There are now more than 70 editing plug-ins available for Aperture since version 2.0 was introduced. Some of these editing plug-ins are designed to output only a single, specific result, and then there are some that offer multiple editing options in a single plug-in.

While the present built-in native enhancement tools of Aperture is considered to be generally more than adequate for improving or fixing most common or typical photographic concerns and issues, the availability of a number of third-party editing software support makes Aperture all the more useful and powerful. It expands the usefulness of Aperture, and it opens up other creative possibilities for photographers who wish to explore and develop their images right from within Aperture.

Nik Software's Color Efex Pro 3.0 for Aperture, introduced just a few weeks ago, is one such editing plug-in. Minus the layers in Photoshop, you can avail of exactly the same image enhancement capabilities by applying the complete 52 photographic filters that has been categorized into: Traditional, Styling, Landscape and Portrait sets. While this is a neat way of organizing the filters, making each easy to locate and apply, there is of course no reason why the filters can't be applied on other photographic categories and to different genre of images.

Many of the names of the filter effects from Color Efex Pro 3.0 for Aperture are generally known to photographers, beginning with B&W conversion down to vignette blur. But what makes the Colro Efex Pro 3.0 stand-out is that the filters can really and actually be useful and interesting, not just to prettify photographs and not just to correct and fix problematic images but to create certain looks or achieve particular photographic styles. Some of the filters that might find a lot of use are those that are already commonly known to many photographers: Infrared Film, Graduated Filter, Film Grain, Cross Processing, and B&W Conversion. And then there are other creative filters that offer cutting-edge, modern, cinematic options.

Of the 52 filters, one is really notable: Film Effects. If you are a photographer from the film era, this filter allows you to simulate the effects of some of the best films which you may have previously used like Agfa Optima, Fuji Superia, Astia, Sensia, Provia, Velvia, Kodachrome, Kodak Portra, Kodak Max, among others. These are also available in various ISO ratings. It could be that these film effects filter somehow bridge the gap between film and digital technologies, allowing film photographers to digitally return to their film roots.

Because you want to exploit the possibilities that can be brought to your image with the third-party plug-in such as Color Efex Pro 3.0, you would really want to see for yourself how the many different filters will produce various effects. It might take some time to go through all of them, particularly when playing with the adjustment sliders and other control options, but this is the best way to learn and maximize its use.

Compared to other third-party plug-ins, there is one thing that sets the Color Efex Pro 3.0 apart -- the use of the U-Point Technology where ease of "masking" portions of the image to reduce or eliminate, and conversely, to add and enhance, the applied effect is possible. On top of the usual control sliders, the addition of U Point Technology in the Color Efex Pro 3.0 for Aperture gives the photographer a more refined control that makes both positive and negative selective enhancement easy. This technology gives Color Efex Pro 3.0 a strong competitive advantage.

Another good thing in Color Efex Pro 3.0 is that you can apply filter effects to several images at the same time. Just select the images and then bring it all at the same time to the Color Efex Pro 3.0 plug-in for Aperture. However, while you can edit several images at one time, you cannot apply several edits to a single image at one time. You can only apply one effect per image at a time. You have to keep bringing it back to the plug-in to take advantage of the other filter effects. And of course, right this moment, a new file is always created each time.

Elsewhere it has been hinted that it is possible for third-party plug-ins for Aperture to edit the images natively. But so far, such is not yet the case for most, if not all, of the 3rd-party editing plug-ins.

For more information about Nik Software's Color Efex Pro 3.0 for Aperture, and to download the latest official release, visit the Nik Software website. A free 15-day trial is immediately available for download with this and other editing plug-ins for Aperture.

[Note: Photo in screenshot by Dominique James of The Studio and The Playground. Copyright © 2008. All rights reserved.]