[Spodeworld]

There was a big discussion on dpreview a while back about how overly aggressive NR on the K3 was making for blurry JPGs. Does anyone know if there was a change to how Auto NR is applied with the firmware updates?

Pentax K-3 Random Blurry Image Theory: Pentax SLR Talk Forum: Digital Photography Review

I know that there was a thread here on the topic:
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/172-pentax-k-3/244848-pentax-k-3-random-b...-theory-2.html

But still not sure if a firmware update addressed this.

Thanks

[rawr]

It's not an issue if you set your own in-camera options over NR - ie disable NR entirely below a certain ISO. Like most people have done with every Pentax.

Unfortunately the original poster on DPR stumbled around confusedly from the very start, talking about 'High ISO Sharpening', which doesn't exist as a setting, and 'High ISO Noise Reduction', and the discussion has been a mess ever since.

[Spodeworld]

@rawr - Thanks. That's what I was getting at. Whether the High ISO Noise Reduction Auto has been retuned in any firmware updates. Seems like it hasn't and that setting it manually is still recommended so that it isn't aggressively over-applied.

[rawr]

Whether the High ISO Noise Reduction Auto has been retuned in any firmware updates.

It may have. Every firmware update no doubt has lots of tweaks and adjustments hidden within it. But it's hard to test unless you maintain and shoot the same test scene from firmware version to firmware version, and apply identical settings.

Adjusting the JPEG default NR settings seems no drama. I could never understand the fuss. When I'm shooting JPEGs (as part of RAW+) I usually set high ISO NR to not apply at all until ISO 1600, and then to progressively get stronger. I've pretty much kept the same settings for my cameras since I got my K-x.

I also adjust the JPEG 'Custom Image' setting from the default 'Bright' to 'Natural' as well. It's all about tuning the camera defaults to taste.

[ScooterMaxi Jim]

From Day 1 (yes, I have the *istD), Pentax engineers have sided with caution and at least given users the opportunity to tune their JPEGs as they see fit. As a RAW shooter almost entirely, I haven't kept up with some of the tweaks. However, it is quite clear that with some testing you can arrive at a very good output that serves your desires. Pay especially close attention to the "fine sharpening" setting - as this can be key. When I have to rely on JPEGs (deadline shooting), I generally have my settings to low overall sharpening, relatively high fine sharpening, low noise reduction, and low and natural-oriented saturation. Not only do these settings tend to look right (at least to me), they avoid the risk of over-sharpening halos and saturation blow out.

Its like haircuts - nothing you can do about taking off too much. It is very hard to recover from blasted reds (due to oversaturation), noise reduction smears, and sharpening artifacts. You have more post-processing control coming from less aggressive settings.

[stevebrot]

There was a big discussion on dpreview a while back about how overly aggressive NR on the K3 was making for blurry JPGs. Does anyone know if there was a change to how Auto NR is applied with the firmware updates?

Not an issue for me. I shoot RAW.


Steve