Raw Therapee Basics: Targeted Noise Reduction by L* Value
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ส.ค. 2020
- Raw Therapee Basics: Targeted Noise Reduction by L* Value
My Exclusive Members Site: bit.ly/2SwaSZ6
My Kit Recommendations: bit.ly/3bLmdfP
Get Topaz Denoise AI - topazlabs.com/denoise-ai-2/re...
In this video I show you how to easily target your noise reduction to certain tones in your image, those tones that carry the noise, while leaving other less noisy tone unaffected.
![ไหล่อ่อน (Soft Shoulder) - Atom ชนกันต์ [OFFICIAL MV]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/HUWl53msBQY/mqdefault.jpg)
Thanks Andy for explaining not only the tools of RT and how to use them by example but also the setup and use of profiles or export to PS ect. I'm into RT since a while now and I can say your videos are the most helpful teachingI have found.
Thank you for your kind words 🍻👍
Thanks again Andy, these videos are just so valuable for anyone working in Rawtherapee. I say it all the time, I have been using RT for years and every single one of your videos I learn something so useful.
I'm going to have to go back and re-edit some of my milkyway photos as my handling of dealing with noise was really so slap shod!
Cheers Peter - I'm having to do that myself a little bit too 🍻😆
Many thanks for another very informative tutorial. Your time and effort to produce these videos is greatly appreciated.
Cheers John - much appreciated 🍻👍
Very good info - Thanks professor!
Cheers John 🍻🍻
Thank you , Andy. Your videos have been extraordinarily educational. I am new to RT, and you have been a guiding light. In regards to a general workflow, do you recommend dealing with exposure settings, then noise reduction, and finally sharpness? Looking forward to your next video.
Thanks Alan 🍻🍻 In any raw process software the first thing I advocate is getting contrast under control so that whites are not too white and blacks are not too black. Exposure 'per see' tends to correct one of those two things at the expense of the other. Getting contrast under control is the imperative first step, even it it means the image looks like washed out crap when you have finished the step.
And RT gives you more ways to do this than any other raw processor I know of - that's why I like it so much.
THANKS a lot. Great stuff as usual :-)
Thank you Silvio 🍻🍻
Thanks Andy, I look forward to the Topaz video and the more detailed analysis of the technical reasons for when you might choose RT over Topaz, i.e. when the benefits of RT outweigh the speed/convenience of Topaz.
Thanks Graham 👍 As a quick answer, as I hinted at in the video, Topaz for speed, RT for quality 😀 I'm undecided on whether to do the Topaz video before or after RT5.9 is released.
@@AndyAstbury Indeed you did, but I was thinking more about it being possible to identify specific circumstances when you might be confident that Topaz was likely to do a poor job, and speed wasn't an option.
Excellent tutorial and educational YET again my friend 👌👌👌 Thanks Andy. I'm starting to look forward to getting back to doing some editing of images - from way back as well as newer - having lost a lot of enthusiasm for photography 😒😢. (Mainly from issues with the weight of the equipment due to those past operations to both my hands and seemingly getting weaker... and either not having the right lens/camera combination AND/OR motion shake even when using a damn mobile). I hate to admit to you but I've decided to go try a Sony RX10 Mk iv - even though it's 'troublesome' with noise in high ISO and only a 1" sensor. Early days as only just got one and need to get set up with it - - - all those damn menus...
And good to see others calling you Prof or professor 😉😎
Cheers Frank 🍻🍻 Hey matey, you've got to do what you've got to do at the end of the day. Everything has an operational envelope and if you stay within it you can take good pics on anything. There's big envelopes and little 'uns that's all.
@@AndyAstbury Cheers mate 🍻. In the testing stages at the mo. Takes time... but encouraging results compared to previous 👍
Nice vid, lad
Tar muchly 👍
Excellent tutorial as always Andy. I really do like your RT workfkow here, for sure it targets exactly the areas you specifically wish to address rather than a global adjustment that adds problems whilst fixing others. If I was going to produce a huge print this is the method I would prefer to use 👍 Thankyou also for addressing Topaz Denoise which you are no doubt aware I'm very impressed with. I've been experimenting with some really tough files, Lumix RW2, high ISO ( 2000 to 6400 ) images taken in very difficult lighting with a 1" sensor camera. My initial workflow was bring the RAW file into LR, apply " process swap " to get rid of Adobes interference, then correct white balance. I then adjusted the shadows and highlights sliders to recover as much information as possible. Then I took the image into Photoshop, pop it into a smart filter and straight into Topaz Denoise. Once back into photoshop it was further post processing mostly in Camera Raw. Now since your last video I've changed things round. First thing I do is take the RAW image natively into Topaz Denoise. Happy with the result I've saved the image as a DNG and/or a TIFF 16bit ProPhotoRGB. I've then imported that file into Lightroom where I've completed my post processing just as I would if I'd been in ACR in PS. So what did I find? Firstly, if you want the very best noise removal results take the raw file directly into Topaz first. Having a noise free image from the start is the key. Using Topaz as a plug in works well but it works way better on the RAW file than it does a converted TIFF in LR or PS. There is however one serious caveat with this method. Despite Topaz spitting out a .dng or .tiff, the exposure latitude is considerably worse than the original raw file. That's saying a lot because as we all know higher ISO raw files have less exposure latitude to begin with. The problem this has is when you try to recover highlights that are slightly hot on the Topaz dng/tiff you basically can't, it becomes almost like working with a baked in jpeg. I also notice the colours are vastly different too. You certainly cannot use this method for colour critical work because any calibration you have done will be rendered mute. The other issue with bringing the raw directly into Topaz first is unlike working in photoshop as a smart object, the edit is destructive. If you decide you want to tweak your NR you have to start from scratch. Ive also had a couple of Topaz wobblies where instead of a dng or tiff I just got a black frame? I'm using version 2.2.7 which to date is the latest version but clearly there is a bug somewhere. Lastly you mention the DNG file being odd. When I see the .dng file in my Windows explorer it shows the dimensions to be 256 x 170 yet when opened in LR it correctly shows the proper resolution of the image ( in this case 3664 x 5488 ). Maybe thats normal for dng files but pretty sure none of my old Pentax dng files had this issue. Topaz would do well to incorporate some very basic tools within denoise to help with exposure lattitude. Given its a denoise program my guess is Topaz assume everything is going to be underexposed and highlight recovery isn't going to be an issue. I would advise users who's raw files need some highlight recovery do so in lightroom first and proceed with Topaz via the plug in. If your raw file has no such issues then proceed directly to Topaz for the best results. My other workaround is to bring both my Topaz dng/tiff and a copy of my highlight recovered LR tiff file into photoshop as layers, align them then create a luminosity mask for the Topaz file which allows the recovered highlights in the LR edited tiff to show underneath, effectively " exposure blending ". The main issue is the vast colour difference between the two although given its only the brightest highlight areas you are borrowing from the LR tiff its not too bad. All in all I'm very happy with Topaz but its clear RT has all the same advantages without the negatives if time isn't a concern and as you say, once you get a confident workfkow going RT will take just a couple of minutes unless you need to batch process of course.
Cheers 🍻👍 I'd pretty much concur with everything you mention here about Topaz, though I doubt they will add any exposure control as it may conflict with some of their other plugins. I won't be doing a video on it until I have found out what the output DNG really is because it's certainly not a 'proper' one. On a slightly different note, you know you can process a raw in Lr then export it in the DNG or even the 'same' raw format don't you?
@@AndyAstbury Agreed, Topaz have a whole suite of products so no doubt they would look to minimise too much crossover. Not sure I fully understand what you mean by exporting in the same raw format, do you mean export it as the cameras proprietary raw format? So say I work on a .NEF nikon file in lightroom and apply some basic adjustments, am I able to export it for use in another processing suite ( topaz in this case ) and still maintain it as a .NEF file? I was aware you could essentially export raw files into pretty much any format be that .dng, tiff, jpeg, etc but I figured once an adjustment had been made to the raw it was only creating an xmp file as a sidecar. I'm confused lol 😀 EDIT...Ah now I see, yes indeed, you can export the raw as " original " and retain the proprietary format. Now there is something I didn't know, so many thanks Andy 👍 Proof that I always learn something new watching your tutorials. I'll try bringing that new exported file into Topaz and see how it goes. 😊 EDIT 2...so I've brought a raw file in LR, literally just adjusting white balance and pulling the highlight slider down to recover highlights. I've exported that file as both " original " and also as a .DNG. If I bring either of these files directly into Topaz none of those edits are present, ie, the file looks exactly the same as if no white balance or highlight recovery was done. There is no difference between them and bringing in the proprietary raw file natively into Topaz. Exporting as a TIFF ( uncompressed 16bit ProPhotoRGB ) does however maintain those adjustments when it's brought into Topaz natively. Of course that would also be the case if I went via the plugin so no real surprise there. So doesn't look like I've found a solution to this 🙁
Oh dear - of course it looks the same because Topaz can't read the sidecar xmp. But try doing your Lightroom adjustments to your raw as normal, then export as either DNG or RAW then open that in Photoshop as a Smart Object. Then open Topaz as a smart filter and VOILA! It's pretty much the same in most circumstances as just working up the raw in Lr and sending it to Photoshop as a CameraRaw smart object. Either or, it's better than opening as a TIFF, even if you make the TIFF a smart object.
@@AndyAstbury Excellent Andy 😊 I've tried a variation of the above by instead taking the untouched out of camera proprietary raw file and opening it in Photoshop which immediately engages ACR. Upon adjusting the highlights and white balance I zeroed the sharpening and changed the colour profile to standard. Basically I want the file to be as neutral and flat as possible before sending it to Topaz. I then opened it as a smart object directly from ACR which I'll assume bypasses the file being converted to a TIFF or am I wrong? lol. With the file as a smart object I opened it in Topaz as a smart filter and voila the edits I did in ACR were intact. So am I to assume that Topaz is working on the RAW file or is it still working on a converted TIFF doing it this way? Is the only way I can send the RAW file to Topaz with my adjustments intact to go the LR route and save as " original " then open it in PS as a smart object which will in turn take the xmp file alterations along with it? Sorry for all the questions, I do appreciate your input on this 😋 EDIT.... Incidentally, following my PS edit I saved the file as a .PSD which I brought into LR. I've noticed that the colour difference introduced by Topaz directly with the RAW file isn't occuring anymore so that's a bonus 😊 So, after all this the best method seems to be 1) Open the propriety raw file in PS which opens ACR. 2) Once in ACR do whatever basic edits you need such as white balance and highlight recovery. 3) When you are ready to go into PS don't simply click open but instead select " open as Object " 4) You will now be in PS, click filter...Topaz Labs...Denoise. 5) Complete NR in Topaz to your satisfaction. 6) Click Apply and Topaz returns you to Photoshop. You can continue to post edit from here either returning to Camera Raw as a smart filter or using adjustment layers. 7) Save as .PSB file. You can then import that .PSB file into your LR catalogue where further editing, printing or simply exporting as a jpeg, etc can be done. You can of course open the .PSB in LR to take you back PS and make those changes you require non destructively. Does that sound about right? 😀
Or start in Lr and choose edit>>open as cameraraw smart object in photoshop - same thing. If you use this method it skips the initial ACR phase. The smart object contains a dupe of your raw file and the raw edits you made previously are enclosed within the smart object and not a sidecar file - hence Topaz gets the 'full picture' as it were. And you don't need to save as a PSB, you can save as a layered TIFF too - TIFF just acts the container. Try it, save as layered TIFF, close Photoshop then open the new TIFF back into Photoshop (if opening from Lr then choose edit original as the option. Once open in Ps double click the smart object and ACR will open up - check the file name at the top - it's still raw. If you want to change the raw adjustments then do so, but you will maybe need to redo the Topaz filter.
Thanks again Andy. That was certainly easier going than the wavelet vid last week!. Ive got topaz and had been meaning to ask you about it. Its heartening to find your opinion on it to be similar to mine . I thought you might have panned it because of the zippering and staircase effects it can give and are visible close zoomed in. Ive found fine feather detail can be really prone to this and it really hates it if there's a hint of moire going on. On the other hand, a shot I took of a bird recently when it was approaching dusk , and using auto ISO I would have normally binned. The camera chose 12,800 ISO and that camera was an A7R iv !. Not an ideal scenario to say the least. For a lark I put it through topaz and I nearly fell off my chair at how well topaz did with it. I got a very usable A4 print out of it. Blew me away. So yes topaz has a bit of a jekyll and hide personality to it in my view. So I'd be very keen to see a vid from you covering it when you get around to it . All the best mate.
Cheers Mark - Jekyll and Hyde - couldn't have put it better myself 🍻👍😀
@@AndyAstbury You did put it better than me because you knew how to spell Hyde correctly!😂😂
😆😢👍🍻
Hi Andy, probably you have already mentioned in one of your videos; however, can you please remind me again what was "Impulse Noise Reduction" function?Watching every single video of yours about RT! All the Best.
It's for removing 'salt and pepper' noise. This is where the value of a pixel is lost and replaced by either Dmin or Dmax/White or Black pixels. Always shows as individual pixels and usually at higher ISO values, but can occur at base ISO if you badly under expose.
@@AndyAstbury Thank you!
Hi Andy, Great tutorials. You did ask for requests and whereas this may be too simple, as a new user of Raw Therapee I would be very interested to see you process an image as a new user BUT with the benefit of your in depth experience and knowledge. I also appreciate that your main focus is on the natural world but as I mainly work with portraits I further wonder if you would use a portrait (of a human) in your tutorial?
Hi Carl, cheers🍻 If you want to send my a raw file then please do - I don't 'do' portraits👍
@@AndyAstbury Thanks Andy I have sent you a reply via tuition@wildlifeinpixels.net
Hi Carl - I don't think I can use that image as this is a commercial channel, but I will contact them and ask👍
@@AndyAstbury 👍