PercepTool plugin for Photoshop CS3, CS4 released

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PercepTool plugin for Photoshop CS3, CS4 released
By Mike Tomkins
(Tuesday, May 26, 2009 - 18:35 EDT)

George DeWolfe - the photographer and author behind the Optipix plugin series for Photoshop - has released a new plugin for use with black & white photographs dubbed "PercepTool".

Said to be based on some 30 years of research and development, PercepTool is designed to adjust the look of images, mimicking the processing of the human brain. The idea behind the tool originated in a 1978 essay published by Dr. Edwin H. Land, co-founder of the company which later became Polaroid Corp.

PercepTool is available for both Windows or Mac OS X systems, and works in concert with either Adobe Photoshop CS3 or CS4.

The PercepTool plugin's script can operate in 32-bit mode only in Photoshop CS4 Extended due to limited support for 32-bit mode layers in the standard version. Users of Photoshop CS4 Standard can use the script in 8-bit or 16-bit modes, and can use 32-bit mode by applying the plugin alone, without using the script.

A few examples of the results to be obtained from PercepTool can be seen below, and a 30-day trial version is available for download if you'd like to try the plugin for yourself. The cost to purchase is approximately $90, on either the Mac or Windows platforms.




PercepTool before (left) and after (right) comparison images. All photos provided by George DeWolfe.

Original Source Press Release:

PercepTool™ from Atlantic Light Works

Southwest Harbor, Maine, May 24, 2009 - George DeWolfe, renowned black and white and landscape photographer, proudly presents PercepTool™, a software plugin for Photoshop CS3 and CS4, that duplicates the percept of the human brain from a 2D image. Unlike other HDR software, PercepTool™ takes the luminance image formed by the camera and adds special high level algorithms that mimic what happens in the visual section of the brain. The image is transformed from a flat image to one that has amazing depth, tonal quality, and presence.

30 years in the experimental stage and 3 years in development, the PercpTool™ is like no other plugin or technique in Photoshop. No Photoshop tool can render an image like PercepTool™. Began as an experiment from a challenge by Dr. Edwin Land, the inventor of Polaroid, DeWolfe and Chris Russ invented the plugin to change the image received from the camera to one that we actually see in our brain. Research in recent lightness perception science and visual cortex biology drove the main thrust of the development.

Available now for both Windows and Mac platforms, PercepTool™ is also a companion software to George DeWolfe's new book, B&W Printing: Creating The Digital Master Print, published by Lark Books and available on Amazon.com.

Purchase the PercepTool™ at www.georgedewolfe.com for $89.95.

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