Amazing Highlight Recovery with Capture One Pro 7

November 29, 2012 by 3 Comments

In Capture One Pro 7, we have introduced a new processing engine improving the image quality on a number of different parameters such as the way the software now deals with extreme highlights and data close to being clipped.

These aspects have been dramatically improved and now have:

  • Larger range for how much overexposure that can be recovered
  • Color precision is greatly improved in recovered areas
  • Much smoother transition to clipped data
  • More detail in the highlight areas

JPG                                                                Capture One Pro 6                                Capture One Pro 7

The image above shows three different versions of the same shot. The left side image is the JPG that was generated in the camera. The center image is the result of recovering highlights in the raw file using Capture One Pro 6. The image to the right is the same raw file but now processed in Capture One Pro 7.

Using Capture One Pro 7 it was possible to recover almost all the detail and color tones in the overexposed areas of the swan by using only the Highlight slider in the High Dynamic Range tool.

Visit the blog to see more examples of the improved ability to recover highlights

Below is another example of the new and improved processing engine’s ability to recover color and detail by using Capture One Pro 7 on a raw landscape image.

JPG                                                                Capture One Pro 6                                 Capture One Pro 7

With the JPG file, it is not possible to recover any color and detail in the sky. By processing the raw file in Capture One Pro 6, you can recover most of the sky, but the color information is wrong and the missing color information will show with hard transitions. With Capture One Pro 7 however, it is possible to recover both the detail in the clouds and the color of the blue sky in a natural and pleasing way.

For both raw files, the High Dynamic Range tool was used to recover the highlight detail. Some global saturation was also added.

When shooting landscape images using natural light, it can sometimes be quite challenging to control the highlights as you cannot control the light source. And even when you can control the light, you may still need the ability to recover highlights.

Many of us have tried shooting a portrait in the studio only to misadjust the flash just as the expression was just perfect, like in the example below.

Raw file – way overexposed                                                     Capture One Pro 6 recovery

This image is totally overexposed due to a human error with the flash and even though Capture One Pro 6 can recover a majority of the image, it will still require many hours of retouching to save it.

However, with Capture One Pro 7 it is possible to recover all the highlight detail.  The image above has only been adjusted by using the Exposure tool globally as well as the Exposure tool in a Local Adjustments mask in Capture One Pro 7.

All the best,

Niels

Filed under Capture One Tips & Tricks, Capture One Workflow Tagged with , , , , , , , ,

The shot I almost didn’t take, Elgol, Scotland

October 4, 2012 by 6 Comments

Persistence pays.

Travelling with fellow photographer David Oliver, he wanted to find a stretch of stony beach at Elgol because the surrounding cliffs looked pretty interesting. I was working on a calendar project, so I was also keen, but I wasn’t convinced the weather would be dramatic enough for what I had in mind.

As it turns out, the shot I had in mind wasn’t the photo that I loved. Even more remarkable, I almost didn’t take it!

Elgol is on the Isle of Skye and, being mid-winter, there were very few people around – just the locals and some road workers. As we came into tiny Elgol, the road down to the beach and harbour was blocked by a couple of large trucks effecting maintenance works. There was no way to get around the truck and the workers didn’t seem to be moving anytime soon.

We did what all experienced photographers do and retired to a local café a few hundred metres up the hill. I can remember the wonderful pumpkin soup and the steaming scones and jam, polished off with a cup of tea. It was hard to move back out into the Scottish cold and the weather looked like it was closing in. We wondered if we would even bother going down to the beach.

But something inside us said we should, just in case. After all, we’d come all this way, the food was good, so who knows what we might find!

The photo we had in mind was good, but the breakwater creating a tiny harbour looked more interesting. Walking out to the end of it, I had a great view looking back onto the beach with its small school (it’s not visible in my image). What a great place to be educated!

The breakwater also revealed some grassy fields above the cliffs and movement in the distant clouds was creating some interesting light. This seemed to be the better photograph!

To get the milky water, I used a 4.0 Neutral Density with the 28mm Phase One lens, allowing a 30 second exposure. The 28mm has a very large front element, so it’s not easy to put a filter in front. Instead, there’s a small holder in the back of the lens which takes gelatine filters. Now, gelatine filters are okay, but the 4.0 ND has a slight colour cast to it as you can see in the original file.

I took the file into Capture One and with a couple of clicks using the White Balance picker tool, I had the colour looking pretty natural. I also cropped the image down and lightened it a little.

From here I used the Local Adjustment layers – I love this aspect of Capture One. The first step was to darken down the sky because it is a little bright in the original. Our eyes tend to go to the light parts of the image first, but I didn’t want them to go straight to the sky. Solution: darken it down a tad.

Next I added another Local Adjustment and this time used the Advanced Color Editor to add some blue into the sea. Never mind the sky is still grey, I wanted a blue sea. I know this doesn’t look completely real and I am happy with that.

To take the eye towards the cliffs, I used another Local Adjustment and, again using the Advanced Color Editor, tweaked the grasses. I gave them additional color saturation and contrast. Now the photo looks a little closer to the holiday brochures we had seen!

And for the final image (shown at the beginning of the blog), I added a fourth Local Adjustment, and with a quite large brush dragged it through the middle of the image and lightened this area. It gives the image a little more life by lightening up the middle – where I want the eye to travel.

So, for someone who had eaten too much for lunch, it turned out to be a productive afternoon. No, the photo didn’t run in the calendar, but it was one provided to the client for their short list. No accounting for taste, of course!

Peter Eastway is a professional photographer and photography magazine editor based in Sydney, Australia. To see more of his photography, visit http://www.petereastway.com. Peter also offers an online Landscape Photography MasterClass. Details can be found at http://www.betterphotography.com.

Filed under Photography Travelogues Tagged with , , , , , , , ,

Highlights and shadows at Loch Harport

August 30, 2012 by 2 Comments

I am not sure if I have the correct workflow, but it seems to work well for me. My approach is to expose for the highlights and let Capture One bring out the shadows.

Now, up front I have to emphasise that there is a problem with this technique, and that problem lies in the shadow areas. If I am underexposing my image to ensure the sky doesn’t clip (isn’t overexposed), then darker areas in the image might be receiving very little exposure. This isn’t necessarily a problem if I want to leave these areas dark in the final rendition, but if I want to lighten them, then the really dark areas may lack the quality I desire if I lighten them too much.

However, when using a medium format digital back with a wide dynamic range, I find that I can comfortably lighten up the shadows without too many problems, most of the time.

This would not necessarily be the case with a DSLR camera which has a narrower dynamic range. If using a DSLR, I would be better off bracketing my exposures and using a better exposure to lighten up the dark areas. I also bracket with my medium format back as well, as insurance, but I find I don’t need the lighter file very often.

This photograph of a dingy in Loch Harport on the Isle of Skye is a case in point. The original exposure is very dark in the foreground, but the sky is just about right. The camera wanted to give the image a little more exposure, but I used the exposure override to keep the histogram under control. I am always looking at my histogram for this type of work.

Using a Local Adjustment, I brushed in the foreground and lightened it. At this size and looking at a low resolution file, it shouldn’t look too bad. There’s lots of detail to be found and, as I still want to keep some blacks in this area, I’m comfortable with the result. However, as noted above, I could possibly improve the quality of this area by using another exposure which better accommodated the shadow areas, and stripping it in. But that’s a lot of work unless I plan to turn the image into an exhibition print. For book reproduction (where this image was used), the current workflow approach is more than adequate.

The late afternoon light was relatively colourless, so I added in a second Local Adjustment and helped the dingy out with a little more colour. I generally don’t change the colours that are already there, finding that an increase in colour saturation is often enough, but for the dingy I preferred the result when I also warmed up the hue. Bringing out the yellows and reds helps.

Warm colours come forward, cool colours recede, so I added in a third Local Adjustment and made the water and clouds a little blue. This adds to the mood a little and removes a little bit of the murkiness, plus creates more of a separation between the dingy and its background.

And the final step, as shown in the opening photo, was to add one more Local Adjustment and lighten up the dingy itself, giving it a subtle ‘spot light’.

Peter Eastway is a professional photographer and photography magazine editor based in Sydney, Australia. To see more of his photography, visit http://www.petereastway.com. Peter also offers an online Landscape Photography MasterClass. It contains articles and videos, outlining his camera and post-production techniques. Details can be found at http://www.betterphotography.com.

Filed under Photography Travelogues Tagged with , , , , , , ,

Murky weather at the Isle of Skye

August 16, 2012 by 12 Comments

I love murky weather!

In many ways, it is so much more photographic than the beautiful blue sky with strong overhead sunshine. I much prefer the mood and atmosphere of low cloud or a storm, but a drab grey sky with light drizzle is certainly challenging.

This is exactly the weather I was presented with one morning on the Isle of Skye. Travelling with friend and photographer David Oliver, we had established our base at Saucy Mary’s Lodge which, despite its name, was very comfortable and the food simply excellent. In fact, the lodgings were so good we didn’t mind getting up late and returning early.

Not that we had much choice since it was mid-winter and the days were very short. We weren’t exactly sure where we wanted to go, but David had found this road on Google Maps and felt it showed promise, in spite of the weather.

When we passed these reeds and I asked David if we could stop to take a few frames, he was less than enthusiastic. I guess I can understand why because looking at the raw file, the image is very flat and quite colourless. However, a lack of colour isn’t necessarily a problem if you’re processing your files in Capture One.

In Capture One Pro, the Advanced Color Editor allows you to pick colours and adjust their hue, saturation and lightness. And combined with Local Adjustments, you have a lot of control over how your image looks. Let’s take a look at how Capture One transformed this scene and, before you write your objections about the strong colour, I agree this particular rendition is a little over cooked.

Using the Color Editor’s ‘Pick Basic Color Correction’ tool (you’ll find it in the Color Tool Tab, under Color Editor and its Advanced tab), I selected the pale yellow of the reeds. This selected a range of yellows. I used the Smoothness slider to widen the selection of colours, then tweaked the saturation to make the colour much stronger. I repeated this on another section of the reeds with a slightly different yellow hue, and increased this as well. Often I find you need to make two or more adjustments to get the effect you want. Notice also that by increasing the yellow in the reeds, the greens have also improved.

I then used the same Pick Basic Color Correction tool to select the blue of the water and ramped up the saturation again and suddenly my drab overcast day doesn’t look so drab anymore.

Note, these adjustments could be made without using Local Adjustments because it is a simple composition with discrete areas of colour. If there were some yellow rocks in the hills behind, they would also increase in colour saturation when I adjusted the reeds. This is because the Color Editor adjusts all the areas in an image containing the selected color, so if you only want to adjust a particular area, you may need to combine this tool with a Local Adjustment.

Local adjustments were then used to darken down the hills in the background. Using the Local Adjustments tool tab, I clicked on the ‘+’ icon to add an adjustment layer, then used the Draw Local Adjustment brush to select the hills. The image was then darkened using the Exposure slider.

I darkened the hills in two steps, allowing me to darken the higher hills a little more than the hillside lower down. Once again, several small steps work better than one single adjustment.

A third Local Adjustment was added and this time the trees were lightened and given a touch more contrast, brightening the middle of the composition and drawing the eye in. However, I noticed that the area of reeds just below the trees was a little light and lacking in colour.

A fourth and final Local Adjustment layer was added and I carefully used a small Draw Local Adjustment brush to select the reeds just below the trees. This area was then darkened and the contrast increased so it better matched the reeds in the foreground. The result is the opening photo at the beginning of this blog.

Peter Eastway is a professional photographer and photography magazine editor based in Sydney, Australia. To see more of his photography, visit www.petereastway.com. Peter also offers an online Landscape Photography MasterClass. It contains articles and videos, outlining his camera and post-production techniques. Details can be found at www.betterphotography.com.

Filed under Photography Travelogues Tagged with , ,

A shortcut to the ultimate image quality

July 19, 2012 by 5 Comments

Capture One has a multitude of keyboard shortcuts that can facilitate fast navigation around the software. These normally perform functions that would otherwise have to be done with the mouse or by selecting menu items. Shortcut keys can be a real time saver in day to day use of the software and spending time to learn them or create your own set can be very worthwhile.

Editing keyboard shortcuts

Capture One comes with a default set of keyboard shortcuts, however, you may wish to edit these shortcuts to fit with your own familiarity of shortcut keys. This is easily achieved in the Keyboard Shortcuts editor.

Within Capture One, go to Capture One>Edit Keyboard Shortcuts and the following menu will appear:

Begin by Duplicating the current set of shortcuts as the Default set cannot be edited.

Choose a name for the new Shortcut set, and now you can begin to edit the available shortcuts.

Just expand a subsection of shortcuts and double click on the shortcut you want to edit.

Then, simply press the desired keyboard shortcut. If the new shortcut is currently in use by another action, a warning is displayed at the bottom of the menu, but the selection of this new shortcut is not prevented.

Press Enter on the keyboardto save the shortcut.

If you want to change back to the default set, simply choose Default from the drop down menu.

Filed under Capture One Tips & Tricks Tagged with , , ,

Working the workspace

July 12, 2012 by 14 Comments

Workspaces in Capture One are an easy way to customise the interface so that it makes the most sense to you.  This could include elements such as:

-  Making your favourite tools easily accessible

-  Changing the layout and content of the toolbar

-  Making different workspaces for different tasks (Importing, Editing, Shooting, Focus Checking)

By streamlining the interface, your favorite functions and options can be found quickly and easily.  Different tasks will also require focus on different parts of the software.  For example, whilst selecting images from a shoot, it is not necessary to have the Tools on display, thereby creating more screen real estate for image viewing.

Building and Saving a Workspace

The default workspace in Capture One Pro 6 looks like this:

Many elements of the Workspace can be changed – among others:

-  Contents of the Toolbar

-  Adding / Removing Tools from a Tool Tab

-  Changing the position of Tools in a Tool Tab

-  Adding / Removing Tool Tabs or Creating Custom Tools Tabs

-  Creating floating windows

-  Position of the Browser and Tools

Customizing the Toolbar

Right-Click on the Toolbar and choose Customize Toolbar.

This will bring up the following menu:

Then you can simply drag and drop the required icons from the available selection into the toolbar to match your needs.

Customizing Tool Tabs

To add a new Tool Tab to the interface, right-click on the Tool Tab Area and choose Add Tool Tab.  A list of the Tool Tabs that have not yet been added will be shown in the menu.

Choose one of the available ones and it will be added to the Tool Tab area.

Note – the Tool Tab area can also be increased or decreased in size by click dragging on the edge of the Tool Area.

You can also change the order of the Tool Tabs to fit your unique workflow. Just Cmd-click and drag the icons to change the order of the Tool Tabs. If you want to add a tool to the currently open Tool Tab, you can Right-Click on the Tool Tab itself and choose Add Tool.

Finally, when you are happy with your new Workspace, choose Window>Workspace>Save Workspace.

The Workspaces can be accessed from the same menu or by using the Workspace icon on the toolbar.

Learn more about working the workspace in this tutorial

Filed under Capture One Tips & Tricks Tagged with , , ,

Photography Travelogues – Mournful Gentleman in Sanliurfa

July 5, 2012 by 8 Comments

Sanliurfa, Eastern Turkey

Sanliurfa, also called Edessa in the Bible, lies in south eastern Turkey and today is a mix of religions and politics. I have now made two trips there and on both occasions, I frequented a small outdoor cafe secreted away in the middle of a labyrinth of alleys and market stalls.

On this occasion, I returned with photographs taken from the first trip. It was a buzz to hand out prints to the people I had photographed a couple of years earlier, but I am sure they had completely forgotten me. It was also a great introduction for more portraiture.

I was travelling with a group of ten photographers, and our subjects, the men (there were no women playing dominoes or cards that I could see) were surprisingly accommodating for our cameras.

Of course, not everyone was keen to have his photograph taken, but I noticed that when they said no to me, they often changed their mind when the women photographers in our group approached them.

This photograph was taken after several of our group had already been given permission. I was really pleased because this gentleman’ s face had earlier caught my attention and I was disappointed after my first pass of his table had been fruitless!

I don’t think the man’s expression changed the entire time we were there. The photographs taken by the other photographers look exactly the same.

When I asked if I could take a photograph, he just nodded his head slightly. There was no rapport with me and I didn’t know if he was extremely shy or very sad.

Mindful that he had already been posing for some time, I hurriedly took four  or five shots.

My capture technique was designed to focus carefully on my subject’s wonderful eyes and throw the background out of focus as much as possible.

On the Phase One 645 DF medium format camera, I used an 80mm Schneider lens set at f2.8. Larger format cameras have shallower depth-of-field than DSLRs, so an 80mm f2.8 lens is very similar to a 50mm f1.4 lens for a DSLR camera.

And a 50mm f1.4 lens is probably the least expensive accessory lens you can buy for a DSLR, yet it is absolutely wonderful for portraiture.

Light levels were low, so I rated the P65+ back at ISO 800, allowing me to hand hold the camera and keep the shutter speeds fast enough to avoid camera shake and subject blur.

Of all the photos I took in Turkey, this portrait haunted me and was one of the first I worked on upon my return home. I think it shows that when it comes to great portraits, all the camera techniques and post-production tricks in the world don’t help unless you capture a great expression.

The photo was taken in Phase One’s Sensor Plus mode, so the 60-megapixel sensor delivers the equivalent of a 15-megapixel file in return for a faster ISO setting. And as you can see, there is absolutely no problem with the file !

In processing the image, I have darkened down the background and lightened up the gentleman’s face. This is one of the aspects of photography I really love, being able to re-light a scene after the event. For a professional shoot, you’d light it, but when you’re on the road shooting from the hip, sometimes the light isn’t perfect.

But the subject is.

Filed under Capture One Tips & Tricks, Photography Best Practice, Photography Travelogues Tagged with , , , , ,

Photography Travelogues: Black & White at Rio Fitz Roy, Argentina

April 19, 2012 by 9 Comments

One of the best aspects of landscape photography is the opportunity to visit some amazing places and to experience nature on your own. And it’s funny that even in the most majestic and photogenic locations, what takes our eye are the little details tucked in a corner. This is a classic case of all the elements coming together in an unexpected way.

Now, admittedly I might love this photograph more than you do. After all, it comes attached with lots of emotional baggage when I look at it, whereas other people may simply see an oddly shaped rock sitting on the edge of a stream.

The Patagonian trek above El Chaltern in Argentina reveals some incredible vistas, but you’re reliant on the weather cooperating. On this particular day, the cloud was thick and low, the temperature cold. We had woken at dawn and crunched our way along a frosty dirt track, heading towards the edge of a glacial lake at the foot of Cerro Torre. We could see the near edge of the lake, but not the far shore, nor the towering peaks behind. It was a white out.

However, just being in this location was reward enough and if there weren’t big vistas, perhaps there were more localised opportunities. I started exploring the river where it left the glacial lake and began its descent to the valley floor below.

I stopped to take a few images, using a neutral density filter and a long exposure to blur the water as it flowed along. Each exposure was around two minutes, so while I was waiting for the exposure to finish, I would keep my circulation going by hopping around and clapping my hands together for warmth. And then it started to snow.

Now, for someone who lives in the snow, this was probably not a remarkable or even interesting occurrence, but for an Australian who rarely sees snow (unless travelling, of course), it was a memorable experience. Huge flakes, twice the size of a 1 Euro coin, floated gently down and at one point, it was difficult to see the rock I was photographing because the flurry was so heavy.

As the visibility reduced, I became very aware of the sounds around me – or the lack of sound. Apart from the river itself, there was nothing else. Just me.

The snow flurry lasted less than a minute, but the experience has remained for many years and every time I look at this photograph, I enjoy reliving it.

Whether your photos are visual masterpieces or happy snaps doesn’t really matter.

There were two photographs from this session which I loved, and this one I chose to turn into a black and white. As you can see from the original exposure (below), the file is relatively flat as you would expect under a low, overcast sky.

I find when creating black and whites that I get the best results when I start with a good quality colour file. Turning this original capture into black and white without also developing the tonal range would not create a satisfying result.

In fact, compare the colour photo below with the black and white image at the beginning of the article – both have the same series of local adjustments used to enhance the trees, the stream and the rock, and to darken the background and foreground.

I think both versions work quite well, but which one do you prefer? The colour or the black and white? Or, has talk of the snow flurry put you off the photograph completely?

Peter Eastway is a professional photographer and photography magazine editor based in Sydney, Australia. To see more of his photography, visit www.petereastway.com. Peter also offers an online Landscape Photography MasterClass. Details can be found at www.betterphotography.com.

Filed under Photography Best Practice, Photography Travelogues Tagged with , , , ,

Open up the deep shadows with Capture One’s Levels Tool

March 28, 2012 by 4 Comments

Capture One comes with several tools for dealing with high dynamic range images, such as the High Dynamic Range tool, the Local Adjustments Layers tool and traditional tools like the Levels and Curves tool.

Despite having these different tools, opening up shadow details while retaining highlights and mid tones can sometimes be quite a challenge when you go for an overall natural and pleasing look.

For some images, the “Mid tone” slider in the Levels tool is the right tool to use.

The “Mid tone” slider works mainly on the mid tones for minor changes, but it increasingly prioritizes the darker tones in larger adjustments.

The left image is without any adjustments. The image is exposed to ensure that the clouds do not clip. As a result, the castle ruin, cliffs and the coast are underexposed and almost without details.  The image to the right has been adjusted in Capture One.  The “Mid tone” slider in the Levels tool has been used to open up the deepest shadows, and this has been combined with some highlight recovery and color edits on the blue sky.

In a previous blog post, I showed a trick about how the LCC tool can be used to deal with images with a large dynamic range. This LCC trick will often lead to fantastic results, but sometimes it causes a problematic halo effect around hard contrast edge as is the case with this picture.

On the image to the left, it is easy to see the halo effect on the castle ruin. The LCC has been used to open op the shadows, but because the images contains such a high contrast between the edges of the hill, the ruin and the bright sky, a strong halo appears. Therefore, another method to correct this image is required.

By using the “Mid tone” slider in the Levels Tool, I primarily brighten up the darkest part of the image. Naturally, using the “Mid tone” slider also brightens the mid tones and highlights. To counter this, I also apply some highlight recovery with the Highlight slider in the High Dynamic Range tool and some negative exposure compensation. The result is much better details in the shadows without the halo effect.

If I need still more details in the shadows, I try to use the curve tool too. The curve preset “Shadows -Brighter” is a good starting point as it is specially designed to open the deepest shadows in an image.

Finally, I add some saturation and set the highlight slider in the Levels tool to ensure that the final image utilizes the full data range.

Filed under Capture One Tips & Tricks Tagged with , , , , , ,

EIP file format – Enhanced Image Package

February 2, 2012 by 15 Comments

With Capture One, you have the unique option of moving your image folders including all necessary information to other computers.

If you only want to move a single file to another computer, you have a simpler possibility which is to use Capture One’s .EIP file format. The .EIP file format packs your original RAW file with all necessary settings files including LCC files and custom ICC profiles into one file.

The .EIP file format doesn’t change your RAW files; it simply uses standardized zipping technology to pack all needed components into one file:

The possibility of moving just a few selected images including all necessary components to another computer can be a great advantage in your workflow.  Many photographers use laptops for shooting tethered with their camera and they often do a few adjustments upfront directly at the laptop. When they have selected the images they want to continue working with, they move them to a desktop computer with a high quality monitor.

Even though Capture One can use the .EIP format directly during import or capture, I always keep my files in the manufacturer’s RAW format until I need to move them. Then I just pack the images into the .EIP file format.

From the file menu, you can select the “Pack as EIP” to pack your RAW file including all necessary settings files into one single .EIP file.

After moving the .EIP file to another computer, you can simply use Capture One and browse to the location of the .EIP file. Capture One will display it with the identical settings as on the laptop where it was originally generated. You can keep the image file in the .EIP format or, if you want to see the original file format of the camera, you can simply unpack the .EIP file with Capture One. During the unpacking, all the needed components are installed correctly in Capture One.

Filed under Capture One Tips & Tricks Tagged with , , ,

← Older posts

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 768 other followers

%d bloggers like this: