robin_barnes Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 After much research and seeking advice here I have decided to opt for NX2 as my raw converter and image processor . I have just bought it but will not have the time to start learning it until the weekend. This will be my first venture into the world digital image processing having recently purchased a D40x after using film for 30 years! It would appear that some users of NX2 also use ViewNX as well and I have read in a number of places that these two programs work "seamlessly" together. I would appreciate it if someone would explain to me what, if you have NX2, you gain by having ViewNX as well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_mezzanini1 Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 I think the stars/rankings/color codes that you may assign to an image with VIEW is read by NX2 (same is true for Photo Mechanic) .. their may be other advantages too.. not sure at this point. I wish photo.net had a CaptureNX/View NX forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken_kartes Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 Mass nef to jpg version. Simple and easy to use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elliot1 Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 Speed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_mezzanini1 Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 Picasa and Photo Mechanic and maybe others will extract jpg's from nef's That is not unique to VIEW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robin_barnes Posted November 11, 2008 Author Share Posted November 11, 2008 Thanks for your replies but please remember that I am completely new to all this. What you seem to be saying is that if all you want to do is rapid Raw to jpg conversion ViewNX will do this more quickly than NX2 and it can do this with a lot of files at once whereas, by implication, NX2 cannot. Is that correct? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken_kartes Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 Joe. I agree about the Capture NX/NX2 and View forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken_kartes Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 I find View NX easier and faster to do a batch NEE to JPG conversion. I do not know if it does it faster, but speed is not a factor in that aspect for it, it converts fast enough Robin. View NX is free, Picassa is another program to learn, Photomechanic also cost more $$. I am streamlining my software to keeping with Nikon for now. I do use CS2, but after I use Nikon software if needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beac Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 View is a much smaller program and is handy to view (without sounding silly) and organize your photos. Once you select a photo, you can click on an icon to launch Capture NX (and NX2 I presume), which will open up with your selected photo ready to edit. The flow that works for me, and which my machine defaults to is download with Nikon Transfer; as soon as the download is complete, View opens up, then major edits with NX. They are designed to work rather seemlessly if allowed. For simple manipulation, View is a small program which does not take up a lot of memory. It can also perform simple edits, on snapshots for example. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce_margolis Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 Robin, I asked this very question when I saw my local Nikon rep. Each time he said why he liked ViewNX, I told him that NX2 does the same thing and more. In the end, he said at least ViewNX is free. Bottom line, I don't even have it on my puter anymore. NX2 works fine for tagging, keywords, ratings, and all the other things that ViewNX does. As for batch processing, IMO it is slower than Adobe but nevertheless you have far more options if you do the batch work in NX2. For very basic RAW conversion, I suppose ViewNX is okay. Since you are totally new to this, be aware there is a learning curve. Lots of great features -- the color control points are just awesome -- but it will take some time. If you are interested in cutting back on the time, there are quite a few tutorials and books out there now. No plug here, just the one that helped me get started...... http://www.luminescentphoto.com/nx2guide.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robin_barnes Posted November 11, 2008 Author Share Posted November 11, 2008 Thanks Ken and Brian it's becoming clearer. Brian how does Nikon transfer work? All I have done so far is put a card into a card reader, had a look at what is on it and emailed few photos to friends. Well I admitted that I am completely new to all this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robin_barnes Posted November 11, 2008 Author Share Posted November 11, 2008 Bruce - just seen your post. Thanks that's clarified the basic point for me. I was drawn to NX2 because the consensus here was that if you wanted the best NEF conversions it was the way to go. So I decided I would buy it and "stick at it" until I have mastered it. It's quality that I am after. I have recently started selling images from archive of slides and I want to be able produce the best digital images that I can with a view to selling them as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcraton Posted November 12, 2008 Share Posted November 12, 2008 I recently did a test batch with ViewNX, CaptureNX, and NX2 from NEF to JPG. No difference in IQ after conversion. Except what has been noted: ViewNX processed much faster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ontheoffchance Posted November 12, 2008 Share Posted November 12, 2008 I prefer Lightroom. Not sure how NX2 provides better quality but the speed with 1.5 gigs of memory running it (twice what it states is needed) on a Mac G4 is so slow that I can't stand to use it with batches. If I find one image that I really want to make large then I'll do a comparison test but until then its just a waste of money and time so far. I got into digital because I didn't have the time to scan my negs. But NX2 isn't any faster. Every time I go to make a correction the loading symbol rotates. There is no continuous response when sliding controls. Saving an image is like dial up internet 10 years ago. Sorry but if their free software is faster why are they charging for NX2 in the first place. If its so good then why is it $100 less than Lightroom? Because its way to slow. Read their fine print, what program has it stated that they will not be held liable for lost revenue by a business due to its speed? Why even go there if it wasn't an issue. Lightroom loads fast and the actions are immediate. Plus Adobe has a decade of experience with digital by way of Photoshop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce_margolis Posted November 12, 2008 Share Posted November 12, 2008 "I recently did a test batch with ViewNX, CaptureNX, and NX2 from NEF to JPG." David, I am interested in your test. Since NX2 offers many more options for converting RAW images, can you give us some details about how this test was conducted? I am not questioning your results, just curious about your methodology. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joseph_smith3 Posted November 12, 2008 Share Posted November 12, 2008 I use both programs. I use View NX as a browser--to look at the images, rate them, select the keepers, delete the ones I do not need. I use NX2 as a raw processor and edit my images by selecting them for edit in View NX. While NX2 has a browser built into it, I like to use the browser in View NX because it is faster. I also use View NX to browse non Nikon images. Joe Smith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_demott Posted November 12, 2008 Share Posted November 12, 2008 I use both programs, and find View NX very convenient. Whether it would be convenient for you probably depends on how you like to work. View NX is quite fast and I find the interface very intuitive. If I have a couple hundred shots from a day's shooting, I can quickly go through them and find the ones that I want to spend time editing. View NX lets me quickly see them in a larger than thumbnail size without opening them in the image editor of Capture NX2. When I find the ones I want to work on I simply click the button that opens the files in Capture NX2. View NX stays open in the background and I can go back to browsing where I left off at any time. This works well for me, but some others may find it more convenient to work with only a single program. You can certainly get the job done either way--it's nice to have choices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robin_barnes Posted November 12, 2008 Author Share Posted November 12, 2008 My thanks to you all - I think I understand now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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