I’ve always wondered how Beeple achieved some of the effects in his art. They often have a painted look. During an interview, Beeple shared one his secrets – Topaz Studio. This Topaz Studio Review shows what it can do and what you get with the one-time purchase (no subscriptions!).

Topaz Studio Features:

  • Hundreds of filters
  • Non-destructive
  • Masking
  • Customizable
  • Photoshop plugin option
  • No subscription!
A rendered image inside of Topaz Studio displays a menu of compositing filters.

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If you’re a Beeple fan, check out his book on Amazon with his first 5,000 “Everydays.”

What is Topaz Studio?

Topaz Studio 2 is an intuitive image effect toolbox built with Topaz Labs’ powerful photo enhancement technology.

The program includes a collection of powerful filters and effects we can add to any image. They’re extremely customizable but also very easy to use. It works as a stand-alone application or can be used as a Photoshop plug-in.

And the best part – Topaz Studio is a one-time purchase with no ongoing subscription cost!

A digital render is edited inside of Topaz Studio 2

Topaz Filters: Hundreds of Customizable Filters and Effects

Whether we are photographers, digital painters or 3D artists, Topaz Studio filters can take our work to the next level with the push of just a few buttons. My illustration workflow always ends with Topaz Studio. Here’s a 3D render before and after using Topaz Studio:

A 3D render before compositing.
Before Topaz Studio
A 3D render is more colorful after adding filters in Topaz
After Topaz Studio

Sort through pages and pages of Topaz Studio filters. All of these can be adjusted later.

Filters Include:

  • Textures
  • Line Art
  • Color Adjustments
  • Brush Effects
  • Distortion
  • Vignette
  • Much More!
An image of a woman standing with a magical wand is inside the Topaz Studio interface while filters are scrolling.

An Easy to Use Image Editor

Topaz Studio is one of the easiest creative programs I’ve used. Simply load an image and go. We can add endlessly customizable filters individually. Or we can use pre-saved “looks” that stylize the image in one click.

With either option, we can continue to make adjustments non-destructively. The true power of Topaz Studio is when we stack and combine filters together.

A science fiction character on a space station inside the Topaz Studio interface.

Topaz Studio is a large collection of both individual filters and pre-made combinations called “looks.”

Each is awesome by itself, but when you combine multiple filters or looks, you can get some amazing effects.

There are look categories that include “bright,” “artistic,” “bold,” and “dramatic” among others.

Any looks we create can be saved as presets for future use. Topaz Studio is entirely non-destructive so we won’t lose our original image. We can always come back and adjust it more later.

Stand-Alone App or Photoshop Plug-In

Topaz Studio works either as a stand-alone application or as a Photoshop plug-in.

When using Topaz Studio as a Photoshop plug-in, we can access it from the Filter menu. It works on both rasterized images and smart layers.

Of course the topaz photoshop plugin is great, but it requires a Photoshop subscription. Fortunately, Topaz Studio 2 can also be used as a stand-alone application on a desktop.

A drop down box of filters in Photoshop shows Topaz Studio 2 as an option.

Flexible Masking Features

The features don’t stop with the effects. We can easily apply masking features for any effect -individually or in groups.

Brush: Manually paint areas where you want the effect to be stronger or weaker.

Gradients: Apply linear or radial (spot) mask gradients.

Edge Aware: Automatically adjusted degrees of feathering near edges when selected.

More: Adjust color, luma, feathering and more – all non-destructively.

In the Topaz Studio interface, a mask has been painted over the outline of the underlying image.
Filters for your renders - Like BEEPLE!

How Much Does Topaz Studio Cost?

Topaz Studio’s current price is $100. It’s a one time purchase with no ongoing subscription costs.

It became a little more clear how Beeple can knock out a render a day when I realized the power of using filters over 3D renders. Is it cheating? I don’t think so but who cares. The final product is the important part and it’s worked out for Beeple.

If this Topaz Studio 2 review has been helpful, using the links on this page to purchase pays me a small commission at no extra cost to you. And it’s hugely appreciated!

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