Color Efex works in a similar way with colour images and effects, while Analog Efex is where you go for old-school film stylings. Perhaps the best known is Silver Efex, which for many photographers remains the gold standard for black & white conversion, or adding a huge array of mono effects. To recap, the Nik Collection suite includes eight plug-ins, which integrate with Photoshop, Lightroom and DxO’s PhotoLab, while also working as standalone applications.

More classic analogue presets and other filters have also been added. That said, there are some significant new additions, including ClearView, which reduces the effects of fog and haze. ‘If you’re new to Nik, it does take a while to work out where everything is’ Version 5 builds on the many virtues of its predecessor, including updates to the Color Efex and Analog Efex plug-ins, improvements to the suite’s local adjustment/U Point technology and interface tweaks. As with the Gallagher brothers, it’s never out of the spotlight for long, and the latest version offers some key updates. Having passed through several owners since appearing in the late ’90s, it’s now in the hands of imaging specialist DxO. The Nik Collection has been around since the days of Britpop, so it’s lasted longer than Oasis and Blur. Whatever your genre, Silver Efex is a tool that black & white fans can trust – I love using it for portraits At a glance

Dxo nik collection 4 review