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Photo Forum / Digital Photography / DSLR Cameras / October 2006Nikon Software - any good?
I have just bought a D50. Enclosed is a CD with some software. I have had bad experience with Kodak software enclosed with a P&S so was wondering whether it is worth my while installing the Nikon software. Can someone advise, please? If some of it is good which bits should I install? Thanks in advance. Gerrit - Oz > I have just bought a D50. > Enclosed is a CD with some software. [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > If some of it is good which bits should I install? It is not particularly good software. Capture NX is pretty good; it has some innovative area adjustments. But PictureProject is not as good as either Picasa 2.0 (for Windows) or iPhoto (for Mac), which are free, or Photoshop Elements, which is not very expensive. Nikon Capture 4.2 is not very good, either. One thing, though: the RAW converters are pretty good -- Nikon does know how they want those NEF files rendered. However, the Nikon Photoshop RAW converters are not as flexible as those included in Photoshop CS2, even if they do render a better looking image at their default settings. > I have had bad experience with Kodak software enclosed with a P&S so was > wondering whether it is worth my while installing the Nikon software. Can > someone advise, please? Capture has one use: if you want to do raw conversions so the pictures look like they would have looked straight out of the camera, without much tweaking, and get good results. You won't get that with Photoshop, for example. But Photoshop trounces it in all other areas. Well, not all; Capture can convert fisheye shots from the 10.5mm to rectilinear, if you're into that sort of thing. The other stuff is throwaway.  SignatureJeremy | jeremy@exit109.com > > I have had bad experience with Kodak software enclosed with a P&S so was > > wondering whether it is worth my while installing the Nikon software. Can [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > Capture can convert fisheye shots from the 10.5mm to rectilinear, if > you're into that sort of thing. I understand the old Nikon Capture 4.x would control the camera when connected by USB... Hit a key to take a shot and bring it right to the computer. This would be handy when it's hard to look through the camera eyepiece, perhaps when focusing an extreme macro shot, and a few other times. Does Capture NX still provide this feature? -=- Rick SignatureRichard Karash <Richard@Karash.com> Richard "at" Karash "dot" com It's split into 2 programs. One for editing and one for capturing. $$$$ SignatureJoan http://www.flickr.com/photos/joan-in-manly : I understand the old Nikon Capture 4.x would control the camera when : connected by USB... Hit a key to take a shot and bring it right to the [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] : : -=- Rick In article <45265584$0$8383$5a62ac22@per-qv1-newsreader-01.iinet.net.au>, Joan > : I understand the old Nikon Capture 4.x would control the camera when > : connected by USB... Hit a key to take a shot and bring it right to the [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > It's split into 2 programs. One for editing and one for capturing. > $$$$ OK, I understand it's two programs. Is the feature "computer controls camera" still part of the package in either part? -=- Rick SignatureRichard Karash <Richard@Karash.com> Richard "at" Karash "dot" com Yes. Camera Control Pro http://www.nikonmall.com/searchresults.asp?dept_id=147&searchcat=Digital+Imaging +Products%3E&searchcatid=3 SignatureJoan http://www.flickr.com/photos/joan-in-manly : In article : <45265584$0$8383$5a62ac22@per-qv1-newsreader-01.iinet.net.au>, Joan [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] : : -=- Rick In article <4527b50c$0$8427$5a62ac22@per-qv1-newsreader-01.iinet.net.au>, Joan > : In article > : <45265584$0$8383$5a62ac22@per-qv1-newsreader-01.iinet.net.au>, Joan [quoted text clipped - 17 lines] > controls > : camera" still part of the package in either part? > Yes. Camera Control Pro > > http://www.nikonmall.com/searchresults.asp?dept_id=147&searchcat=Digital+Imagi > ng+Products%3E&searchcatid=3 Thanks, Joan. Slightly cryptic, but I think I've got it: - Transform 10.5mm FishEye to rectilinear perspective is in Capture NX - Control the camera from your computer is in Camera Control Pro - Both were in Nikon Capture 4. Many thanks. -=- Rick SignatureRichard Karash <Richard@Karash.com> Richard "at" Karash "dot" com >I have just bought a D50. > Enclosed is a CD with some software. [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > Gerrit - Oz Picture Project is pretty useless - you are much better off downloading Nikon View (free software) direct from Nikon. I like Nikon Capture 4, but have not tried capture NX. -Adrian www.boliston.co.uk >I have just bought a D50. > Enclosed is a CD with some software. [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > > Thanks in advance. It's fashionable to badmouth Nikon Picture Project (as you can see), but it's actually very good software for its intended purpose -- which is *not* intensive, high-end image editing. Try it for yourself before taking others' advice to throw it away. I'm beginning to wonder how many of the people sneering at PP have actually used the current 1.6 version. I cannot understand the advice given you to download Nikon View instead. That's software of limited utility in my opinion, and I think Picture Project will do more for you while being easier to use. But since Nikon View *is* a free download, you can try it and see if you like it. When and if you're ready for more advanced image editing software there are several good choices, but be prepared for a much steeper learning curve when you get into that sort of thing. I use Paint Shop Pro myself, but really for the fast-and-easy stuff I just use Nikon Picture Project and am happy with it. Neil > It's fashionable to badmouth Nikon Picture Project (as you can see), but > it's actually very good software for its intended purpose -- which is [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > Project will do more for you while being easier to use. But since Nikon > View *is* a free download, you can try it and see if you like it. The thing that annoyed me about Picture Project was that it would not allow me to browse my photos by their original directory hierachy. Instead it forced me to "import" my photos into "galleries" totally unrelated to the way they are stored within windows xp. Nikon View also includes a good basic editor called "Nikon Editor" which is a basic version of Nikon Capture which I would probably use had I not purchased Capture, although I don't think it gives the same exact control of raw settings like White Balance, but it is free. >> It's fashionable to badmouth Nikon Picture Project (as you can see), but >> it's actually very good software for its intended purpose -- which is [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > Instead it forced me to "import" my photos into "galleries" totally > unrelated to the way they are stored within windows xp. Well, I agree with you there. That doesn't bother me too much since I have photos from several different cameras on different computers that are in a mess as far as organization is concerned anyway. But I don't really care for PP's system of doing that either. I haven't really settled on an album program I like yet, but am trying Corel's now. > Nikon View also includes a good basic editor called "Nikon Editor" which > is a basic version of Nikon Capture which I would probably use had I not > purchased Capture, although I don't think it gives the same exact control > of raw settings like White Balance, but it is free. I probably should explore Nikon View more thoroughly, but since I use other software anyway for more serious image editing it just never seemed important to me. For quick and easy editing of snapshots etc. Picture Project seems to me quicker and easier to use; its D-Lighting feature is actually quite useful sometimes and Nikon View doesn't have that as far as I can tell. Neil Capture NX is so-so, it's tedious at times. Nikon Capture 4 is useful for doing time lapse movies. Really what Nikon should have done is put a time lapse program inside the camera. > Capture NX is so-so, it's tedious at times. > > Nikon Capture 4 is useful for doing time lapse movies. > Really what Nikon should have done is put a > time lapse program inside the camera. The D200 has this feature and I've used it to good effect. Much simpler than setting up a laptop for hours in the field. SignaturePaul Furman http://www.edgehill.net/1 Bay Natives http://www.baynatives.com |
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