D700 - auto bracketting

[arnica]

Hi All,

I recently upgraded to a D700 from a D90. However I seem to have some trouble getting my head around the auto bracket mode.

I had no problems with the auto bracket feature on the D90 as it could only do 3 frames (automatically), however the D700 allows up to 9 frames in auto bracket mode. I've tried using the 9 frame brackets, but when I merge the 9 frames together, there seems to be a lot of noise. I haven't tried using 7, 5, or 3 frame modes. But wanted to see if anyone have the same or has any help they can throw my way.

[Wayne]

I have used 5-7-9 frames often, and never experience noise unless it is shot using quite hi-ISO. post a few examples and let's see

[arnica]

I have used 5-7-9 frames often, and never experience noise unless it is shot using quite hi-ISO. post a few examples and let's see

I'll up an example when i get home.

[arnica]

As promised:



Check out the clouds on the left ...

[I @ M]

The first thing that comes to mind is to make sure that 'active d-lighting' is turned off in the camera menu.
While it can be a very useful feature for single exposures, the way it deals with highlights and shadows may be counter productive to bracketing multiple exposures.
I have done a reasonable amount of bracketed shots but never merged any so my 'theory' is only based on a thought about the way the 'active d-lighting' appears to work.

[Wayne]

Is the posted frame a stacked image or a single frame?

If it is already stacked say in photomatix, it will be the HDR software introducing the noise, which, I do get from time to time.

[arnica]

The first thing that comes to mind is to make sure that 'active d-lighting' is turned off in the camera menu.
While it can be a very useful feature for single exposures, the way it deals with highlights and shadows may be counter productive to bracketing multiple exposures.
I have done a reasonable amount of bracketed shots but never merged any so my 'theory' is only based on a thought about the way the 'active d-lighting' appears to work.

Yep I do believe active d-lighting was on. I'll be heading out tmr for some more shots, hopefully I'll remember to turn it off.

Is the posted frame a stacked image or a single frame?

If it is already stacked say in photomatix, it will be the HDR software introducing the noise, which, I do get from time to time.

Yep its a stacked image .. 9 to be exact

[arnica]

The first thing that comes to mind is to make sure that 'active d-lighting' is turned off in the camera menu.
While it can be a very useful feature for single exposures, the way it deals with highlights and shadows may be counter productive to bracketing multiple exposures.
I have done a reasonable amount of bracketed shots but never merged any so my 'theory' is only based on a thought about the way the 'active d-lighting' appears to work.

I just checked the settings on the camera .. active d-lighting was turned off.

[I @ M]

That fixes that theory then.

If Wayne has experienced similar noise with stacking software then it looks like you may need to be experimenting a bit more with your processing and noise reduction.

I am assuming that your 9 images were done at 200 ISO?

[lovecolt]

Does each of the 9 pics have noise? If not, then it would have to be your HDR merging program or processing.

[fillum]

Might be worth checking the iso on the original images. If Auto-ISO is turned on the auto bracketing can increase iso (although I think unlikely that it would get to the point where it was causing problems). (I'm assuming here that the D700 works like the D300).



Cheers.

[Wayne]

I find that with Photomatix, if I stack JPG files the final stacked image is much noisier than if I stack RAW files.

[arthurking83]

You shouldn't see noise from stacking the images, if anything you will see less noise if the processing software isn't doing any 'processing'

In the cameras settings, you should have all Picture Controls zeroed out for starters, and do those enhancements in post processing. Things like colour boost, contrast, but especially sharpening.

Using a sharpening setting of 1 in any of the Picture Controls is not so detrimental to the quality of the image(at 100% pixel view), but I've seen that @ a setting of 2 and above there is visible graining of the pixels .. and more so after processing the image as well. If you don't process at all and simply convert an NEF to a raster image, then a setting of 2 Sharpness will look ok.
(Did you shoot in NEF?)
If you shot in NEF mode, then use either of Nikon's software to zero out the Sharpness setting, and re process the images.
I'd say that sharpening in the images has made them slightly grainy, and the tone mapping process done by most HDR software has 'accentuated it' a little too. Looks like grain type noise, rather than chroma type noise.

ps. I'm starting to become a fan of the Color Efex Pro filter(for CaptureNX2) called Tonal Contrast but by default the settings are at 30,30,30(and 30 for colour) but the filter produced a very HDR looking image with a 101% tone mapped look(which I didn't like!).
After a bit of a hiatus because of the initial dislike of the filter, I then tried again and played with the adjustments, and I find that I tend to max out those numbers to 10(maybe 15 if the image can accept that setting without ill effect.
Tonal Contrast in Color Efex is similar to(or the same as) Tone Mapping in other programs.

Of course I don't have access to a D700(yet) but the D700's larger photosites may also be immune to higher Sharpening settings(compared to the D300(and even the D70s that I have too).

For Sharpening I only do the USM routine in PP now.

note: the Picture Control Sharpening method in the camera appears to be a lot more coarse, than the same process on your computer using either ViewNX or CaptureNX.
That is setting Sharpening in camera to 2 may look 'grainier' than using the same settings on your NEF file via the software.
But even the PC software editing of the Picture Control sharpness looks terrible compared to some well thought out USM.
In small prints you won't notice the differences in the various methods of doing any of this, but if the pixels have been affected with sharpening graininess, then processing them more(especially with tonal!) contrast just makes them .. well.. worse!