For HDR I like to fire up Adobe Bridge, select my raw images, go to the Tools Menu (this is Windows 10 btw) and open the Google flyout menu to send them to Merge to HDR Efex Pro 2. I discovered after the upgrade to 2019 that the choice went missing. I reinstalled Google/Nik, checked all the plugin folders, all was there file-wise, but nothing in the menu. I was about to whip out a nasty-gram to SAdobe for removing something ONCE AGAIN, but first I did one last effort: right-clicked on one of the selected images. Voila, the Google menu was there.
This tip may not apply to everyone but if you use Bridge in that way on Windows, there’s the new location.
Every time there is a new version of Photoshop / Bridge, not just a minor update, but a new version, the Adobe products install a new directory structure. They don’t just over write the existing product. That explains why third party plugins need to be re-installed each time with a major new version. The Plugins directory is a sub directory under the Photoshop application directory structure. It isn’t Adobe’s issue, you just have to know that a new version requires re-installing 3rd party plugins.
That’s a good solid primer on Adobe upgrades, but that’s not what’s going on here. I obviously worded it in a confusing way. I already had reinstalled Nik and cjecked the contents of the folders, everything was copied over properly (and surprisingly). To access Nik for selected images I got used to the Tools menu because the Google flyout would be there. That was removed. Fortunately it is still in the contextual menu when you right click. Someone made either the conscience programming decision to remove third party access in the Tools menu or did a classic copy-paste error with code, being that 2019 is a new separate install. I’ve seen THAT done countless times in my 21 years as a senior software developer for a semiconductor company. This isn’t about different directory locations and doing a reinstall; once again Adobe changes something for no added benefit, or executes a major gaff such as the Print preview in Photoshop that they mangled almost 2 years ago and still haven’t rectified it. Actually, I should check 2019 but not getting hopes up.
I was wrong when I said the new location to access the Google/Nik menu is the flyout menu; I just checked 2018 and it’s there too, I just hadn’t used it, only used the Tools menu. So the Tools option is the only part that was changed/removed. Not earth-shattering.