what stage to apply noise ninja

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rabaroo

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hi

i am processing some CR2 raw files in Lightroom 2 - a lot of which could benefit from some noise reduction given that they were taken at iso400+.

at what stage should I do this!? - i want to make other tweaks in lightroom, and i dont think NN will accept a CR2 file, so should I process, sharpen and then feed into NN to do the noise reduction, or is there a better way to go about this?

Thanks
 
I would do any noise reduction as a final step.
 
My own method (and if people have a better idea, please tell me!) is this:
  • Process in Lightroom as normal (WB, tone etc), but leave sharpening and noise reduction at 0.
  • I then batch run noise ninja and capture sharpening using a droplet (I export to jpeg at this stage, but you could do TIFF)
  • If there's more detailed photoshop work to be done, I then do it and save.

That leaves me with base files - whenever I need an output I batch process resizing and output sharpening (again using a droplet).
 
awp said:
I would do any noise reduction as a final step.
Click to expand...

Most things I've read suggest that noise reduction works best as the first stage in processing. Obviously with Lightroom you can't do that (at the moment) without losing the benefit of working directly from the CR2.
 
LOL - well maybe that's why I hardly ever use it. Most times I'd prefer a little 'grain' to the plastic look you can get with noise reduction.
 
For those agreeing the noise reduction should be first step in PP, how do you integrate that into your workflow (assuming you use Lightroom/Aperture or similar and not just PS)?
 
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