Noise ninja

I think the question of worth depends on the camera you are using. I have been using noise ninja (I guess the 8-bit version) for about 6-8 months now, and it has been fantastic in cleaning up the shadows from my Nikon D1H & later my D2Hs. While it doesn’t eliminate all the noise in an image it does make a huge difference without compromising the sharpness of the image.
I’m no expert with the program, but I think the main difference between the pro version and the other version is the ability to batch process. Since I want to look as each image and make adjustments as I remove the noise I’ve never wanted to use this feature.

Does it work with scanned images as well? I have a nice Canon scanner but it’s only 3.6 DMax and sometimes there is the problem of noise. I’d like a 4.2 or 4.8 scanner and am thinking of the Konica Minolta scanners. Noise Ninja sounds interesting. How much is it? I’ll do a search. Cheers.

http://www.picturecode.com/

price ranges from $35-80 depending on the version you get. I would think it will work for scanned images too.

Yeah, I’ve got it.  Don’t use it much but when I do it is a lifesaver.  Unless you do your Photoshop work in 16-bit, you only need the 8-bit version.  But, I would spring for the batch processing.  I started without the batch and actually forked out more money for the upgrade.  When shooting a wedding in a dark church, a nighttime protest, or a high-school basketball game in a cave of a gym, and you walk away with 50+ images all with noise, it is a pain  to open up the program each and every time. 
Yes it works with scanned images.

I’m not sure.  but you might want to ask these guys….

I was wondering how long it would take for the photos to appear. These folks are almost scarey. Shouldn’t they be hiding behind the trees or something?
Terrific shot!

NYT’s Vincent Laforet talks about Noise Ninja on the last sportsshooter newsletter. heres the link:

http://www.sportsshooter.com/news/1415

I’ve been using NN for a while now, and I dig it.

Whenever I use NN my pics always look a little plastic, as if they’ve been air brushed almost.
I dial the strength and smoothness controls down.
Any tips anyone? What settings do you all use?
Allen

Noise Ninja has been an absolute life-saver for me in terms of cleaning digital files of inherent noise. I shoot exclusively with two D2h bodies; And, truthfully, noise is apparant and obvious from ISO400 and up. I find that the dynamic range of Nikon’s digital cameras are such that my metering techniques are more precise than when using slide film. Taking advantage of reciprocal exposures sometimes helps alleviate noise, as the dynamic range can be adjusted, but that’s rare.

I choose to shoot in the RAW mode exclusively, another technique that allows for greater control over the noise problem. However, I can’t fully eliminate noise without the aid of a third party plug-in. A couple weeks were spent tweaking the controls on NN’s interface, until I found a combination of setting that worked well with my toning process. Here’s a list of settings, beginning with the camera, and ending with an explanation of my toning process: (This is by no means meant to serve as an absolute guide, as no image is exactly the same, and everyone’s individual process is different. So, take it with the preverbial grain of salt.)

D2h: Raw (no compression), WB (Auto), Sharpening 0 (normal), Tone (Less Contrast -), ColorMode (II), Hue (0). I spot meter about 99% of my work.

Camera RAW: Tonal and color adustments are specific to each image. Sharpening 40, Luminance smoothing 10-20, Noise Reduction 0.

In Photoshop: I crop, first, if absolutely necessary. Then, if I need to use NN, I make a duplicate layer for the NN. With the pro version of NN, as a user, you are able to either download a series of profiles for your specific camera, and/or use the supplied MacBeth Colour checker to make your own profile – the latter of two choices I avoid as a photojournalist; because, we’re not operating in a controlled enviornment. So, after testing, I chose a profile that accurately represents the behaviour of my camera under a very wide variety of shooting circumstances. If I remember correctly, that profile is placed within the operating folders of the NN program. (MacOSX10.2.8)

Instead of clicking on profile image, I click profile chart, an action that references my camera’s profile. Also, I operate NN with the LUMINANCE radio button clicked, as this setting more accurately analyzes random noise patterns. I find that this setting works particularly well in artificial light, especially when there are multiple sources and colour temperatures.

Strength 18, Smoothness 0, Contrast 12, USM 0/0.4, Colours 10 10 10, ( Check the TURBO and CORSE NOISE boxes ), and that’s it! I really don’t mess around with anything else within the NN interface, aside from adding aditional boxes that analyze noise. I do this if I feel the program didn’t accurately select multiple gradations of a particular colour. (Note: Abuse of smoothness creates the “platic look” that most people commonly reference. I find that leaving it on 0 is most appropriate, especially when shooting at the higher ISO’s, for one particular reason: I love the grain of TRI-X, Delta3200, and Kodak’s P3200, and to some extent the grain from the higher speed colour emulsions. Leaving smoothness off, still leaves a signature “grain” associated with noise, except there’s no random colour variation.)

Then, with every image I tone, the process is always in the same order: Levels, Curves, Colour Balance, Saturation, Merge Down, any dodging and burning is done in LAB on a new layer; then, Merge Down, Convert Back to RGB, and lastly, a High Pass. I have an action set for this process, which isn’t terribly complicated: Duplicate layer, soft light, highpass: 22.1 radius, and then I adjust the opacity of the layer as necessary. Finally, the image gets flattened and saved as a TIFF.

This process may seem like a lot to go through just to make a usable file, but I’ve refined my workflow to about five minutes per file.

If anyone is interested in viewing one comparison of an unprocessed RAW vs a final image off a D2h at ISO1600, let me know in the forum. I would post it now, but don’t know how. Hope this information helps, and please, feel free to ask any other questions. Love to share! And, yes, I am much more concerned with simply making good pictures.

Cheers,

Andrew

My previous post wasn’t supposed to be one long paragraph! I apologize. Not sure what happened, as I wrote my reply in the approprait box. Oh well.

The first image in my gallery uses NN with an image from a D1X 5.47mp the second is from a D1H 2.8mp. I believe both were shot at 1600 iso if I recall. Definately not lower.

I use it all the time with a nikon d70 at anything over 400 ISO, definitely worth the pretty low price to me. Especially good if you shoot concerts and other artificial light stuff.