H and D2X), Capture NX will attempt to identify a reference photo located within the same folder as the current image.
If Capture NX locates a Dust Off reference photo in the current folder, you will be presented with the option of using that photo for the Dust Off process.
button
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Chapter 10 The Edit List
DUST OFF
The Dust Off feature can reduce artifacts in the image created by dust which was present on the low pass filter, located behind the camera’s lens. Because these dust particles create artifacts at consistent locations on the sensor, the Dust Off feature can register their location on the sensor in a refer­ence image. The noise in subsequent images are compared to that profile
RAW ONLY
If you select Yes, Capture NX will
apply the Dust Off effect using that reference photo.
If you select No, you will be
presented with a folder search window to enable you to locate on your computer’s hard drive a folder that contains a Dust Off reference photo.
If Capture NX locates more than
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one Dust Off reference photo within the same folder, you will be presented with an options dialog to select which
Chapter 10 The Edit List
image to use. It is recommended that you select the image that was taken as close to the time of the current image as possible.
If Capture NX does not locate a Dust Off reference photo within the same folder as the current image, you will be presented with a folder search window to enable you to locate on your computer’s hard drive a folder that contains a Dust Off reference photo.
last three locations that was selected within the Location pull-down Menu.
Once you have located the correct Dust Off reference photo, click OK to apply the Dust Off effect to your image.
If you would like to remove the Dust Off effect at any time, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Dust Off.
Please note: If a large amount of dust
is detected in the current image, Capture NX Editor will display a warning stating
that the results of Image Dust Off cannot be guaranteed. Click Yes to proceed.
If Capture NX locates more than one Dust Off reference photo within the same folder, you will be presented with an options dialog to select which image to use. It is recommended that you select the image that was taken as close to the time of the current image as possible.
For all other cameras, you will be presented with a folder search window to enable you to locate on your
computer’s hard drive a folder that contains a Dust Off reference photo.
If Capture NX
locates more than one Dust Off reference photo within the same folder, you will be presented with an options dialog to select which image to use. It is recommended that you select the image that was taken as close to the time of the current image as possible.
AUTO COLOR ABERRATION
RAW ONLY
The Auto Color Aberration feature enables
you to automatically reduce color aberrati­ons (colored fringes or halos) that appear within your images. This feature is turned on by default, automatically reducing color aberrations in RAW images. If you would like to remove the Auto Color Aberration effect at any time, uncheck the Apply Check box next to Auto Color Aberration within the RAW Adjustments section of the Base Adjustments step.
Please note: This option is not avail-
able with multiple exposures or images created with image overlay (D2X only).
Lens Adjustments
The contents of the Lens Adjustments section of the Base Adjustments step are available with RAW images or when the image was shot with the AF DX
10.5 mm f2.8G Nikkor fisheye lens.
Alternatively, you may select one of the
VIGNETTE CONTROL
RAW ONLY
The Vignette Control feature is used to correct for loss of marginal lumina­tion, a phenomenon associated with camera lenses that causes a drop in brightness at the edges of a photo­graph. Vignette Control is most effec­tive when performed on images taken at maximum aperture. If the picture in the active image window is a RAW image taken with a lens equipped to transmit distance information (a type G or D lens) mounted on a camera that can record this information, Capture NX will use the lens information recorded with the image to automatically select an optimal value for Vignette Control. When this lens information is not avail­able, the Vignette Control effect will be based on default lens characteristics. To determine whether a given combination of lens and camera will record distance information, see the table below.
Any other
Ty pe of
Lens
Distance Information Not Recorded Distance Information Not Recorded Distance Information Not Recorded Distance Information Not Recorded
Camera
D50, D70, D70S, D100, D2H, D2HS, D2X, D2XS, D200 D1X/D1H (fi rmware version 1.10 or later) D1X/D1H (fi rmware version 1.01 or earlier)
D1
Type G or
D lens
Distance Information Recorded
Distance Information Recorded
Distance Information Not Recorded Distance Information Not Recorded
To apply the Vignette Control feature to your image, click on the
button next to Vignette Control to display the Vignette Control dialog window.
Drag the Intensity slider to the right to brighten the edges of the currently active photo, or drag the Intensity slider to the left to darken the edges of the photo.
If the image was taken under any situa­tion in which the Distance Information was not recorded, please take care when adjusting the Vignette Control settings so as to not over apply the Vignette Control effect.
Once you have created the desired effect with the Vignette Control feature, click OK to apply the Vignette Control effect to your image.
If you would like to remove the Vignette Control effect at any time, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Vignette Control.
FISHEYE LENS
The Fisheye Lens feature enables you to modify an image taken with a compat­ible fisheye lens to make that image appear to have been taken with a wide­angle rectilinear lens. This feature is only compatible with images taken with an AF DX 10.5 mm f2.8G Nikkor fisheye lens.
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54
Include Areas Where There is No
Image Data
By default, the Include Areas Where
Chapter 10 The Edit List
There is No Image Data option will be turned off, cropping off any area where image information is not present.
Turn the Include Areas Where There is No Image Data option on to display the full image, including areas where there is no image data. This shows you the full image after the fisheye-to-rectilin­ear transformation. You will notice that parts of the image have been curved to transform the image into a rectilinear image. Due to the process employed by the fisheye-to-rectilinear transforma­tion, there is more information along the longest side of the image.
Some areas of the image will not contain any image information due to the transformation process.
The features located within the Light & Color Adjustments Section are also provided under the Menus, as well as in the Adjust & Filter pull-down Menu of Enhancement Steps of the Edit List. You can selectively apply these features by accessing them from either the Menus or from the Adjust & Filter pull-down Menu.
COLOR BALANCE
Once you are satisfied with the result­ing effect from the Fisheye Lens feature, click OK. You can cancel this feature at any time by clicking on the Cancel button.
Light & Color Adjustments
The contents of the Light & Color Adjustments section of the Base Adjustments step can be applied to any image, either NEF, JPEG, or TIFF format.
Please note: Any feature applied
within the Light & Color Adjustments is applied to the entire image and cannot be adjusted using any of the Selective Tools.
The Color Balance feature provides you with simple controls for adjusting the overall brightness, contrast, and color balance of the entire image.
To apply the Color Balance feature, click on the display the Color Balance dialog.
features of the Color Balance Tool, please see page 150.
Once you have achieved the desired effect, click on the OK button to accept the Color Balance effect for your image. Click on the Cancel button if you would like to prevent the Color Balance feature from affecting your image.
button next to Color Balance to
For a complete explanation of the
If you would like to remove the Color Balance effect at any time, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Color Balance.
COLOR BOOSTER
The Color Booster enables you to optimally adjust the saturation, or vivid­ness, of colors. Use the Color Booster to increase the saturation of colors of the active image.
To apply this feature, click on the button next to Color Booster to display the Color Booster dialog.
For a complete explanation of the features of the Color Booster Tool, please see page 151.
Once you have achieved the desired effect, click on the OK button to accept the Color Booster effect for your image. Click on the Cancel button if you would like to prevent the Color Booster feature from affecting your image.
If you would like to remove the Color Booster effect at any time, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Color Booster.
D-LIGHTING
D-Lighting reveals details in shadows and highlights, correcting for underexpo­sure, backlighting, or insufficient flash, without harming the properly exposed areas or introducing unwanted artifacts. D-Lighting can also help reveal detail in overexposed areas in brightly lit scenes.
To apply D-Lighting, click on the button next to D-Lighting to display the D-Lighting dialog.
For a complete explanation of the features of the D-Lighting feature, please see page 143.
Once you are satisfied with the results of the D-Lighting feature, click on the OK button. If you want to cancel the D-Lighting feature, click on the Cancel button.
If you would like to remove the D-Lighting effect at any time, uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to D-Lighting.
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LCH
Chapter 10 The Edit List
LEVELS & CURVES
The LCH Editor controls the Luminosity, Chroma, and Hue of the active image using individual editor dialogs. The LCH Editor enables you to individually control the Luminosity of the colors of the entire image.
To use the LCH Editor, click on the button next to LCH, which will display the LCH dialog.
For a complete explanation of the features of the LCH Editor, please see page 145.
Once you are satisfied with the results of the LCH feature, click on the OK button. If you want to cancel the LCH feature, click on the Cancel button.
If you would like to remove the LCH effect at any time, uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to LCH.
The Levels & Curves feature combines two of the most often used tonal enhancing features into one easy-to-use editor. The Levels & Curves feature enables you to adjust contrast, tone (brightness) levels, and color balance to make maximum use of the tone range and color gamut offered by a particular output device, such as a printer or monitor.
The Levels & Curves feature provides you with controls to make tonal adjust­ments to specific portions of the active image’s tone range. These adjustments can be applied to the entire image or to specific color channels, making it possible to enhance the image while preserving detail.
To use the Levels & Curves Editor to enhance the tonal values of your image, click on the Curves. This will provide you with the Levels & Curves dialog.
button next to Levels &
For a complete explanation of the features of the Levels & Curves tool, please see page 137.
Once you are satisfied with the results of the Levels & Curves Editor, click on the OK button. If you want to cancel the Levels & Curves Editor, click on the Cancel button.
If you would like to remove the Levels & Curves effect at any time, uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Levels & Curves.
PHOTO EFFECTS
The Photo Effects feature enables you to take creative control of your image. With this tool, you can covert an image to a Black and White, Sepia, or Tinted image. The Photo Effects feature also allows you to control the tonality of the image, to enhance dark tones, and to control the color balance.
Once you are satisfied with the results of the Photo Effects feature, click on the OK button. If you want to cancel the Photo Effects feature, click on the Cancel button.
If you would like to remove the changes from the Photo Effects at any time, uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Photo Effects.
Detail Adjustments
Any of the features in the Detail Adjustments section of the Base Adjustments step can be applied to any image, NEF, JPEG, or TIFF format.
Please note: Any feature that is
applied within the Detail Adjustments is applied to the entire image and cannot be adjusted using any of the Selective Tools.
The features located within the Detail Adjustments section are also provided under the Menus as well as in the Adjust & Filter pull-down Menu of Enhancement Steps of the Edit List. You can selectively apply these features by accessing them from either the Menus or the Adjust & Filter pull-down Menu.
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Chapter 10 The Edit List
To use the Photo Effects feature, click on the This will provide you with the Photo Effects dialog.
Photo Effects feature, please see page 173.
button next to Photo Effects.
For a complete explanation of the
58
NOISE REDUCTION
Chapter 10 The Edit List
The Noise Reduction feature enables you to reduce the effects of digital noise that sometimes appears in images taken with digital cameras.
To begin using the Noise Reduction feature, click on the Noise Reduction. This will display the Noise Reduction dialog.
Please note: It is recommended that
you zoom your image to 100% while determining the amount of noise reduc­tion to apply to your image.
For a complete explanation of the features of the Noise Reduction feature, please see page 156.
Once you are satisfied with the results of the Noise Reduction feature, click on the OK button. If you want to cancel the Noise Reduction feature, simply click on the Cancel button.
If you would like to remove the Noise Reduction effect at any time, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Noise Reduction.
button next to
UNSHARP MASK
The Unsharp Mask feature increases the apparent sharpness of your image by enhancing the edges of objects in your image. Unsharp Mask works by increas­ing the contrast of edges throughout your image. This feature provides you with controls over Intensity, Radius (halo width), and Threshold. One of the unique features of the Unsharp Mask Tool from Capture NX is that it always applies its sharpening to the luminos­ity of the image, which prevents any unwanted color shifts from occurring within your image.
To begin using the Unsharp Mask feature, click on the Unsharp Mask. This will bring up the Unsharp Mask dialog, enabling you to begin adjusting the different settings.
Please note: It is recommended
that you zoom your image to 100% while determining the amount of sharp­ening to apply to your image.
button next to
For a complete explanation of the Unsharp Mask feature, please see page
153.
Once you are satisfied with the results of the Unsharp Mask feature, click on the OK button. If you want to cancel the feature, click on the Cancel button.
If you would like to remove the Unsharp Mask effect at any time, uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to Unsharp Mask.
CROPPING & RESIZING
The Cropping & Resizing feature appears within the Detail Adjustments section of the Base Adjustments step whenever the current image has been cropped or resized in a previous version of Capture or within PictureProject. If you would prefer to disable the crop and resizing applied within previ­ous versions of Capture or within PictureProject, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox for this item.
STRAIGHTENING
The Straightening feature appears whenever the current image has been straightened in a previous version of Capture or within PictureProject. If you would prefer to disable any straighten­ing applied within previous versions of Capture or within PictureProject, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox for this item.

Enhancement Steps

Apply Step
Checkbox On
Apply Enhancement Checkbox On
Show/Hide
Triangle
Apply Step
Checkbox Off
Link Icon
Apply Enhancement Checkbox Off
Enhancement Steps can either be automatically created by Capture NX or manually started using the New Step button.
Read more about this feature on page 66. Enhancement Steps include all steps that occur after the Base Adjustments step and have slightly different functionality.
There are two significant differences between the Base Adjustment Steps and the Enhancement Steps:
Enhancement Steps only contain the enhancement that you identify, either from the Menus or through the Adjust & Filter pull-down Menu that can be present in Enhancement Steps. A second distinction is that Enhancement Steps can be selectively applied using any of the Selective tools from the toolbar.
Read more about the
Selection Tools on Page 89.
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Chapter 10 The Edit List
In addition, any of the items located within the Enhancement steps can be
60
copied, pasted, removed, or added to a batch process by clicking and highlight­ing the enhancement.
Chapter 10 The Edit List
section Working with Enhancements on page 66 for additional information regarding copying, pasting, or removing enhancements. to read the section on batching on page 181 for information about adding those features to a batch process.
You can use any of three methods to create a new Enhancement step: you can select an editing feature from the Menus; you can select one of the Control Point Tools (if none of that Control Point type has already been applied within the current step); or you can click on the New Step button. Each step contains the following items:
Please see the
You may also want
Show/Hide Triangle
The Show/Hide Triangle shows or hides the contents of that specific enhancement’s dialog window. Click on the toggle between these two.
button to
Apply Enhancement Checkbox
The Apply Enhancement Checkbox enables you to turn on and off the effect of enhancements within the current step. This checkbox is automatically checked once an enhancement is applied within the step. To turn a specific enhancement off, simply uncheck the Apply Enhancement Checkbox.
Link Icon
The Link Icon indicates if the current step contains linked enhancements. Read more about linking enhancements on page 68.
Apply Step Checkbox
The Apply Step Checkbox enables you to turn on and off a specific step, thereby turning off all of the effects of that step. This checkbox is automatically checked when a step is first created. To turn a specific step off, simply uncheck the Apply Step Checkbox.
Adjust & Filter Pull-Down Menu
Any feature from either the Adjust Menu or the Filter Menu that is added to a step will appear within an Adjust & Filter pull-down Menu. Additionally, new steps created with the New Step button will contain an empty Adjust & Filter pull-down Menu. You can use this Menu to gain access to any of the enhancements that are available within the Adjust or Filter Menus instead of navigating to the actual Adjust or Filter Menus. Additionally, you can use this Menu to perform a Swap Enhancement function.
Please refer to page 69 for more
information about this function.
Opacity Mixer
The Opacity Mixer provides you with the ability to blend either the current enhancement or all Control Points of the same type with the rest of the image.
The Opacity Mixer option becomes avail­able as soon as you add any features from the Adjust, Control Point, or Filter Menus. Click on the next to the Opacity Mixer entry located directly beneath the feature that you wish to blend differently. This will display the Opacity Mixer dialog.
Within the Opacity Mixer Dialog you can adjust the opacity and channels that the current enhancement will affect, and you can blend the enhance­ment in different ways with the effects from the previous steps.
CHANNELS
Start by selecting the Channels you wish to apply the current enhance­ment to. The available options are All, Luminance and Chrominance, and RGB.
button
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All
Selecting this from the Channels pull-down Menu applies the current
Chapter 10 The Edit List
enhancement to all of the channels of the image.
When this option is selected in the Channels pull-down Menu, you are provided with an Opacity slider to alter the effect of the enhancement.
Opacity Use this slider to control the entire opacity of the current effect. Move the slider to the left to reduce the opacity of the effect if the effect is too strong for your taste.
Luminance and Chrominance
The Luminance and Chrominance option enables you to control the amount of the current effect on either the Luminance (lightness) or Chrominance (color) portions of your image.
When this option is set within the Channels pull-down Menu, you are provided with two sliders:
Opacity (Luminance Channel)
Use this slider to control the amount of the current effect on the Luminance portion of the image. Move this slider to the left to reduce the amount of the current effect on the luminance aspect of the image. This can be done to ensure that the current enhancement is being applied only to the color aspects of the image.
Opacity (Chrominance Channel)
Use this slider to control the amount of the current effect on the Chrominance portion of the image. Move this slider to the left to reduce the amount of the current effect on the chrominance aspect of the image. Reduce this slider to 0% to apply the current enhance­ment to the Luminance portions of the image so that no effect on the color is being made.
RGB
Selecting this option from the Channels pull-down Menu provides you with the ability to control the current enhance­ment’s effect on the Red, Green, and Blue channels separately using individ­ual sliders:
Opacity (Red Channel)
This slider controls the amount of the current effect on the Red channel of the image. You can move this slider to the left to prevent the current effect from being applied to the Red channel, or you can reduce the other two sliders to ensure the current effect is being applied to the Red channel only.
Opacity (Green Channel)
This slider controls the amount of the current effect on the Green channel of the image. You can move this slider to the left to prevent the current effect from being applied to the Green channel, or you can reduce the other two sliders to ensure the current effect is being applied to the Green channel only.
Opacity (Blue Channel) This slider controls the amount of the current effect on the Blue channel of the image. You can move this slider to the left to prevent the current effect from being applied to the Blue channel, or you can reduce the other two sliders to ensure the current effect is being applied to the Blue channel only.
BLENDING MODE
You can also select different blending modes from the Blending Mode pull­down Menu that are available for all of the different Channels options.
Blending Mode Result
The Normal blending mode is the default blending mode for applying
Normal
Lighten
Screen
Overlay
Multiply
Darken
enhancements. When all channels for the enhancement are applied at 100%, the result is considered a normal enhancement.
The Lighten blending mode is achieved by applying the effects of the Lighten enhancement only if those elements are lighter than the corre­sponding area in the original image. That is, only areas that are brighter due to the enhancement will be applied to the image.
The Screen blending mode is achieved by increasing the pixel values of the resulting image with the pixel values of original image. The resulting image is always brighter than the original image prior to the enhancement.
The Overlay blending mode is achieved by either adding or subtracting the pixel values of the resulting image from the original image. Capture NX determines whether to add or subtract based on the value of the resulting image. Values above 128 make the final image brighter in the correspond­ing area; values below 128 make the final image darker in the correspond­ing area, while the value of 128 does not change the final image.
The Multiply blending mode is achieved by subtracting the pixel values of the resulting image from the pixel values of the original image. The result­ing image is always darker than the original image prior to the enhance­ment.
The Darken blending mode is achieved by applying the effects of the Darken enhancement only if those elements are darker than the corre­sponding area in the original image. That is, only areas that are darker due to the enhancement will be applied to the image.
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The Blending Mode determines how the image created by the current enhance­ment blends with the image prior to that enhancement. Using blending modes provides you with an advanced way of applying the current enhancement to your image. The different blending modes available are Normal, Lighten,
64
Screen, Overlay, Multiply, and Darken.
Once you have selected the channel, the Blending Mode, and Opacity, click
Chapter 10 The Edit List
OK to accept the Opacity Mixer’s effect. Click Cancel to prevent the Opacity Mixer from affecting the image.
If you would like to remove the Opacity Mixer’s effect from the enhancement at any time, simply uncheck the Apply Checkbox next to the Opacity Mixer for that enhancement.
Selection Notification Area
The Selection Notification Area is displayed in all Enhancement steps, that is, all non-Base Adjustment Steps. This area indicates whether the current step is being applied to the entire image, as indicated with the All Selected message, or only to selected areas of the image, as indicated by one of the other selec­tion messages. If the message Partially Selected is displayed, the current step has been selectively applied using one of the selection tools. If the message Nothing Selected is displayed, the current step is not affecting the image at all.
Feather Control
The Feather Control option is presented whenever a selection has been made on the image. This feature enables you to soften the edges of selections that have already been made using one of the selection tools. By softening the edges of the selection, you can reduce any visible artifacts created during the selection process.
To use the Feather Control feature, click on the Feather Control within the Selection Notification area. This will display the Feather Control dialog and enable you to modify the amount of feather to apply to the current step’s selections.
Increase the Feather Amount slider until the desired result is achieved. The higher the setting within the Feather Amount slider the more gradual the transitions will be from the areas in the current step to other areas in the image.
Click on the OK button to accept the Feather Control’s effect, or click on the Cancel button to remove the effect.
button next to
You can at any point view where the current step is being applied to the image by selecting the Show Selection option from the View Menu.
At any point after selecting OK, you can remove the Feather Control effect by unchecking the Apply Checkbox next to Feather Control within the Selection Notification Area.

Versions Menu

Versions represent an advanced way of working with and maintaining a number of different versions of the same image within one image file. Two different types of versions are available, and access to these versions is provided by clicking on the Edit List.
Automatically Generated Versions
The first type of versions are created automatically. Capture NX will create three different automatic versions that provide you with control over reviewing different states of the current image.
ORIGINAL
This version is always present within the Versions Palette for all open images. The Original version provides you with a quick way of reverting your image to its original state prior to any changes that were made within Capture NX. With NEF files, the original version will revert to the original file prior to any adjust­ments made within previous Capture NX, Capture, or PictureProject sessions.
button within the
LAST SAVED
This version becomes available within the Versions Palette as soon as the image is saved. This version provides you with the ability to revert to the last saved step within the versions.
Please note: Selecting this option
from the Versions Palette will retain all of the changes made since the last save, while selecting Revert from the File Menu will remove all changes made since the last save. more information on the Revert feature.
Please see page 116 for
(CURRENT)
This version is temporarily available whenever changes have been made after a save and you switch to a different version. This version makes it possible to switch to any other state and then return to where you left off. It also enables you to toggle quickly from one state to another, returning to your current position to review the difference.
Manually Generated Versions
Capture NX also enables you to create versions manually. These manually gener­ated versions save the current state of the Edit List, including all changes made, so that you can create more than one version of the same image within the same file. Due to the non-destructive nature of Capture NX, you are able to create an unlimited number of versions, to switch from one version to the next, and to save those versions for future use, all without destroying the relationship between pixels.
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NEW VERSION . . .
Chapter 10 The Edit List
To create a version, click on the button and select New Version from the pop-up Menu. Enter a name for the new version, and then click OK. The new version will be available within the Versions Menu and will represent the state of the current edit list of the current image.
EDIT VERSIONS
You can also edit the available versions which enables you to rename or delete the versions from the current list. Simply select the Edit Versions options from the Versions pop-up Menu to view the Edit Versions dialog.
Highlight the version you would like to alter, and then select either the Rename or Delete button.
. . .
series of enhancements. This is especially helpful if you would like to start a new step to quickly paint in a selection with one of the selection tools.
Please note: Capture NX will
automatically create new steps for you; however, the New Step Button can be useful in certain situations.

Working with Enhancements

The Edit List provides you with many ways of working with enhancements. Within the Edit List you can edit, delete, copy, paste, link, or swap enhance­ments.
Editing Steps and Enhancements
To Edit a Step or Enhancement, first expand the desired step by clicking on the
button next to the step.

Batch Menu

The Batch Menu within the Edit List provides you with a duplication of the controls found within the main Batch Menu. a full description on how to use Batch functionality within Capture NX.
Please refer to page 181 for

New Step Button

Clicking on the New Step Button will create a new, empty Enhancement step within the Edit List. Click on this button if you want to manually generate a new step within the Edit List to start a new
This will display the contents of that step, including the enhancements that were applied within the step. Either double-click on the enhancement or click on the enhancement that you want to modify. All steps and enhancements that have been applied after the one that you are modifying will be temporarily disabled, and Capture NX will display either the controls for the enhancement that you are modifying, or that enhancement’s dialog window.
Simply modify the enhancement in the same manner that you added the enhancement previously. You can then reapply all of the steps and enhance­ments that were added after the enhancement that you just modified by clicking on the Apply Checkbox for the last step that you want to reapply.
button next to the
Deleting Steps and Enhancements
If at any time you would like to completely remove an entire step or any enhancements within a step, simply click on that step or enhancement to highlight it. Then select Delete from the Edit Menu or press the Delete key on your keyboard. Your image will then be updated to reflect this change.
Copying and Pasting Steps and Enhancements
Entire Steps and Enhancements can be copied from one image and then pasted to another, or they may even be pasted again within the same image. You must
first select and copy the desired step or enhancement to the clipboard.
To do this, first click and highlight the step or enhancement that you wish to copy.
Hint: To copy more than one step
at a time, hold the Control (Windows) or Command (Mac OS) and click to highlight multiple steps or enhance­ments. You may also select a range of steps or enhancements by clicking on the first step or enhancement in the range that you want to copy, and then while holding the Shift key down, selecting the last step or enhancement in the range that you want to copy.
Once that step or enhancement has been highlighted, select the Copy Settings option from the Batch Menu (either the Batch Menu from the main window, or the Batch Menu within the Edit List).
You are now ready to paste the step or enhancement. Unless you are applying the copied step or enhancement to the current image, navigate to the image that you want to paste the enhance­ment to and select Paste Settings from
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the Batch Menu (either the Batch Menu from the main window or the Batch Menu within the Edit List).
Chapter 10 The Edit List
The copied step or enhancement will be placed after any current enhancements in the Edit List have been applied.
You may also copy and paste the Base Adjustments step. Due to the unique nature of the Base Adjustments step, any single image cannot have more than one Base Adjustments step, nor can it have more than one of any of the adjustments located within the Base Adjustments step. When you copy and paste the Base Adjustments step, the contents of Base Adjustments step that already resides within the target image will be replaced by the contents of the Base Adjustments from the source image. To prevent the entire Base Adjustments step from being overwrit­ten, select the individual enhancements from within the Base Adjustments step to copy and paste.
Please note: You may link any
number of enhancements together within the same step, but please note that the greater the number of enhancements that are applied within the same step, the slower Capture NX may be in displaying the results of any adjustments.
Step 1. Apply an enhancement to your image.
Step 2. Holding the shift key down, navigate to the Adjust
or Filter menu from the Menu Bar and select the enhance­ment you want to link to the current step.
Linking Enhancements
Linking enhancements within the Edit List enables you to apply the selective controls that are used within one step to more than one enhancement. By default, each enhancement is applied to a separate step. By linking two or more enhancements together in the same step, each of those enhancements can benefit from the same selective controls that were applied to that step.
To link enhancements, simply hold down the Shift key while selecting another enhancement from the main Menus.
Step 3. The new enhancement will be linked to the current step, providing you with two separate enhancements within the same step.
Swapping Enhancements
Any of the enhancements from the Adjust and Filter Menus may be swapped or substituted for any of the other items located within the Adjust or Filter Menu at any time.
To swap an enhancement that has already been applied for another enhancement, click on the Adjust and Filter pull-down Menu. The current enhancement will be displayed at the top, and contents of both the Adjust and Filter Menus will be displayed beneath the current enhance­ment. Select another enhancement from the Menu and the current enhancement will be replaced with the new enhance­ment.
This is especially useful if you have made a selection, applied an enhance­ment to a step, and then you want to see how a different enhancement will affect the image within the area identi­fied by your selection.
Step 1. Click on the Adjust & Filter pull-down menu for the enhancement that you want to swap.
Step 2. Select the new enhancement that you want to apply from the list of enhancements provided to you.
Step 3. The new enhancement that you have selected will now be displayed in the Edit List.
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For example, after selecting the sky in an image and selecting the Levels & Curves adjustment, you may want to switch the Levels & Curves adjustment for the Color Balance feature. This saves you time by allowing you to reuse a selection even if the enhancement did not produce the desired result.
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Toolbar F2 - View Tools

These tools enable you to control and change the view of your images. This Toolbar can be viewed and hidden quickly by using the shortcut ‘F2’.
The following object types can be selected:
• Control Points
• Images in the Browser
• Steps in the Edit List
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Chapter 11 Toolbar F2 - View Tools

Direct Select Tool

The Direct Select Tool enables you to select many of the different objects within Capture NX.
• Multiple objects can be selected by holding down the Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac) key when selecting additional objects.
• A range of objects can be selected by clicking on the first object of the desired range and then holding down the Shift key and clicking on the last object of the desired range.
• Control Points can be selected by clicking and drawing a bounding box within an image window, enabling you to select all Control Points that appear within that bounding box.
Please note: Only one type of
object can be selected at a time.
Shortcut : A key

Hand Tool

The Hand Tool enables you to move within an image or Browser window. Select this tool when viewing an image or Browser window that contains more information than is displayed within the current window. Click and drag to reposition the contents of the window.
Double-click on this tool in order to zoom the current image so that the entire image fits into the space available.
Shortcut : H key
Te mporarily switch to the Hand Tool when any other tool is active by press­ing the Spacebar.
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Zoom Tool

The Zoom Tool enables you to zoom into and out of an image or Browser
Chapter 11 Toolbar F2 - View Tools
window. Select this tool and click on the image to zoom into the image. Hold the Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) key and click to zoom out.
Double-click on the icon in order
to zoom the current image to 100%.
Shortcut : Z key
Zoom-in when any other tool is active: Ctrl + Spacebar keys (Windows) Command + Spacebar keys (Mac OS)
Zoom-out when any other tool is active: Ctrl + Alt + Spacebar keys (Windows) Command + Option + Spacebar keys (Mac OS)
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Toolbar F3 - Edit

This Toolbar contains tools that can be used to do very coarse adjustments to your images. This Toolbar can be viewed or hidden quickly by using the shortcut ‘F3’.
Multiple images can be rotated simultane­ously by selecting multiple images in the Browser and then clicking on this button.
Rotating an image will cause a step to be created within the Edit List, enabling you to remove the rotation at any point

Rotate

The Rotate Tool enables you to rotate your image 90 degrees clockwise or counter-clockwise. Click on this button to rotate your image 90 degrees clock­wise. Hold the Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) key down and click on this button to rotate your image 90 degrees counter-clockwise. To reverse the direc­tion from rotating 90 degrees clockwise to rotating 90 degrees counter-clock­wise, click and hold on this icon to change the rotational direction.
in the future. When you save your image as a NEF file format, you can remove the rotation after the image has been saved and closed.
Shortcut:
Rotate the image 90 degrees to the right: Ctrl + R (Windows) Command + R (Mac OS)
Rotate the image 90 degrees to the left: Ctrl + Shift + R (Windows) Command + Shift + R (Mac OS)
Chapter 12 Toolbar F3 - Edit

Straighten

Select this button to have the Straighten dialog appear. Within the Straighten dialog, you can rotate an image incrementally clockwise or counter-clockwise, or you can trace a line that should be either horizontal or
76
vertical and allow the Straighten Tool to automatically straighten your image. The Straighten Tool is not accessible
Chapter 12 Toolbar F3 - Edit
while working within the Browser.
Once the Straighten dialog appears, you can identify a reference line in the image by tracing a horizontal line or a vertical line in the image, or you can enter a numerical rotation amount, which will straighten the image by degrees. To trace a horizontal or a vertical line, simply click anywhere on your image and drag as long as the Straighten dialog remains visible. You will be provided with one anchor at the point at which you begin to trace the line and a second where you finish
those numbers into the Straighten dialog. Positive numbers will rotate the image clockwise, while negative numbers will cause the image to rotate counter-clockwise.
Within the Straighten dialog, you can select whether or not to display the full image data. By default, Capture NX will automatically crop the image using the same aspect ratio to hide all areas of the image where there is no image information. These areas that lack image information are created when the image is rotated, and are represented by pure white pixels. Check this box in order to show all areas without image data.
Straightening an image will cause a step to be added to the Edit List, enabling you to remove or alter the straighten effect at any point in the future. If you save the file as an NEF file, you can remove or alter the straighten effect at any point, even after the image has been saved and closed.
tracing the line. You can further refine the rotation amount by clicking on either anchor point to re-adjust the trace. Alternatively, if you know how many degrees to rotate, simply enter

Crop

The Crop Tool enables you to remove areas from the margins of your image or to change the aspect ratio of your image. The Crop Tool is not accessible while working within the Browser.
After selecting this tool, draw a rectangle by clicking on one corner and dragging across your image. This rectangle represents the area of the image that will be kept after cropping your image. To adjust that area, click on any of the eight anchor points and drag the rectangle to fit the area you wish to save. To remove the area outside the rectangle, double-click anywhere inside the rectangle or press Enter. To cancel the crop, click once outside of the crop, or click the Esc key.
Cropping an image will cause a step to be added to the Edit List, enabling you to remove the cropping effect at any point in the future. When saving as a NEF file format, you can remove the cropping effect at any point, even after the image has been saved and closed.
Crop Options Dialog
At any point in the editing process you can bring up the Crop Options to change how the Crop Tool performs. To bring up the Crop options, double-click on the Control (Mac OS) click anywhere within the image after selecting the Crop Tool.
CROP METHOD
Free Crop
This crop method enables you to freely draw a cropping rectangle.
Fixed Aspect Ratio
This method enables you to select from one of the predetermined Aspect Ratios or a custom ratio in order to limit the crop tool according to ratio you selected.
icon or right (Windows) or
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Chapter 12 Toolbar F3 - Edit
Shortcut : C key
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Show Crop Grid
Chapter 12 Toolbar F3 - Edit
By checking the Show Crop Grid Checkbox, a grid of nine equally-sized rectangles will be superimposed over the image within the crop rectangle. The Crop Grid is designed to assist you in cropping the image.
You can also choose to temporarily superimpose this grid onto your image by holding down the Alt key (Windows) or the Option key (Mac OS) while you are in the crop mode. Based on the photographic “rule of thirds,” the Crop Grid helps guide your cropping so that the main points of interest lie close to the points where the four lines inter­sect. It also draws your attention to the natural horizontal or vertical lines in the image, such as a horizon or a large building, which often benefit from being placed close to one of the four lines.
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80
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Chapter 13

Toolbar F4 – Black, White, and Neutral Control Points

This Toolbar contains the Black, White, and Neutral Control Points, which provide a new and exciting way of correcting the tonal range and color of your images. All three of these Control Points enable you to identify and control the tonal value and color of the image and provide you the ability to adjust, move, and remove their effects at any point in the future. This Toolbar can be quickly viewed and hidden by using the shortcut ‘F4’.
image and are used to set one end of the dynamic range of the image. The Double-Threshold function within the Photo Info’s Histogram section is designed specifically to help you locate the darkest and lightest sections of

Black Control Point

The Black Control Point enables you to place a Control Point directly on your image, and to cause that targeted color to not only become black, but also to neutralize the dark tones of your image. The Black Control Point is not accessible while working within the Browser.
your image. more information on how to use the Double-Threshold function. A Black Control Point is often used in conjunc­tion with a White Control Point.
Please see page 100 for
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Chapter 13 Toolbar F4 – Black, White, and Neutral Control Points
Chapter 13 Toolbar F4 – Black, White, and Neutral Control Points
Black points are normally set on what should be the darkest point of the
Black Point
Handle
For additional information regard­ing the Black Control Point, please see page 163.
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White Control Point

The White Control Point enables you to place a Control Point directly onto
Chapter 13 Toolbar F4 – Black, White, and Neutral Control Points
your image, causing the targeted color to become white, which is the first step in removing a color cast from the light tones in your image. The White Control Point is not accessible while working within the Browser.
White points are normally set on what should be the lightest point of the image and are used to establish one end of the dynamic range of the image. The Double-Threshold function within the Photo Info’s Histogram section is designed specifically to help you locate the darkest and the lightest sections of your image. more information on how to use the Double-Threshold function. A White Control Point is often used in conjunc­tion with a Black Control Point.
For additional information regarding
White Control Points, please see page
165.
Please see page 100 for

Neutral Control Point

Neutral Control Points enable you to correct a color cast in your photograph by forcing the targeted color to become a defined color or to become neutral. The Neutral Control Point is not acces­sible while working within the Browser.
In its default operation, the Neutral Control Point will change the color values in the targeted color so that the red, green, and blue values for that color are equal. By equalizing the red, green, and blue values for a specific color, that color becomes neutral, or lacks saturation. Desaturating can be helpful if the image contains a neutral point of reference, a gray card, for example. By selecting an object that is established as neutral, Capture NX is able to calculate the difference between that object and the color that is currently representing that object. The Neutral Control Point will remove the difference in color from the targeted object, as well as from the entire image. This results in a color change that affects the entire image.
Please note: In its default state, the
Neutral Control Point will not affect the luminosity of your image; it will only affect the relationship of colors in your image.
For additional information regarding the functionality of a Neutral Control Point, please see page 167.
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Chapter 13 Toolbar F4 – Black, White, and Neutral Control Points
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85

Toolbar F5 – U Point technology-based Tools

This Toolbar contains U Point technology-based tools that enable you to quickly enhance colors and details in your image. This Toolbar can be viewed and hidden easily by using the shortcut ‘F5’.

Color Control Point

The Color Control Point represents a unique way of adjusting the color and light in an image. Each Color Control Point enables you to perform advanced color changes in a selective fashion without the need to create selections or masks. The Color Control Point is not accessible while working within the Browser.
Each Color Control Point that is placed on an object in your image identifies the characteristics of the color as well as the level of detail of that object, enabling you to make adjustments to the color of that object. With the use of the size slider, you are able to increase the reach or scale of the current Control Point so that it affects similar colors of objects which are farther away from the Color Control Point. Each new Control Point works together with the other Control Points to affect more and more specific objects. Using additional Control Points ensures that the adjust­ments that you make are being applied to the current object only. Placing a Control Point on an object with default
Chapter 14 Toolbar F5 – U Point technology-based Tools
86
settings prevents other Control Points from affecting that object.
For a complete description on the
Chapter 14 Toolbar F5 – U Point technology-based Tools
functionality of the Color Control Point, please see page 161.
Shortcut:
Ctrl + Shift + A (Windows) Command + Shift + A (Mac OS)

Red-Eye Control Point

The Red-Eye Control Point enables you to manually remove the red-eye effect sometimes caused by flash photogra­phy. Simply select the Red-Eye Control Point and place it on an eye that has red-eye. The Red-Eye Control Point is not accessible while working within the Browser.
Control the Red-Eye Control Point’s effect by increasing or decreasing the Size slider.
The Hide option completely removes the effect of the Red-Eye Control Point temporarily, enabling you to see the before and after effect of the Color Control Point on your image. You can quickly access the Hide option on the Red-Eye Control Point by right-clicking (Windows) or control-clicking (Mac OS) and selecting Hide.
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Toolbar F6 - Selection Tools

This Toolbar contains various selection tools that can be used to selectively apply any of the enhancements available within Capture NX. This Toolbar can be viewed and hidden easily by using the shortcut ‘F6’. These tools are not accessible while working within the Browser.
you are painting. You can toggle to this tool with the + key after select­ing the Brush Tool from the Toolbar, or you can temporarily toggle to this tool

Selection Brush

The Selection Brush enables you to selectively paint in or paint out the enhancements found in the current step. The Selection Brush Tool is not accessible while working within the Browser.
Select the Selection Brush and then select either the Plus Brush or the Minus Brush options to control where the enhancements in the current step are applied.
by holding down the Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) key while the Minus Brush is selected.
Original Image
Chapter 15 Toolbar F6 - Selection Tools
Selecting the Plus Brush enables you to add the current step’s enhance­ments to the image. If the current step has already been applied to the entire image (as indicated within the Edit List’s Selection Notification Area as All Selected), selecting the Plus Brush and then painting will immediately remove the current step’s effect from the image and apply it only to the area
Final image
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Chapter 15 Toolbar F6 - Selection Tools
Step 1. The Brightness / Contrast enhancement is applied to the image and then using the Plus Brush, it is painted only onto the flower.
Step 1. Selection
Step 2. Next, the Minus Brush is used to remove some of the effect that was applied to the background.
Selecting the Minus Brush enables you to remove the current step’s enhance­ments selectively. You can toggle to this tool with the - key after selecting the Brush Tool from the Toolbar, or you can temporarily toggle to this tool by holding down the Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) key while the Plus Brush is selected.
Hint: You may also select this
tool prior to making any enhance­ments, that is, in a new Enhancement Step that contains no other enhance­ments. The Colorize enhancement will automatically become available and you can paint in the Colorize enhance­ment on your image. By switching the Colorize enhancement to any other enhancement within the Edit List you can first paint in where you want to apply an enhancement. Then, using the Adjust & Filter pull-down Menu, you can select the enhancement that you want to use instead of the Colorize enhancement for the area you had just indicated by painting. For more infor­mation on Swapping Enhancements within the Edit List,
please see page
69.
Shortcut: B key
Step 2. Selection
Brush Options Dialog
The Brush Options dialog can be accessed either by double-clicking on the
icon, or right (Windows) or Control (Mac OS) clicking anywhere in the image once the brush has been selected.
SIZE
Changing this slider increases or decreases the size of the brush.
Shortcut:
Decrease brush size: [ Increase brush size: ]
Increase this value and the brush will either add more of the current step’s enhancements to the image when using the Plus Brush or it will remove more of the current step’s enhancements from the image when using the Minus Brush.
PRESSURE CONTROLS
This pull-down Menu enables you to control the different brush elements using a pressure­sensitive input device, such as a Pen Tablet.
Size – This option controls the size of the brush when you are using a pressure-sensitive input device.
Opacity – This option controls the opacity of the brush when you are using a pressure-sensitive input device.
Size + Opacity – This option controls both the size and the opacity simulta­neously when you are using a pressure­sensitive input device.
None – This option ensures that neither the Size nor the Opacity are affected when using a pressure-sensi­tive input device.
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Chapter 15 Toolbar F6 - Selection Tools
BRUSH HARDNESS
Changing this slider affects the shape of the brush, ranging from a soft-edged brush to a hard-edged brush.
Shortcut:
Decrease brush hardness: Shift + [ Increase brush hardness: Shift + ]
OPACITY
Changing this slider affects the opacity of the brush strokes that are applied.
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Lasso & Marquee Tools

Lasso tool
Chapter 15 Toolbar F6 - Selection Tools
Polygon Lasso
The Lasso & Marquee tools enable you to create a selection on your images that will limit where an enhancement affects your image. The selection created by the Lasso & Marquee tools can also limit where any of the other selection tools are applied. The Lasso & Marquee Tools are not accessible while working within the Browser.
There are four Lasso & Marquee tools. You can select among these four tools by holding the mouse down on the button in the Toolbar and selecting from the tools that appear.
tool
Rectangle
Marquee tool
Oval
Marquee tool
Hold down the Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) key while drawing the selec­tion to draw the selection from the center instead of the corner.
The Oval Marquee Tool enables you to draw a round selection.
Hold down the Shift key after you begin drawing the selection to constrain the selection to a circle.
Hold down the Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) key while drawing the selec­tion to draw the selection from the center instead of the corner.
After selecting which Lasso & Marquee Tool to use, you can choose to make the tool either a Plus or Minus Tool by clicking on the
or icons. You can temporarily switch to the opposite tool by pressing the Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) key.
The Lasso Tool is the default tool and enables you to freely draw a selection on the image.
The Polygon Lasso Tool enables you to draw a selection with straight edges by connecting straight lines. Anchor points are created at each of the connections, and these anchor points can be moved to alter the selection.
Please note: Any additional selections
made will remove these anchor points.
The Rectangle Marquee Tool enables you to draw a square selection.
Hold down the Shift key after you begin drawing the selection to constrain the selection to a square.
Once you have made a selection using one of the Lasso & Marquee tools, you can use one of the other selection tools to add or remove the current enhance­ment while limiting to the area created by the Lasso & Marquee tool.
To completely deselect, double-click anywhere within the image.
Shortcut: L key
Lasso & Marquee Options Dialog
The Lasso & Marquee Options can be accessed either by double-click­ing on the tool in the Toolbar, or right (Windows) or Control (Mac OS) clicking on the image after selecting one of the Lasso & Marquee tools.
To apply a gradient, begin by clicking and dragging a line on your image. The spot at which you first click will define the start of the gradient; the spot at which you let go of the mouse will define the end of the gradient. The distance between the two spots will define how quickly the gradient will transition, and the difference in the vertical and horizontal displacements will define the angle.
Once the gradient has been drawn, you can click and drag either of the two end points to modify the gradient’s effect.
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Chapter 15 Toolbar F6 - Selection Tools
EDGE SOFTNESS
The Edge Softness option enables you to soften the edge of the selection that is being made by the Lasso & Marquee tools.

Selection Gradient

The Selection Gradient Tool enables you to gradually blend between applying and removing the current step’s effect on your image. The Selection Gradient Tool is not accessible while working within the Browser.
Begin by selecting either the Plus or Minus Gradient with the icon. You can temporarily switch to the opposite tool by pressing the Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS) key. Using a Plus Gradient will add to any previously applied selections, while using a Minus Gradient will subtract from any previously applied selections.
or
You can apply multiple gradients to an image; however, as soon as you add an additional gradient, the previous gradient’s anchor points will no longer be accessible.
Shortcut: G key
Gradient Options Dialog
The Gradient Options can be accessed by either double-clicking on the in the Toolbar, or right (Windows) or Control (Mac OS) click anywhere on the image after selecting the Gradient Tool.
GRADIENT RANGE
This slider enables you to preset the value of the gradient. The values repre-
icon
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sent the percent of opacity, and allow you to set the maximum, the minimum, and the midpoint values of the gradi-
Chapter 15 Toolbar F6 - Selection Tools
ent. By moving the midpoint, you can force transition of the gradient to shift quickly on one side of the midpoint and more gradually on the opposite side. To reset this to default, simply remove any values from these boxes.

Fill / Remove Tools

The Fill / Remove Tools enable you to either fill or remove the current effect, either in the entire image or an area within a selection. The Fill / Remove Tools are not accessible while working within the Browser.
To fill the current step’s effect into the image or selection, simply click on the
icon. To remove the current step’s effect from the entire image or selec­tion, click on the
icon.
and then clicking on either the Fill or Remove buttons, the effect will not be completely filled or cleared from the image. This enables you to remove or add the effect from the current step to a lesser degree.
Fill / Remove Options Dialog
The Fill / Clear Options can be accessed by double-clicking on the Toolbar.
OPACITY
Changing the Opacity slider lets you control whether or not the Fill or Remove Tool will completely fill or clear the effect from the current step. When using a value lower than 100%
icon in the
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