My New Improved Workflow for DxO PhotoLab 7

My New Improved Workflow for DxO PhotoLab 7
It's been 9 months since DxO PhotoLab 7 was released and I've made a few changes to my photo processing workflow, some prompted by improvements in the software and others by improving my own efficiency!
I demonstrate my new workflow for landscape photography using a photograph taken of a deserted house in the Tabernas desert.
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Software that I use for Post Processing:
DxO Pure RAW (Pre Processing When Necessary)
Adobe Lightroom (Catalog Management and Editing)
DxO PhotoLab (RAW Processing)
Adobe Photoshop (Layer Based Processing)
Try out DxO PureRAW 4: tidd.ly/47lwlI5
Buy DxO PureRAW 4: tidd.ly/3wGqhfN
Try out DxO PhotoLab 7: tidd.ly/47lwlI5
Buy DxO PhotoLab 7: tidd.ly/47PI81e
Try the Nik Collection free for 30 days at: tidd.ly/4a18yi4
Buy the Nik Collection at tidd.ly/3TpQTcJ
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Chapters
0:00 Intro
0:43 The RAW Image
2:44 Setting up the Edit
5:03 Global Adjustments to Light and Tone
11:33 Color Adjustments
16:35 Local Adjustments
22:01 Export to Digital

[@ddsdss256]

Thanks. I've been using PL since v4 and it's always nice to see what approaches others use as there may be some tips and tricks I've missed. Personally, I prefer lower aspect ratios for most of my compositions, plus it's more "standard" for producing prints, but that's what's great about any artform--we all do things our way (especially how we use post-processing). I'm a bit surprised that you don't use ClearView, as a bit of de-hazing tends to make images pop and CV is very well executed, but of course you need to be subtle (as with HSL--way too many people way over-saturate, which just doesn't look natural). I'd also like to see how your image would look in B&W--do you also have Nik? I just upgraded to 7 and Silver Efex is just phenomenal. I expect DxO will add the enhanced U Point tech from Nik 7 to PL8 (along with DeepPRIME XD2, which should've been added to 7!).

[@chriswrightphotographs]

Thanks, I use clear view very sparingly as a global correction, I find any setting over about 20 looks "wrong" - to me. That being said, I use it with control points where the control seems more gently calibrated. Agree about Silver Efex, it's the subject of the next video. I hope you're right about the enhanced U Point tech and XD2. Both are impressive.

[@chriswrightphotographs]

What's your workflow? Mine has broadly remained the same for twenty odd years, with small amendments helped along by software improvements. Plan to do a more advanced workflow branching into Nik Collection in the next few weeks.

[@ianyorke2617]

Informative video, thanks. Couple of points: I find editing with a white background provides a white reference and takes away the "oomph" that a black background gives to any image. If you print the same image with large white borders and then a second time with large black borders they look very different to me? Before the colour rendering tab is switched on DXO defaults to using DXO Neutral Profile. As the Colour rendering will change the tone curve, colour saturation etc I always apply it before doing any other changes, selecting which of the colour profiles provides the best starting image look?

[@chriswrightphotographs]

Absolutely, good point. I always use white background when soft proofing for print. Agree also about the colour rendering, anything that changes the saturation or luminosity levels needs to be done early in the process, I generally go with optical corrections, then cropping, then colour rendering. Leaving these till later in the process almost always incurs rework on the basic settings and colour adjustments.

[@KevinPhillipssb]

Hi Chris, thank you for your latest workflow demonstration. You didn’t mention sharpening at all. Does that feature in your workflow at all as I thought raw files needed at least a little bit. Thanks for doing the videos!

[@chriswrightphotographs]

Thanks for pointing this out. I didn’t, feature it as the intention was to take that tiff to Nik Collection and demo sharpening options there. But length deterred me - I’ll do that video for next week.

[@HudShot]

Loved the comment about 16:9 photos. I feel the same way. Have you experimented much with the wider CinemaScope ratio of 2.35:1? More limited application I would think, but the right photo would look great I think.

[@chriswrightphotographs]

Not knowingly, but I have some stitched panoramas of the Gorafe desert that I’ve been meaning to revisit, I’ll try this, thanks for mentioning it!

[@alexyphotoman9716]

Another excellent video - thanks.... My workflow is much like yours; however I start by applying a preset which I've created for my Nikon camera. It is a colour corrected (Calibrite) linear Nikon D500 profile which gives me a wide scope for change. I also use the DxO wide gamut colour space, and since I'm using a dcp profile, I employ the DxO dcp curve rather than the adobe as it also affords a wider range (I think!). I appreciate your advice to walk away from the edit so as to return with fresh eyes and yes, it is difficult at times to avoid ending up with an hdr effect or death by a thousand mouse clicks image. I do my local adjustments at the end as you do, then return for a final assessment - mostly exposure levels and contrast, before exporting. I use a telephoto zoom fairly often especially for wildflower images and If my image is not as sharp as I'd prefer due to wind, I'll run the image through Topaz AI to selectively reduce blur, then back to Photolab for any final adjustments, then to export. Since I switched to Photolab exclusively a year back, I've found that the one thing that I miss from Lightroom is the ability to separately adjust the luminosity in each of the shadows, mids and brights - haven't found as good a way to do this in Photolab. I've used the luminosity masks, but they are not quite the same, at least in my hands. Do you know if one can do this more easily in the Nik 7 collection? This could be something to look at in your upcoming Nik Collection videos. Cheers from Canada,.....Alex

[@chriswrightphotographs]

Interesting and very logical. How are you finding Topaz AI? I’ve heard very mixed reports but never tried it myself. Intrigued! Regarding the Lightroom mid tones question, I’m pretty sure I can get equivalent corrections with a combo of filters in Color Efex. Might be more complicated though. I’ll test and video - not next week, but week after. “The best filters for landscape Photography”

[@alexyphotoman9716]

@@chriswrightphotographs Sorry for the delay - I just got several emails from DxO telling me of their 20th anniversary - splendid - and more to the point, offering a 20% discount on all of their software, so I've just purchased Nik 7, and I'll be installing it next and trying out your suggestion. The Viewpoint software can wait until black friday as I don't have much of a need for it since I can use the pared down tools already available in PL7. As to Topaz photo AI - it is useful, but often I turn the sharpen effect down from the automatic level applied. I like the fact that it comprises several modules in the one program. The upscale seems pretty good and I'm no longer as leery of cropping into a smaller detail in an image. The facial enhancement is ok, but I don't have much need for it as it's mostly sharpening that I use since I'm using either a 100mm macro or the variable zoom producing a shallow depth of field and it doesn't take much motion either from me or a breeze to blur an image. The D500 is an APS-C sensor, so the angle of view is narrowed as well. Again, thanks for your videos - I've sent links to several of my photo friends who've liked them as well.

[@chriswrightphotographs]

Yes, in multiple languages! Thanks for the recommendations, much appreciated!

[@scottallen8174]

Question.. How does the noise reduction in DXO Photolab 7 Elite stand up to Topaz's Noise AI?

[@chriswrightphotographs]

I've never used Topaz Noise AI, so I can't give a subjective assessment. What I can say from direct experience is that Noise Reduction in PhotoLab 7 and PureRAW is still considerably better than that in Lightroom, but Adobe are closing what used to be a huge gap. I've heard/read that Noise AI is pretty effective. There is a new Noise Reduction option in PureRAW, XD2 which is slightly more aggressive but allows sharpening to be modified to four levels according to taste. I'd expect that to turn up in PL8.

[@scottallen8174]

Thank you!

[@ddsdss256]

I have topaz DeNoise and Photo AI (which uses the same tech). It works very well (and with any file type), but I prefer DxO DeepPRIME XD for RAW NR (if needed). Whenever you use any such enhancements (not just NR, but sharpening and Gigapixel in the case of Topaz), you need to be careful not to overdo it, as it can produce some weird artifacts.