Are there specific plugins or is it all of them? Also what version of Aperture?

After lots of testing, I’m convinced that the problem is with Nik and not Aperture. Nik says the opposite.

I’m also having issues with my NIK plugins. I’m not having any issues saving the image but NIK is acting as though I’ve just in stalled these plugins for the first time. All of my setting have gone to default settings and ALL of my recipes I had set up in Color Efex are gone. I’m using build 3.4.3 of Aperture.

Any ideas?

In discussing this with Nik’s support, they blame the problems on Aperture and provide no further guidance. I’ve submitted a couple o support tickets to Apple and haven’t received any response.

In thinking on this further, some of the issues may come in with the fact that Nik shares the same memory with Aperture, where it doesn’t with Lightroom (Nik has no issues under LR). Unfortunately, neither Nik nor Apple is willing to offer solutions/fixes at this pointt.

I am also noticing significant issues primarily with NIK HDR efex Pro2. A variety of issues, but often when I try to save back to Aperture, Aperture closes. When I try to reopen, oftentimes Aperture needs to rebuild the database. I wonder how many times this can happen before significant damage to the database?
Anyone know what is going on? One can’t really contact either Apple or Nik because the point fingers at each other.
Ken

I contacted Nik and found them to be very helpful. Their tech spend about an hour with me trying to resolve my issues. Even though he was unable to solve my issues at this time I found them extremely interested in solving my issues and by no means did they point any fingers. I sent them some system logs which he was going to pass them to the Nik development team. BTW one of thinks he had me do is to downgrade Aperture to and earlier version but it didn’t solve my issue.

Well, reluctantly I did email Nik for support on this issue. And, YES, they immediately started the “its Apple’s issue” comment. No surprise there. Not sure how they honestly think I believe that. Do they really think Apple is going to change something about Aperture so it is tailored to work specifically with Nik plugins? Maybe…? I’m confused on how this all works between software companies. And possibly the latest version of Aperture does have a bug that results in some plugins not to work well. I was just under the assumption the companies with the plugins would have to be the ones changing their products to fit Aperture.

Anyway, Nik did suggest disabling the GPU processing in HDR Pro. Has anyone tried that and have success? Seems like it would be a shame to disable a function that allows the plugin to work more efficiently.

I’ve tried disabling the GPU - it works…sometimes. But more often than not..it doesn’t.

The only two solutions that I’ve found are either:
1. Switch the viewer mode (“V” key) so that only the images you want to send to HDR Efex are displayed.
2. Once imported back into Aperture, resize the window/application manually (grab a corner of the app and move it slightly).

The third option is to restart the app.

Apple previously acknowledged there were redraw issues under ver. 3.2.3 - which appear to continue to the current version. That said, the first version of HDR Efex Pro doesn’t have any problems in Aperture, which is why I personally believe that Nik/Google also is partially at fault.

Wish we had a more definitive answer on the next version of Aperture

Thanks for the comments, Charles. I will say Nik did acknowledge the issue, which is a good first start to any problem.
What disturbs me the most is that I switched to a Mac platform to get away from these sorts of issues. And maybe its just a coincidence, but many of my issues are on very recent versions of Aperture/Nik. I am just not convinced now either company is focused on their image editing software anymore. And the real shame of it all is now Apple/Google have more $$$ and resources than can be imagined. They “could” make software that would blow the socks of anything now in existence. So, what is the reluctance now? Are they only focused on Tweeting and social media?
And, yes, I agree with you, is there a next version of Aperture coming? I would simple hate to have to go back to Adobe and Lightroom. Interestingly, I had read a blog of a fellow who was one of the first beta testers (and supporters) of Aperture. He clearly indicated he was shifting his thousands of images back to Lightroom no matter what. Like the rest of us, he doesn’t see Apple making much serious headway in improving Aperture, particularly for power users.

If the blog you read was PhotoFocus (i.e. Scott Bourne), take it with a grain of salt. He’s only one. Others such as Joe McNally, Chase Jarvis, Catherine Hall - still use Aperture.

I’ve used Lightroom - and the Develop module is excellent. Everything else - ugh. Not to be a rumor-monger, but there are a couple of books on the Canadian Amazon site for Aperture 4/X that are supposed to be released late FIRST quarter of this year. Joseph pointed it out in October 2012 how many references Apple made to Aperture in the iPad Mini keynote.

I’ve been a user and a certified Aperture Trainer since version 1. All along I’ve suffered the same frustration of lack of visibility of the product roadmap and wondering whether Apple would continue to support it and develop it.

Just yesterday I was working with Lightroom, since I’ll be producing a photographic project in March as part of a collective that uses this software. In all honesty, agreeing with the fact that the Develop module is really good, I don’t feel the current version of Aperture is behind in any front with Lightroom 4. And I even like the Brushes implementation on Aperture much better than Lightroom. Not to mention that the user interface, the freedom at any time to edit and image and the organizational support it provides, in my opinion much excel Adobe’s.

That being said, I worry that lately most improvement seem to come along the lines of consumers and not professionals. I really hope to see a new version that incorporates significant advancements in the pro side to feel comfortable that I made the right bet on this platform.

I’m not sure about my setup, but all my Nik software appears to be working correctly with Aperture 3.4.3, and I have the complete collection. Just a couple of days ago I upgraded to HDR EFEX PRO 2 (since I got the free upgrade). I first installed the Suite I think in November, right after I bought it at one of the photo expos in Dallas.

Maybe I just haven’t ound the issues that everybody else is seeing and my time will come.

HDR Efex Pro causes aperture to freeze when saving the photo back to aperture. Dfine works fine. I have not tried the other Nik software yet. I have no problem with Photomatix. I sent Nik a support ticket yesterday. Will let you know if I get any help. I do have the latest versions of Nik complete and Aperture.

When I try to edit an Image in Aperture with Color Efex 4 I get the spinning wheel and have force Aperture to quit, I have contacted NIK and wait to see what they say.

I’m also having problems. When I tried to edit using HDR Effect Pro or Color Effex Pro 4 Aperture freezes and I’m force to force quit Aperture. Dfine, Sharpener Pro and Viveza work fine.

pr

i am having terrible issues with the Nik collection and Aperture 3.4.3 on 10.7.5. All was great on 10.7.4 withe the previous version of Aperture, but since upgrading I can do little with these plugs without crashing Aperture. I am going back and forward sending crash logs, but no solution yet….

NikGoogle has been totally useless as to providing a fix. They haven’t updated their plugins since Google bought them. I’m starting to think that Google bought Nik only for Snapseed - to compete with Facebook’s purchase of Instagram, and will leave the rest (i.e. Nik plugins) to rot in the desert sun.

I am phoning Nik support tonight (at their behest) to see if we can fix this issue. I sincerely hope that your prediction is not true….it would be a great shame if so.

Mike - best on the phone call with NikGoogle. I’ve talked to them three times and sent countless support requests, all with the same “it’s all Aperture’s fault” response.

I never got around to buying NIK but I’m glad I didn’t because it’s clear it’s gone the way of Sparrow. What’s the best alternative to NIK then, Topaz?

I am having problems with Nik silver EFX pro and Aperture.
Aperture crashes when I go to the Nik plugin and make 2 adjustments, any 2. I contacted Nik and got this reply.

Dear William,

Thank you for contacting Nik Software.

Silver Efex Pro 2 takes advantage of the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) of the computer system. The GPU is also sometimes referred to as the Display Adapter or Video Card, in any case they are all the same. Sometimes certain video cards will not handle this additional processing. You will note this when opening an image into Silver Efex Pro 2 and one or more of the following happens: 1.) Silver Efex Pro will crash right away, or 2.) If it opens the imported image will sometimes not be displayed correctly (solid gray, black or white image), or 3.) the buttons will not display correctly, or 4.) the responsiveness is simply very slow.

In order to resolve this, the first measure would be to update the Display Adapters or GPU driver.

Mac Users: Generally the video card that comes with your Mac will be updated automatically. The exception may be when there has been an additional video card added. In that case the user may need to go to the video card manufacturer’s website to download an updated driver for their secondary GPU. If you are using Mac OS Snow Leopard (10.6) ensure to update to 10.6.6 or higher as this can affect performance. If this does not apply to you, please go to the next section below.

If after following the above steps you are still experiencing the same issue, the next step will be to either disable the GPU (if possible) or force Silver Efex Pro 2 to not use the GPU (safe-mode). In order to disable the GPU in Silver Efex Pro 2 please do the following:
If you are able to open Silver Efex Pro 2 and can see part of the interface, see if you can click on the”Settings” button in the lower left.
In Settings locate the section “GPU” and expand it, in this section you will see a check box “Enable GPU Processing”, uncheck this so the GPU will be disabled, then close the settings window.
Close out of Silver Efex Pro 2 (click Cancel), quit out of any and all host applications (Photoshop, Lightroom, Aperture), and then relaunch Silver Efex Pro 2 to see if this corrects this issue.
If you are unable to disable the GPU via Settings or if the issue is still unresolved (e.g. Silver Efex Pro 2 crashes or the buttons are not displaying correctly), please try the following steps below after quitting out of all host applications (Photoshop, Lightroom, Aperture):

Mac Users:
Open a finder window (or double click on the Macintosh HD on the desktop) and navigate to:
Macintosh HD : Users : <user name> : Library :Preferences : Nik Software : Silver Efex Pro 2
Locate the file, SilverEfexPro2.cfg and right-click and choose “open with…” and then click “Choose” and then locate the applications, “TextEdit” to open this file.
At the very beginning (before all the text) of the configuration file, paste the following code below verbatim:
<configuration>
<group name=”INTERN“>
<key name=”UseSafeMode” type=”bool” value=”1”/>
</group>
</configuration>
Now save the file, close it and relaunch Silver Efex Pro 2 and see if the issue has been resolved.

If you have any further questions, please reply to this email or call our Customer Service Department toll free at 1-888-284-4085 (+1-619-725-3150 outside of the US). Our office hours are Monday through Friday 8:30 am to 5:00 pm PST.

Best Regards,
Dominick
___________________
Dominick Barbero
Customer Support Specialist
Nik Software, Inc. | Photography first®

Here is the first reply I got

Dear William,

Thank you for contacting Nik Software. If there has been new installs on a Mac here is one thing that is easy to check and can cause very random crashes.

Mac OS X is very sensitive with regards to duplicate copies of fonts. All of the Nik Software plug-ins utilize Arial fonts. If you are experiencing otherwise unexplainable crashes or activation issues with the Nik Software products, removing all duplicate copies of the Arial fonts should correct the issue as described.

Navigate to your Applications folder and open your Font Book as seen below.

2. Scroll up to the Arial fonts (A), select the drop down triangle to view it’s contents (B).

3.Select any duplicates, hold your mouse over them to check their path(C).

4.Any fonts located in the “Path: Library/Fonts/’name of arial font” should be kept (such as the example above).

5.Duplicate fonts in any other location, such as the example below, should be removed by right-clicking (or control-clicking) and selecting “Remove ‘Font Name’ ”.

Examples of incorrect locations that should be removed are:
-Path: Users/ ‘username’/Library /Fonts
-Path: Library/Fonts/Microsoft

6. Please repeat this process for all ‘Arial’ font duplicates, such as Arial Black, Arial Hebrew, ect.

7.Once all duplicate Arial fonts have been removed, please quit font book and restart your system.

If you have any further questions, please reply to this email or call our Customer Service Department toll free at 1-888-284-4085 (+1-619-725-3150 outside of the US). Our office hours are Monday through Friday 8:30 am to 5:00 pm PST.

Best Regards,
Dominick
___________________
Dominick Barbero
Customer Support Specialist
Nik Software, Inc. | Photography first®

7588 Metropolitan Drive | San Diego, CA 92108
Tel - 619.725.3150 | Fax - 619.725.3151
supportus@niksoftware.com | www.niksoftware.com

It’s just been HDR Efex Pro 2 for me, it began or me back in August and I posted pics to the forum with my early ‘11, 17”, MBP. Nothing has change since I got a Retina 15” MBP.

HDR Efex Pro 2 sends back a messed up image, if I close aperture OR make a duplicate of the pic and quickly crop it I don’t need to shut Aperture down, but that crop trick works 95% of the time. You then just uncrop it and continue with no problems, but it’s only crop that seems to stop it for me anyway.

All the other work fine for me??

Oh I forgot to mention, I can not get HDR Efex Pro 2 to work for me in Lightroom 4 at all, so it is going both ways and disrupting Aperture and Lightroom too but to a much lesser extent for me

I have been opening an image out of a project with HDR Efex Pro,  and have yet to see the edited image in my Aperture Library nor in my Picture Folder in my “Finder”
Please, advise.  (I have been working on this since yesterday and no results.)