post processing for M8 images

[steven:s]

Just wanted to get peoples thoughts on what software is good for processing M8 images. I am currently using Lightroom 2 on the 30 day trial basis but am also curious about Photoshop elements and any other products that may be available. My work flows are not huge and my preference is for software that produces good b&w images. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks

 

[jpmac55]

Steven - I pretty much loathe pp work. That said, I recently upgraded to Aperture 3. Although the upgrade was painful at first, a call to Apple Support resolved the issues. It's pretty intuitive to use like most of Apple products.

My secret weapon for black & white is Nik Software Silver Efex. They offer it as a plug in with Aperture or Lightroom should you go that way. Nik other software products are also recommended.

 

[Ronald M]

I would use something with a good converter, Photoshop, Lr, or Elements.

For simple resize, sharpening, density, contrast, WB, burn/dodge, LR or Elements will be fine.

 

[Athos6]

I used CS2, CS3, and the new Photoshop Elements I got with my Wacom pad. I think the only thing I'm going to miss in the Elements version is the Noise Ninja and the panorama stitch feature (not sure Elements has that.) I've found that Levels, Contrast, Unsharp Masking, B&W conversion, and Sepia filter and crop/resize is all I ever use. With my M8 I find I only need one or two of those per picture.

 

[Keith]

The latest version of ACDSee Pro (3) finally reads Leica DNG's ... previous builds didn't!

I've just started using it and like it a lot ... I find the user interface much more friendly than Lightroom!

 

[steven:s]

actually with Lightroom I seem to get slightly fat black bars at the top and bottom of the raw uploads from the M8. Is this normal or is the software not reading the file properly? Or am I doing something wrong?

 

[JWW]

I prefer Capture 1 for the raw conversion, then convert to TIFF for lightroom use and cataloging. For B&W, i use Nik SilverEfex. Both available for 30 day trial.

 

[JPSuisse]

Three things to consider...

Three things to consider...

Hi Steven:s

There are three things you really need to consider when choosing the software:

1.) Do you want non-destructive image editing?
In this regard, I think several programs are quite good. If you want to use Lightroom 2, you might want to throughly read this thread. For non-destructive editing, the program Bibble 5 Pro (www.bibblelabs.com) seems like a good example.

2.) How do you prefer the conversions?
All the programs convert a little differently. I personally really like the conversions I get from the program "Raw Developer" by Iridient Digital, Inc. But, this is an issue you can only decide on by trying and looking for yourself.

3.) Do you need a DAM (Digital Asset Managment) program as well?
Of all the programs I've seen, Lightroom 2 is far and away the most powerful DAM. Tagging with an EXIF editor like EXIF Tool is always read and well sorted.

My personal choice up to now has been Lightroom 2, because it can read both my M8 DNGs and my RAW scanner files from Vuescan! The conversions are ok for me. Also, because the DAM implementation is really, really good and has enabled me to archive digitally as well as physically now. Unfortunately, I still live in PowerPC world, so Bibble 5.0.2 is looking like a good option. (I think both Lightroom 3 and Aperture 3 won't support PowerPC processors.) I haven't tried Aperture.

Good Luck

JP

 

[downstairs]

If you use Mac you will find happiness with 'Raw Photo Processor' by Andrey Tverdokhleb.
It uses floating point math so is a bit slower but it visibly superior to everything else for developing and tweaking raw files.

 

[EdLam]

I also just got Lightroom 2 and find that, although the interface is nice, I can't see too much difference from the Camera Raw function on PS4. If all you are doing is some tone adjustment/ color correction, then Lightroom or PS4 should be all you need.

 

[Carterofmars]

Right now I'm using Photoshop 7.

 

[thinkfloyd]

I use Aperture with three Nik plug-ins (Silver efex, Color efex pro 3.0 and Viveza). Those three are all I use depending on what I want achieved. The only thing I lack is using Jaime's color profile when I shoot without filter 🙁

 

[menos]

I use
Lightroom for a while and only lately got a M8.2.

I find it very hard, to get the B&W output, I loved with B&W film scans or EPSON R-D1 files through Lightroom.

Using Nik SilverEfex Pro gives an astonishingly better result with the M8.2 files.
I just find Nik very slow (and the archived files very big ) to use compared to Lr - so still experimenting, whats best for me with the M8.2.

 

[arnulf]

If you are a mac user, I will recommend Aperture 3. In this latest version, they have included pretty much everything I need for RAW processing (including curves, FINALLY). There's also quite a few plug-ins now who might provide you with whatever features you need.

But Lightroom is also an excellent choice.

 

[maggieo]

I prefer Capture One or LightZone for processing my DNGs. In Capture One, I use Jamie Roberts' B&W profiles to do my B&W, but quite a few of my favorite B&W frames have been processed with LightZone.

 

[baycrest]

I've found that Capture One does an excellent job for RAW conversion. Then I just use Elements with various Plug-ins to make life easier.

Tried Lightroom, but more comfortable with Elements.

 

[Zoeica]

LR 2 for now and LR 3 when the full version-non beta comes out. I have my own presets for the M8 so processing is quick when you have custom presets made. When you're editing 2K-3K images from a wedding, this is a life saver. I see Aperture 3 finally got presets, but I've never used Aperture.