jrnoded

Capture One Styles Versus Presets

Posted on July 12, 2020July 12, 2020 by jrnoded

If you were wondering what the difference between a style and a preset in Capture One (I’m on the latest version Capture One Pro 20 (13.1.1)) I’m about to tell you.

A preset is specific adjustment for a single tool. You can make a preset for something like Vignetting where you find yourself commonly applying a -0.5 amount a lot. You set the Vignetting amount to what you want like 0.5 or -0.75 then click on the three lines icon (they call it the hamburger icon) and click Save User Preset. You give it a name like Minus 0.75 or Plus 0.5. Once saved you can quickly apply it to your current image by clicking on the hamburger icon again and picking the preset you want. Note that some of the tools come with standard set of presets that you might want to explore. Check out the Levels presets.

A Style allows you to save the current state of multiple tools. If you have a look or color grade for a particular shoot you can save the state of multiple tools. This makes it quite quick to apply a look to multiple images quickly and consistently. In this particular case I adjusted the above image and really liked the color and contrast so I created a style. Creating a style gives you the option of which tool changes you want to incorporate into the style.

I then edited another image using that style to create a very similar feel. Makes it quite easy to get a cohesive feel to your images.

Once you have applied a style (or more than one since that is also allowed) you can make further adjustments to any of the tools to hone in on the image that you saw when you made the image. In this image I added a little more contrast.

Healing in Capture One Pro 20

Posted on July 8, 2020July 8, 2020 by jrnoded

It is unusual for a company to show off new software features before the are released. The Capture One Pro team were apparently too excited about the new features to hold off showing off the new stuff. So in early May, David Grover, at Capture One published a You Tube video on the new features which were healing tool layers and clone tool layers. They were so excited (and so was I). At the end of May the new version of Capture One Pro 20¹ came out and the new healing and cloning tools were really quite good.

I’ve been using them for a while now and I’m really quite pleased with the results i am getting. I’ve become braver and braver with the touch ups I’ve been doing. I started with just healing the dust spots that seem to be permanently attached to my sensor. Previously the did have a spot removal tool that did work but not on big ticket items ² and basically on the background layer. The new tools put the healing or cloning on their own layer.

I’ve using the healing brush on the below image to clear up what has become a standard sight at the theme parks over the last 10 years where they keep adding more and more rides and features. These new rides mean a long time with construction equipment in the parks and in your images. Not much you can do about it. Here is an image of Bluto’s Barge Ride and Islands of Adventure that I took at the annual pass preview when the Universal reopened in June.

And here is the image after adding a heal layer to hide the construction equipment in the back ground.

The new tools do a very good job in this case. Also got rid of some wires under the left crows nest. Nice not having to go over to Photoshop to clean up images. You can get a 30 day trial if you wish to explore Capture One. There are also less expensive versions for specific camera manufacturers

¹ For some unknown reason the first version of Capture One Pro 20 was 20.0.0, then 20.0.1 then switch to 13.1.0 then another release at 13.1.1. Latest is 13.1.1.

² It was good for spot healing but was not great for removing anything bigger such as a power line.

Dreams versus Real Images

Posted on June 15, 2016 by jrnoded

I just spent the last hour (maybe more) looking at cameras. I started at eBay looking at cameras similar to my newly acquired old Yashica A twin lens reflex camera.

I always wanted one of these cameras even if I’ve left the film world behind. It does look good on the bookshelf. I purchased a roll of 120 film and prepaid developing envelope for $20 which is almost as much as I spent on the camera. This is why I do digital while the cameras cost much more the image making costs next to nothing.

Anyway, I started looking at the Yashica’s on eBay and found myself soon searching for the more expensive Rolliflex Twin Lens cameras that the Yashica was modeled after.

The Yashica and the Rolliflex are 120 roll film so they have a bigger negative. With the bigger negative you get more resolution. With more resolution you get better images. You know the drill. I was soon searching for Hasselblad cameras which were better still. I then switch to the medium format digital Hasselblad’s and soon was looking at a new Hasselblad kit with a 100mp back and a price tag very near the price of my new car.

I was after that all inclusive better resolution which would make my images oh so much better. Better camera, better pictures yada yada. I was on the slippery slope.

I finally shut down the browser and came back to reality where I re-affirmed for myself that I do have plenty of camera now and I have nowhere exceeded it’s possibility for taking good images.

If I work at it I can get the light right, get the exposure right, processed correctly, and produce an image the will stand up to scrutiny. Case in point this image of my Tesla Watch (i can tell you were to get one if you really need one).

The Tesla — Tesla Watch Fujifilm X-T1 XF 50-140mm F2.8

This image meets all my expectations for a well processed image. So while it may be good to once in a while dream about using a monster camera with a monster price tag, it pays to work at using the camera you have and getting it right, right now.

The Lens I Didn’t Need

Posted on June 12, 2016September 10, 2020 by jrnoded

Then there was the lens that I didn’t think I needed. I seem to have acquired quite a number of the Fujifilm XF lenses. I was pretty sure I had all my bases covered from the very nice wide angle XF 10-24mm f/4 R OIS and finishing up with the monster Fujifilm XF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR.

It took a long time to convince myself to buy the Fujifilm XF 16-55mm f/2.8 R LM WR lens because I had the XF 18-55 F2.8-F4 kit lens which was pretty close in range as well as aperture and was reasonably sharp. For a kit lens it is one of the best of any brands. I also have the XF 18-135 Having amassed a number of points on one of my credit cards allowed me to buy the lens without the normal $1k plus price tag. So one day it showed up at my door. (It followed me home dear, can I keep it?).

Having used it for the last few months I have to say I now understand why so many professional photographers say that a 24-70mm F2.8 lens is their go to lens. The XF 16-55mm is the APC equivalent of the full frame 24-70 and it is a stunning lens.

The lens performs so well it pretty much doesn’t come off my camera unless I’m using the XF 100-400mm telephoto. The 16-55mm is incredibly sharp, has great contrast, color rendition, and just performs in all conditions. I’ve gone from not thinking I needed it to it being the lens that is always on my X-T1.

The other day I made a quick trip over to Epcot and realized that I only needed the one lens for any type of shooting I would do there. On previous trips to Walt Disney World I would take along at least 3 lenses, The XF 18-135mm, the XF 60mm, and the XF 35mm F1.4. While the Fuji system is compact and weighs a lot less than my previous (well I still have it but it hasn’t got much use) system, It still was more weight that I didn’t want to carry. So out came all the other lenses and I began traveling light.

It took me a lot of time to realize what should have been obvious. Always get the best glass you can. I think I may have heard one or two pro’s mention that. If you want to take the best pictures go with the “Pro” lenses like the XF 16-55mm f/2.8 R LM WR and the Fujifilm XF 50-140mm f/2.8 R LM OIS WR which I will have to discuss in another post.

There have been some gripes about the XF 16-55mm not being a OIS (stabilized) lens but I haven’t had any issues with that. I tend not to try and shoot in too many low light situations. It does have a bit of reach when zoomed and it not the lightest lens by any means. On my X-T1 it is well balanced and I don’t have any issues carrying it around all day. One thing I’ve noticed is that the “Pro” lens like the XF 16-55mm and the XF 50-140mm is that the are much more contrasty in the mid-range than the lesser lenses. You will find you need a lot less sliding of the Clarity slider when processing your images.

For a lens I didn’t think I needed it spends a lot of time on my camera. Getting the best glass is just common sense.

On Being An Aspiring Pro Photographer

Posted on June 10, 2016 by jrnoded

Sage advise from Ming Thein on being a professional photographer. His points works with just about any business you may want to start. Link

you must also be wise enough to know when to turn a job away: if it’s a bad creative fit, or there’s too much price negotiation, then walk away.

Common Sense Photography

Posted on June 9, 2016 by jrnoded

You can become immobilized by the shear mass of advise in print and on line about how to be a better photographer and how to take better pictures. As in most things lot of the noise falls to the wayside with just a little common sense. Here we are going to explore how to use common sense to make you happy with your art as you explore the world of photography.

I hope the journey is a pleasant one.

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