Disclaimer – Nik Collections is a product currently sold by DXO for $149. But versions have been around for a long time, originally developed in 1995 by Nik Multimedia & sold for $600/copy. Google acquired it in 2012, sold it for $150/copy, then distributed it for free in 2016. DXO bought it in 2017 and currently updates and improves it.
The free google version (courtesy of Techspot: Windows or Mac) is what I’ve been using successfully with the latest version (v13.1, Jan 2024) of Lightroom Classic. Some websites suggest there are bugs using the 2016 version with the latest Adobe products. So far, I’ve had good luck and results but your mileage may vary. I’ve only used the Silver Efex Pro 2 module, not the sharpener, analog, or other modules. For more information, google “Nik Collection free version”.

Black & White Presets

I’ve been interested in film simulations both color and b&w. But I have been somewhat disappointed in many I’ve tried, especially b&w. I like the idea of making my images less digital looking, adding film-like qualities. Many digital photographers have been resorting to mist or glimmer filters to take the ‘digital-edge’ off. These soften the highlights without affecting the shadows. So trying these filters and tinkering with the digital camera color science has been something I’m exploring.
When converting color images to black&white, I haven’t like the results when applying a film simulation. I loved Plus-X and Tri-X film, back-in-the-day. But the artificial grain added by their film simulation presets don’t work for me. So I’ve been trying Silver Efex Pro 2, part of Nik Collection, to convert my color images to black & white. As with any digital darkroom tool, Silver Efex Pro 2 gives me a base b&w image to work on. Nik Collection are a group of plugins for Lightroom and Photoshop. So the color image is exported by Lightroom (with or without Lightroom edits) into a Nik Collection toolbox. I prefer the Silver Efex Pro 2 modules. You cycle through the different presets then save back into Lightroom for further edits and final output. Some of Silver Efex’s presets are extreme but I often get a better result than Lightroom’s b&w presets. I’m sure I could end up with similar results using Lightroom but found Silver Efex to be a better starting point.

Example from Reflections/Komorebi (click each image & read the filename for the Silver Efex Preset used)