Do Topaz Labs and Clean 3 work in Mac O. S. Big Sur?
I’m afraid to upgrade from Mac O. S. Catalina to O. S. Big Sur, because I don’t know if Topaz Labs Simplify 4 and Clean 3 will work, because they’re 32-bit programs and I don’t know it they’re compatible with O. S. Big Sur’s change to supporting 64-bit programs.
Clean 3 and some of Simplify 4’s filters don’t appear in Topaz Studio, and don’t seem to appear in the other Topaz programs, so i’m afraid that the Macintosh computer’s operating system upgrade could be a downgrade for those older Topaz programs that I’m still using (Clean 3 and Simplify 4.
I believe Clean 3.1 is 64 bit only on Mac’s. But to confirm raise a support request at the main website. Remember that these products are no longer supported.
I, have not upgraded to Big Sur but the reason is different: I am waiting for Adjust AI and JPGEG to Raw to be upgraded.
However, I have also been curious about whether Studio (the original version) and the legacy plugins would continue to function once I upgraded to Big Sur. Using another Mac in the household that was upgraded to Big Sur, I installed Studio 1 and Simplify 4. Studio 1 loaded quickly and seems to function properly. Simplify 4 opened within Studio and began trying to build the preset list. Over 90 minutes later, it had not completed. After cancelling the operation, I was able to use the Simplify controls; nevertheless, it seemed very sluggish. Based upon this very limited trial, I would not be optimistic about the remaining legacy plugins working under Big Sur. (For interest, I checked “System Information” and discovered that both Clean 3 and Simplify 4 are 64-bit applications.)
You noted that some of the Simplify 4 presets did not appear in Studio. However, I did a very quick comparison and was unable to find any missing. It is true that Studio 2 does not contain all of the presets/looks found in the first version of Studio but, prior to the current version of Studio (v 2.3.2), it was still possible to migrate presets from the original Studio. (This is not true of the Windows version of Studio 2.) If you would like access to these looks (which can be copied to your “My Looks” folder in Studio 2, I can post a Dropbox link.
Thank you for the helpful info. I am wondering if you could help me regarding those very filters - Simplify 4 and Clean. They are the workhorses of our company and I have used them for years in preparing to illustrate photos. The problem is that I have them as plug-in filters in my PS CC but cannot find them in Topaz Lab, which I rarely use, albeit I bought the entire Topaz filter collection a couple years ago.
This is important because I would like to migrate to a new iMac I’ve had stored in our studio for months and I also want to hire more artists for a funeral portrait company we have and standardize Simplify and Clean on their computers. One artist I gave the go-ahead to buy the filters is in the same boat I am. She downloaded the Topaz Lab but cannot find the Simplify 4 or Clean. Any help would be great!
I am wanting to replicate the old Topaz Clean - Crisp Style. We’re hiring new artists and want to standardize that plug-in filter on the new Mac work stations but I can’t find anything close enough in Topaz Studio. I’m holding off buying new Topaz Studios until I find an answer. Thanks!
Before I can answer, it would help to know if you are referring to PhotoFXlab when you say that you cannot find the Simplify presets in Topaz Lab. If not, are you referring to either of the Topaz Studio versions? In either case, I think that there are possible solutions that are available.
You wrote, “It is true that Studio 2 does not contain all of the presets/looks found in the first version of Studio but, prior to the current version of Studio (v 2.3.2), it was still possible to migrate presets from the original Studio.”
I just upgraded my Studio 2 to the latest version and find that MOST of the filters of Studio 1 (I guess around 95 percent) of the filters that are in Studio 1 don’t appear in Studio 2.
For examples, none of the Buzsim or Painting filters are available in Studio 2.
And because I just updated my Studio 2, I can no longer import any filters from Studio 1 into Studio 2. (This is why I hesitated so long to update my Studio 2; the fear of it actually being a downgrade, instead of an upgrade.
I completed a migration of all of the Studio 1 presets after reverting back to the earlier version of Studio 2 There is no need for you to do this since I will make them available via a Dropbox link. You can download the entire set and then add some, or all, of them to your “My Looks” folder. I probably won’t do this until tomorrow morning. If you have any questions about how to find your “My Looks” folder, let me know. Craig
Topaz claims that the functionality of Clean is available in Studio 2. Nevertheless, that doesn’t mean that all of the presets that were available in Clean (or Simplify) are available as Looks in Studio 2. Studio 1 arranged their presets in categories, e.g. Clarity, Detail, Glow, Impression, Simplify, etc. But there is not a Clean category and there do not appear to be any of the Clean 3 presets (i.e. presets with the same names). However, I suspect that there are presets within Studio 1 that might come close. As I mentioned in the reply to Tom, I managed to migrate all of the Studio 1 presets to be available as Looks in Studio 2. I said that I would provide a link to a Dropbox folder with all of these Looks tomorrow morning. You could download Studio 2 on a trial basis (if you haven’t done so already) and then copy all of the Looks into your “My Looks” folder (normally, a repository for maintaining Looks that you create within Studio 2). You could then go hunting for something that is close enough to the Crisp Style and make adjustments as needed. Craig
As promised, here is a link to a Dropbox folder that contains all of the Topaz 1 presets (which includes the original Simplify 4 presets). These are files with a tpr extension that Studio 2 recognizes as “Looks”. You can copy some, or all, into your “My Looks” folder. (You can use a Spotlight search to locate this folder.) There is no way to preview these looks before copying them. However, since they use the same names as the Studio 1 presets, you can use Studio 1 to determine which ones you want. Let me know if you have further questions. Dropbox - Topaz TPR Files - Simplify your life
It was a lot of work to sort through all those filters in Studio 1 to choose the ones I want that I didn’t have, and stressful and complicated to follow your advice, and to monkey with Studio 2, but it was worthwhile!
I even named my custom folder of Studio 1 filters that I copied into Studio 2’s Looks folder after you; I called it “Townsend”!
Tom: I’m happy that you were able to get things working; I can only hope that the stress created by following the directions is less than what you experienced by not having the presets available. And I am honoured to have a folder named after me: a first for me.
After completing a quick review of the Studio 1 presets I think that you might be able to approximate some of the Clean 3 presets. For example, I think that the “Bridal Portrait” preset in Studio 1 is a reasonable starting point for re-creating the Crisp Style preset in Clean 3. (However, I used only 1 photo for testing and it’s quite possible that it didn’t generate the features that you are looking for.) As I have previously mentioned, you could quickly conduct your own experiment by downloading the trial version of Studio 2 and then adding this particular preset/Look into your “My Looks” folder. (You can find the complete set of Studio 1 presets that are available via a dropbox link I have provided in this thread.)
Although I started this topic, another chap here (whose name I forget) somewhat sidetracked it by asking about Clean 3 > Crisp Style (which I had never even heard of or hadn’t remembered seeing in Clean 3).
My concern in asking my question in this thread about the viability of Clean 3 in Big Sur operating system was regarding Clean 3 > Skin Smoothing Strong – not Crisp Style. So The Bridal Portrait filter that you suggested as a replacement for Crisp Style is not relevant to my question regarding Clean 3.
I find that Abstraction I and V when applied partially approximate Clean 3 > Skin Smoothing Strong, but I haven’t figured out how close the approximation is.
When I asked for information from the tech support department by submitting a ticket, the answer was that Clean 3 has been discontinued, and that the viability of Clean 3 isn’t guaranteed for Big Sur (which I had already known), and and that similar effects can be achieved in Studio 2. But which filters in Studio would allow similar results as Clean 3 wasn’t explained.
There are three effects in Studio 1 (Skin Smoothing, Skin Smoothing and Brightness I, and Skin Smoothing and Brightness II) that may approximate the skin smoothing effects in Clean 3. They may also provide a good starting point for the remaining presets (Blemish Removal, Blemish Removal Strong, Degrunge, and Skin Even) since they all seem to be slight variations on a theme. You can easily add these effects–if you haven’t already–via the dropbox link I provided earlier. Simply look for the tpr files with the skin smoothing names and copy them to your My Looks folder. Craig
Skin Smoothing in Studio 1 and 2 seems to be the same or similar to Clean 3’s Skin Smoothing Strong.
The effect is so subtle, though, that (like Clean 3’s Skin Smoothing Strong) I must apply it several times to an image to see much of an effect.
So I’ll probably use Abstraction I or V instead of Skin Smoothing in Studio 2 unless I am actually using it for subtle skin smoothing effects on a picture of someone’s skin.
Skin Smoothing seems to be similar to Clean 3 > Skin Smoothing Strong, so I’ve added that Look to my Favorite Looks folder.
It seems to me that Skin Smoothing and Brightness I and II don’t smooth images; it looks to me like one of them slightly brightens images and the other one slightly darkens images. I can lighten and darken images much more easily in Photoshop than in Studio 2, so I’m not going to add those two filters to my Favorite Looks folder.
