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FX Photo Studio looks the simplest application in the Creative Kit, but this too springs a few surprises.
On the face of it, it's a relatively unsophisticated special effects generator, with a strip of thumbnail images across the bottom that preview the look of your photo with each effect applied. They aren't subtle – but they do take your images in directions you might never have imagined.
In fact, you can tone down these effects using sliders displayed at the right side of the screen. The adjustments are pretty basic, often just contrast or saturation tweaks, but they are a start.
And you can go further by using the built-in masking tools. These are easily overlooked and accessed via an Edit Mask button. From here you can use Brush and Eraser tools with adjustable size and opacity to control the strength of the effect and the areas it's applied to.
It's also worth exploring the pop-up menu on the effects strip at the bottom of the window – the effects are organised into categories and this is where you may find out there are a lot more effects than you initially thought.
Not only that, you can add frames to images and save your own effects presets for re-use.
FX Photo Studio CK doesn't offer the in-depth adjustments of other MacPhun apps like Intensify or Tonality, but it does offer a wide range of striking and easy to apply image effects to browse through.
Rod is an independent photographer and photography journalist with more than 30 years' experience. He's previously worked as Head of Testing for Future’s photography magazines, including Digital Camera, N-Photo, PhotoPlus, Professional Photography, Photography Week and Practical Photoshop, and as Reviews Editor on Digital Camera World.
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