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10-16-2009, 08:42 PM   #1
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JPEG settings for straight out of camera shots

I have always shot in RAW and made the changes I need in the comfort of my home. Next week I will be shooting the start of a yacht race but this time a yachting website wants to put the photos on the web as it happens. That means I will have to shot JPEG so he can load it straight in to his laptop on the boat we are using.

As I got a K20D I will shot in RAW+JPEG mode which means I can use the RAW files for my own prints and he can have the JPEG files for his website.

What settings do you guys use for JPEG? What settings would be best for saturation, contrast and sharpness. There will not be much time to adjust the photos more then resizing.

Cheers
Eddie

10-16-2009, 08:48 PM   #2
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Moved to DSLR discussion, please be careful where you post Eddie, thanks.
10-16-2009, 09:28 PM   #3
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QuoteOriginally posted by mingdie Quote
What settings do you guys use for JPEG?
I use the "natural" setting and everything in neutral, however, partly that's because I want to give myself the option of enhancing the image later on, rather than ending up with something blown because the contrast or saturation was set too high. Also, it is possible to sharpen an image in pp, but not to get rid of sharpening artefacts.

The settings also depend on the subject. For example with flowers, it is often necessary to reduce saturation so that the individual colour channels do not get blown.

Large white sails may require reduction of the contrast setting in order to avoid overall darkness of the image.

To cut a long story short, I think you need to experiment with the settings for your particular application. I'd start with "natural" and crank up the individual parameters until the image looks usable in terms of sharpness, contrast, and saturation.
10-17-2009, 04:33 AM   #4
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you need to check your white balance setting, and adjust it for the day, i.e. sunlight or shade.

also as others have suggested, lool at your contrast setting. assuming bright sunlight, reduce the contrast, perhaps all the way to minimum from neutral.

you might want to set the camera to look also at saturation, and depending on results give this a little boost because in bright sunlight, colors will wash out a little.

once you see jpeg results, when correctly set you may wonder why you shoot RAW

10-17-2009, 04:46 AM   #5
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Remember that your camera can do in camera RAW -> JPEG development.
You can change settings then.
Also you can do RAW+, and do JPEG development later on the RAW file if you do not like the realtime results.
You don't need a computer to do PP with a K20D, the camera will do a great job in many occassions.

- Bert
10-17-2009, 07:19 AM   #6
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I had a similar situation recently at work. I decided to setup a few of the "Custom Image" settings to suit different lighting. The intention was to remember which was which and quickly switch if necessary. I did take quick notes, but I should have written it on the back of my hand. In the heat of the moment I fumbled a couple of times, but in the end, when the light waned, I made a quick change and kept shooting.
I also reduced jpeg size to 6MP which produces a @2.5MB, @3000x2000 file. The site we uploaded to resized to 2500x, so no PP resize was necessary. I traded off with another photog. He shot, I edited and uploaded, then I shot, he edited, etc. His jpeg were a PITA, he said mine were very easy even though I didn't quite pull off what I intended.

gl
10-17-2009, 07:52 AM   #7
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You really need to run some tests to see what settings are going to work for you. I don't think an internet forum is going to give you what you need to know on this.

10-17-2009, 08:12 AM   #8
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QuoteOriginally posted by mingdie Quote
What settings do you guys use for JPEG? What settings would be best for saturation, contrast and sharpness. There will not be much time to adjust the photos more then resizing.

Cheers
Eddie
I shoot "raw + jpeg" with Vibrant image tone, contrast +1, saturation set to neutral, sharpness +1, (not fine sharpness because it sharpens noise). I'm going to experiment with hue, because I'm finding the K20D a bit cool, especially compared to slightly warm K100D colours.

I believe Portrait image tone uses the same default settings as Vibrant. Natural results in colours that are a little bit flat, more intended for post-processing. Vibrant will get you accurate colours with a little pop, but not exaggerated like Bright and Landscape.

My jpegs are 2mp; more than sufficient size for a monitor or web display. They don't take up much memory and are emailable in bunches.

Edit: I just did some experimenting with Hue, in sunlight, tungsten and fluorescent light, and will be leaving it set to +2. The K20D is definitely too blue at the default settings, which is very odd because the K100D is the opposite, too yellow. At least with the K20 the hue is adjustable.

Last edited by audiobomber; 10-17-2009 at 08:57 AM.
10-17-2009, 12:21 PM   #9
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Original Poster
Thank you for all your suggestions. Sorry for putting the thread in the wrong category.

It is quite obvious from your replies that I need to go out and do some tests before the event. When the race starts there is no time what so ever to fiddle and check the result. The catamarans will be coming towards us at 15 to 20 knots and I will have very little time to capture the boats. Unfortunately the boat I am on will not be out more then 30 minutes before the start so I will have to do my testing in the next couple of days.

The contrast as many of you pointed out will be something to watch out for. I did some test on the sharpness and +1 seems right. White balance I can do quickly on the day but I need to test the saturation and if the natural or vibrant setting is best.

Thanks
Eddie
10-17-2009, 12:50 PM   #10
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When I had k20D I settled for +1 sharpness and +1 contrast on Natural setting.

It did work for me.
10-17-2009, 01:02 PM   #11
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depends on the lens I'm using
10-17-2009, 01:42 PM   #12
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QuoteOriginally posted by mingdie Quote
Thank you for all your suggestions. Sorry for putting the thread in the wrong category.

It is quite obvious from your replies that I need to go out and do some tests before the event. When the race starts there is no time what so ever to fiddle and check the result. The catamarans will be coming towards us at 15 to 20 knots and I will have very little time to capture the boats. Unfortunately the boat I am on will not be out more then 30 minutes before the start so I will have to do my testing in the next couple of days.

The contrast as many of you pointed out will be something to watch out for. I did some test on the sharpness and +1 seems right. White balance I can do quickly on the day but I need to test the saturation and if the natural or vibrant setting is best.

Thanks
Eddie

I would suspect that vibrant might not be a good idea and also, whatever setting you use, you might need to dial back the saturation a notch. I'm saying this because if you have a lot of bright reds on the sails and hulls, they could come out looking over saturated. Something else for you to test.
10-17-2009, 06:40 PM   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by Damn Brit Quote
I would suspect that vibrant might not be a good idea
Vibrant sounds aggressive, but it's actually more conservative than the Bright setting that Pentax uses as default (and a lot more conservative than Landscape). Whatever setting the OP uses, it won't affect the raw files anyway, but certainly testing is a good idea and easy to do.
10-17-2009, 08:41 PM   #14
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Real answer is 'it depends on what you're shooting and if the day is overcast, etc, etc', but the short answer for the K20D is: 80% of the time, jpeg "Bright" setting with +2 fine sharpness is going to get you brilliant results.

Recently I've been hearing that 'fine' sharpness enhances noise more, but regular sharpness adjustment in camera does too, in fact I'd be hard-pressed to see the difference with regards to noise. But 'fine' just seems to render hair, eyelashes and things like that more naturally.

K20D is a very fine jpeg machine.
10-18-2009, 05:51 AM   #15
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QuoteOriginally posted by jsherman999 Quote
Recently I've been hearing that 'fine' sharpness enhances noise more
Probably because that's what DPR said in their review of the K20D.

QuoteOriginally posted by jsherman999 Quote
K20D is a very fine jpeg machine.
I'm thinking you're right. Certainly your colours always look good to me. I'm ignoring DPR and going back to the Pentax defaults and Bright setting for a while. I'll cycle Fine Sharpness on-off for low light shooting.

Last edited by audiobomber; 10-18-2009 at 09:18 AM.
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