Adjustments being applied automatically

[tstoddard]

I have been experimenting with other products for my raw converting and created several jpegs with one of them last night. I then opened the images in ASP to see if I could get a good comparison of jpegs created by ASP and ones created by the other software. When I open the jpegs that were created by the other program, I see adjustments occurring right after they are opened. By that I mean that the thumbnails look as they do in the other program but when I click on the thumbnail to open the image for editing, the image opens and looks right for a split second before adjustments are made. Mostly the adjustments cause any dark areas to become darker and a lot of the detail in those areas to be lost. My default rendered settings are untouched from when I installed ASP and there are no active adjustments specified in those settings. What causes the jpegs to be adjusted after opening?

[afx]

You probably have saved defaults for rendered files...

cheers
afx

[tstoddard]

As far as I can tell, I have no default settings for rendered images. If I right click and select Settings -> Save as rendered default..., the dialog that opens only has one item checked and that item has a value of false. The item is sharpening so it shouldn't have anything to do with what I'm seeing. Is there some other way that defaults are set?

I've also noticed that the jpegs have way more noise in the dark areas in ASP then in other viewers. I processed them in Photo Ninja so the noise is barely noticeable in other viewers. What does ASP do differently? I've opened the same jpegs in several different viewers and only ASP mangles them.

[afx]

As far as I can tell, I have no default settings for rendered images. If I right click and select Settings -> Save as rendered default..., the dialog that opens only has one item checked and that item has a value of false. The item is sharpening so it shouldn't have anything to do with what I'm seeing. Is there some other way that defaults are set?

I'd rather check the file (in the defaults folder in your AS user folder).

Also, did you specify a specific colro space for JPGs in the preferences and do the JPGs contain a color profile?

I've also noticed that the jpegs have way more noise in the dark areas in ASP then in other viewers. I processed them in Photo Ninja so the noise is barely noticeable in other viewers. What does ASP do differently? I've opened the same jpegs in several different viewers and only ASP mangles them.

Are you comparing them at 100%? If not, this is not reliable as different viewers use different algorithms for on-screen viewing.

cheers
afx

[Trucks]

I've also noticed that the jpegs have way more noise in the dark areas in ASP then in other viewers. I processed them in Photo Ninja so the noise is barely noticeable in other viewers. What does ASP do differently? I've opened the same jpegs in several different viewers and only ASP mangles them.

Are you comparing them at 100%? If not, this is not reliable as different viewers use different algorithms for on-screen viewing.

cheers
afx

And this can be a huge difference between the viewers. Pics can realy look ugly.

Regards

Trucks

[tstoddard]

As far as I can tell, I have no default settings for rendered images. If I right click and select Settings -> Save as rendered default..., the dialog that opens only has one item checked and that item has a value of false. The item is sharpening so it shouldn't have anything to do with what I'm seeing. Is there some other way that defaults are set?

I'd rather check the file (in the defaults folder in your AS user folder).

Also, did you specify a specific colro space for JPGs in the preferences and do the JPGs contain a color profile?

The defaultrendered.xmp file in my AS folder also has no adjustments specified.

When I created the jpeg in Photo Ninja I specified the sRGB color space and I checked the box to "embed profile". (I admit that I don't have a good understanding of color management but I think I got this right.)

Viewing at 100% does seem to minimize the differences, at least with the noise issue. There is still detail lost in the dark areas.

Thanks for you help.

[afx]

Do all applications use the same monitor profile?

cheers
afx

[tstoddard]

afx,

I don't think it's the monitor profile that is causing me to have this problem. What I find strange is that when I click on a thumbnail, whether it's a raw file or a jpeg, I see the image appear and then I see adjustments applied to it. The histogram moves and the image changes. I just now tested it with a back up some raw files that I had not modified since downloading from my memory card. When I view a file, I notice that sharpening is being applied. When I look at the default raw xml file, sharpening is not specified. Where did ASP get the idea to apply sharpening? Is it specified in the file itself? Is it in my camera settings?

I tried deselecting the checkbox for sharpening, then I saved the image's settings as raw defaults but even then when I click on another untouched raw file, the sharpening is still applied. I'm just trying to understand where ASP is getting it's directives.

Thanks!

[afx]

What I find strange is that when I click on a thumbnail, whether it's a raw file or a jpeg, I see the image appear and then I see adjustments applied to it.

This is strange for JPGs but perfectly normal for raw files.
JPGs should be just shown as is.

RAW files in contrast will initially show the embedded JPG and then AfterShot's rendition, which is usually different from the camera manufacturers rendition.

The histogram moves and the image changes. I just now tested it with a back up some raw files that I had not modified since downloading from my memory card. When I view a file, I notice that sharpening is being applied. When I look at the default raw xml file, sharpening is not specified. Where did ASP get the idea to apply sharpening? Is it specified in the file itself? Is it in my camera settings?

A sharpening setting of 100 is the built in default for raw files. It is off by default for rendered files.

I tried deselecting the checkbox for sharpening, then I saved the image's settings as raw defaults but even then when I click on another untouched raw file, the sharpening is still applied. I'm just trying to understand where ASP is getting it's directives.

For a raw file, if there is no XMP nor any cache/DB entry, that should work so your report is quite puzzling.

cheers
afx

[tstoddard]

What I find strange is that when I click on a thumbnail, whether it's a raw file or a jpeg, I see the image appear and then I see adjustments applied to it.

This is strange for JPGs but perfectly normal for raw files.
JPGs should be just shown as is.

That's what I thought. I've been experimenting with so many different applications that I can't be sure what is embedded in my files. I will need to create some fresh raw files and start from scratch to see if I can reproduce this behavior. I do know that when I render jpeg's using Photo Ninja, I've left the defaults set to embed all of the metadata in the jpeg. I will need to experiment with those settings to see what results I get.

I tried deselecting the checkbox for sharpening, then I saved the image's settings as raw defaults but even then when I click on another untouched raw file, the sharpening is still applied. I'm just trying to understand where ASP is getting it's directives.

For a raw file, if there is no XMP nor any cache/DB entry, that should work so your report is quite puzzling.

After I save the default raw settings without sharpening, when I click on a different raw file the sharpening is still there until I right click and tell ASP to apply default settings. What's the point of having default settings if you have to explicitly tell the program to use them? I'm thinking that ASP creates cached previews whenever I go to a folder. It must use that cache to get it's "initial settings". If that assumption is correct then I should be able to go to a new folder and raw files in that folder should not have sharpening applied. In order to test that I will need to create several new folders and put unprocessed files in them. I'm not at home now so I don't have access to my pc so it will have to wait.

Thanks,

Tom

[afx]

After I save the default raw settings without sharpening, when I click on a different raw file the sharpening is still there until I right click and tell ASP to apply default settings.

This means AS already has seen the files and has applied previous defaults....

What's the point of having default settings if you have to explicitly tell the program to use them? [/(quote]
Defaults are applied the first time AS sees a file.

In order to test that I will need to create several new folders and put unprocessed files in them.

Or nuke your cache if there are no XMPs...

cheers
afx

[tstoddard]

I gave up and uninstalled ASP. I went through my file system and registry and deleted all traces I could find and then reinstalled the program. My backgrounds don't get dark any more. I have no idea what was causing the problem but hopefully it won't reappear. This time I'll try to make change more deliberately.

Thanks!