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lomitamike · Aug 15, 2008, 11:08 AM

I wasprocessing raw files from an A700using Sony's IDC version 2. Using the C-raw+ Jpeg setting I thought I would process and print both raw and jpeg andcompare the differencesfor visible noise. I've not been happy with the noise on the jpeg's from ISO 400 on up.

Printing the photo's the first thing I noticed is that when you print directly from raw that thehighlightsand usually the whole photo arealways overexposed.

I need to adjust to -1/3 to -2/3EV and set the DRO slidersto manual 0 to get correct exposure on prints fromraw where the jpegsprint correctly right out of the camera or PSE4.

After wasting a few prints and getting correct exposures on the prints It's very obvious that the noise is much less when printing directly from raw.

Has anyone experienced anything similar? I'd like to hear.

JimC · Aug 15, 2008, 11:23 AM

Have you got noise reduction on Normal? I'd probably leave it that way for best jpeg images.

At higher ISO speeds, you'll also want to turn DRO off in camera. DRO increases shadow noise substantially at higher ISO speeds because it's trying to boost those areas (and if you push an area of a photo a stop or two, the noise will be as bad or worse as if you used a higher ISO speed to begin with and exposed those areas as bright without DRO).

Make sure you've got your firmware upgraded to a newer version, too.

http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu...;mdl=DSLRA700K

lomitamike · Aug 15, 2008, 12:09 PM

JimC wrote:

Quote:

Have you got noise reduction on Normal? I'd probably leave it that way for best jpeg images.

At higher ISO speeds, you'll also want to turn DRO off in camera.

Make sure you've got your firmware upgraded to a newer version, too.

I take it that you mean NR on normalforhigh ISOsettings. I actually have set to low, is normal better?

I understand what your saying about high ISO and DRO noise. At what ISO
level would you recommend turning off the DRO?

Yep, Thanks to your post I did the firmware upgrade as soon as I got the camera.

JimC · Aug 15, 2008, 12:32 PM

Right. NR is Noise Reduction. I leave mine set to Normal, which is a good balance between noise and detail.

I leave DRO turned off at anytime I'm using much over ISO 400. Shadow noise can get pretty nasty at the higher ISO settings if you leave it turned on. I accidently left it on while taking some photos at a wedding when I was shooting at ISO 1600 and 3200, and that was a big mistake. Luckily I was only a guest and not the official photographer. lol

I haven't used the Sony Software yet. So, I can't comment on it's behavior.

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Aug 15, 2008, 11:08 AM	#1
lomitamike Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Lomita, California Posts: 1,603	I wasprocessing raw files from an A700using Sony's IDC version 2. Using the C-raw+ Jpeg setting I thought I would process and print both raw and jpeg andcompare the differencesfor visible noise. I've not been happy with the noise on the jpeg's from ISO 400 on up. Printing the photo's the first thing I noticed is that when you print directly from raw that thehighlightsand usually the whole photo arealways overexposed. I need to adjust to -1/3 to -2/3EV and set the DRO slidersto manual 0 to get correct exposure on prints fromraw where the jpegsprint correctly right out of the camera or PSE4. After wasting a few prints and getting correct exposures on the prints It's very obvious that the noise is much less when printing directly from raw. Has anyone experienced anything similar? I'd like to hear.

Aug 15, 2008, 11:23 AM	#2
JimC Administrator Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Savannah, GA (USA) Posts: 20,836	Have you got noise reduction on Normal? I'd probably leave it that way for best jpeg images. At higher ISO speeds, you'll also want to turn DRO off in camera. DRO increases shadow noise substantially at higher ISO speeds because it's trying to boost those areas (and if you push an area of a photo a stop or two, the noise will be as bad or worse as if you used a higher ISO speed to begin with and exposed those areas as bright without DRO). Make sure you've got your firmware upgraded to a newer version, too. http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu...;mdl=DSLRA700K

Aug 15, 2008, 12:32 PM	#4
JimC Administrator Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Savannah, GA (USA) Posts: 20,836	Right. NR is Noise Reduction. I leave mine set to Normal, which is a good balance between noise and detail. I leave DRO turned off at anytime I'm using much over ISO 400. Shadow noise can get pretty nasty at the higher ISO settings if you leave it turned on. I accidently left it on while taking some photos at a wedding when I was shooting at ISO 1600 and 3200, and that was a big mistake. Luckily I was only a guest and not the official photographer. lol I haven't used the Sony Software yet. So, I can't comment on it's behavior.