Frustrated - NX Studio vs. ACR

[Frode]

Hi,

I prefer using NX Studio for my PP, due to the colors I get (YMMV of course). And I'd still like to "stay" there :-).

Though;

I experience that highlights that is burned out in NX Studio/also blinkies in camera - Z9 (which also are beyond fixable there), I can easily "repair" in ACR.

Can anyone tell me why?

Of course, sometimes one has to prioritize (highlights vs. shadows etc.), but until now I`ve always "stretched" the highlights 1/3- 2/3 (when using high iso) of a EV and been able to adjust the EV in PP. I'm aware of the lower DR when using high iso :-).

Best regards

[Ilkka Nissilä]

I believe the blinkies are shown when the JPG has a blown-out green channel (or R G B channel that the user selects), but the raw file may have still some range in the highlights, depending on the curve and settings that are used to make the JPG.

[Frode]

I believe the blinkies are shown when the JPG has a blown-out green channel (or R G B channel that the user selects), but the raw file may have still some range in the highlights, depending on the curve and settings that are used to make the JPG.

Yes, the blinkies shows the jpeg values.

What I don’t understand is that it seems I can recover a lot more «burned out» (of course, they’re not actually burned out, but the raw has some more «headroom» than the jpeg) highlights with ACR.

[Frode]

I believe the blinkies are shown when the JPG has a blown-out green channel (or R G B channel that the user selects), but the raw file may have still some range in the highlights, depending on the curve and settings that are used to make the JPG.

Frustrating, because due to user error (wrong exposure settings) I've got to use the ACR instead of the NX Studio.

[Frode]

ACR exposure reduced by 3 EV.

[Frode]

NX Studio, reduced 3 EV (also used Flat profile).

Values from the same spot shows different amount (example: 255, 255, 255 in NX Studio vs. 252, 252, 251 in ACR).

[Øivind Tøien]

It does not seem to be any more detail in ACR, it just brought down the blown out 255,255,255 value down to a gray one and shifted the rest of the scale.

My experience is that the actual headroom is somewhere between one and two EVs, probably closer to one, depending of which picture control and body is used.

[David H. Hartman]

I experience that highlights that is burned out in NX Studio/also blinkies in camera - Z9 (which also are beyond fixable there), I can easily "repair" in ACR.

Can anyone tell me why?

If there is highlight data in the NEF that is available to ARC it is also available to NX Studio. It's a matter of learning to use NX Studio's adjustments to recover it. If you get better color from NX Studio then it will be worth the extra effort to recover the highlights using it. If not then use ARC. ARC is probably combining several adjustments in one slider if one slider adjustment is doing the trick. This is total speculation as I have no experience with ARC, only NX Studio and Capture NX-D and Capture NX2 before it.

I use NX Studio to render the NEF into a TIF after which I finish the image in an old version of Photoshop. From time to time I make use of contrast reducing masks to recover shadows and highlights and then add an "S" curve to punch the mid tones.

Dave

[Frode]

It does not seem to be any more detail in ACR, it just brought down the blown out 255,255,255 value down to a gray one and shifted the rest of the scale.

My experience is that the actual headroom is somewhere between one and two EVs, probably closer to one, depending of which picture control and body is used.

Thank you, Øivind.

Yes, indeed, that might be the reason. I must say, though, that the "grey" looks better than pure white (it looks to "aggressive").

1 EV headroom sounds like my experience as well.

[Frode]

If there is highlight data in the NEF that is available to ARC it is also available to NX Studio. It's a matter of learning to use NX Studio's adjustments to recover it. If you get better color from NX Studio then it will be worth the extra effort to recover the highlights using it. If not then use ARC. ARC is probably combining several adjustments in one slider if one slider adjustment is doing the trick. This is total speculation as I have no experience with ARC, only NX Studio and Capture NX-D and Capture NX2 before it.

I use NX Studio to render the NEF into a TIF after which I finish the image in an old version of Photoshop. From time to time I make use of contrast reducing masks to recover shadows and highlights and then add an "S" curve to punch the mid tones.

Dave

Thank you, David.
It's logical that such data also should be available in NX Studio as well, indeed. Maybe the answer is what Øivind suggested above.
I do also use NX Studio first (exposure and WB) before render the NEF into a TIFF (from there on I use ACR and PS CC, if needed). I am a bit insecure about the NR in NX Studio, so I've just become acustomed using ACR for NR.
I much prefer the colors I get from NX Studio, of course YMMW.