Where’s My Perry?
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By David Creamer
PhotoCopy (US$95) from Digital Film Tools (http://www.digitalfilmtools.com) is an interesting, one-trick wonder plug-in that is easy to use. Essentially, it adjusts an image’s brightness, color, tone, detail, grain, and texture to match either a built-in preset or another loaded image.
Perhaps the most fun thing about the plug-in is the built-in presets: there are 94 based on famous movies, 72 based on famous painters, 40 based on famous photographers, and 30 based on historic photographic processes. (I found the last setting the most interesting to experiment with.) Of course, you can create custom settings and save them as presets, too. Regardless, if you’re using a built-in or custom preset, all the settings can be adjusted on the fly.
I have a couple of gripes, one minor, and one so-so. The minor issue is that the Help file should have more info on the photographers (such as their full names) and photographic processes. The movie titles and painter names are pretty self-explanatory, but more info would have been nice.
The other issue is more important. When applying a preset, one opens the image (the target) in Photoshop and selects a preset (the source settings). Simple enough. However, when creating a custom preset, one must remember to open the source image first, and then load the target. Although this is mentioned in the Help file and manual, it seems backward. It should match the rest of the workflow: open a target, and then load the desired source. Also, some of the built-in presets are close to one another -- more range would be nice.
I think that more experienced Photoshop users will look at PhotoCopy and think, "I can mimic most of these effects myself," while less-experienced users wouldn’t mind spending the cash for the quick results. Of course, most experienced users must take into account the amount of time it takes to re-create an effect. This plug-in makes it all very easy.
Rating: 7 out of 10
(This review is brought to you courtesy of "Layers Magazine": http://layersmagazine.com/ .)
