FilterOptix

Lens filters are used by photographers to manipulate color in order to enhance certain tones in their pictures, or to draw attention to a specific object in the scene. Unfortunately, in the case of unexpected shots, there might not be any time to change the camera filter and obtain the desired effect.

For those situations, you can make use of an application that allows you to add the preferred color correction from your computer, after you take the shot. FilterOptix is one such utility that comes in the form of a PhotoShop filter plugin, which means that it can be used in any graphical manipulation program that can import 8BF file formats.

Right off the bat, you can choose from a wide variety of filter presets delivered with the application, which cover everything from light gradients, to infrared and polarizers. Each of them can be manually edited and tweaked to obtain the desired result and you can also create entirely new ones from scratch.

Just like you would with an actual lens filter, you can adjust its parameters and position according to your preferences, by modifying the rotation, level and scale. The focus can also be controlled using the dedicated slider and you can visualize every change you make in real-time, thanks to the responsive preview window.

As for the application settings, you can improve on its functionality by modifying the size of the filter thumbnails, their transparency pattern, grid size and the rotation snap. It is also possible to enable or disable the crosshair in the preview window, which pinpoints the center of the photo.

Thanks to the large number of included filters, as well as the possibility to create new ones from scratch according to your specifications, FilterOptix is a handy utility that should be in the toolbox of every aspiring photographer. Moreover, the friendly user interface is easy-to-use and intuitive, since all the modifications are made using simple sliders.