Sequencing of PP

[mindfulness]

I am using the free Canon EX Zoombroswer for my PP. I normally do my PP in the following sequences:


1. Look at the Jpeg file (I dun shoot in RAW as I prefer the full jpeg format of about 5mb size)
2. Select Level Adjustment
3. Tone Curve Adjustment
4. Saturation and Contrast (seldom use this or minimally use this)
5. Sharpness
6. Trim and Crop
7. Save as new file

If the final results not satisfactory, I will repeat the above. Is there any degradation of IQ if repeated PP is used?

I read somewhere that it is advisable to Sharpen at the very end stage of PP. Is this desirable?
I also never use Brightness as I read somewhere to avoid this process. Is this correct?

Thanks in advance for your advise.

 

[cantaresg]

Each time you save into the jpeg format, there will definitely be image degradation. So each time you open a jpeg and save it again, soon you will find jpeg artifects noticeable. That's why it is more advisable to edit your images in raw format.

I believe you sharpen at the end because you will not want to sharpen all the artifacts that you may have in your picture.

In any case, I think it is better to do your cropping before you do your other adjustment, as this will help you to focus on the image area, rather than doing corrections on the areas that you will want to discard later.

 

[mindfulness]

Each time you save into the jpeg format, there will definitely be image degradation. So each time you open a jpeg and save it again, soon you will find jpeg artifects noticeable. That's why it is more advisable to edit your images in raw format.

I believe you sharpen at the end because you will not want to sharpen all the artifacts that you may have in your picture.

In any case, I think it is better to do your cropping before you do your other adjustment, as this will help you to focus on the image area, rather than doing corrections on the areas that you will want to discard later.

Thanks! Which mode should i shoot in RAW? Canon 500D has a choice of RAW+Jpeg or just RAW?'

Got a free software Digital Photo Professional - should I use this software to do PP for my RAW files or Zoombrowser?

I find the later so much easier to use.

thanks! will try out this for the next round of photos

 

[cantaresg]

If you had used zoombrowser, the first step will require you to convert the file to a jpeg I believe.

It will thus be better to use a raw editor like DPP to edit the colour, brightness etc first. Then convert it to jpeg and do the final adjustment to your liking.

 

[mindfulness]

If you had used zoombrowser, the first step will require you to convert the file to a jpeg I believe.

It will thus be better to use a raw editor like DPP to edit the colour, brightness etc first. Then convert it to jpeg and do the final adjustment to your liking.

thanks! will try that out for my next batch of photos

 

[night86mare]

If the final results not satisfactory, I will repeat the above. Is there any degradation of IQ if repeated PP is used?

I read somewhere that it is advisable to Sharpen at the very end stage of PP. Is this desirable?
I also never use Brightness as I read somewhere to avoid this process. Is this correct?

1. certain tools in photoshop are destructive per se.. i.e. they destroy information that is there. examples include brightness.. most of the auto tools.. hence when possible, try to avoid. but not a MUST, DIE DIE MUST AVOID. i also use auto tools and brightness now and then. the idea is that you know what you are doing when you use these tools.

2. as mentioned, saving multiple times in jpg format will degrade image. you can read up more on this, loads of webpages detail this.

3. yes, sharpen at the end stage.. is just better. if you don't get what i mean, do the same things to the same image, look at 100% crop, and you will get what i mean.

 

[mindfulness]

1. certain tools in photoshop are destructive per se.. i.e. they destroy information that is there. examples include brightness.. most of the auto tools.. hence when possible, try to avoid. but not a MUST, DIE DIE MUST AVOID. i also use auto tools and brightness now and then. the idea is that you know what you are doing when you use these tools.

2. as mentioned, saving multiple times in jpg format will degrade image. you can read up more on this, loads of webpages detail this.

3. yes, sharpen at the end stage.. is just better. if you don't get what i mean, do the same things to the same image, look at 100% crop, and you will get what i mean.

thanks! I dun have Photoshop. I use the free softwares given by Canon zoombrowsere and DPP.

I also use free software Magic Photo Clinic 4.5 too

 

[night86mare]

mindfulness - if you don't have budget for photoshop, try getting GIMP

 

[mindfulness]

mindfulness - if you don't have budget for photoshop, try getting GIMP

thanks!! GIMP is free? or much cheaper than adobe?
I like something simple yet versatile to use

 

[night86mare]

gimp is FOC, but not so easy to use. i.e. not so user friendly.

my advice is, there is a reason why so many people use photoshop. so invest in it.

 

[Lolrence]

Ok, for me, I shoot in raw. Photos with good potential are saved in PSD and TIFF formats, the rest are saved in JPEG format. When working in Photoshop, I always use layer adjustment tools, never working directly on the image. If I make a mistake, just mask it out or delete the whole adjustment layer. What kind of PP goes onto a photo depends very much on my vision and what I want to depict, so I don't have a standard workflow.

 

[cantaresg]

Photoshop isn't that friendly to learn either actually. However, photoshop is definitely more powerful than GIMP but GIMP is free.

Both these softwares give you the possibility of editing jpegs without "hurting any pixels". If you take time to learn the softwares, they allow you to edit your images selectively. Meaning, you are able to target specific areas in your picture and edit those areas separately.

GIMP can be downloaded from here: www.gimp.org

If you need to get a cheap version of Photoshop, and you are a student, you can get it here: http://www.mine.com.sg/
PS: Adobe Camera Raw in CS4 allows you to make targetted adjustment to a raw file as well.

 

[daredevil123]

You can try adobe photoshop elements also. It is a reduced version but still work very well. I am not sure if they still releases the elements series.

BTW, there is another way to increase contrast safely, instead of the Contrast/Brightness slider (bad), or curves. Unsharp Mask filter can be used to add some contrast. They call this method "Enhancing Local contrast". Here is a site teaching you how to use it:
http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tutorials/local-contrast-enhancement.htm

I usually crop first, do my adjustments, then resize and do sharpening in the end. I use a combination of Lightroom and PS and shoot everything in RAW+JPEG. Sometimes for a small web image, I will just pick up the JPEG file use it and get it done quick.