I tried a demo version of PhotoKit Sharpener many moons ago, which expired and I decided not to buy it. Now, years later, I install the latest demo version to give it a whirl, and it instanty tells me my trial has expired.

The plugin must have been through several revisions since I last looked at it, and yet their protection system doesn't seem to realise that.. You think there's a way to refresh the trial period, or am I gonna have to just bite the bullet and buy it?

With that in mind, any thumbs up or down for the plugin itself?


Cheers,
S.

I haven't run into this problem, but I doubt anyone here's going to have the final word on it: Why not contact PixelGenius?

colinm wrote:
Why not contact PixelGenius?

I'll probably end up doing just that.

The reason I put a shout out here is because their tech support isn't available at weekends, and is only through webform, so will take god-knows how long. I'm impatient, had an afternoon free, and wanted to play.. lol.

Thanks anyways,
S.

PK Sharpener is a real time saver. Definitely worth buying. If you want to evaluate the product, but can get the software to work, just download the manual and read it. It does an nice job of going over the how and why of their approach.

I also recommend the book: Image Sharpening by Bruce Fraser. He is one of the engineers of the PK Sharpener plugin.

Got an email back from Pixel Genius saying that once a demo has expired, there's no way to refresh it - even though the demo I originally evaluated was years old and two revisions ago.

Having decided to give it a go anyway (as they offer a 30-day money back g/tee), I now hit a new problem in that I don't have a Visa or Mastercard - the eCommerce engine doesn't accept Maestro (the most popular debit card in the UK), and PixelGenuis have decided not to enable PayPal transactions.

All this trouble to evaluate and pay for software, it's no wonder so many people turn to torrents, tbh.


Cheers for the advice guys, I'll keep at it.
S.

Before commiting to buying try these 3 easy steps:

1. Layer -> Duplicate layer;
2. Filter-> Other -> Highpass and choose radius between .8 to 4 px. depending on the image resolution
3. Change layer mode to overlay.

does the same thing, but with more controls and free

VladKenner wrote:
Before commiting to buying try these 3 easy steps:

1. Layer -> Duplicate layer;
2. Filter-> Other -> Highpass and choose radius between .8 to 4 px. depending on the image resolution
3. Change layer mode to overlay.

does the same thing, but with more controls and free

Same thing? This is a well known and frequently documented sharpening technique, but PhotoKit sharpener is far more than this, with far more control than this. A single sharpening step in a workflow can never match the output quality of a multi-pass sharpening workflow, which is what PhotoKit sharpener is about.

In the book mentioned, Real World Image Sharpening with Adobe Photoshop CS2 by the late Bruce Fraser, this workflow is explained and taught very well. If you want to excel at image sharpening and get the most out of your work, studying this book is highly recommended. If you want the advantages of a multi pass sharpening workflow without really understand what's going on under the hood, PhotoKit sharpener is ideal. And even if you understand it, PhotoKit sharpener is a nice tool to help speed up the workflow.

What is the difference between what "Photokit Sharpener" does and what "nik Sharpener Pro 2.0" does? Do they use the same methodology, or do they employ significantly different sharpening approaches?

I'm not sure if the underlying sharpening engine of either product is significantly different. I have seen several comments by those who have tried both, and it appears most prefer Photokit ... the most common comment is nik over does it. However, I can't image you can't adjust nik to achieve a better result. Probably could get a lot of opinions with a quick google search.

As I mentioned, the key to Photokit sharpener is really about the workflow ... 3 or more sharpening steps within the RAW to output workflow. Just using Photoshop you can achieve very good results if you understand this workflow, and if nik employees a similar mutli-pass sharpening workflow it would be worth looking at. If it's just a replacement for smart sharpen in Photoshop I'd save my money.

As I said before, the book: 'Image Sharpening' by Bruce Fraser describes in detail everything the plug-in is based on.

Some of the original setting are still in the registry. If you are comfortable working in the registry, delete all reference to the program. do a back up first.

this usually works and clears the registry of the programs settings.

lou

In the course of a week I must prepare images of various sizes, resolutions and diverse output. From continuous tone lab prints for portrait clients, to high gloss CMYK for magazines, catalogs and brochures, to general newsprint in both color and B&W. PK sharpener has been a welcome tool in that the fellows at Pixel Genius analyzed the needs for these and other various types of output and took the drudgery out of sharpening while offering the option for customization and fine tuning to taste. I don't make a habit of buying every little plugin known to man, but this little gem is worth its weight in gold.