Noise Reduction in Post

[tyqre]

What is the best software to do noise reduction in post?

 

[Robin Usagani]

Lightroom3

 

[ann]

There are several programs that do a good job. Check out Topaz labs, Nik , Noisenenja.

If you have to correct for noise it should be done first.

 

[tyqre]

What is the best software to do noise reduction in post?

ill check out Lightroom first considering that i already have it ) ha fail.

 

[KmH]

I like Imagenomics, NoiseWare Pro, but also use Camera Raw/Lightroom (ACR 6).

It is better to not have noise in the original, because noise reduction will always reduce detail to some extent.

Which is why noise reduction is considered one side of a coin. On the other side of the coin is image sharpening.

Real World Image Sharpening with Adobe Photoshop, Camera Raw, and Lightroom (2nd Edition)

 

[tyqre]

I like Imagenomics, NoiseWare Pro, but also use Camera Raw/Lightroom (ACR 6).

It is better to not have noise in the original, because noise reduction will always reduce detail to some extent.

Which is why noise reduction is considered one side of a coin, On the other side of the coin is image sharpening.

Real World Image Sharpening with Adobe Photoshop, Camera Raw, and Lightroom (2nd Edition)

do you use them all or do you prefer one over the other?

 

[KmH]

I use them all depending on what my nr/sharpening goals are.

Noiseware Pro offers options and adjustments ACR 6 (Camera Raw/Lightroom) doesn't have.

 

[dmtx]

I use Lightroom3. You need to to learn how to balance noise reduction and sharpness.

 

[12sndsgood]

this is one thing i seem to fight in allot of my pics. downside of an entrylevel camera i suppose. i have CS5 and im just getting into it. workig on learning the whole processing tequnique while learning the program. are other programs that much better at reducing noise compared to the feature build into cs5 that would warrant a purchase. and this is someone who just does this for a hobby.

 

[subscuck]

Noiseware, as mentioned by Keith, has a free community version available. If your noise is light to moderate, the default settings work very well. IMO, it's the best at maintaining detail.

Noiseware Community Edition - Free software downloads and software reviews - CNET Download.com

 

[Overread15 3]

Neat Image is another 3rd party option you can consider using; its demo version acts as a standalone program (ie you load the photo into it outside of photoshop) and only saves in JPEG, but that is certainly good enough to test its noise control abilities. It also has a sharpening code as well which I find a good option to combine with the noise reduction

Neat Image - best noise reduction for digital cameras and scanners

(strictly speaking you should do them separately - noise reduction then sharpening; though for most webbased applications and on most photos you can get away with a good result by doing both in the same stage).

This is however one area where there are no real clear market leaders, specific situations and noise profiles can result in one program having the edge over the others, but generally shooting within those restrictions is impractical/impossible in the real world. The major differences are going to be the controls and how well you can fine tune the results with each option; and that requires learning to use the tool well to see the small differences.

 

[Compaq]

I think topaz denoise works great. The presets are all you need. Unless your originals are extremely noisy the plugin won't take much detail away, if any noticeable at all. You might lose much detail if you're reducing noise in a pic of an extremely fine detailed pattern.