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Digital Grain
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Allinthemind wrote:
Swordie wrote:
joe_elway wrote:
Method 2
1) Screw up original exposure
2) Adjust using levels, shadow, highlights
3) Get one noisy, noisy picture.Sorry Joe, I don’t understand what you are saying.
Any chance you could explain it in a step-by-step example?Hehe, I think he’s saying that if you underexpose your shot by a stop or so, then pull up the brightness, yu can clearly see the “natural” noise in the shadows.
The main difference between digital noise and film noise (grain) is that you can normally see the film noise (with mono film anyway) in the highlight areas, whereas with digital it’s in the darker areas.
Si
Let’s just say that when method #2 is applied it wasn’t part of some grand scheme or even desirable.
OK. Gotchya.
Thanks for that. Makes sense now.
Although, I don’t think I’d ever use that method deliberately.
I would usually shoot for colour – and only later see if an image works in b/w.Mark wrote:
I’ve tended in the past to just use the standard PS Add Noise filter (4-5% on monochromic) to b+w images for that fim grain look and feel.
Anyone else doing anything else ?The problem with the noise filter is that it spreads the noise evenly over the whole image. If you look at a good grainy print from say Tri-x Film printed onto b&w paper you will see that the grain is more obvious in the shadows than in midtones and highlights.
To get more realistic film grain, you will need to use an adjustment curve:
1. Create a “Curve Adjustment Layer”
2. In the Curves pallette, lower tones in shadows and preserve highlights with 2 or 3 points to get a slow ‘S’ the curve as illustrated – experiment as required after steps 3 and 4
3. Fill the “Curves Adjustment Layer” with 100% Black
4. Add a lot of noise to the ‘Curves Adjustment Layer” eg 200% – experiment as requiredNow the noise is more visible in the shadows than in the highlights, a bit like film (but of course not exactly, not least because film grain has a different shape, and the effect of the amount of noise has a lot to do with the resolution of the original image)
The middle photo is better because the grain is visible through all photo, how it should be.
A “simpler” way of adding an effect to just the highlights:
1. Go to channels tab
2. Control click on RGB – This does a background convert to grey scale and then selects all tonal values between 128 and 255 (highlights)
3. Click the little circle button to add the selection as a maskSimilarly for shadow selection, once you control click, invert your selection by “Control+Shift+I”. Now all shadow detail is selected (0-127)
I find it much neater, simpler and more “scientific” than messing around with curves etc.
As for the debate about where noise is in film, well from my VAST experience of B&W film, the noise was apparent across the whole tonal range and not just in the shadows.
Hi Roberto,
that’s the beauty of photography. We like what we like. The middle photo isn’t necessarily ‘better’, but you like it ‘more’. That’s completely fine.
This thing about this technique is that it allows minute adjustment, so you could bring back more noise into the highlight areas by playing around with the curve and the amount of noise added. Also, if you find a series of settings you like you can drag this ‘Adjustment Layer’ directly directly over another pic.
From my own perspective, when I see a shot like the middle one I immediately think ‘that’s had noise added, it’s not been shot on film’. It’s a bit like looking through a gauze.. I’m a big fan of grain, I was forever pushing Tri-X to exaggerate the grain. This technique comes close to that for me. But I could be wrong.
digitalbeginner wrote:
Hi Roberto,
that’s the beauty of photography. We like what we like. The middle photo isn’t necessarily ‘better’, but you like it ‘more’. That’s completely fine.
This thing about this technique is that it allows minute adjustment, so you could bring back more noise into the highlight areas by playing around with the curve and the amount of noise added. Also, if you find a series of settings you like you can drag this ‘Adjustment Layer’ directly directly over another pic.
From my own perspective, when I see a shot like the middle one I immediately think ‘that’s had noise added, it’s not been shot on film’. It’s a bit like looking through a gauze.. I’m a big fan of grain, I was forever pushing Tri-X to exaggerate the grain. This technique comes close to that for me. But I could be wrong.
I have mean that the middle photo is more closer to what you would have on film but not the same quality and effect.
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