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06-24-2011, 06:39 PM   #1
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K5 High Iso 'banding'

Hi guys,

Just shot my K5 at high ISO for once and noticed 'banding' appearing at ISO 9000. I then took a few more shots to see if this was normal and it seemed to get progressively worse the higher the ISO, begins only faintly visible to obvious and is most obvious in darker scenes.

This occured regardless of the Noise reduction setting (it appeared at all strengths, on or off)

I did a google search and nothing came up, so thought I'd ask. I'd appreciate it if anyone else can test for this.

It looks similar to the 'Panasonic GH1 banding issue' (google it), and I can post images if necessary.

I'm just surprised that no one else has said anything about it so thought i would, could just be my k5 though

Thanks in advance for any help/suggestions/ideas :-)

06-24-2011, 06:53 PM   #2
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post a picture so we can actually see the issue. Or upload the raw file somewhere would be best.
06-24-2011, 07:48 PM   #3
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QuoteOriginally posted by vincechu Quote
I'm just surprised that no one else has said anything about it so thought i would, could just be my k5 though
I just checked my own at ISO10000 under severely underexposed conditions and everything looked good here(no banding etc).

Any chance you could upload a RAW sample?
06-24-2011, 07:49 PM   #4
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I haven't noticed any banding with my K-5, regardless of the ISO. Here is a shot at ISO 12800 that was developed from DNG. Do you see any signs of banding?



I haven't heard anything about a banding problem with the K-5.

06-24-2011, 08:02 PM   #5
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Thanks guys, its harder to see around ISO9000-12800 I'd say

For now I've got jpegs - I dont know how to upload raws, but I can assure you its on RAWs too.

Heres ISO12800 from my k5







ISO 25600







ISO 51200







I know that I rarely use above ISO 6400, but still I'd like to know if this is normal ;-) I also have to say that this banding is more noticeable in different settings, mainly where there are darker colours or shadows.

Last edited by vincechu; 06-24-2011 at 08:17 PM.
06-24-2011, 08:06 PM   #6
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QuoteOriginally posted by areidjr Quote
I haven't noticed any banding with my K-5, regardless of the ISO. Here is a shot at ISO 12800 that was developed from DNG. Do you see any signs of banding?



I haven't heard anything about a banding problem with the K-5.
that seems fine to me, I do see banding from my k5 (atleast) but only very slightly and if I look for it at 9000-12800, and it becomes more obvious the higher u go
06-24-2011, 08:20 PM   #7
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QuoteOriginally posted by vincechu Quote
For now I've got jpegs - I dont know how to upload raws, but I can assure you its on RAWs too.
One of the reasons I like to look at RAW is that it makes it easier to assess things like exposure etc.

Also, I don't like JPG at all for high ISO output.
It presents very poor NR and/or detail retention.
And most of all, it doesn't address high ISO artifacts(ie. banding) very well.

PS. do you know how to upload a file to FTP?

06-24-2011, 08:47 PM - 1 Like   #8
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I completely missed the banding at first, I was looking for something more readily-apparent like what you get when you push shadows in a 7D photo!

If your photo software has a separate slider for reducing color (chroma) noise just use that to get rid of the offending banding. The way we see is much less sensitive to fine differences in color than to differences in luminosity; those extra bits of color won't even be missed!
06-24-2011, 08:48 PM   #9
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Thanks for the info John, true that jpgs don't address artifacts very well.

I don't know how to upload to FTP (a quick google left me confused lol)

I know that banding is an artifact and can be sorted out in PP, so I know RAW will of course help me get better results sorting out the banding.

However I'm still surprised that no one else has seen or mentioned the banding, so I was wondering if i have a dodgy sensor which is giving the banding or I'm pixel peeping too much lol. Probably the latter ;-) However I did once use the in camera hand held HDR function in my k5 and got a row of green pixels along the bottom edge of the photo, which is why I'm thinking its to do with my sensor> But then again the green pixels thing could be due to the handheld HDR not lining up the 3 images properly, especially because the row of pink pixels occured right on the edge of the image.


hmmm.... might get my K5 checked out by pentax just for good measure though :S
06-24-2011, 09:04 PM - 1 Like   #10
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QuoteOriginally posted by vincechu Quote
Thanks for the info John, true that jpgs don't address artifacts very well.

I don't know how to upload to FTP (a quick google left me confused lol)

I know that banding is an artifact and can be sorted out in PP, so I know RAW will of course help me get better results sorting out the banding.
I sent you a PM
06-25-2011, 06:09 AM   #11
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Thanks JohnB, I really appreciate it.

For everyone else we're going to compare RAWs, and I'll post the results of this later - so perhaps this could serve as a reference to future k-5 users with concerns about banding.

Fingers crossed that our comparisons show that my K-5 is normal, but then again perhaps its better than mine is faulty and that all K-5's don't have banding? lol ;-) Then again banding seems to be a normal phenomenon on a few difference DSLRs
06-26-2011, 02:41 AM   #12
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QuoteOriginally posted by areidjr Quote
I haven't noticed any banding with my K-5, regardless of the ISO. Here is a shot at ISO 12800 that was developed from DNG. Do you see any signs of banding?



I haven't heard anything about a banding problem with the K-5.
Yes I do, look at the piano body at the bottom left of the image - it is very plain to see.

However, it is not bad at all and seems to be fairly common for high ISO shots of dark areas. A good chroma noise reduction software should sort it out, something like DxO or Lightroom should make a big difference.
06-26-2011, 05:33 AM   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by jlaubza Quote
Yes I do, look at the piano body at the bottom left of the image - it is very plain to see.

However, it is not bad at all and seems to be fairly common for high ISO shots of dark areas. A good chroma noise reduction software should sort it out, something like DxO or Lightroom should make a big difference.
You're seeing something that isn't there That's a highly polished finish and there are reflections on it from the marble floor. I can push it in ACR and still no banding is visible. There is some random color noise that is visible in the photo before NR is applied, but no banding.

Last edited by areidjr; 06-26-2011 at 05:50 AM.
06-26-2011, 12:12 PM   #14
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QuoteOriginally posted by vincechu Quote
However I'm still surprised that no one else has seen or mentioned the banding, so I was wondering if i have a dodgy sensor which is giving the banding or I'm pixel peeping too much lol.
At the pixel peeping level, you wouldn't notice the banding.

This sort of pattern noise is more pronounced on the K20D at ISO1600-3200. I guess I haven't noticed it on the K5 because I shoot at at most ISO1600. I try to bump one stop per camera generation (I was shooting at at most ISO800 with the K20D).
06-26-2011, 02:58 PM   #15
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QuoteOriginally posted by areidjr Quote
I haven't noticed any banding with my K-5, regardless of the ISO. Here is a shot at ISO 12800 that was developed from DNG. Do you see any signs of banding?
I can see what appear to be alternating white and black stripes near the center, running slightly diagonally downward.
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