noise reduction software

back alley · 02-10-2012

do you use it?

what do you use?

how do you use it? stand alone, as a plug in to other software?

i know nothing about it and thought i should start to learn...where should i start?

Benjamin Marks · 02-10-2012

Joe: I have tried several. The PS plug in from Topaz has worked well for me. Also the noise reduction in Lightroom is pretty good these days. Ditto Adobe Camera Raw.

I tend to use it for micro-4/3 shots taken in low light. But I tend to only use it to reduce the appearance of noise, rather than to eliminate noise altogether, which can give skin tones a plastic sort of look. Actually, recently I have been adding noise to digital files to give them a more film-like look. This is one of the things that B&W conversion software like Silver EFEX 2 allows you to do. Tri-X in Rodinal anyone?

sevres_babylone · 02-10-2012

I would save your money and buy another bag

I have Noise Ninja, and more recently bought the Topaz one. But I've never actually used them -- aside from some brief playing around with them to see how they work. A more sensible approach than mine would be to wait until you have a killer print that you think is ruined by noise, and only then, start to play around with these products. My recollection is that Topaz had a pretty good trial period. Another alternative, NIK, almost always has a 15 day trial period.

kshapero · 02-10-2012

Noise Ninja

back alley · 02-10-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by sevres_babylone

I would save your money and buy another bag

I have Noise Ninja, and more recently bought the Topaz one. But I've never actually used them -- aside from some brief playing around with them to see how they work. A more sensible approach than mine would be to wait until you have a killer print that you think is ruined by noise, and only then, start to play around with these products. My recollection is that Topaz had a pretty good trial period. Another alternative, NIK, almost always has a 15 day trial period.

get another bag? ouch...

so, what yer sayin' is don't fix what ain't broke?

jwnash1 · 02-10-2012

I have been very pleased with Neat Image. it is stand alone, very reasonably priced, easy to use and does a nice job. here is the link to Luminous Landscape's review http://www.luminous-landscape.com/re...eatimage.shtml
Regards,
john

willie_901 · 02-10-2012

I just use the basic tools in Lightroom 3 and I apply the minimum amount of N filtering.

I'm rarely use noise filtering. It is useful for regions where there isn't much detail such as skies.

I would never pay extra for specific noise filtering software.

sevres_babylone · 02-12-2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by back alley

get another bag? ouch...

so, what yer sayin' is don't fix what ain't broke?

As someone who bought the Think Tank last year, and is waiting on my Barebones to arrive, I should refrain from bag cracks.

That's more or less what I'm saying. If you make a print, and the noise bothers you, then it might be time to look into the software. Similarly, if you want a magazine to print it, and the noise is bothersome. But otherwise I would hold off. I've wasted a lot of money on software, but usually with plug-ins, there is a certain fun or enjoyment factor before I realize I've wasted my money. The real waste comes at upgrade time, when the version you've purchased won't work due to an operating system upgrade. That's why I say to wait until you need it.

Plus, the good thing with software purchases on the internet, even if the time you need it is 3 a.m. on Christmas day, you won't be cursing yourself because the computer store is closed.

Chriscrawfordphoto · 02-12-2012

Noise reduction destroys image detail. I've tried a bunch of them too and they don't really do much good with really noisy images, while moderate noise they do remove well, they do so at the expense of detail that I'd rather have in the photo. Modern cameras have very little noise anyway until you get to very high ISOs, where the NR software doesn't do well in my opinion anyway.

Steve M. · 02-12-2012

I use an old free program called Noiseware Community Edition. Works for me, and is handy for smoothing out grain w/ film scans, which is all I've ever used it for.

Gid · 02-12-2012

I used to have neat image, but never used it. If I think I might need to use it I use what is in LR (as per camera raw?). You've really got to print to see if noise is a problem, but you can approximate what a print might look like by zooming in to life size on your screen - if you use elements or PS, then make sure the ruler is showing and zoom in until an inch (or cm) on the ruler is and inch (or cm) in real life (1:1 scale). Zooming to 100% is just a waste of time - you'll end up getting paranoid about noise, sharpness and a whole host of other inconsequentials - I know I've been there