Fixel has recently announced 6 plugins for After Effects and Photoshop: ColoritivityBW, Contrastica, LightIT, Coloritivity (I, II), ColoritivityFX and EdgeHancer. These are delicate color correction tools and presets which offers all sorts of image-processing to create and fix the overall look of the picture. There are scenarios which you can see the obvious different between using such effects over the existing ones that you get with the software, but I have to admit it’s not always the case, and sometimes you’ll need a trained eye to really tell the difference.
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For example, EdgeHancer uses special Algorithm both for detecting edges and enhancing them although the final result does look similar to the Unsharp Mask effect (included with After Effects) it can create an interesting look and gives the impression of an HDR-like effect. As for the ColoritivityBW – I think the Black and White effect can yield the same if not better result, however, this one make it little bit easier to use if you’re after quick preset and don’t want to mess with various options. Same is true for the other Coloritivity effects. They’ll make your work quicker by applying a certain preset. Contrastica on the other hand is one of my favorite tools here. It has a special function to add contrast, so you can also use it to add saturation to colors which result differently from the classic saturation effects we’re used too. I found it extremely useful especially when used in combination with the Vibrance effect – Together they work as a magic effect which makes every shot pop out of the screen (Take a look at the image below to see the before and after).  LightIT can also create a more subtle result over the regular levels effects and make your footage look more natural with less halos.

Before and After using Contrastica and EdgeHancer • Clip WC-FH100-50 courtesy of Artbeats

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These effects comes with minimal controls which makes them very easy to use. They are working inside Photoshop (CS4+) as well – I guess this is the reason for the preview switch which doesn’t make a lot of sense for AE users, but crucial on the Photoshop side. They are also 32-bpc and GPU-accelerated.
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You can watch short demo clips of each effects at AEscripts
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