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| Brush turkey at ISO 1600, FZ80 I often read statements from reviewers and users on forums that a camera like this could not possibly be used at ISO 1600. See for yourself. It is not a work of great photographic art but is a decent enough picture of the bird except I chopped off his legs. |
Notice that the title of this post is“How to managenoise”, not “How to eliminate noise”.
I have been taking photographs for the last 60 years, using film for most of that period.
Arguably the most used and best known film of the 20thCentury was Kodak TRI-X, introduced in 1940 and available to this day in upgraded form..
Millions of photographers including me used it for many years.
But some users complained about the grainy quality of TRI-X so Kodak spent a lot of R&D money developing T-MAX 400 with the same speed but finer grain.
Many photographers including me tried T-MAX and many other films from Kodak, Ilford, Fuji and others in the quest for a general purpose film to better TRI-X.
Guess what ? Despite the technical superiority of T-MAX and some others as measured by the level of grain, many photographers again including me still preferred prints made from TRI-X negatives.
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| Once upon a time, when I was younger, stronger and in quest of the perfect landscape photo, I would go bushwalking with lots of lenses in a big heavy photo kit and the proverbial sturdy tripod. Then I decided perfect is the enemy of good. Now I just take the FZ80 and crank up the ISO as required, in this case to 800. |
Why ? I think the reason is acutance.
The appearance of sharpness in a photographic print depends on two characteristics, resolution and acutance.
Resolution can be measured as the number of lines or line pairs which can be resolved per millimetre or per image height.
Acutance refers to the contrast at edges in the print. Acutance contributes more to the subjective impression of sharpness than resolution provided that resolution is sufficient to reveal the most important features of the subject.
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| This is my somewhat amateurish attempt to show graphically the difference between acutance and resolution. The image depicted as "High resolution" might not look as sharp to the viewer as the one labelled "High acutance" because the contrast between the light and dark parts of the image is low. |
Which brings me by a slightly circuitous route to the subject of this post.
With a large sensor camera you can have the trifecta of high resolution, high acutance and very low levels of luminance noise, all at once. But of course, you cannot have a 60x zoom and a low price point. One makes one’s choice.
With the small (7.67mm) sensor cameras the image quality equation becomes more complex. It is possible by working the sliders in Adobe Camera Raw (or Lightroom which does the same job) or another RAW converter to virtually eliminate luminance noise from low ISO files.
The problem with this approach is that doing so also markedly reduces acutance. Taking away the noise also smudges away sharp edges. This is seen as a “plasticky” or “watercolour” type appearance on screen or in a print
It is apparent to me from posts on user forums that some photographers are overly concerned about luminance noise in photos. I believe this could be a result of trying to evaluate images at 100% on a large, high resolution monitor screen.
I find that the appearance of an image in print is much better represented by viewing at 50% on screen. The grain which seemed so disturbing to some people on screen becomes almost invisible in a print even when the print is quite large.
All of which leads me to the approach which I use and recommend for small sensor cameras like the FZ80. This is to seek a balance between grain reduction and acutance which delivers optimum printed output appearance.
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| White faced heron. FZ80 at ISO 1600 hand held |
Shooting strategies
The aim is to use the lowest ISO setting consistent with managing camera shake, subject movement and lighting conditions.
* This begins in the Setup Phase of use with selecting the best style for the EVF and monitor.
In the Custom Menu on screen 6/9 see [LVF Disp. Style] and [Monitor Disp. Style].
There are two options for both monitor and LVF (EVF),
1. Monitor style with camera data superimposed on the lower part of the preview image or
2. Viewfinder style with camera data on a black background beneath the preview image.
Camera data is easier to see in Viewfinder style especially in bright light outdoors so that is what I use and recommend.
Managing noise means managing ISO setting and to do this effectively I need to have a clear view of the aperture, shutter speed and ISO setting at all times.
* Next consider subject and lighting. If you can move closer, do it. This will allow a shorter focal length to be used with a wider aperture and a lower ISO setting. Indoors turn on all the lights, move your subjects closer to a window.
* In P mode the camera will set 1/80 second by default. That is faster than required with the shorter focal lengths so in low light switch to S and select a slower shutter speed. Experiment to discover how slow you can go and still get sharp pictures.
Practice good camera work, using controlled breathing, optimal holding and standing posture and shutter release strategies.
* Use flash indoors if required. The built in flash can be useful as a fill light if set to a flash exposure compensation of around -1 stop. The camera can take a clip on flash which can be swung up to bounce light off the ceiling for more appealing light.
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| Zoo bird FZ80 ISO 800 |
Adjust ISO or shutter speed ?
T
he ISO setting can be directly adjusted if [Sensitivity] is allocated to a Fn button or a custom Q Menu. Unfortunately [ISO Limit Set] cannot be reached via the ISO setting so I usually use the method below.
Another approach is to set S on the Mode Dial and make shutter speed the primary control.
Outdoors in bright light if I am shooting action I will set 1/1000 sec then see what ISO setting that gives me. Indoors at the wide end of the lens I might set 1/25 second.
This is why I need to see the viewfinder readouts for aperture, shutter speed and ISO clearly.
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| Another zoo bird FZ80 ISO 1600 Again no great work of art but a demonstration that the FZ80 can be used to make decent pictures at ISO 1600. |
Post processing strategies
This section is applicable to RAW files processed with Photoshop incorporating Adobe Camera Raw.
Lightroom does the same job but with a different graphical user interface.
JPG files can be adjusted with Camera Raw as a filter although JPGs have much less capacity for post capture processing than Raw files. In particular sharpness and noise reduction are “baked in’ to JPGs. Some users have suggested using JPGs with sharpness and NR set to the minimum level available, then adjusting these in post processing.
It seems to me one would be better served by a RAW file if that kind of workflow is contemplated.
Users of other RAW converters may be able to gain some insights relevant to their own workflow.
Start with the Basic window, viewing at [Fit in view] size.
Check the histogram and if appropriate increase [Contrast] by dragging the slider to the right. In
Camera Raw this increases mid tone contrast. If this causes highlight or shadow clipping try moving the [Highlights] slider to the left and the [Shadows] slider to the right..
Now see the effect of dragging the [Clarity] slider to the right.
Be aware that Contrast, Clarity and Acutance are all parts of the same story.
Contrast controls mid tone contrast across large sections of the image.
Clarity controls local contrast between small subject elements.
Acutance is about the level of contrast at edges.
There is no slider in Camera Raw labelled “Acutance” but a combination of the [Sharpness] and [Detail] sliders has a strong effect on acutance.
You can often increase the impression of sharpness by increasing Contrast and Clarity even though resolution is not affected.
Beware of overdoing this though. I not uncommonly come back to a file on which I have been working, look at it again and think….”ouch… that’s too much”. So I back off the sliders a bit to make the effect strong but not un-natural.
Now go to the Detail window and view at 100% while making adjustments. This is where things get interesting.
I have found that using the Detail window to best effect takes considerable practice with often several trials being required to reach the best combination of adjustments.
No set rules are useful.
However some general principles are useful.
The aim of the exercise is to optimise the photo for best printed appearance taking into account all the parameters involved. This does NOT mean eliminating luminance noise (grain) in images from small sensor cameras like the FZ80.
Adobe suggests you start at the top and work down. I use and recommend a different sequence.
1. Start with Color under the noise Reduction heading. The default is 25. Most low ISO files will require less, some high ISO files might need more. Drag the slider back to zero then increase it until the color noise disappears then give it a bit more.
2. Now go to the Luminance slider. Every image is different but as a rough guide low ISO files need 10-20, high ISO ones 50-80.
3. Next drag the Detail slider back from the default of 25 to zero.
4. Adjust the Radius slider. An image with lots of detail can use a radius of 1 pixel. Pictures lacking fine detail especially from the long end of the lens can benefit from a radius up to 3 pixels.
5. Adjust the Amount slider. Images with lots of sharp detail might need 50. Those with low levels of detail especially from the long end of the zoom can benefit from 150.
6. Come back to the Detail slider and gently, gently, slowly drag this to the right. Even better bring it to the right in small increments with the keys. Watch the image closely while you are doing this.
It helps to have a big fast computer which can do all the calculations very quickly so you see the effect immediately.
You will see acutance and grain increase very quickly. This slider needs to be managed very delicately. You can shove the slider all the way right to see the result which is dreadful, say ..”ouch” …and bring it back again.
I usually find the Detail slider ends up in the 5-15 range.
Alternative strategy for the Amount and Detail sliders, steps 5 and 6:
You can adjust the Detail slider first with the Amount slider at zero, then start to bring up the Amount slider. With some images this appears to give a better balance between grain and acutance. Either way the Amount and Detail sliders are intimately related such that experiment with the relative amount of each is required.
Alternative strategy for the Amount and Detail sliders, steps 5 and 6:
You can adjust the Detail slider first with the Amount slider at zero, then start to bring up the Amount slider. With some images this appears to give a better balance between grain and acutance. Either way the Amount and Detail sliders are intimately related such that experiment with the relative amount of each is required.
7. Try bringing the Radius slider up from the default position which is zero. Press the [Alt] key while dragging the slider to see which areas of the image will be affected by sharpening (white) and which will not (black). I generally find that a setting of around 10 or even a bit more can be of benefit in pictures with areas without texture like sky and the like.
8. Now go back and play with each of the sliders while watching the image closely at 100% on screen. For each image there will be a combination which delivers the best result.
You might be tempted to batch process all RAW files with presets for the sliders. I do not recommend this as every image is different.
9. Now view the picture at 50% on screen to see approximately how it will look when printed.
Behold ! The grain almost disappeared., in low ISO files anyway.
10. Go back to 100% and see if you can detect any effect on the picture by moving the Luminance Detail, Luminance Contrast, Color Detail and Color Smoothness sliders. These sliders have a low level effect but can sometimes be useful with specific files.
Beware overusing the luminance Detail slider with high ISO images. Look closely at the effect of min, max and mid range effect. Max can be hideous.
Local grain/sharpness control
The Graduated filter and Adjustment brush controls allow you to apply most of the adjustments listed above (but not Detail) to a localised area of the frame.
For instance if a shadow area has been pulled up in lightness it will be very grainy. Localised grain reduction and contrast control can improve the appearance of such areas substantially.
Too much trouble ? do I hear you cry ?
With practice I find it takes me about a minute to run through the 10 steps above.
Practice does greatly improve the speed and effectiveness of the process and the results are worth while.
I have now read several “reviews” of the FZ80 none of which has even attempted to extract maximum benefit from the RAW files in the fashion described above.
Conclusion
Many reviewers and users dismiss the FZ80 as a toy for shapshooters.
In my view that judgement is incorrect and in the process severely underestimates the FZ80 as a very useful photographic tool for the expert/enthusiast photographer.
In practiced, thoughtful hands the FZ80 is very versatile camera which is engaging to use and can make good photos in a wide variety of situations.