Last update September 22, 2023
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The image browser

Mac
PC

When you open DxO FilmPack as a standalone program, it displays the Image browser, which is a window that shows the folder tree on your computer, and the images which are available in any folder you click on.

When you launch DxO FilmPack for the first time, the Image browser displays the demo images supplied with the software.

The width of the Image browser can be adjusted by dragging the separating line with the thumbnail section.

Opening an image folder

Mac
PC

You can access any folder of images on your hard drive by clicking on it in the folder tree.

You can also proceed as follows:

  1. Mac: Menu File > Open folder.
  2. PC: Click on the Menu button on the top left, then on Open.

In both cases, a system window will open that will allow you to choose the folder you want.

Opening an image


Whatever how you access and open folders, the content is displayed as thumbnails. To open an image for processing in DxO FilmPack, you can:

  1. Double-click on the thumbnail.
  2. Right-click on the thumbnail and select Open in the context menu.
  3. Select a thumbnail and then press Enter.

By right-clicking on a thumbnail, you will have access to a context menu that provides the following functions:

  1. Open: opens the selected image in the DxO FilmPack processing area.
  2. Rename: lets you rename a file by directly entering a new name in the field under the image thumbnail (one image at a time).
  3. Delete: lets you delete one image or a selection of images.
  4. Display in browser (Windows) or in the Finder (Mac): opens the image folder in a system window.

The Delete command deletes the image from your hard drive. If you delete a file in error, you will be able to find it again in your computer’s trash can.

Recent folders and images

You can access recently-opened folders and files.

In the top part of the Image browser, click on Recent images to display the last images processed in DxO FilmPack. You can also clear the list by clicking on Clear.

It is also possible to access recent items as follows:

  1. Mac: go to File menu > Open recent file or Open recent folder (Mac).
  2. PC: Menu > Open and then choose one of the folders or files listed in the context menu.

Image sorting

The Sort menu lets you display your available images according to different criteria: by shooting date, date of last modification, by alphabetical order, or by file type.

Thumbnail size

You can adjust the size of the image thumbnails in the Image list by using the slider provided.

The Customize interface

DxO FilmPack’s image Customize interface is composed of 4 principal parts:

  1. The upper toolbar, which comprises the tools for saving, comparing, zooming, changing, navigating, and displaying and accessing the Images list.
  2. The Image display area.
  3. The Controls pane, on the right side, split in 2 tabs: Presets and Customize. Presets includes the previewing of all presets, and Customize contains the entirety of the correction tools for color and black & white photos, as well as lens and graphical effects. The tools are divided in sections, and each section has a switch to toggle the corrections temporarily on/off. You can close or open each section by clicking next to the name, and the active section, where you are working, is indicated by the orange on/off switch, and by the orange border on the left side.
  4. The Information pane, popping out on the left side, which explains the history of the film or designer preset being applied to the image.

The Presets and Customize tabs are covered in the respective chapters of this user guide.

The upper toolbar

PC (top), Mac (bottom).

The DxO FilmPack upper toolbar includes the following functions:

  1. Menu (PC only): provides access to various commands (see details afterwards).
  2. Save:
    • Save image as: lets you save the corrections and changes you have made to an image.
    • Save settings as a preset: lets you save your current settings as a custom rendering.
  3. Compare:
    • Compare with reference image: lets you compare the image with current settings to the original image or a snapshot designated as the reference image (see below).
    • Change reference image: lets you select which image will serve as the reference image, be it the original image or a snapshot. (The floating window lets you create snapshots; see below.)
    • Single image preview / Side-by-side preview / Split preview: with successive mouse clicks, lets you go from the single-image view (image with current settings) to the side-by-side view (image before processing to the left, after processing to the right), or to the split view (a single image with before and after zones and movable dividing line, before processing to the left, after processing to the right).
  4. Zoom:
    • Fit zoom: displays the entire image in the display area.
    • 100% Zoom (or 1:1): displays the image at 100% (i.e., 1 image pixel = 1 screen pixel).
  5. Modify:
    • Crop: lets you activate the crop tool to reframe the image.
    • Rotate right: turns the image by 90º with each click.
    • Horizon : allows you to straighten a tilted image.
  6. Browse:
    • Previous image / Next image: lets you pass from one image to another in the Image list.
    • Return to image browser: lets you return to the Image browser (which displays the contents of a folder).
  7. Display:
    • Hide / Show controls: hide or display the Controls panel.
    • Activates the display of the Navigator palette above the Controls panel.
    • Histogram: displays or hides the histogram above the Controls panel.

In Side-by-side preview and Split preview modes, the iconin the center of the image lets you select the orientation of the view (horizontal or vertical). In Split preview mode, click on the icon to move the separation line between the two areas in the image.

Compare with reference image view.
Side by side view, left/right, top/bottom.
Split view, vertical and horizontal.

The Navigator

The Navigator is hidden by default. To display it, click on the Navigator button, located in the Display group, in the upper toolbar. To hide the navigator, perform the same operation.

You can also temporarily display the Navigator by hovering over the Navigator icon in the upper toolbar.

When you enlarge the image, you can move within it by moving the white navigation rectangle within the thumbnail.

The Histogram

Top to bottom: RGB histogram, Green channel histogram, Luminance histogram.

The histogram is hidden by default. To display it, click on the Histogram button, located in the Display group, in the upper toolbar. To hide the histogram, perform the same operation.

You can also temporarily display the histogram by hovering over the histogram icon in the toolbar.

The DxO FilmPack histogram calculates the light values for each RGB (red, green, blue) channel and superimposes the values on the graph. This makes it possible to see the areas of overlap among the different channels of the three additive colors (red, green, blue).

You can also display each channel individually by clicking on the corresponding buttons on the right side of the palette:

The Menus

PC


The Menu button displays a context menu divided into sections, each of which has sub-sections that are accessible in a context menu (indicated by a tiny arrow). The elements of the Menu are the same whether in the Image list or in Processing.

1st section:

2nd section:

3rd section:

4th section:

5th section:

Mac

In the standalone application version of DxO FilmPack, the File > Save command overwrites the original file; the File > Save As command creates a new file instead, thus preserving the original. In the plugin version, the Save button works the same as the File > Save command and thus overwrites the original file.

Preferences

The Preferences dialog box is accessible via the Menu button (Windows) or in the DxO FilmPack menu (macOS). It contains two tabs: General, for all settings tied to running the application; Processing, for setting the default JPEG compression.

General tab

Processing

Keyboard shortcuts

Main

CommandPCMac
Open fileCtrl + OCmd + O
Open folderShift + Ctrl + OShift + Cmd + O
Save imageCtrl + SCmd + S
Save image asAlt + Ctrl + SOpt + Cmd + S
PrintCtrl + PCmd + P
Close windowCtrl + WCmd + W
Batch processingCtrl + BCmd + B
QuitAlt + F4Cmd + Q
UndoCtrl + ZCmd + Z
RedoCtrl + YShift + Cmd + Z
Show/Hide toolbarShift + PShift + P
Display presets on 1 columnShift + DShift + D
PreferencesCtrl + Shift + PCmd + ,
Full screenF11Ctrl + Cmd + F
Exit full screenEscEsc
Temporary selection of Hand toolSpacebarSpacebar
Show/Hide snapshotsSS
HelpF1Cmd + ?

Toolbar

CommandPCMac
Save image asAlt + Ctrl + SOpt + Cmd + S
Save settings as presetShift + Ctrl +SShift + Cmd + S
Compare with reference imageDD
Single image/Split previewCC
Fit to screenF3Cmd + 0
100% zoomF4Cmd + 1
Zoom in/Zoom outCtrl + +/Ctrl+-Cmd + +/Cmd + –
CropRR
Rotate leftCtrl + LCmd + L
Rotate rightCtrl + RCmd + R
HorizonSS
Previous imageCtrl + left arrowCmd + left arrow
Return to image browserCtrl + WCmd + W
Next imageCtrl + right arrowCmd + right arrow
Show/Hide controls panePP
Show/Hide navigatorTT
Show/Hide histogramHH