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There is a plethora of plug-ins available for Photoshop and Photoshop plug-in compatible programs (Fireworks, PaintShop Pro, etc.). Alien Skin Software produces a plug-in called Eye Candy 4000, a selection of 23 different special effect filters. Once the program is installed, you can access the filters from the Filter drop down menu. I will list the 23 filters, what they do and how well they work.

Eye Candy 4000 Interface
All Eye Candy filters are accessible from the plug-in interface. The left side provides the editable settings for each filter and the right side has a preview window. Tabs near the top give you access to other settings. Artists can save filter settings and even trade them with other artists. Also, many Eye Candy 4000 filters are resolution independent. Another plus is the ability to create tileable images with the 'Seamless Tile' option. This option only works with the following filters; Fur, HSB, Noise, Jiggle, Marble, Swirl, Water Drops, and Wood. Eye Candy filters can also be applied to layers and selections. It is recommended you apply the filters in layers rather than a selection. Another feature of Eye Candy is its support of 'Live Effects.' This means if a file is revised the applied filter will update to match the revision.

Eye Candy interface for the Wood filter

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