Exposure from Alien Skin is a well-respected app and plug-in for adding effects to digital images. Exposure 6 just may change my digital imaging workflow, and become my primary image processing application.

Exposure 6 is the modern equivalent of a traditional film-processing lab. It offers a new version of the basic editing tools to cover contrast, exposure, highlights, shadows, clarity, vibrancy, and saturation.

All of the controls are basic sliders; a simple double-tap returns a slider to its default position. In addition to a slider, a large number of presets are available for adjusting color.

What I really like about this wonderful digital darkroom is its wide range of film type presets. Those of us who worked with film cameras remember the myriad discussions of which film stock was best for which type of pictures. I used to like working in black and white, using Kodak Technical Pan, Kodak Tri-X, or the Ilford Delta series of film. So I was amazed to see these and many more film types available as presets, to add both the grain structure of the films and the characteristics of how they reacted to light. These features add analog heart to digital images, which can sometimes seem a bit soulless.

The other feature I really enjoy is the integration of Alien Skin's Bokeh app into Exposure. Bokeh is the blur or haze produced by a lens. We expect all our camera lenses to be sharp and clear, but they aren't, although many come very close.

The way a lens causes various types of distortions and blur is know as a bokeh. Specific lenses have well-known bokehs, and Exposure 6 includes a large library of lens bokehs that you can add to stylize your image.

I tried adding the bokeh for a mirrored lens; the result appeared similar to a Canon 500 mm mirrored lens that I used to use. The depth of field was spot on, at least to my memory.

Exposure 6 is available as a plug-in for Photoshop, Lightroom, and Aperture, as well as a stand-alone app.

Exposure 6 is $149.00 for the full version, and $69.00 for an upgrade version. A demo is available.

See other software choices from Tom's Mac Software Picks.