Editing moments with darktable

[Bbawt (Brian)]

@s7habo

Yes

Excellent - it all suddenly made sense now, and also makes understanding the channel mixer module so much easier as well. Thanks!

[s7habo (Boris Hajdukovic)]

New episode: dynamic range compression

Editing moments with darktable. Episode 32: dynamic range compression

[Jade_NL (Jacques)]

A nice set of edits once again.

I noticed that the RAWs you started out with are very dark to begin with, at least (a lot) darker then those in your other moments.

These are high(er) dynamic range shots which are probably selected/shot specifically for this video, I know, and you are also toting around a D850, which doesn’t hurt when tackling dynamic range

Are you willing to tell a bit more about your approach at the moment of shooting these?

Anyway: Thanks for uploading another great one!

[s7habo (Boris Hajdukovic)]

In fact, the D850 has very good dynamic range and you can take underexposed shots without a lot of noise during exposure compensation. The camera also has a highlight weighted metering mode, which I like to use for subjects with a wide dynamic range.

Using the Highlight-Weighted Metering Mode | Nikon

When taking pictures without that mode, I control everything manually (exposure, aperture and ISO values) and make sure that I always set an exposure value below the measured one to make sure that highlights are not overexposed.

[Jade_NL (Jacques)]

As a D750 owner I use that metering mode myself. If at all possible using Live view (with Exposure preview + Histogram active) and aperture mode. Very nice combo for slow and still shots.

I do believe that the D850 is a bit better in preserving the blacks when shooting underexposed, though.

Thanks for your reply, it’s always nice to read that one is on the correct path…

[DerMartin]

Boris,

really very impressive edits and stunning how much you can lift the shadows from your D850 Raws without noise taking over. Really nice.
I realized your “Clarity” presets for local contrast, that you used in here. Would you mind telling a bit more about those presets and share them?

Great work and very good source of education as always looking at your edits … …

Cheers, Martin

[s7habo (Boris Hajdukovic)]

Hi Martin,

@DerMartin

I realized your “Clarity” presets for local contrast, that you used in here. Would you mind telling a bit more about those presets and share them?

Here is an article about it:

Clarity in darktable

Since I have a lot of time because of this crisis, I am experimenting quite a lot with different modules in the darktable. One of the last things I miss in the darktable is a module to emphasize the local contrasts in highlights. What appealed to me was the combination of local contrast and haze removal modules. The problem with haze removal is that you have to be very careful or you will get unwanted artifacts. I have just found a better way to improve local contrast by combining the local co…

[DerMartin]

brilliant , thx.
I knew there was something somewhere

[s7habo (Boris Hajdukovic)]

New episode: create your own DR compression style

Editing moments with darktable. Episode 34: create your own DR compression style

This episode is inspired by the contribution of @anon41087856:

Basic semi-automated style for darktable 3.0/filmic

I posted that already last week, but I can’t find the link anymore… This is a basic darktable style to apply to get a “lightroom-like” (in the spirit, not in the result) base look with a generic filmic setting that mimics the original OCIO filmic (which is a pre-computed LUT, not a parametric tool) : Auto-filmic - Aurélien Pierre.dtstyle (2,0 Ko) Bottom-line, automatizing filmic is super hard, but it’s easier to hard-set it and automatize the exposure settings (at the beginning of the pipe) in…

[Jade_NL (Jacques)]

That style gives you a nice base-line to start your edits from.

I cannot find a reason why you did not include a base-line version of the color balance module in your drc style. I would include it, probably toned down a bit (compared to the one you used in the first edit), something like:

fulcrum: 7.5%
contrast: 15%
power factor: 15%
slope factor: 30%

This isn’t meant to be a apply-and-forget style (right?). As shown by you the exposure needs adjusting and additional modules might be required after this one is applied. You do however apply the color balance module to all of your example edits… Just curious why you did not include a cb base-line to begin with.

One thing that I would not include would be the chromatic aberrations module. In my case it does more harm then good (most of the time). Depends on the hardware that’s being used.

Anyway, I’ll stop rambling: Thanks for another nice video!

[s7habo (Boris Hajdukovic)]

@Jade_NL

I cannot find a reason why you did not include a base-line version of the color balance module in your drc style.

@Jade_NL

As shown by you the exposure needs adjusting and additional modules might be required after this one is applied. You do however apply the color balance module to all of your example edits… Just curious why you did not include a cb base-line to begin with.

This is because the photos have different dynamic range and different initial contrast. With some of them, hardly any rework is necessary, with others, more. And also the motive plays a big role. Color balance serves for me to deal with these individual qualities. Even if I had integrated it, I would still have to make the readjustment.

@Jade_NL

This isn’t meant to be a apply-and-forget style (right?).

Exactly. This may work well if you have a series of pictures that were taken under similar conditions, but I won’t recommend it otherwise, because you don’t always take pictures under controlled conditions (places, light, situations) to be sure that the results are predictable.

@Jade_NL

One thing that I would not include would be the chromatic aberrations module. In my case it does more harm then good (most of the time). Depends on the hardware that’s being used.

This is unfortunately necessary because the “RGB power norm” function in the “preserve chrominance” option in the filmic enhances chromatic aberration when local contrast is increased. and yes, this always depends on the lens. For me it works well in most cases.

[Jade_NL (Jacques)]

@Jade_NL

@Jade_NL

One thing that I would not include would be the chromatic aberrations module. In my case it does more harm then good (most of the time). Depends on the hardware that’s being used.

This is unfortunately necessary because the “RGB power norm” function in the “preserve chrominance” option in the filmic enhances chromatic aberration when local contrast is increased. and yes, this always depends on the lens. For me it works well in most cases.

I just watched Bruce Williams’ latest about the lens correction module when I realized something: I auto apply the lens correction and that would include a chromatic aberration correction. You do not seem to apply this module.

Me applying chromatic aberration on top of the lens correction might explain why I have bad results. Need to experiment with that to make sure though.

Thanks for the feedback.

[s7habo (Boris Hajdukovic)]

@Jade_NL

I auto apply the lens correction and that would include a chromatic aberration correction.

Exactly

@Jade_NL

You do not seem to apply this module.

Although the lens correction exists for the lens I used for the photos in the video, it is very badly made and I am not satisfied with the result. That’s why I decided not to use the correction.

[plaven (Peter Lavender)]

Another great video Boris.

You have another fan of your work in the house too!

[s7habo (Boris Hajdukovic)]

@plaven

You have another fan of your work in the house too!

Nice!

It was one of the few moments when this little moving thing, jumping back and forth, was finally calmer and it seemed he could be caught.

[s7habo (Boris Hajdukovic)]

New episode: Portrait retouch :

Editing moments with darktable. Episode 35: Portrait retouch

[obe (Olaf Berthelsen)]

I have spent some time lately watching your excellent and interesting videos and learned a lot.
One question: I seems to me that all your photos are rather dark before you start editing. Are you deliberately underexposing?

[s7habo (Boris Hajdukovic)]

Yes, almost always 1 EV less than measured value. I hate overexposed photos. Unless, of course, it’s for artistic expression.

[DerMartin]

I assume also you have a camera equipment that is providing a nice noise behavior…
So you have the actual headroom to start with underexposure to gain as much dynamic range as possible.
Last week I was doing some shoots in Frankfurt a.M. and also tried to ensure that clouds do NOT overexpose, so had quite dark starting material. I then used a workflow based on your recent DR compression style that really did provide some nice looking images.
But with my EOS 7D I also had quite some noise to kill during the edits … … …
Samples see: Frankfurt am Main - 4. Juni 2020 - Familie Anstett

[s7habo (Boris Hajdukovic)]

WOW! Cool collection!

@DerMartin

But with my EOS 7D I also had quite some noise to kill during the edits

Yeah, sometimes you just have to make an bracket series. But I find noise a lot more pleasant than textureless, burnt highlights, where you can hardly do anything about it.