Processing images taken with old lens

[jarski]

Just curious, what principles you have when processing raw files taken with old soft and non-contrasty lens? How to treat color images? What about b&w?

 

[Roger Hicks]

"Until they look right" -- the same principle as I apply to any lens, film or camera. Sometimes I'll bang up the contrast and/or saturation with REALLY soft, flary lenses (such as the Dreamagon, though it isn't old). Sometimes I'll increase the contrast and knock back the saturation. Or in the darkroom, with black and white paper, I'll use a harder grade. In other words, the reply is an unequivocal, resounding "It depends".

Cheers,

R.

 

[charjohncarter]

I usually go to levels first get to where I like it. Then with color I use three different color correction softwares. Some times it is one of these that just hits. If not I go to color cast and/or color variation. It the lens has a real problem I cut and paste then use opacity to get the color right. I'll then use curves or just brightness/contrast to adjust contrast. More times then not I desaturate a little.

 

[jarski]

thanks for the ideas! would be nice if more would come. if one chooses an old lens for a specific look, different than modern lenses can provide, then also processing should follow different path? has anyone made Lightroom preset for a particular lens, for example? as Roger said, it depends the individual image in the end. but perhaps some general rules could be made?

 

[Roger Hicks]

. . . but perhaps some general rules could be made?

Well, sort of, partly, on a lens-by-lens basis. But I find it easier to do it by eye, on a picture-by-picture basis, rather than trying to remember (or set up) pre-sets. Yes, if I've a sequence of shots taken with one lens (such as the Dreamagon or the Zone plate in my Subjektiv), and I'm processing 'em one after the other, I'll use previous settings as a guide. But even then, I'll move the slider one way or the other a bit until, yes, "until it looks right".

Cheers,

R.

 

[btgc]

Using old software, of course!

 

[jarski]

Using old software, of course!

Win 3.1 MS Paint opens raw files? 😛

 

[venchka]

Just curious, what principles you have when processing raw files taken with old soft and non-contrasty lens? How to treat color images? What about b&w?

First, maybe we should define "old lens".
Is a 1961 Leitz Dual Range Summicron an "old soft and non-contrasty lens?"
Or a 1908 Voigtlander Collinear? 😉

The answer, for me, is usually: "It depends."
Lately, I have been dialing back constrast, sharpening, saturation, etc. in an effort to produce a softer, kinder, gentler image. This applies to current digital images (turning down in camera settings) and film images produced with my Epson scanner.
By the way, contrast can always be added. It is more difficult to remove contrast from the original file. 😎

Wayne

 

[Dwig]

Just curious, what principles you have when processing raw files taken with old soft and non-contrasty lens? How to treat color images? What about b&w?

As Roger said: "Till they look right".

I generally do all or nearly all of my adjustments in LR4, saving my PS work for those tasks that require pixel level editing or tricky layer based manipulations. These later are tasks that aren't an issue when discussing "old lenses" vs. "new lenses".

When I want to make an "old" (read: lower contrast or less sharp*) lens look more like a modern lens then I tend to increase "Clarity" and "Vibrance". I'm also careful to set the "Whites" and "Blacks" sliders so that there is the barest of clipping on each end. "Clarity" seems to work better for me than "Contrast" as it works mainly in the midtones and less at either end of the tonal scale. After that, every image has its own needs.

* by "sharp", I'm refering to the perceived sharpness and not lpm resolution. This "sharpenss" is something that does not exist in any form in the real world. It is totally a figment of the viewer's imagination. What exists are resolution and a variety of aspects of contrast, both tonal and color. Exactly what characteristics influence your brain's idea of sharpness is a complex and barely understood aspect of perception. It is this complexity that leads to the use of MTF curves in attempting, somewhat vainly, to codify what lens characteristics influence "sharpness".

 

[venchka]

Suffice to say, lenses have been "sharp" since forever. At least since the late 19th Century. Selective focus and using old lenses, like the Petzval lenses folks are fond of today, wide open is a newer aspect of lens usage.
As for processing, I only use Lightroom, LR/Enfuse and Microsoft ICE. I have not found a need for anything else in the way of software.

Wayne

 

[Bill Clark]

I use ACR and one of the sliders is, "Blacks." Mine is preset to come up initially at 5. Try moving that up and see if it perhaps could be what you're looking for with your RAW files.

Hope this helps you.