Photomatix VS NIK HDR Efex Pro

For those of you who have tried both, which do you prefer and why?

I recently purchased the NIK Collection, and I've already had Photomatix for several months now. I like Photomatix a lot because it does a great job of alignment, it has nice ghost control, and I like the many tone mapping options you can experiment with, though I'm far from proficient with it.

I've also heard good things about NIK HDR Efex Pro, but haven't had an opportunity to experiment with it yet. I do plan to try it as well, and ultimately will make my decision based off my own experience with both. However, I would still like to hear others' thoughts on these two HDR programs, in case there's some aspect of both/either that I haven't or won't discover myself. For example, does one do a better job of controlling the "haloing effect" between objects and sky?

I've read some comments here on this topic, and it may have been beat to death already, but time has a way of changing opinions.

Thanks!

Photomatix is good but NIK HDR Efex Pro is better, IMO

Dave_W said:

Photomatix is good but NIK HDR Efex Pro is better, IMO

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I agree Nik is better, at least compared to the lite version of photomatix.


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Dave_W said:

Photomatix is good but NIK HDR Efex Pro is better, IMO

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I was hoping you would weigh in on this...

If anyone's opinion on doing good HDR matters around here, I'd say it's yours.

...

Dave W and Geoffc,
What feature(s) of NIK HDR Efex Pro do you like better than Photomatix Pro?

Thanks!

T-Man said:

Dave W and Geoffc,
What feature(s) of NIK HDR Efex Pro do you like better than Photomatix Pro?

Thanks!

Click to expand...

I'm not a big HDR person, but I preferred Nik better because it produced a more natural look easily. I also like the way it integrates into my lightroom / photoshop workflow, although perhaps Photomatix does this now.

As I said I've only used the lite version and not heavily. In reality, the Nik package represented good value after Google bought it and this was just a bonus for me.


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I'm a Nik HDR Efex fan too. Started with Photomatix but find Nik far better

I started with Nik and downloaded a trial version of Photomatix just to be able to speak to it. I far prefer the Nik tool. Why?

1. Superior ghost reduction. Using HDR in a moving world means that you can't always get 3-9 consecutive frames to match perfectly. It allows you to select a reference frame and it will eliminate elements that are different in other frames.

2. Range of image manipulation. There are a lot of programs that can give you that super structured, compressed HDR look. But not many allow you to pull all sorts of light out in a very natural looking way. HDR Efex Pro 2 will give me full blown natural, can't tell it's not just a really well lit photo, whenever I want. And it will give me something surreal when I need it.

3. Control Points. These are what make the Nik Tools so effective. Sometimes you can get an image 95% of the way there but no matter what you do there's the trouble spot or two, or range of colors somewhere, that you just can't get right. Simply stick a control point on the problem area and adjust 8 key parameters based on the color of the point you place the point on. Want a natural looking photo but some surreal texture on the water? Place a control point on the water - done. Want to desaturate the blues that are getting blown out, but not lose other colors? Control point. Want a face to be less surreal than the rest of the image? Control point. White balance inconsistencies across the image? Control point. You get the idea.

Plus, for your money ($149 and 15% off coupons available everywhere, so net is ~$127), you get the entire Nik Collection, which includes the best noise reduction program out there (Dfine 2.0), a control point enabled basic editor (Viveza 2), a world class B&W conversion tool (Silver Efex Pro 2), and a pair of phenomenal (and control point enabled) filter packages (Color Efex Pro 4, Analog Efex). Not a hard decision.

You make compelling points. I bought the NIK Collection for the Define noise reduction and Sharpener Pro plug-ins only, based on a recommendation from others and a couple Youtube videos explaining their use. I didn't even look to see what the other included plug-ins had to offer. As much as I like Photomatix, I likely wouldn't have bought it (I have the Pro version) if I'd bought the NIK collection first. FWIW, I've tried the ghost reduction feature of Photomatix Pro, and it did an excellent job, so if NIK HDR is better, that's good to know. Per #1, Photomatix Pro also allows you to select a reference frame so that it eliminates the different features on the other frames. It too offers the features you mention in #2 as well, with natural vs. surreal and everything in between with several lighting effects... though perhaps NIK HDR could better on the natural side of things?

Not sure how it compares on #3, but I don't think Photomatix has anything that works like the "control points" you describe. Thanks for your explanation on that.

I do know Photomatix integrates with Lightroom just as nicely as the NIK stuff, and working between them is just as seamless.

I appreciate the input, gents! Even though it would seem a simple matter of trying both and comparing (since I have both), I still learn things from people with more experience than me by asking the questions.

Now I know priority #1 for me is to learn how to use the NIK control points.

I have heard of people using both for the same picture... Is there any good reason to use both for the same photo?

I have both, and I seem to end up using Photomatix a lot more.
Probably because I started with it doing HDR's and I'm used to it.