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Author Topic: deconvolution sharpening plug in  (Read 54667 times)

marcmccalmont

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deconvolution sharpening plug in
« on: January 14, 2016, 09:29:47 am »

I've got a new computer and it seems my favorite sharpening plugin (for PS) is no longer available Focusfixer 3.21
Any suggestions for a replacement deconvolution sharpener?
Thanks in advance for your help
Marc
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Marc McCalmont

bjanes

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #1 on: January 14, 2016, 09:47:43 am »

I've got a new computer and it seems my favorite sharpening plugin (for PS) is no longer available Focusfixer 3.21
Any suggestions for a replacement deconvolution sharpener?
Thanks in advance for your help
Marc

Windows or Mac? Focus Magic is available on both and is very good. Topaz Detail and InFocus are also good.

Bill
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marcmccalmont

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #2 on: January 14, 2016, 09:54:03 am »

Windows or Mac? Focus Magic is available on both and is very good. Topaz Detail and InFocus are also good.

Bill
Windows!
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Marc McCalmont

Bart_van_der_Wolf

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #3 on: January 14, 2016, 10:34:55 am »

Windows or Mac? Focus Magic is available on both and is very good. Topaz Detail and InFocus are also good.

+1 on all three.

FocusMagic is primarily a deconvolution sharpening plugin, and it does a stellar job with automatically balancing between resolution restoration and noise suppression. This would be a direct replacement, only better.

Topaz Detail has a deconvolution control ('Deblur'), but its main forte is a very high level of control over all sorts of detail enhancement.

Topas InFocus is a deconvolution sharpening tool with much more control over the deconvolution parameters than 'Detail' offers, but can be a bit heavy on the artifact by-products (e.g. ringing) it creates, although that's usually caused by using the wrong settings, like too large a radius.

Cheers,
Bart
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m_rouleau

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #4 on: January 14, 2016, 04:42:02 pm »

I've got a new computer and it seems my favorite sharpening plugin (for PS) is no longer available Focusfixer 3.21
Any suggestions for a replacement deconvolution sharpener?
Thanks in advance for your help
Marc

If you have Photoshop CC 2015, take a look at the Smart Sharpening filter. It is much improved over previous versions and very competitive with Focus Magic and InFocus in terms of results.
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bjanes

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #5 on: January 14, 2016, 07:59:09 pm »

+1 on all three.

FocusMagic is primarily a deconvolution sharpening plugin, and it does a stellar job with automatically balancing between resolution restoration and noise suppression. This would be a direct replacement, only better.

Topaz Detail has a deconvolution control ('Deblur'), but its main forte is a very high level of control over all sorts of detail enhancement.

Topas InFocus is a deconvolution sharpening tool with much more control over the deconvolution parameters than 'Detail' offers, but can be a bit heavy on the artifact by-products (e.g. ringing) it creates, although that's usually caused by using the wrong settings, like too large a radius.

Perhaps I haven't read the Topaz documentation in sufficient detail, but from what I have seen they have done a poor job of differentiating 'Detail' from 'InFocus' and where one should use each tool. It seems to me that one would use InFocus primarily for capture sharpening and Detail for creative sharpening. At least that has been how I have been using them. InFocus has no built in masking and is applied globally unless you use it on a layer mask. However, I usually use FocusMagic for capture sharpening since it so easy to use and gives good results. Detail does have good built in masking, which makes it easy for selective creative sharpening.

For output sharpening, I usually use built in Lightroom algorithm or PhotoKit when I am printing from Photoshop.

Any pointers that you could provide would be most appreciated.

Regards,

Bill

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marcmccalmont

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #6 on: January 15, 2016, 04:28:25 am »

I'll start with FocusMagic and go from there
Mostly used for global capture sharpening
Thanks
Marc
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Marc McCalmont

Bart_van_der_Wolf

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #7 on: January 15, 2016, 04:47:50 am »

Perhaps I haven't read the Topaz documentation in sufficient detail, but from what I have seen they have done a poor job of differentiating 'Detail' from 'InFocus' and where one should use each tool. It seems to me that one would use InFocus primarily for capture sharpening and Detail for creative sharpening.

Hi Bill,

That's correct.

However, Detail also has a 'Deblur' control, which is basically a much simplified control version of deconvolution (Capture) sharpening. But for Capture sharpening in particular, their InFocus plugin offers much more possibilities. 'Detail' on the other hand excels in modifying structural detail, which can come across as sharpening, but it isn't, it's Creative 'sharpening'. It does not do that by modifying acutance or edge-contrast, but rather by modifying the amplitude of certain spatial detail 'sizes' (frequencies).

I also use FocusMagic for it's excellent deconvolution quality with low risk of artifacts, as Capture sharpening tool, also because it really restores resolution. Sometimes I prefer the biting sharpness of InFocus, but that depends on the subject.
Detail is so good in bringing out surface detail and structure, that it's hard to beat with any other tool. It can also be used for output sharpening, after resampling to 600 or 720 PPI, although I sometimes also use FocusMagic for part of that (reclaiming a bit of resolution after upsampling to more than the file offers natively).

Cheers,
Bart
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Bob Rockefeller

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #8 on: January 15, 2016, 09:58:48 am »

Where does Affinity Photo fit in with all this?

Are it's sharpening tools up to standard?

Does it work properly with these Ps plug-ins?
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francois

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #9 on: January 15, 2016, 10:04:18 am »

Where does Affinity Photo fit in with all this?

Are it's sharpening tools up to standard?

Does it work properly with these Ps plug-ins?

FocusMagic doesn't work at all. I've reported it and I hope they can find a way to make it work.
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Francois

Manoli

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #10 on: January 15, 2016, 10:42:34 am »

Where does Affinity Photo fit in with all this? - Does it work properly with these Ps plug-ins?

The only Topaz plugin I've managed to install under Affinity is Clarity. Both InFocus and Detail don't work - yet.
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kirkt

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #11 on: January 15, 2016, 11:55:32 am »

I've managed to get Detail, DeNoise and InFocus to work, Clarity crashes when I invoke it from AF.  I am running AF 1.4 on El Capitan 10.11.2.  I point the AF plug-in folder list to my PSCC2015 plug-in folder and allow global.  I also allow "Unknown" plug-ins. 

Ironically, the AF plug-in status window shows Clarity as the only one that is "Working."

Who knows...

Focus Magic does not work - only the Motion Blur option even shows up in the AF plug-in filter menu.  Piccure+ freezes AF after you select save and return to AF.

kirk
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Manoli

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #12 on: January 15, 2016, 01:44:04 pm »

I've managed to get Detail, DeNoise and InFocus to work, Clarity crashes when I invoke it from AF.  I am running AF 1.4 on El Capitan 10.11.2.  I point the AF plug-in folder list to my PSCC2015 plug-in folder and allow global.  I also allow "Unknown" plug-ins. 

Ironically, the AF plug-in status window shows Clarity as the only one that is "Working."
Who knows...

Hmmm , exactly the same setup and settings , totally opposite result !
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ablankertz

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #13 on: January 19, 2016, 07:32:17 pm »

If you have Photoshop CC 2015, take a look at the Smart Sharpening filter. It is much improved over previous versions and very competitive with Focus Magic and InFocus in terms of results.

I would say "very competitive" is an understatement- it's just as good. In the testing I've done, I couldn't find any improvement (and only trivial differences) in using Topaz Infocus or FocusMagic over Smart Sharpening set to "lens blur." Not surprising, really. There are only so many deconvolution algorithms out there, and it makes sense that different companies would find the same one the best for general purpose photography.
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Jack Hogan

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #14 on: January 20, 2016, 01:12:12 pm »

I couldn't find any improvement (and only trivial differences) in using Topaz Infocus or FocusMagic over Smart Sharpening set to "lens blur." Not surprising, really.

Interesting.  It is my understanding that Smart Sharpen 'lens blur' uses an Airy disc as the PSF, at least up to about CS5 or so.  I am not sure after that.

Jack
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t6b9p

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #15 on: January 21, 2016, 12:02:23 pm »

For my own benefit (about 6 months ago) I performed a limited capture sharpening & NR matrix test. Preliminary testing was performed to find the optimum settings in each program for the image at hand. These settings were then utilized in the matrix test which resulted in about 350 images produced from a single B&W infrared image using combinations of:
ACR8 Sharpening & NR
Focus Magic
Topaz InFocus
Nik Sharpener (quickly dropped in preliminary testing)
Neatimage
Topaz Denoise
Nik DFine

Testing could have been far more exhaustive for the variety of combinations but preliminary "quick look see" narrowed it down to only 350 images!

All were pushed really hard using the same settings in Nik SilverEfexPro to exaggerate any issues.

In trying to pick the combination that showed the best detail & least artifacts, mazing, halos, ringing, "blockiness" etc when viewed at 100%, my conclusion:
Web sized Image ~ any of the combinations is fine, ACR being preferable due to simplicity and speed.
Large print ~ Focus Magic + Neatimage (ACR Sharpening & NR OFF).

Of course, your mileage may vary.
« Last Edit: January 21, 2016, 12:08:07 pm by t6b9p »
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kers

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #16 on: January 21, 2016, 12:46:02 pm »

For my own benefit (about 6 months ago) I performed a limited capture sharpening & NR matrix test. Preliminary testing was performed to find the optimum settings in each program for the image at hand. ....


hello t6b9p,

When you talk about optimum settings, are you referring to print or screen?
I ask because on screen i see always lot of grain but in print not at all.
I hardly use any noise compression for they usually only ruin the detail in print.

Pieter Kers
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Simon Garrett

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #17 on: January 21, 2016, 01:17:38 pm »

I understood that smart sharpen in PS used deconvolution sharpening, but perhaps I've got that wrong.

In Lightroom (and ACR) the sharpening uses deconvolution if the detail slider is moved right.  No convolution when the detail slider is at the left end, or so Jeff Schewe says in "The Digital Negative". 
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t6b9p

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #18 on: January 21, 2016, 01:45:16 pm »

Quote
When you talk about optimum settings, are you referring to print or screen?

Given the amount of time to conduct the test, even without printing each result, I was talking about screen. The goal was to find which software combination gave me the best "looking" output for a difficult image, under subsequent adverse post process conditions while viewing on screen. Focus Magic and/or Neatimage seem to fulfill my goal but for print output, application of these two programs, and parameters utilized, would be dependent on the actual image in question due to subject, capture parameters, equipment etc, after all, the test was based on only one difficult image.

Quote
In Lightroom (and ACR) the sharpening uses deconvolution if the detail slider is moved right.  No convolution when the detail slider is at the left end, or so Jeff Schewe says in "The Digital Negative".
In my test I used one set of conditions for "pure" Deconvolution and several additional sets, placing the sliders to obtain the best I could get.
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picc_pl

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Re: deconvolution sharpening plug in
« Reply #19 on: January 24, 2016, 09:28:30 am »

Hello,

currently piccure+ is compatible with PS (CS4 or later), PSE (7 or later), LR (3 or later), DxO (9 or later) and PhaseOne C1 (8 or later). We have not tested it with AF - sorry to hear that it crashed the computer. However, there is a standalone version available (including a RAW converter). You find a lot about piccure+ in the internet and forums and on our homepage (just google). It is currently the only solution that corrects spatially-varying complex optical aberrations (e.g. coma) as well as camera shake (e.g. micro-shakes) by the means of (blind) deconvolution. You do not need to specify a lens, some motion trace etc. The software does all that for you, there is a 30-days free trial with no limitations on functionality.
Best,
Lui
Co-Founder
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