Jump to content

LR vs Capture1 for a7rii - help needed, c1 looks sharper


Recommended Posts

I have only downloaded C1 for the first time this morning, so i hope the issue is that i am comparing apples and oranges in the settings to compare. Maybe someone could help, because at the minute, c1 is definitely bringing out noticeably better detail and looks a tad less noisy.

 

I am comparing photos taking at ISO 100, the photo in question is with the 35mm distagon 1.4, i reduced exposure by 0.3 for LR and c1, WB as shot, no changes to anything else except sharpening, so NR - 0, colour NR 25 for both, sharpening 25 for both (250 on c1 scale), radius 1.

 

I left detail at 25 on LR, masking zero. On c1 i put threshold to zero.

 

The jpegs produced show quite a bit more detail from C1. I'd much rather stick with LR because i know it already and wouldnt have to learn a new program. But the images look better from c1 - sharper, slightly cleaner.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I know how you feel   (much rather stick with LR because I know it already and wouldn't have to learn a new program. But the images look better from c1 - sharper, slightly cleaner). I was in the same situation a few months ago.

 

I went over to C1 and have no regretted it. For me, the biggest initial problem was creating new catalogs, putting them in the right place and importing pictures.

 

Once that was solved I much prefer working with C1 which I have simplified and personalised ( easy! ) to suit my working in B/W shooting RAW.

 

---

 

https://500px.com/Nix-Pix/sets

Link to post
Share on other sites

Stick with C1 a bit longer, there are lots of videos and blog posts on using C! and the support is second to non from C! if you have questions, unlike , in my experience, adobe.

 

the tethered shooting  ability the ability then via c1 to display on a iPad or similar or clients  is great and the image rendition is always better colour wise than Lr I find.

compared to Lr in some ways its a bit clunky but it has some features that you just don't get in Lr.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Definitely stick with C1. I know the user interface isn't that wonderful compared to LR, but the C1 Pro RAW engine seems way better. It's just a matter of developing your work flow.

 

The Capture One Pro (Sony only) is only around £45, got it the other day rather than updating C1 7.whatever to C1 8.whatever. Big saving.

Link to post
Share on other sites

As another person reluctant to switch from the "comfort" of Lightroom (e.g. I've created a bunch of export presets to create styles I like, including borders and signature, for my website, at the click of a button) how would the results of the C1 Pro workflow differ from a double step Sony Image Data Convert / Lightroom workflow?

 

1. Import into Sony Image Data Convert

2. Make any primary adjustments

3. Export as lossless TIFF

4. Import to Lightroom

5. Make any secondary and local adjustments

6. Create keywords and metadata.

7. Export to web, email, as required..

 

Would the end result quality be better, the same or worse than with Capture One?

 

 

 

Regards

Peter

http://www.peterwalker.com

Link to post
Share on other sites

I'm an IT guy. I've got lots of disk. Disk is cheap. :)

 

I guess I need to do some comparisons myself but I was wondering if anyone here had played with the Sony Image Data Convert / Lightroom combination and what the end result quality was like...

 

 

Regards

Peter

http://www.peterwalker.com

I'm the opposite to an IT guy and always struggle to add extra external HD to LR as it is!  I'm no computer whisked, that's for sure...

 

I've upgraded to the pro for sony, but would rather stick with what I'm (vaguely) familiar with...

Link to post
Share on other sites

I'm not so sure Adobe will improve the situation. When the a7 first came out people were saying the sony converter was sharper than LR, which it was, and still is - if adobe are going to improve their interpretation of sony raw files they are taking an awful long time to get round to it... Really quite frustrating.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I'm not so sure Adobe will improve the situation. When the a7 first came out people were saying the sony converter was sharper than LR, which it was, and still is - if adobe are going to improve their interpretation of sony raw files they are taking an awful long time to get round to it... Really quite frustrating.

excuse me being lazy, but where might I find the Sony converter?  If I could keep to the same size as the raw rather than having to convert to tiff, I could keep most of the routine as it is.  Just don't particularly want more than one workflow and more than one catalogue and back up....

Link to post
Share on other sites

excuse me being lazy, but where might I find the Sony converter?  If I could keep to the same size as the raw rather than having to convert to tiff, I could keep most of the routine as it is.  Just don't particularly want more than one workflow and more than one catalogue and back up....

 

i cant recall whether you download it or it came on a disc, its called Image Data Converter i think, and its awful to use - but sharper than LR.

Link to post
Share on other sites

excuse me being lazy, but where might I find the Sony converter?  If I could keep to the same size as the raw rather than having to convert to tiff, I could keep most of the routine as it is.  Just don't particularly want more than one workflow and more than one catalogue and back up....

 

 

Google "download sony image data converter mac" or "download sony image data converter windows" and you'll find it in the Sony support website in your region.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Long time user, but in no way expert, of Lightroom and Photoshop.

 

Have not been overly impressed with look of Sony files, either the A7R or A7RII, compared to my Canon files, which 'just worked', Can shoot 3-500 1DIV shots on a weekend using out of camera JPG and very happy with look with zero changes, so not an inveterate fiddler with files, just want the result.

 

Downloaded Sony's Image Data Converter and looked at 1 raw file, so not a big selection, but lots of details and dark and light sections. Zoomed in at 100% it looked identical to the Lightroom default (so maybe Lightroom is 'correct' rather than 'good').

 

Downloaded Capture One Express for Sony, loaded up the same file and it looks significantly better. Much more pop, just like I like the Canon straight out of camera.

 

Then I noticed that Capture One had applied a number of adjustments by default, much like Lightroom does (and I assume Image Data Converter) Sharpening, Noise Reduction .... and Clarity

 

It's hard to compare, as Capture One and Lightroom seem to have different scales for adjustments, but I noticed the 'Clarity' slider in Capture One said Natural, not None ... added +33 Dehaze in Lightroom and the result looks identical at 100% zoom to Capture One.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I have moved over from LightRoom to Capture One and, by now have tens of thousands of shots with both pieces of software (though stopped LR with version 5). In my experience, the RAW processor is significantly better in Capture One. Highlight recovery is as clear an example as any to see the difference. Many people hold the view that C1 is indeed the best RAW developper out there. That said, not everyone loves the user interface, and the catalogue features are less powerful than LR's.

On a blog I wrote a full report with picture comparisons outlining how C1 (it was V7 at the time) outperformed LR. I got a lot of feedback, amounting to: you ar right, this is shocking. But changing is too much trouble...

Link to post
Share on other sites

for me, the raw files don't look sharper. when you take out every default sharpening, they are looking exactly the same. but, I'm much more pleased with the default colors and contrasts in C1 and the sharpening/noise reduction tools are another league.

Link to post
Share on other sites

hi, 

 i have a a7 and i recommend to use DXO optics pro https://support.dxo.com/hc/en-us/categories/200250117-DxO-OpticsPro , better results than ACR, LR, C1. the elite version has incredibles tools. i work with a minolta 80-200 2,8 apo and is amazing, even the zeiss 24-70 2.8 A-mount look very sharp in the corners. the software has a huge list of lens presets and the last version accepts de a7II, im waiting a new update with the A/rII included. by the way adorama is now shipping a new group of pre orders. a received an email last night. try the dxo opics pro elite version its incredible.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I will give Capture One and DXO a try but I suspect that I will only use it as a RAW pre-processor because I have so many workflows and presets in Lightroom that'll it will be difficult to change.

 

Sony's Data Image Convert app seems like a bit of a kludge and I will not be using it. Even on a fast MacBook Pro, it runs very slowly on these big RAW files. Adjustments become tiresome.

 

With my first couple of batches of images from the A7Rii, I have used LR because that's the one I know. I created a develop preset and applied it during import. All the preset does is switch off all defaults, like auto noise reduction and sharpening, and turns on the lens and camera profile. Then I can play with the development settings for each image to get the best result.

 

So far, the results look great.

 

Maybe C1 and DXO could do a better job of the RAW conversion and then I could export a full-res TIF, importing those into LR.

Link to post
Share on other sites

made some tests yesterday here are my results, camera a7II

 

same raw picture in capture one and in lightroom, capture one no processing-->exported the TIFF file into lightroom.

 

processed both tif and raw in lightroom with same settings, 2 different results.

 

Couldn´t get more details out of the Capture one TIFF from the shadows in lightroom, also less details in shadows editing the raw file in capture one

 

but the capture one raw and tiff look a lot cleaner,

 

the raw gives a lot more detail from the shadows imported and processed in lightroom.

 

Color and background look a lot nicer though from the Capture One Files, but nothing you couldn´t fix in lightroom of course.

 

here the flickr files: Lightroom Version RAW

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/stojaphotography/20690741502/in/photostream/

 

capture one tif file edited in lightroom:

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/stojaphotography/20077436334/in/photostream/

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

Link to post
Share on other sites

Long time user, but in no way expert, of Lightroom and Photoshop.

 

Have not been overly impressed with look of Sony files, either the A7R or A7RII, compared to my Canon files, which 'just worked', Can shoot 3-500 1DIV shots on a weekend using out of camera JPG and very happy with look with zero changes, so not an inveterate fiddler with files, just want the result.

 

Downloaded Sony's Image Data Converter and looked at 1 raw file, so not a big selection, but lots of details and dark and light sections. Zoomed in at 100% it looked identical to the Lightroom default (so maybe Lightroom is 'correct' rather than 'good').

 

Downloaded Capture One Express for Sony, loaded up the same file and it looks significantly better. Much more pop, just like I like the Canon straight out of camera.

 

Then I noticed that Capture One had applied a number of adjustments by default, much like Lightroom does (and I assume Image Data Converter) Sharpening, Noise Reduction .... and Clarity

 

It's hard to compare, as Capture One and Lightroom seem to have different scales for adjustments, but I noticed the 'Clarity' slider in Capture One said Natural, not None ... added +33 Dehaze in Lightroom and the result looks identical at 100% zoom to Capture One.

 

Sorry what/where is "dehaze" in LR?

 

Hazy is the exact word i would use to describe a lot of my shots with a7rii, and its really bugged me to the point where i am thinking is there something wrong with my camera. Is there an easy way i can share some of my raw files with people here so they can confirm whether its the same as their a7rii, or whether i have a duff model giving weirdly grainy, hazy images?

Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...