Pentax K-r JPEG image style setting

dmnf · 05-21-2013, 11:05 AM

Can some experienced K-r users share their prefer JPEG image style setting? Which one do you use most of the time and when will you change to other settings?

The camera offers seven image style settings: Bright (default), Natural, Portrait, Landscape,Vibrant, Muted, Bleach Bypass, Reversal Film, and Monochrome.

I use "Bright" when I first got the camera but the contrast seems too high. Recently, I changed to Portrait. But instead of trails and errors, I want to hear from the power users.

Philoslothical · 05-21-2013, 11:51 AM

I think you'll find the vast majority here shoot in raw, so as to take full advantage of what can be done in post. There is an awful lot of data lost by using jpeg, and it makes correcting exposure and white balance more difficult after the fact.

Personally, I keep the jpeg settings as baseline as possible. The natural setting will work in a pinch. I very rarely shoot jpeg though, and when I do, it's usually raw+jpeg.

What editor are you using to process your images? And how well versed in using that program are you?

Na Horuk · 05-21-2013, 12:11 PM

Mmh, I mostly shoot raw, very rarely jpeg. And if I switch to jpeg I don't bother changing the image setting, so I usually shoot with the default "bright." I sometimes swith to portrait for portraits, and landscape for landscapes. And black and white for.. black and white. Usually its pretty self explanatory

dmnf · 05-21-2013, 12:21 PM

I am not surprised to hear most of you guys use RAW. In my social circle, no one uses RAW and barely has anyone to PP their pictures.
I use Faststone and Photoshop CS3. I think I am familiar with Faststone.

I got my K-r since Feb and I have never tried RAW. May be it is time to start the exploring.

Na Horuk · 05-21-2013, 01:18 PM

I think quite a few people here use Faststone. Look at some digital processing techniques for it to get started. You will see that if you PP your own photos, they will look better.

asp1880 · 05-21-2013, 02:53 PM - **1 Like**

I shoot mostly (99%) jpegs. I only go to raw when the shot is important, hurried and with difficult exposure,
or if the scene holds great promise. Those situations are rare for me but it does happen.

I usually use the portrait setting. It's good for family and events with people as the main subject.
I like Bright for sports or colourful scenery like carnivals or parades, where I set
"shadow contrast" to -3 to get those wonderful dark blacks.
Sometimes I like Muted, Bleach bypass or Reversal film to enhance or counteract a mood in the scene.
I rarely use Vibrant or Landscape.

Natural is particularly good for coping with those blown reds that shift to magenta.
Or purples that shift to blue. Natural with a little underexposure and perhaps -1
saturation handles those bright colours with fidelity.

I really like the "save latest shot as raw" Pentax speciality. I also often redevelop the latest shot with
different jpeg settings (like shadow protection) directly from the custom image screen.

Regarding post processing, I feel that you can easily (for my quality standards anyway)
adjust things like white balance, saturation, contrast, colour casts etc. on a jpeg, as long as
that OOC jpeg was in the ballpark to begin with. You can not make heavy contrast and tone curve
manipulations though, like "lifting the shadows" several stops.

I completely understand why professionals and artisans use RAW for maximum safety and flexibility.
I'd also do so myself if I saw the need. But the in-camera jpeg engine is sufficient for me 99% of the
time. The Pentax jpeg engine is very flexible and has lots of sliders and settings to tweak.

Regards,
--Anders.

**JimJohnson** · 05-21-2013, 05:29 PM

First, know that if you shoot AutoPict or one of the scene modes, you don't get a choice how the jpeg engine in your K-r works. You are handing all decisions over to your camera with these settings, including jpeg rendition.

I shoot RAW+ and I categorize my photography into a couple groups - there are photographs and there are records. I always process photographs from RAW. Records come mostly from the jpg image.

For 20+ years, it was rare that I shot anything other than Ektachrome or Tri-X in my 35mm cameras. So I thought I would like the Reversal settings - well Reversal isn't anything like Ektachrome. It might be closer to Kodachrome which I never liked. I switched to either Bright (the default) or Natural. I never saw a need to create a custom profile for record shots. I can't remember the last record shot I wanted in B&W .... and photographs are done from RAW.

With few exceptions, I create B&W photographs, not records, so that work is done from RAW.

kalakatu · 05-29-2013, 06:40 PM

I use the Reversal Film. it gives me a high contrast color that suits to my liking

dmnf · 05-30-2013, 10:18 AM

I always miss out the Reversal Film mode. I know "Slide" or Positive Film but took me a while to link them up to "Reversal Film".
Thanks for all the JPEG users' suggestions. I will try them all particularly the "Reversal Film" mode.

**NS_Sailor** · 06-04-2013, 04:20 PM

Have you installed on your computer the latest version of the Pentax Photo Editing Software that came with the camera?
If you want to see the effect of different image styles try shooting some different types of photos in raw or jpeg mode and review them with the software in "Simple" Editing mode. While in this mode you select the various styles from a drop down menu and you can see the effects without changing the original image.
I personally shoot all the photos I shoot on both my K100D & K-R in raw mode and use these tools to tweek and adjust my photos

dhorvath · 12-09-2013, 02:46 PM

Does anyone have experience with the monochrome modes? In particular, b&w vs IR?

Does the IR just apply a slightly different filtering algorithm to colors (compared to b&w)? The manual is totally unhelpful.

Na Horuk · 12-09-2013, 03:56 PM

Originally posted by dhorvath

In particular, b&w vs IR?

What do you mean IR? B&W can be chosen when you press info and choose the jpeg mode ("custom image"). I dont know of an IR mode.

sterretje · 12-09-2013, 10:41 PM

Originally posted by dhorvath

Does anyone have experience with the monochrome modes? In particular, b&w vs IR?

Does the IR just apply a slightly different filtering algorithm to colors (compared to b&w)? The manual is totally unhelpful.

No experience with them; all those are subjective and you must just try them out to see what you like, regardless of how they work.

Originally posted by Na Horuk

What do you mean IR?

Page 213 of the K-r manual

dhorvath · 12-10-2013, 08:34 AM

I'm liking how the IR mode looks compared to plain B&W but was curious about some of the details.

dhorvath · 12-10-2013, 08:39 AM

Originally posted by Na Horuk

What do you mean IR? B&W can be chosen when you press info and choose the jpeg mode ("custom image"). I dont know of an IR mode.

In Monochrome, the top slider alters the color. I don't have the camera in front of me to reference all the modes but the last two are black&white and IR. The IR appears to be a slightly different algorithm applied to B&W but I can't be sure. The manual really doesn't provide much information on those modes.

I'm liking how the IR looks when shooting out in the woods. That's using natural light, normal exposure, and only a UV filter on the lens (no red or 720nm filter). I don't *think* the camera changes exposure or sensitivity of the sensor but wasn't sure (which is why I asked).

05-21-2013, 11:05 AM	#1
dmnf Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Vancouver BC Posts: 63	Pentax K-r JPEG image style setting Can some experienced K-r users share their prefer JPEG image style setting? Which one do you use most of the time and when will you change to other settings? The camera offers seven image style settings: Bright (default), Natural, Portrait, Landscape,Vibrant, Muted, Bleach Bypass, Reversal Film, and Monochrome. I use "Bright" when I first got the camera but the contrast seems too high. Recently, I changed to Portrait. But instead of trails and errors, I want to hear from the power users.

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05-21-2013, 11:51 AM	#2
Philoslothical Veteran Member Join Date: May 2011 Posts: 1,889	I think you'll find the vast majority here shoot in raw, so as to take full advantage of what can be done in post. There is an awful lot of data lost by using jpeg, and it makes correcting exposure and white balance more difficult after the fact. Personally, I keep the jpeg settings as baseline as possible. The natural setting will work in a pinch. I very rarely shoot jpeg though, and when I do, it's usually raw+jpeg. What editor are you using to process your images? And how well versed in using that program are you?

05-21-2013, 12:11 PM	#3
Na Horuk Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Slovenia, probably Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 11,186	Mmh, I mostly shoot raw, very rarely jpeg. And if I switch to jpeg I don't bother changing the image setting, so I usually shoot with the default "bright." I sometimes swith to portrait for portraits, and landscape for landscapes. And black and white for.. black and white. Usually its pretty self explanatory

05-21-2013, 12:21 PM	#4
dmnf Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Vancouver BC Posts: 63 Original Poster	I am not surprised to hear most of you guys use RAW. In my social circle, no one uses RAW and barely has anyone to PP their pictures. I use Faststone and Photoshop CS3. I think I am familiar with Faststone. I got my K-r since Feb and I have never tried RAW. May be it is time to start the exploring.

05-21-2013, 01:18 PM	#5
Na Horuk Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Slovenia, probably Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 11,186	I think quite a few people here use Faststone. Look at some digital processing techniques for it to get started. You will see that if you PP your own photos, they will look better.

05-21-2013, 02:53 PM - 1 Like	#6
asp1880 Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Lyngby, Copenhagen Photos: Albums Posts: 742	I shoot mostly (99%) jpegs. I only go to raw when the shot is important, hurried and with difficult exposure, or if the scene holds great promise. Those situations are rare for me but it does happen. I usually use the portrait setting. It's good for family and events with people as the main subject. I like Bright for sports or colourful scenery like carnivals or parades, where I set "shadow contrast" to -3 to get those wonderful dark blacks. Sometimes I like Muted, Bleach bypass or Reversal film to enhance or counteract a mood in the scene. I rarely use Vibrant or Landscape. Natural is particularly good for coping with those blown reds that shift to magenta. Or purples that shift to blue. Natural with a little underexposure and perhaps -1 saturation handles those bright colours with fidelity. I really like the "save latest shot as raw" Pentax speciality. I also often redevelop the latest shot with different jpeg settings (like shadow protection) directly from the custom image screen. Regarding post processing, I feel that you can easily (for my quality standards anyway) adjust things like white balance, saturation, contrast, colour casts etc. on a jpeg, as long as that OOC jpeg was in the ballpark to begin with. You can not make heavy contrast and tone curve manipulations though, like "lifting the shadows" several stops. I completely understand why professionals and artisans use RAW for maximum safety and flexibility. I'd also do so myself if I saw the need. But the in-camera jpeg engine is sufficient for me 99% of the time. The Pentax jpeg engine is very flexible and has lots of sliders and settings to tweak. Regards, --Anders.

05-21-2013, 05:29 PM	#7
JimJohnson Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Summer:Lake Superior - Michigan Winter:Texas Hill Country Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,772	First, know that if you shoot AutoPict or one of the scene modes, you don't get a choice how the jpeg engine in your K-r works. You are handing all decisions over to your camera with these settings, including jpeg rendition. I shoot RAW+ and I categorize my photography into a couple groups - there are photographs and there are records. I always process photographs from RAW. Records come mostly from the jpg image. For 20+ years, it was rare that I shot anything other than Ektachrome or Tri-X in my 35mm cameras. So I thought I would like the Reversal settings - well Reversal isn't anything like Ektachrome. It might be closer to Kodachrome which I never liked. I switched to either Bright (the default) or Natural. I never saw a need to create a custom profile for record shots. I can't remember the last record shot I wanted in B&W .... and photographs are done from RAW. With few exceptions, I create B&W photographs, not records, so that work is done from RAW.

05-30-2013, 10:18 AM	#9
dmnf Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Vancouver BC Posts: 63 Original Poster	I always miss out the Reversal Film mode. I know "Slide" or Positive Film but took me a while to link them up to "Reversal Film". Thanks for all the JPEG users' suggestions. I will try them all particularly the "Reversal Film" mode.

06-04-2013, 04:20 PM	#10
NS_Sailor Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Dartmouth Nova Scotia Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,020	Have you installed on your computer the latest version of the Pentax Photo Editing Software that came with the camera? If you want to see the effect of different image styles try shooting some different types of photos in raw or jpeg mode and review them with the software in "Simple" Editing mode. While in this mode you select the various styles from a drop down menu and you can see the effects without changing the original image. I personally shoot all the photos I shoot on both my K100D & K-R in raw mode and use these tools to tweek and adjust my photos

12-09-2013, 02:46 PM	#11
dhorvath New Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: suburban philadelphia pa Posts: 12	Does anyone have experience with the monochrome modes? In particular, b&w vs IR? Does the IR just apply a slightly different filtering algorithm to colors (compared to b&w)? The manual is totally unhelpful.

12-09-2013, 03:56 PM	#12
Na Horuk Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Slovenia, probably Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 11,186	Originally posted by dhorvath In particular, b&w vs IR? What do you mean IR? B&W can be chosen when you press info and choose the jpeg mode ("custom image"). I dont know of an IR mode.

12-09-2013, 10:41 PM	#13
sterretje Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Roodepoort, South Africa Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 3,561	Originally posted by dhorvath Does anyone have experience with the monochrome modes? In particular, b&w vs IR? Does the IR just apply a slightly different filtering algorithm to colors (compared to b&w)? The manual is totally unhelpful. No experience with them; all those are subjective and you must just try them out to see what you like, regardless of how they work. Originally posted by Na Horuk What do you mean IR? Page 213 of the K-r manual

12-10-2013, 08:34 AM	#14
dhorvath New Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: suburban philadelphia pa Posts: 12	I'm liking how the IR mode looks compared to plain B&W but was curious about some of the details.

12-10-2013, 08:39 AM	#15
dhorvath New Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: suburban philadelphia pa Posts: 12	Originally posted by Na Horuk What do you mean IR? B&W can be chosen when you press info and choose the jpeg mode ("custom image"). I dont know of an IR mode. In Monochrome, the top slider alters the color. I don't have the camera in front of me to reference all the modes but the last two are black&white and IR. The IR appears to be a slightly different algorithm applied to B&W but I can't be sure. The manual really doesn't provide much information on those modes. I'm liking how the IR looks when shooting out in the woods. That's using natural light, normal exposure, and only a UV filter on the lens (no red or 720nm filter). I don't think the camera changes exposure or sensitivity of the sensor but wasn't sure (which is why I asked).