The new Nik Collection 8 from DxO Labs provides a closer integration with the Photoshop workflow plus significant improvements to the Silver Efex and Color Efex plugins.


Nik Collection 8 integrates much better with Photoshop than previous versions of the application. 

Coming almost exactly one year after the release of Collection 7, Nik Collection 8 introduces a fully customisable and dockable Photoshop panel, which replaces the traditional Nik Palette. Users can save screen space by choosing which plugins to display, and launch any plugin with a single click for a more fluid workflow. The new release also introduces powerful new masking functionality, making it easier to apply various effects, refine local adjustments and move seamlessly between plugins. Users will be able to import masks directly from Photoshop into any Nik Collection plugin, where they can take advantage of Photoshop’s selection tools. A new feature in the Local Adjustments panel also lets users transfer masks effortlessly between plugins, including sending masks created in Nik Collection back to Photoshop for further refinement.  Masks created in either workspace will always remain accessible at every step of the workflow.


Users can set the default parameters for how masks are applied when shifting between Photoshop and one of the Nik Collection plugins.

Photographers will be able to send their Nik Collection edits directly to Photoshop as a new Photoshop layer while continuing to work inside Nik Collection. This allows users to test multiple ideas for an image without breaking their creative flow, and have all of their edits immediately at hand once back inside Photoshop. Users can also choose to:

  • convert edits into a Smart Object for non-destructive editing;
  • apply changes to the current layer or create a new one;
  • generate a new layer with a mask, providing additional flexibility.

Nik Silver Efex will gain significant usability and feature boosts that include:

  • Colour Reference Image: Users can now view their original colour image while working in black and white. This makes it easier to make changes that are dependent on the original image, such as applying Colour Filters or adjusting the Sensitivity sliders inside the Film Types filter.


A colour preview thumbnail, outlined in red in this screen grab, makes it easier to apply colour filters to the monochrome image.

  • Streamlined interface: The logic of the interface now matches that of Nik Color Efex and Nik Analog Efex, keeping filters on the left-hand side until they are used to edit an image.
  • Better logic when applying presets: Only the relevant filters appear on the right-hand side when a preset has been selected.
  • New Local Adjustments: ClearView and Selective Tones can now be applied locally.
  • New Filter Looks: Each filter now includes various pre-defined options for quick application.

Nik Color Efex gains the ability for users to select a range of colours for adjustments by simply clicking on the colour, tweaking the handles as required and making adjustments. The latest upgrades also make it quicker to switch to TIFF format when using the Quick Export button, rather than having to navigate the menu.

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The error message that pops up if you still have a Nik Collection plugin open when you try to use Photoshop.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like you can jump as seamlessly between one of the Nik Collection 8 plugins and Photoshop as the press release suggests. Whenever we tried to so do, the error message outlined in red on this screen grab popped up on our Photoshop workspace. It would be great if this could be addressed before the next edition of the software is released.

Nik Collection 8 is available today from the DxO website for macOS and Windows computers. A new licence is priced at US$159.99, with upgrades from Nik Collection 6 or 7 at US$89.99. A 30-day trial is available from www.nikcollection.dxo.com/download