Uprez before or after?

SG
Posted By
Scottie_G.
May 6, 2005
Views
495
Replies
5
Status
Closed
I had a project where I upresed in ACR.
and then did adjustment in 16 bit, layers etc.
and then flattened later to 8 bit.

But is it possibly better to not upres, do adjustments in 16 bit with all layers etc, and then upres at the end? or does it matter? and if the latter is better, then upres in 16 bit or after you flattened file to 8 bit. thanks!

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C
chrisjbirchall
May 6, 2005
Wherever possible all adjustments are better made in 16 bit mode.

I prefer to open a RAW file to 16 bit at its actual captured size, carry out any edits then save this ‘master’ file, still in 16 bit, unsharpened, and at the same size.

Then I resize the image as necessary, sharpen, convert to 8 bit and save this new version ready for printing.

The exception would be:

If the final image is to be much bigger than the generic size and a certain amount of destructive’ editing needs to be done, I would upsize first so as not to exaggerate the any artifacts resulting from the edit.

Hope this helps.

Chris.
C
chrisjbirchall
May 6, 2005
* ** DOUBLE POST ***

Beam me up Scottie!!
SG
Scottie_G.
May 6, 2005
No, Chris, that wasn’t the question weather to use 16 bit or not, I stated clearly I’m doing that. This question is completly about when to upres.
C
chrisjbirchall
May 6, 2005
Scottie. I didn’t misunderstand your question, but I think you’ve misinterperated my answer.

Perhaps I muddied the water by adding too much extra info.

I feel it is best to open in ACR at the generic size and resize the image in Photoshop after doing any edits, but before converting to 8 bit.

I have interperated your term ‘upres’ to mean upsize. (Simply changing the resolution without resampling will not have any disruptive effect on the image pixels).

The resampling which takes place during any change in size, up or down, will have a destructive consequences for the image and should only be carried out once. Therefore it is generally best to make this the very last step (other than sharpening) after saving a master copy of the image.

And to clarify the last paragraph in post #1, which goes contrary to the above advice: In the case of an image destined to become considerably bigger than its generic size, I would upsize first (in Photoshop, not ACR, so I could choose the interpolation method) before any destructive edits so as to avoid upsampling any unwanted artifacts.

Hope this is the info you were looking for.

Chris.
GA
George_Austin
May 6, 2005
Scottie,

Editing in 16 bits preserves detail relative to editing in 8 bits WHEN THAT EDITING ALTERS THE INPUT-OUTPUT (I/O)CURVE, as in the Levels and Curves operations. Edits (upsampling, for example) not altering the I/O relationship do not benefit from higher tones. Therefore, insofar as upsampling itself is concerned, it may be performed at either stage. But it would seem cleaner to defer upsampling until other editing has been completed so as not to be editing ersatz pixels.

George

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