Best Photoshop Ai Plugins
Jomega Gibson
It's easy to install third-party Photoshop plugins either on a PC or Mac. First, just download the plugin you want to use. Some include an installer that will do the work for you. For others, you'll need to extract them from the zipped file (most Photoshop plugins come in a RAR or ZIP folder), copy the folder that contains the plugin files and then paste it into the \"plugins\" folder in your Adobe folder (you should be able to find this in program files in Drive C on Windows and Applications on a Mac).
The location of any Photoshop plugins stored on your device will vary depending on if you've installed them as a version-specific plugin or at a shared Creative Cloud location that will be available for all versions.
Camera Raw will be located in a folder shared by Photoshop, Adobe Bridge and Photoshop Elements at Hard Drive/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Plug-Ins/[Photoshop version name]/File Formats or C\\Program Files\\Common Files\\Adobe\\Plug-Ins\\[Photoshop version number].
It shouldn't happen, but it can. Sometimes if you install a plugin that isn't compatible with the current version of Photoshop it can cause problems or even stop Photoshop from opening properly. Fortunately this isn't usually difficult to solve. Just locate the plugins folder (see above) and remove the latest additions.
Once you have installed a Plugin and it's located in the correct Photoshop plugin folder, it should automatically appear in Photoshop next time you open the program (you may need to close and restart Photoshop if you added the plugin while the program was open). Most plugins will appear in the 'Filter' tab on the menu bar. However, how they appear can vary. Some may appear in a drop-down under the manufacturer's name rather than directly in the main list of options.
The best Photoshop plugins can help you work more quickly and efficiently. Whether you need some help with photo editing or some time-saving tools for your next graphic design project, Photoshop remains an essential tool for creatives. Part of the Creative Cloud suite of apps, it offers a huge range of creative possibilities, and it's always adding more, such as the incorporation of AI Generative Fill. But some processes can be repetitive and time-consuming. That's where the best Photoshop plugins can often help.
Both paid-for and free Photoshop plugins often do things that you could do without them, but they add a way to do it more quickly or more precisely, often by adding a shortcut and new controls in the interface. We've included the best free Photoshop plugins and the best premium options (some Photoshop plugins have limited free versions, but you'll need to pay for their full functionality). If you don't have Photoshop yet, sign up to Creative Cloud here.
It's easy to install third-party Photoshop plugins either on a PC or Mac. First, just download the plugin you want to use. Some include an installer that will do the work for you. For others, you'll need to extract them from the zipped file (most Photoshop plugins come in a RAR or ZIP folder), copy the folder that contains the plugin files and then paste it into the "plugins" folder in your Adobe folder (you should be able to find this in program files in Drive C on Windows and Applications on a Mac).
Camera Raw will be located in a folder shared by Photoshop, Adobe Bridge and Photoshop Elements at Hard Drive/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Plug-Ins/[Photoshop version name]/File Formats or C\Program Files\Common Files\Adobe\Plug-Ins\[Photoshop version number].
Plugins are add-ons that allow you to add or tweak the tools, functionality, and features of the base program. While most open-source software welcomes community-generated content, many larger companies prevent such modifications to their software. Adobe, thankfully, understands the value of third-party add-ons and welcomes them.
For the purposes of this article, we are focusing on your images themselves and the plugins that can make achieving them a breeze. The fact is, many plugins come with a cost, and often not a small one. Fumbling around online yourself can unfortunately waste your dollars as easily as your time.
While most of the creative tools on this list are meant to aid you with specific tasks in your image editing process, many also exist as components within larger collections. These packs are worth investigating in full, but among them, Nik Collection 4 stands above the crowd. Honestly, it could almost function as an entire list of the best plugins all on its own.
Perhaps it is a cheat to include an entire collection on a list of individual plugins, but the fact of the matter is, we wanted to list more than one of these before the recent bundling. After that, it is only a matter of price, and for what you get here we find it not only reasonable but a serious value. And that was before the current discount and impressive update Petapixel covered in-depth recently. This one is a no-brainer.
Artificial intelligence is now being employed across virtually every available technology, and photo editing is no different. One of the most useful advancements AI has made in the field is in the upscaling of images for maximum clarity. Topaz Gigapixel AI can upscale your photos by up to 600% without sacrificing quality, and in many cases can use the additional pixels to enhance your final image beyond what you might believe possible.
Upscaling can be valuable to a photographer for several reasons, some more obvious than others. Clearly if one needs to crop an image, the increased detail is welcome, as it would be for a photographer producing larger-sized prints. Those restoring older photographs may find upscaling necessary to bring resolutions into modern times.
There are many add-ons and programs that offer such upscaling these days, and we have tried many. The hard truth of it is, most are not worth the money and vastly underdeliver on their claims. For those considering free options, the results are even direr.
DxO PhotoLab is a comprehensive application that is worth investigating in total, but its DxO PureRAW feature, available as a separate add-on for Photoshop and Lightroom, is a must-have. PureRAW is an AI-driven pre-processing application that draws from nearly 60,000 lens and camera combinations and millions of photographs in order to correct noise, chromatic aberration, vignetting, and other anomalies as a RAW photo is demosaiced (also known as debayering). This is a key difference between PureRAW and other RAW processing utilities (including Adobe Camera RAW), which only apply such adjustments after demosaicing is complete. The results are inarguable.
If you have searched for plugins at any point over the past few years, you have likely already heard of Portraiture 3 from Imagenomic. While certainly one of the oldest plugins on the list, time has done nothing to diminish its value. For users seeking a nondestructive way to retouch their portraits and smooth skin without sacrificing fine, high-frequency detail, this plugin is a lifesaver.
You cannot scan social media these days without seeing the worst examples of portrait beautification. Everyone you know has access to, with a flick of their thumbs, unsightly face-tuning that transforms their faces into waxy, glowing alien-esque versions of themselves. In truth, even experienced photographers working in sophisticated programs like Photoshop often yield unnatural and frankly horrific results. With Portraiture 3 users are able to diminish the blemishes that some clients may want to be removed, all without destroying the textures that make the subject human rather than an AI-generated robot.
The great part about this tool is the skin tone and textures remain intact even after applying every single option, keeping things looking realistic and providing a great baseline for editors to either deliver to their clients or manually touch up and improve upon after the fact.
The only plugins that seemed to go noticeably heavy and almost always required some opacity reduction or masking were the eyes and teeth plugins. Additionally, sometimes the Healing plugin would interpret tattoos and jewelry as a blemish, which meant I had to go back and apply a mask and paint them back in (should the clients want them there, that is).
Skylum Aurora HDR is software designed specifically for high dynamic range images, offering the ability to merge and tone map individual RAW files. Like many other HDR plugins, Aurora makes ample use of AI. Compared with its peers, however, Aurora runs miles ahead in terms of usability and quality. Much of its success can be attributed to prominent HDR photographer Trey Ratcliff, whose workflow forms the underlying basis for the program. That sort of creative and practical insight offers Aurora a real leg up.
Boris FX Optics 2022, which we recently reviewed and is available for $149, comes loaded with 160 filters, thousands of presets, and powerful visual effects plugins including a new particle generator that can create photo-real sci-fi effects including smoke, fire, water, sparkles, dust, lasers, galaxies, and more.
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