RAW file development aid

[dabateman]

Ulf its not cemented in place. If by all means Concone decides later that this is for macro only Than just unscrew it from the 17-31mm helicoid and use a 25-59mm or 35-90mm for some real fun.

This lens offers lots of options.

[ulf]

Ulf its not cemented in place. If by all means Concone decides later that this is for macro only Than just unscrew it from the 17-31mm helicoid and use a 25-59mm or 35-90mm for some real fun.

This lens offers lots of options.

You are quite right.

 

I just wanted to tell about my helicoid-journey with this lens,

On advantage though with my deep build is that you do not have to expose the sensor to dust that often if you want to switch focussing range.

One extension type then covers all range needs if infinity is need too.

 

My macro to infinity ratio is something like 5000:1

[Andrea B.]

Ulf and David, thank you for the additional helicoid suggestions and information.

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The photo is actually underexposed but the sun was actually behind me. The vegetation behind the plant was very open and let in a lot of light and that is why there is so much white from behind.

 

OK, I see now.

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Curiosity, in which area did you balance the white? In what order did you perform the operations with photo ninja?

 

An initial white balance of a raw file can be made by dragging the Photo Ninja white dropper over any pink or magenta area. If this produces the standardized blue/yellow/black/white/grey tones then you are done. But if there is a remaining pink/magenta color cast, then drag the dropper again over the pink color cast area. Note that you might not get both false blue and false yellow in a single photo. The amounts of those two false colors can vary. Some photos have neither. And in some landscape photos, foliage and grass appear to be false dark yellow-green. The false blue can range from a violet-blue to a plain blue.

 

Photo Ninja for UV

The order of the basic operations is the same as would be for a Visible photo.

White balance, then basic exposure adjustments.

1) Color Correction. Light source=No profile. Drag the white balance dropper as described above.

2) Color Enhancement. Base style=Plain. Intensity between 50-65.

3) Exposure and Detail: Set black and white points with the Black slider and the Exposure slider.

4) Exposure and Detail: Optional Detail slider between 8-15. I like the Detail slider, but some users wait to add it until after the photo has been resized.

5) Exposure and Detail: Adjust highlights as needed. PN makes an automatic initial adjustment, but you might need to tweak it.

6) Exposure and Detail: Optional Illumination increase if the file needs more light overall.

7) Exposure and Detail: Optional Shadow increase if some areas are so dark that detail is obscured.

Photo Ninja has one of the best Shadow boosters that I have ever used. It is so good that there is often a temptation to completely open up shadowed areas. But that can result in a rather unnatural look. So use the Shadow slider carefully.

8) Exposure and Detail: Optional Contrast increased if needed. Usually only a very small amount is necessary 3-5.

It is often necessary to work back and forth between the sliders.Sometimes the Illumination slider can substitute for the Exposure slider if only a small amount of light increase is needed.

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Step-ring for EL-Nikkor 80/5.6. LINK

This company is in Portugal. I have ordered from him in the past and found the work to be good.

[Concone]

Andrea meanwhile, thank you for all the information you gave me, they were really useful as a starting point.

 

First I looked at the file in Raw Digger. Raw Digger displays the file as a Raw Composite. That is, the file's pure data is shown as recorded with no white balance applied. The color in this Raw Composite indicates that UV was recorded between approximately 375/380 - 400 nm. Raw Digger indicates that the photo was underexposed.

 

 

 

In relation to what you wrote, how did you see in RAWDIGGER at what frequency "nm" the image was captured?

[dabateman]

Andrea meanwhile, thank you for all the information you gave me, they were really useful as a starting point.

 

 

 

 

In relation to what you wrote, how did you see in RAWDIGGER at what frequency "nm" the image was captured?

 

She didn't.

Andrea has 30+ years looking at UV images and knows by the look of the curves.

 

[Concone]

Good!!! I will try to commit myself for at least the next thirty years to try to understand it too.

[nfoto]

It's part experience, part black magic. Plus the understanding that colour formation is not 1:1 between wavelength and outcome.

[Stefano]

Usually in RAW photos magenta is at ~380 nm or so, the bluer it is, the longer the wavelength. 360 nm is almost a pure red.

[Andrea B.]

Whoa, back up there, cowboys!! I don't have 30 years of looking at UV images. Only since about 2007.

 

However, the histogram in Raw Digger indicates that the red & blue channels were about the same for Concone's image. So near-UV was being recorded, I'd say in the upper third of the 300-400nm waveband. UV around 350/360 nm usually produces a histogram with red leading the blue and more reds/oranges in the raw mix.

These are not perfect "rules", of course. Lighting and subject matter can affect results.

 

Here is the histogram for Concone's photo.

 

 

 

 

Here are some general comments about the "color" of a UV file under different UV-pass filters on a dedicated UV-lens. In the following topic, note that the StraightEdgeU which records primarily between 375-400 nm has a color cast similar to that of the image by Concone.

[Filter Test] Raw Colour Differences in 6 UV-Pass Filters

[dabateman]

What only 2007. I started in 2008. Amazing. I really should have jumped in more and focused. But life moves on.

[Concone]

Thanks for the various explanations. I started writing everything down and applying the various tips. Now I will do various experiments and I will post the results waiting for your observations in order to improve where there will certainly be room for improvement.

Whatever the case, any advice that crosses your mind is always welcome. Thank you all.