Up next in 10
Get 20% OFF Boris FX Optics at this link with our code FilterGrade-20: https://bit.ly/311305w (affiliate link)
Read the written review: https://filtergrade.com/boris-fx-optics-review-plugin/
Boris FX is the maker of many powerful creative tools used by professional editors. You may be familiar with Sapphire or Mocha Pro, but today we’re doing a deep dive into Optics, a Photoshop and Lightroom tool used for lighting effects and color grades, and more. It also comes as a standalone program. Boris FX Optics features 160 filters and thousands of presets, giving you an absolute ton of options.
View more on the FilterGrade Blog: https://filtergrade.com/blog/
MORE STUFF TO WATCH AND VIEW!
Watch our video about Roto Brush 2 https://youtu.be/p29nvexdvqg
Further reading and resources for video editors.
How to Build a 4K Video Editing PC on a Budget in 2020 https://filtergrade.com/how-to-build-4k-video-editing-pc-budget/
Video Editing PC Build Tutorial https://youtu.be/S7chKTPMVa8
10 Tips for Making Money as a Videographer https://youtu.be/uNdH9KzC-rA
Show More Show Less View Video Transcript
0:02
hey everyone
0:03
welcome back to filtergrade today we're
0:06
taking a look at boris fx
0:07
optics and if it's worth it to purchase
0:09
if during our video
0:10
you decide you want to buy it check the
0:12
link in the description to purchase with
0:14
our special link
0:16
boris fx is the maker of many powerful
0:18
creative tools used by professional
0:19
editors
0:20
you may already be familiar with
0:22
sapphire or mocha pro
0:23
but today we're doing a deep dive into
0:25
optics a photoshop and lightroom tool
0:27
used for lighting effects and color
0:29
grades and more
0:31
it also comes as a standalone program
0:34
it comes with 160 filters and thousands
0:36
of adjustable presets giving you an
0:38
absolute
0:39
ton of options optics can be downloaded
0:42
directly from the boris fx website
0:44
once you've downloaded the file just
0:46
install it now you'll need to activate
0:48
optics
0:49
start optics either as its standalone
0:51
program or in photoshop or lightroom
0:53
select activate node lock license in the
0:55
pop-up license window and select
0:57
ok in the next screen choose activate
0:59
your license now
1:01
then just paste your serial number into
1:02
the activate key field and click next
1:04
if activation is successful then it'll
1:06
tell you that optics has been
1:07
successfully activated
1:10
if it was unsuccessful make sure you
1:11
check your registration code
1:13
or try registering offline once optics
1:16
is installed it's super easy to use
1:18
you can use the standalone program and
1:20
simply open an image
1:22
or you can use photoshop with your image
1:24
in photoshop click on filters
1:26
then boris fx then optics the optics
1:29
interface will open up in a new window
1:31
applying a single filter is no more
1:33
complex than putting an instagram filter
1:34
on an image
1:35
you'll see the nine categories of
1:37
filters as tabs on the bottom of the
1:38
screen
1:39
and then you'll see a thumbnail preview
1:41
of the effects to apply one just click
1:43
on it
1:44
some of the effects are actually groups
1:45
of effects for example if you click on
1:47
the film lab category and click on looks
1:49
you'll see a huge list of preset filters
1:52
just click on any of the presets to see
1:54
it applied to your image
1:55
but that's not the end of the story the
1:57
truly powerful thing about optics is the
1:59
ability to edit the parameters
2:01
clicking on the parameters button brings
2:02
up an extensive controls list
2:04
these controls let you adjust and
2:06
fine-tune the effect
2:08
you can adjust color amounts diffusion
2:10
settings gels grain
2:11
and more the available settings will
2:13
depend on the chosen effect
2:14
but they're incredibly easy to use what
2:16
could be easier than just a slider
2:18
it's great that there's no need to type
2:20
in numbers on various parameters and
2:21
wonder what they're doing
2:23
it's newcomer friendly by directly
2:24
showing what each setting changes while
2:26
also having a wide enough choice of
2:28
options
2:28
that professionals can adjust their
2:30
images to their exact needs it's the
2:32
perfect balance
2:34
borisfx optics also supports layers on
2:37
the left side of the interface you'll
2:38
see a layer panel and it works very
2:40
intuitively
2:41
once you add a new layer you can just
2:43
select a look for that layer
2:45
you can then adjust the blending mode
2:46
using standard photoshop blend modes and
2:48
you can adjust the opacity
2:50
being able to work with multiple layers
2:52
is a massive upside and is a reminder
2:54
that you are indeed working in something
2:56
compatible with photoshop
2:58
when you're done with your image you
2:59
click on the done button represented by
3:01
a gear symbol
3:02
the biggest apparent downside to editing
3:04
in optics for photoshop
3:06
is that when you say you're done it
3:07
means you're done the image and all of
3:09
its filters will be merged down into one
3:11
photoshop layer
3:12
and reopening optics does not bring back
3:14
the previous workspace
3:17
there is one way you can re-edit images
3:19
and that is by saving setups
3:21
when you save a setup you save the
3:22
various filter layers and their settings
3:24
but not the project itself you can save
3:27
the setup then load it up later when you
3:28
bring an image into optics
3:30
then you can adjust the parameters to
3:31
fit your new image considering that
3:33
optics works as a photoshop plugin it's
3:35
a little bit unintuitive at first
3:37
that you can't open up an editable
3:38
project like a photoshop file
3:41
however considering the fact that you
3:42
can save your own preset combinations of
3:44
filters optics can have a pass here
3:46
you just need to get used to doing it a
3:48
little differently on the bright side
3:49
this makes it easier to create a fully
3:51
custom preset in order to apply it to
3:53
any of your images
3:53
[Music]
3:55
you can also edit with masks these
3:57
include gradients among other effects
4:00
they modify existing layers for example
4:02
adding a gradient will turn the layer's
4:04
effect
4:04
into a gradient the layer will have a
4:06
mass preview and you'll see the image in
4:08
the viewer
4:09
each of these masks is adjustable on the
4:11
image itself so drag the visual elements
4:13
of the mask to change it
4:14
you can even create a custom mask path
4:16
to mask around a more precise area
4:19
you can also drag around the points in a
4:20
custom mask after creating it
4:22
[Music]
4:24
optics also comes with some great
4:25
additional masking tools including easy
4:27
masks that can separate the background
4:29
and foreground
4:33
with so many filters it makes sense that
4:35
optics lets you set favorite effects
4:37
with a filter selected you can easily
4:39
click on the star symbol and then see it
4:41
in your favorites folder to easily apply
4:42
later
4:43
you can also create fully custom presets
4:46
based off of existing ones
4:47
after adjusting the parameters of a
4:49
preset simply click a button on the
4:50
parameters page to save it
4:52
give it a new name first then it will
4:54
show up in your custom presets folder
4:56
optics also has tools to compare images
4:58
as you put filters on
5:00
you can view side by side vertical split
5:02
horizontal split a b
5:03
or snapshot this lets you see your
5:06
before and after which is especially
5:07
useful on more subtle edits and will be
5:09
familiar for
5:10
users of lightroom the interface in
5:13
optics is intuitive and pretty easy to
5:14
navigate with standard features like
5:16
zooming changing resolution and a
5:18
histogram
5:20
optics includes a detailed pdf
5:22
instruction manual that not only dives
5:23
deep into the standard functions of the
5:25
program
5:26
but also has a guide for each effect in
5:28
it
5:29
this is incredibly useful since each
5:31
effect has specific parameters unique to
5:33
it
5:33
the parameters are pretty simple to
5:35
understand especially since they're all
5:36
on a single sliding scale with a live
5:38
preview
5:39
however the extra descriptions are very
5:40
useful for editing faster
5:43
the filters and presets and boris
5:45
effects optics are pretty impressive
5:46
especially since they can be infinitely
5:48
adjusted
5:49
there's a filter for just about
5:50
everything so it's worthwhile to go
5:52
through the included pdf manual
5:54
there are so many options in this
5:55
program that you might never use all of
5:56
them or even see all of them
5:58
one of the best filter packs is the
6:00
sapphire pack which brings in effects
6:02
from boris fx sapphire
6:04
these effects have been extensively used
6:06
in tv shows and movies
6:08
while they're not specifically
6:09
categorized as sapphire you can use the
6:11
search bar and type in
6:12
s underscore as every sapphire effect
6:14
starts with this prefix
6:16
[Music]
6:17
these example images on screen now use a
6:19
variety of types of effects
6:21
from simple color overlays and gradients
6:22
to complete changes of the original
6:24
photo
6:25
all photos have had only one single
6:27
filter applied and mostly stick to
6:29
default settings with minor adjustments
6:31
to more accurately show the preset
6:33
effects found in boris fx optics
6:38
[Music]
6:44
at the price of 99. for an annual
6:46
subscription optics seems like a great
6:48
purchase for any photographer looking to
6:49
add professional filters and effects to
6:51
their photos
6:52
that being said the sheer level of
6:54
choice is overwhelming and on top of
6:56
that not every effect is a winner
6:57
it's a little like scrolling through
6:58
netflix just because there are hundreds
7:00
of choices doesn't mean all
7:02
the choices are good ones but a talented
7:04
editor will be able to make any of these
7:05
effects work for them in the right
7:07
scenario
7:07
whether it's a simple color overlay or
7:09
generating lightning elements
7:11
and the good effects are worth it
7:12
especially for the ease of use
7:14
many of the possible effects in optics
7:16
can be achieved in photoshop or
7:17
lightroom
7:19
but optics is specifically designed to
7:20
be easier to adjust filter masks and
7:22
generate specific elements
7:24
overall the interface is fantastic and
7:26
can help speed up the editing process
7:28
for certain effects
7:29
and the effects themselves are very much
7:31
worth the cost overall
7:33
optics gets a recommendation from filter
7:35
grade
7:37
what do you think of boris fx will you
7:39
be adding it to your editing arsenal
7:40
if you do decide to purchase optics make
7:42
sure you buy it using the link in the
7:43
description of this video
7:45
because it helps us out a lot if you
7:48
enjoyed this video be sure to like and
7:50
subscribe and leave a comment down below
7:52
and if you're looking for professional
7:53
lutz lightroom desktop and mobile
7:55
presets
7:56
premiere pro templates and more photo
7:57
and video education visit
7:59
filtergrade.com today
#Entertainment Industry
#Online Media
#Multimedia Software